Newstalk hits back at Dunphy’s ‘false and malicious’ claims

BOSSES at Newstalk radio have hit back with a scathing retaliation against departing presenter Eamon Dunphy after he claimed management interference in his editorial freedom forced him to quit his weekly show on the radio station.

Newstalk chief executive Frank Cronin accused the outspoken broadcaster of making “outrageous” and “false and malicious” allegations about the station because he was disgruntled about a pending pay cut.

Mr Dunphy, believed to have been paid €100,000 a year for his two-hour weekly programme, used his final show on Sunday to attack station owner Denis O’Brien, whom, he said, “hates journalism”.

Mr Dunphy claimed pressure from management to put a “positive spin” on news had made life “impossible” for him and other journalists.

Mr Cronin said last night that the station rejected the presenter’s claims, which he described as “reckless” and “offensive” to other staff.

“These false and malicious allegations were made as a direct result of a request to Mr Dunphy to take a reduction in his fees,” he said.

“The fee paid to Mr Dunphy was deemed to be inordinately high for two hours’ broadcasting per week in the current economic climate. Furthermore, the decision was taken in light of his relatively poor listenership figures.”

Mr Cronin said shows had been requested not to focus overwhelmingly on doom and gloom stories. He defended the policy and said it was ridiculous to claim, as Mr Dunphy did, that journalists were being intimidated.

“We felt that Irish media was focusing too much on the negative and that this was contributing to the overall feeling of desolation and despair. There are many positive recovery stories in Ireland that should be aired in addition to reporting on the difficult times that we are in.

“Newstalk feels that it has a moral obligation to act responsibly and help the nation to recover and our request to be more positive was a response to this,” Mr Cronin said.