The Ditch: political organisation or media??

[Setanta]

After the tanistes rather impassioned rant/speech in the dail today on the subject of the ditch reporting, depending upon ones POV

Do you think it's a political organisation or media organisation??


I think it's a media organisation,questionable in its merits/owners carryon (don't think democracy here should be plaything of some rich persons ego-but it has done some good work aswell TBF) and would like to know if it's accountable to the press ombudsman

[PogMoThoin22]

They're rattled, great to see

The Ditch released a tweet dispelling the lies Collins was telling the Dail as he was lying to the Dail

[PogMoThoin22]

And there's more, some document forgery. Grabbing popcorn!!!

[schmittel]

If it's true, and it would appear to be so, people should be focussed on what they are publishing rather than trying to deflect with why they are publishing it.

I couldn't care less for the likes of Cosgrave, but it seems to me that the ditch is the only media organisation that is doing any proper investigative journalism in this country.

Most of their scoops have been hiding in plain sight in historic freely available planning applications, other stuff has been revealed in FOIs.

Instead of getting our knickers in a twist about their funders' axes to grind, we should be asking why have the all the journalists working for apparently non politically motivated media organisations not unearthed this stuff.

Is it because they are lazy/crap at their jobs/politically motivated? Or a combination of all three?

Hats off to the Ditch I say.

[BrianD3]

There's a big red flag with the stamped letter - in the subject line, Eimear O'Connor is not aligned with the rest of the text. Looks very much like this letter was sloppily altered after it was typed. Why was that?

Limerick "Council" Council annoys me too - do these people not know the name of the organisation they work for. A Senior Engineer is paid around 80-90k, these sloppy errors should not be happening.

[Setanta]

If it's true, and it would appear to be so, people should be focussed on what they are publishing rather than trying to deflect with why they are publishing it.

I couldn't care less for the likes of Cosgrave, but it seems to me that the ditch is the only media organisation that is doing any proper investigative journalism in this country.

Most of their scoops have been hiding in plain sight in historic freely available planning applications, other stuff has been revealed in FOIs.

Instead of getting our knickers in a twist about their funders' axes to grind, we should be asking why have the all the journalists working for apparently non politically motivated media organisations not unearthed this stuff.

Is it because they are lazy/crap at their jobs/politically motivated? Or a combination of all three?

Hats off to the Ditch I say.

The thing about Collins,like several other TDs,is he a county councillor level politian who has risen to level well above his competence


What he done,is and has gone on wholesale across the country,I could name a dozen local councillors who done much worse (always was surprised no tribunal was held here tbh)...



the establishment needs more than ever to protect him........in spite of what seems obvious clearcut collaspe in ethics standards, otherwise it'll end up tearing itself apart fire-fighting endless planning controversies for foreseeable future.....all of its own making

[Jack The Stripper]

If it's true, and it would appear to be so, people should be focussed on what they are publishing rather than trying to deflect with why they are publishing it.

I couldn't care less for the likes of Cosgrave, but it seems to me that the ditch is the only media organisation that is doing any proper investigative journalism in this country.

Most of their scoops have been hiding in plain sight in historic freely available planning applications, other stuff has been revealed in FOIs.

Instead of getting our knickers in a twist about their funders' axes to grind, we should be asking why have the all the journalists working for apparently non politically motivated media organisations not unearthed this stuff.

Is it because they are lazy/crap at their jobs/politically motivated? Or a combination of all three?

Hats off to the Ditch I say.

The government are in full control of the msm that’s why they won’t break any story. I see Gavin Reilly like a terrier the last couple of days thinking he the new Veronica Guerin when all he was spouting was grade B manure.

[schmittel]

FuyMeC6XwAEtq0S.jpeg (39.53 KiB) Viewed 7234 times

Fake news and Russian propaganda. The answer to so many of the inconvenient questions of our times.

[marhay70]

Whatever it may be it's good to have something to agitate the excrement. For far too long the politicians and the media have had a cosy, back slapping, whose round is it? sort of relationship and something on the lines of Private Eye has been required for a long time. Phoenix has its place but is not as, "in your face" as I'd like it to be.
We only have to look at the UK and the US and the tragedy of the manipulation of truth in politics and the media, Johnson and Trump just told lie after lie, barefaced, until they could no longer deny it. This will mean the end of democracy in the world and it needs to be stopped, what happened in Limerick may seem small beans but we need to show the politicians that they cannot act with impunity.

[Jack The Stripper]

Wait till the Tayto lady comes back to office and she will start amending current laws and drafting new laws to shut us up altogether. We will turn on our tv and it will be just one state propaganda tv channel.
It’s going to be a crime shortly for saying you disagree with immigration ffs.

