Newspaper man’s memoirs launched

TIM PAT COOGAN, one of the country’s most respected former newspaper editors and author of a number of controversial biographies, has written his own story which was launched in Dublin last night by Professor John Horgan, press ombudsman.

A Memoir, from the personal to the political, begins with his upper middle-class family in 1930s Dublin and traces his formative years against a background of highly-charged political activity in Ireland.

Coogan went on to play a vital role in bringing the IRA/Sinn Féin to the peace talks table, and has always been uniquely placed to comment authoritatively on all aspects of Irish current affairs.

The memoir continues through the Irish Press, of which he was editor for 20 years, and reveals both the public and private life of one of Ireland’s most influential journalists.

Coogan, son of an IRA Volunteer of the 1919-1922 period, was educated at Blackrock College in Dublin.

He has written controversial books such as The IRA, Ireland Since the Rising, On the Blanket, Michael Collins and Éamon de Valera.

His first book, Ireland Since The Rising, was published in 1966.

His biography of Éamon de Valera proved the most controversial, taking issue with the former Irish president’s reputation and achievements, in favour of those of Collins, whom he regards as indispensable to the creation of the new State.

“The launch of a memoir by one of the better known Irish newspaper editors of the twentieth century is, among other things, an occasion to reflect not only on the past of our newspapers, but on their future,” Prof Horgan said last night.

“The events of the past few days and weeks have demonstrated that the day when newspapers were first with the news is long past. The speed of events in the global financial collapse is such that most newspapers are out of date between the time that they are printed and the time that they leave the printing works — at least in respect of that major story.

“Radio, and later television, have had a head start on breaking news for some time. Even these media are now continually challenged, in this area,” he said.

“Even though the print media may no longer carry the cachet of being first with the news, they should never willingly surrender the claim of being best with the news — most detailed, most reliable, most authentic, most prepared to accept that social, economic and political reality has many sides ...

“These are high ideals, and they are not inexpensive to put into practice,” Prof Horgan said.