Explain please: RTÉ turns a deaf ear to Lyric offer

RTÉ’s difficulties have come to a head and though they revolve, primarily around funding, other contribuatory factors have been exposed. One is the institutionalised reticence around change. Another is an unattractive sense of entitlement. Ironically, that unsustainable sense of entitlement is matched by an unhealthy level of public scorn for our public service broadcaster.

Another issue exposed is how very concentrated in Dublin our State-supported broadcaster remains. The proposal to close the Lyric FM’s Limerick base underlines this and removed a strand of legitimacy from RTÉ’s claim that it is a national body. That a visionary offer made by the president of University of Limerick, Des Fitzgerald, to offer Lyric a home on UL’s campus fell on deaf ears seems to confirm this.

Lyric is a small strand in the RTÉ story — and budget — but it is hugely symbolic. It punches far above its weight in RTÉ’s battle for credibility. RTÉ must explain why the offer was rejected and why what seems a perfect opportunity for positive social and academic synergy was squandered.