[schmittel]

In the context of his alarm about the possibility of Russian involvement in the release of the minutes of the Bruff Local Area Committee it was interesting to note Tánaiste Micheál Martin doesn't see the presence of Russian ships in Irish waters as a threat.

[kadman]

Why would he have a problem, it wont be long before the government offer the US a port for the use of, so they can monitor the russian ships for us. Sure they already have shannon, and we dont have any say in that, just to maintain that we are a neutral country....

[schmittel]

So now that Collin's has had time to engage in mature reflection, apparently the Gardai have taken an interest:



Not a great look this afternoon for our Minister for Justice either. Standing shoulder to shoulder with a fellow making statements that are potentially an admission to breaking the law.

Screenshot 2023-05-09 at 22.30.30.jpg (157.77 KiB) Viewed 7059 times

Gubutastic.

[Setanta]

So now that Collin's has had time to engage in mature reflection, apparently the Gardai have taken an interest:



Not a great look this afternoon for our Minister for Justice either. Standing shoulder to shoulder with a fellow making statements that are potentially an admission to breaking the law.


Screenshot 2023-05-09 at 22.30.30.jpg


Gubutastic.

Think of the bullshit was spouted,and mud-slinged by the government to distract from this,when he has essentially gone on to confirm the main body of the ditch story as accurate


It's all well and good,having these anti-corruption/ethics legislation and being able to point at least corrupt country survey and charts to underpin the establishment......but what's the point of it,when they can simply choose to ignore em at will,and use dail privalage to seemingly slander anyone who deosnt toe the establishment line and query it

[schmittel]

Do you think it's a political organisation or media organisation??

The good news is we'll hopefully find out soon enough.

FF Senator Malcolm Byrne has made a formal complaint to SIPO about The Ditch and it's funding.

SIPO is obviously the body who deals with political organisations, whereas the Press Council would deal with media organisations.

So now SIPO will have to make a decision about whether or not they have any jurisdiction over this complaint, and in doing so will declare whether or not the Ditch is media.

I think the stakes are pretty high here. If they decide it's political, The Ditch are screwed, if it's media the Tanaiste is screwed.

IMO Byrne will quietly be told they have no jurisdiction and he'll quietly withdraw the complaint. That's a pity as this stunt deserves to backfire in his face.

https://www.irishtimes.com/politics/202 ... the-ditch/

[marhay70]

The good news is we'll hopefully find out soon enough.

FF Senator Malcolm Byrne has made a formal complaint to SIPO about The Ditch and it's funding.

SIPO is obviously the body who deals with political organisations, whereas the Press Council would deal with media organisations.

So now SIPO will have to make a decision about whether or not they have any jurisdiction over this complaint, and in doing so will declare whether or not the Ditch is media.

I think the stakes are pretty high here. If they decide it's political, The Ditch are screwed, if it's media the Tanaiste is screwed.

IMO Byrne will quietly be told they have no jurisdiction and he'll quietly withdraw the complaint. That's a pity as this stunt deserves to backfire in his face.

https://www.irishtimes.com/politics/202 ... the-ditch/

Given that SIPO is basically a Government appointed commission, one has to wonder at how neutral they could be in a situation like this, or in any situation come to that. Then again, I'm just an old sceptic.

[schmittel]

Given that SIPO is basically a Government appointed commission, one has to wonder at how neutral they could be in a situation like this, or in any situation come to that. Then again, I'm just an old sceptic.

There will always be that suspicion, but they have to be seen to be neutral.

If they want to come out and declare that The Ditch is a political organisation and has fallen foul of political funding rules, in order to be seen to be neutral, they will have to justify exactly why they have decided that.

It seems like that will be a hell of a tall order given the funding/ownership of other media in the state. If they found against the Ditch/Paddy Cosgrave you can be sure the decision will face a judicial review and the ensuing court case would open all sorts of cans of worms and Pandora's boxes relating to the relationship between politics and established media in Ireland.

I suspect this is a fight that the Ditch/Cosgrave will relish.

That's also why I think Byrne's complaint will just go away quietly, after SIPO tell him and FFG that in order to investigate this complaint, they will be backed into a corner that there is no good way out of.

[Setanta]

Interesting development into a rather secretive state organisation,who used go years on end without releasing amounts of visits to regions (and never particular sites!)

[Glaceon]

In my opinion it’s a bit of both. They’re doing great work but Cosgrave’s dislike of the government over the whole Web Summit thing is probably fuelling it.

[schmittel]

I see Paddy Cosgrave is under fire.



No doubt many will revel in his downfall.

[Setanta]

I see Paddy Cosgrave is under fire.



No doubt many will revel in his downfall.

TBF he used use the existence and creation of Uber in a Dublin pub during the web summit to leverage it's existence/credibility


While simultaneously demoaning crony capitalism...he can't have it both ways