Noble cause that needs our support - Public service broadcasting

The flag-waving and cheers of recent days provoked all the usual debates about 1916, confirming once again, as if it needed to be, that we all cling to our particular beliefs certain in the knowledge that our view is the correct one and that any other need not be countenanced.

It may almost be treasonable to use a phrase that was so helpful in breaking great historical deadlocks to broker the relative peace we enjoy today but we all, to a greater or a lesser degree, use convenient fictions to shape our view of that transformative event. Therefore, it is unlikely that a consensus will ever be achieved on 1916. So be it. But one truth underlined again by the period of national commemoration is that our national broadcaster, RTÉ is by far the dominant voice at the point where our politics, culture, and history come together — and that is just as it should be.

Because of this, and because of the relentless evolution in communications technology and increasingly concentrated media ownership, quickly changing consumption habits, and the huge challenges around the sustainability of public service broadcasting, the appointment of a new director general of RTÉ is a pretty significant event in Irish life.