A Time for Reflection in Irish Radio

There has been much in the press in recent weeks on the 'Black Lives Matter' campaign, with protests in many Irish cities and towns including marches to the American Embassy in Dublin. We have been faced with looking at the diversity or lack of diversity of life in Ireland and the racism that some communities feel and experience. Much of the public opinion is driven by what we see, hear and read whether it’s in the treacherous world of social media, newspapers, on film or on television and hear on the radio. 

Irish radio is the most sought after, listened to and trusted mediums in the country and those who appear on the radio and drive the conversation, are a trusted source. They have opened the debate and lifted the lid on some issues that exist in Irish society and have often been pushed underground. It is a debate that even our Taoiseach has spoken on but what of Irish radio itself and how it reflects the society it is licensed to serve. A look at a selection of Irish radio stations around the country, both State, national and commercial, demonstrates the lack of a diverse voice on the airwaves. 

The ethnic and minority voice has somehow been banished to community radio, who have led the way in offering a true reflection of Irish society, led by stations like Dublin City FM and Flirt FM. While the accompanying slide only covers a small amount of licensed stations on the air in Ireland, it is a familiar story across the country, the lack of diversity in both on-air talent and content. There are a possible number of reasons for this. 

The slide looks at a selection of stations and their programmes that air between noon and 7pm, which includes the prime time evening slots. Fifteen of the presenters are female as compared to forty four men. There are no ethnic voices even though many of those whom we would see as ethnic, are now a growing segment of Irish born citizens and their accents on air would be as neutral or as local as those currently on air. The perception, while seeking out schedules on the various station websites, is that Irish radio is very 'white'. I am not demeaning any of the current on air talent which make Ireland one of the best nations in the world for radio, many of them have contributing greatly to the conversation now being held, but when a new opportunity opens up on radio, will HR departments seriously consider a new voice and face for their station? In today's modern radio, especially with in studio cameras, a new dimension is added as presenters are not just the voice of the airwaves but also the face. 

It is perhaps a commercial decision as minority or ethnic content would not sell advertising or increase generic ratings. At one time on-air talent were encouraged to have a neutral accents (mid-Atlantic as it was described in pirate radio days) so that listeners would not have to strain to understand what was being said. In the early days of community radio in Ireland, international accents were aimed at a very narrow demographic, such as Polish presenters delivering programmes aimed at the large Polish community in Dublin but as Irish society becomes more integrated, is it not time that the BAI encourage or even legislate that different voices and accents should be heard on mainstream radio. 

Despite the fact that the gender balance in the Irish population is almost 50/50, only about a third of primetime voices on radio are female, which has thankfully been growing over the past decade. To encourage the stations to employ more women in front of the microphone and not just behind it (at one time only in a secretarial role), quotas were set, perhaps it is time for a similar encouragement to diversify the voices we hear. The latest CSO figures illustrate that the percentage of the Irish population who deem themselves as 'ethnic' is now nearly 20% and yet this is not reflection on air. Integration is a key to a inclusive society that creates stability and opportunity.

It is now a 'Time for Reflection' in Irish radio.