Forced to face the music at Montrose
The departure of Pat Kenny after over 40 years’ residency in Montrose may have come as a shock to viewers, but it may not have surprised the top brass at RTÉ.
If the rumours are close to the truth, it appears that the broadcaster, now 65, has been feeling disregarded in the wake of management’s response to the so called “tweetgate affair” after the Frontline presidential debate.
Also the axing of Frontline appears to have been taken badly by its presenter.
Whatever the real story behind the defection, it clearly represents a coup for News Talk, Communicorp and the ubiquitous Denis O’Brien. Certain other media stars and agents may be walking around with an added spring in their step.
But where does this leave RTÉ and its director general, Noel Curran, a man whose in-tray has been more than well filled since he seized what must be considered a poisoned chalice two and a half years ago? By the end of the year, we should have a pretty good idea about the impact of the defection.
Kenny, arguably the most talented current affairs presenter in the country, will take a large chunk of his audience with him. Can he retain most of this without the back-up of researchers who have served him so well at RTÉ though?
Finally, we may be about to get a real understanding of the real commercial worth of one of the country’s broadcasting behemoths.
If Newstalk’s gamble is seen to pay off, it could underpin a new round of celebrity signings, adding further to the commercial pressures on the national broadcasting service.
When Curran returned to the station after a brief exile of just under a year, he would have been all too familiar with the scale of the challenge he was taking on.
The station, like so many large organisations in the land, grew bloated during the fat years. Top presenters came to command enormous salaries and payrolls mushroomed in size.
There has been brave talk this week, emanating from Montrose.
Mixed with the tributes to an iconic broadcaster have been some upbeat managerial mutterings about cost savings from his departure running into several hundred thousand euro.
But the reaction of one key player should provide RTÉ bosses with plenty of food for thought.
Alan Cox is the CEO of Core Media, the largest media buying group in Ireland. In his view, “Kenny is a huge loss. He is a pivotal player. Radio One has never really recovered from the loss of Gay Byrne. Developing a radio persona is a very slow process.”
Advertisers will, no doubt, be carrying out extensive audience research in the next few weeks as they consider what to place on each media horse in the wake of the Kenny move.
The news coincides with the release of the RTÉ annual report for 2012 and with the release of the latest advertising figures for 2012.
Cox says: “We expected growth this year, but the first half has been very weak. Ad income on radio is down 9% while TV ad revenue is down 7%. Print is down 14%, while outdoor is up 7% (off a very low base). Cinema is down 7% while online is up 10%. The decline overall is 4%.”
The Core Media boss, however, predicts a modest upswing in the second half with TV back up by 3% to 4% and radio inching up by 2% following a return to growth in July.
However, he warns that nothing is certain. “Consumer sentiment is still very fragile. The market has fallen by 45% since 2007.”
In Cox’s view “Noel Curran is doing a very good job of harnessing the strength of the organisation, but he is hamstrung. He has made huge progress but he needs to slim down the organisation administratively. He is not a procrastinator, but RTÉ is like a tanker. There is a long way to go before it is turned round.”
The problem is RTÉ’s legacy as a 50-year-old State body. “TV3 is far more efficient. If you started off with a blank page, you would design things differently at RTÉ.”
“RTÉ can make fantastic programmes. Love Hate is brilliant, world class.”
According to former communications minister, Eamon Ryan, the man who sanctioned his appointment in late 2010, “Noel Curran is the right man for the job. He is a listener and he understands TV. His instinct is right — to pare back on some of the commercial operations and strengthen the public service side. You may see RTÉ divesting some of its operations such as RTÉ2.” In his view, RTÉ should press ahead with the appointment of young presenters, people like the Pat Kenny of 40 years ago.
He too accepts that Curran faces formidable obstacles: “RTÉ is in real trouble as commercial income continues to fall.”
The DG himself has had to combine cost-cutting with the development of a new vision for the organisation at a time when RTÉ has to closely re-examine its own current affairs programming practices in the light of the Fr Kevin Reynolds libel case following the Prime Time Investigates programme, ‘Mission to Prey’. The mishandling of the Frontline presidential debate and its aftermath only added to a sense of internal panic in the organisation.
Curran was quick to own up to the scale of the problem.
As he put it, in a memo to staff : “Very serious editorial failures have caused RTÉ to review, and reflect on, all its editorial policy and practices.” Ironically, he had been behind the launch of Prime Time Investigates, seen as bringing a new hard edge to programming. He also worked closely with the late Mary Raftery on some of her ground-breaking programmes.
Last year, the current affairs division was restructured and new journalism guidelines were put in place. A new multi-media investigation unit was established and editorial management was restructured. An editorial standards board made up of senior executives was established.
Members include Steve Carson, director of programmes (and husband of presenter, Miriam O’Callaghan, a possible replacement for Pat Kenny in the mid-morning slot).
All of this has taken place against the background of a decline in revenues brought on by the economic slump and the proliferation in rival media outlets.
This week, RTÉ reported a net deficit for 2012 of €65m — around €8m more than had been anticipated a year ago. Around €46m of this is attributable to one-off restructuring costs.
As Noel Curran put it : “In 2012, RTÉ delivered its most radical cost-cutting measures, with a restructuring programme that has brought operating costs to a significantly lower level.” In May 2012, he outlined a €25m cost reduction plan involving a 30% cut in top presenter pay and a 25% cut in spending on sports rights which has seen RTÉ pull back from coverage of Premiership soccer, a brave move yet one that is surely justified in times of stringency.
The cost base has already been reduced by 30% since 2008, with 500 staff having already departed.
In this environment, rivals scent an opportunity. Sky has stepped up the competition, while revenues at TV3 are growing.
A few weeks ago, Curran outlined his vision for the future in an address to Screen Producers Ireland.
He did so while stressing the wider context. “This year, big decisions will be made about the future of Irish public service media. There is the review of the adequacy of public funding being conducted by the BAI [broadcasting authority]. This will be followed by decisions on the future of the license fee.”
Curran’s response has been to fly the flag.
“Ireland needs a media organisation that has the scale and resources to guarantee a strong and distinctive Irish voice.”
He is fortunate that Pat Rabbitte, a man viewed as sympathetic to public service media, is in charge of broadcasting and not a privateer in the mould of Ray Burke, the former Fianna Fáil minister who championed Century Radio, back in the late 1980s.
The DG will be hoping for a decent divvy out from the new media charge which is set to replace the license fee, now under attack as people shift to watching TV on computers and mobile devices.
“Greater predictability of public funding will allow us to make more strategic decisions,” says Curran.
At the same time, he accepts that RTÉ needs new sources of revenue with sales of series such as the crime drama Love/Hate and the launch of a new premium RTÉ Player service for overseas viewers.
The challenges remain huge, but it still seems that Curran is the man for the job. The question is whether any individual, however capable, can surmount the obstacles that a terrestrial broadcaster like RTÉ will encounter.
1967 in Monaghan.
Dublin City University.
Investigative reporter, Business & Finance magazine — later deputy editor. 1992: Joined RTÉ as reporter, later, producer, editor. Worked on documentaries such as Cardinal Secrets and Broken Trust. 1997: Executive producer Eurovision Song contest. 2003: Managing director, RTÉ TV — promoted home programming. 2010: Left RTÉ on career break. Nov 2010: Appointed as director general in succession to Cathal Goan. Feb 2011 to date: Director general.
Married to singer Eimear Quinn. Two children.
Monaghan.
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