No imbalance in RTÉ debate

As a fellow participant in the RTÉ Late Debate programme last Thursday.

I would like to comment on Fr Joe McDonald’s accusation of imbalance (Mar 2).

The debate was trailed as “Good & Bad – Benedict’s Legacy”. RTE invited four panellists — two likely to speak in praise and two likely to have criticisms. That is not an anti-Catholic agenda, that is balance. Maybe Fr McDonald should check the definition of “debate”. It is the discussion of both sides of opinion on a subject, not just the one you favour. Fr McDonald complains that the child sex abuse crisis was discussed; saying “Church scandals” should have been omitted. This is despite the fact that he expressed the view, early in the programme, that this issue “is a significant topic in his papacy” and it was Pope Benedict’s papacy we were discussing!

I found the presenter of the programme Audrey Carville very fair in her handling of the debate. She gave all an opportunity to speak and Fr McDonald and Senator Mullen had more air time than the other panellists. It was also made clear that the discussion would be moving on from the abuse issue to other topics for the second half of the programme. That this did not come to pass is not the fault of RTÉ, it was due rather to Fr McDonald and Sen Mullen, who, by refusing to engage in debate, derailed the whole programme.

I was shocked to hear Fr McDonald insult myself and the female journalist on the panel by characterising our contributions as “pub talk”! It would appear to me that Fr McDonald is missing the days when the Church had power to control the media. I’m sorry Fr McDonald, those days are gone — thankfully.

Marie Collins

Firhouse

Dublin 24