Airing Erris 3: Focus on policing

Willie Corduff speaking as Denis Halliday (right) looks on.  Photo: Brian Fitzpatrick
Willie Corduff speaking as Denis Halliday (right) looks on. Photo: Brian Fitzpatrick

The third episode in the “Airing Erris” series was held yesterday in Ceathrú Thaidhg in Erris, County Mayo.  This episode focussed on policing and included contributions from former UN assistant Secretary-General Denis Halliday, Goldman Environmental prize winner Willie Corduff, former Garda and Human Rights Monitor Bernard McCabe, peace activist Margaretta D’Arcy and investigative journalist Gemma O’Doherty.  Garda Whistleblower John Wilson, also attended, and spoke about his experiences of Garda corruption.

The event was livestreamed by Atlantic Livestream and can be watched again here.

Lorna Siggins also wrote an article about the event in the Irish Times: Ex-UN official calls for presidential commission to investigate Garda

Date for your Diary: Airing Erris 3, 6th July 2014

glengadfrommtnLook out for the 3rd installment of the series of events entitled “Airing Erris”. This event will focus on the policing of the Corrib Gas project and will take place in An tSeanscoil, Ceathrú Thaidhg, Co. Mayo at 1pm on Sunday July 6th.

Further information to follow.

To find out more about the other events in the Airing Erris series:

Airing Erris 1: http://www.afri.ie/news-and-events/airing-erris-the-media-and-shell-corrib-2/

Airing Erris 2: http://www.afri.ie/news-and-events/airing-erris-journalism-has-been-infected-by-corporate-public-relations/

Airing Erris: Journalism has been “infected” by “corporate public relations”

At “Airing Erris 2” from left to right: Award winning journalist Ed Vulliamy, Joe Murray (Afri Co-ordinator), and Donal O’Kelly (actor and playwright).

The distinguished Guardian and Observer journalist, Ed Vulliamy, paid warm tribute to the community in Erris who have been resisting the imposition of the Gas Corrib project on their community since 2000, when he spoke at Airing Erris 2 in Ceathrú Thaidhg on Sunday, March 16th. Mr. Vulliamy, the journalist who broke the story of Shell’s supplying large quantities of alcohol to Gardaí in Belmullet, said he was inspired by the courage and commitment of the community and the way in which they have ‘ joined the dots’ in terms of the project and its wider implications. He also described the alcohol to Gardaí in Belmullet story as an interesting bagatelle in context of UN Rapporteur’s claim of excessive use of force by Gardaí against peaceful protesters.

Journalist William Hederman outlined examples of media distortion in relation to the project. For example, the ‘rape tapes’ issue was shamefully mishandled by Gardaí and GSOC and those against whom rape was ‘jokingly’ threatened were utterly failed, let down and undermined by elements of the media.

Richie O’Donnell, whose company Atlantic Stream broadcast the event on line, spoke about plans to ‘be our own media’ of which ‘Airing Erris’ is a very good example.

Airing Erris was hosted by Afri is collaboration with Atlantic Stream. You can watch this event online here. Lorna Siggins wrote a piece about this event in the Irish Times, which can be read here.

Airing Erris: The Media and Shell Corrib

From Left to Right: Betty Purcell (former Editor of Features and Current Affairs RTE), Harry Browne (Journalist and lecturer in Media Studies DIT), Joe Murray (Afri Co-ordinator), Lelia Doolan (documentary-maker and former CEO of the Irish Film Board), and Liamy McNally (Mayo-based freelance journalist) at Airing Erris in Co. Mayo on Saturday 18th January.
From Left to Right: Betty Purcell (former Editor of Features and Current Affairs RTE), Harry Browne (Journalist and lecturer in Media Studies DIT), Joe Murray (Afri Co-ordinator), Lelia Doolan (documentary-maker and former CEO of the Irish Film Board), and Liamy McNally (Mayo-based freelance journalist) at Airing Erris in Co. Mayo on Saturday 18th January.  Photo: Dave Donnellan

By Harry Browne

By honoured tradition, we journalists still half-jokingly call public-relations (PR) professionals “the enemy”. But we know they have a job to do, we know they often help us do their job – and we know that if we’re really at war with them, we’re losing.

The basic reason is pretty simple: they’ve got more and more resources (money, time, people) to push the corporate or government line, and we’ve got fewer and fewer with which to filter out the truth from the propaganda.

And when PR people are good and do their job really well, they get the ears of our bosses and make our jobs even harder. Continue reading “Airing Erris: The Media and Shell Corrib”