Ireland: Radio host condemned by broadcast regulator for supporting same-sex marriage
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A radio show host has been condemned by Ireland’s broadcast regulator for voicing his support for same-sex marriage.
On his RTE Radio show, Derek Mooney told two guests : “I hope you do get gay marriage… I hope it does come in.”
He had been speaking with former RTE news reader Michael Murphy, and Gay and Lesbian Equality Network policy director Tiernan Brady.
However, Donal O’Latchford-Sullivan of the Family and Media Association launched a formal complaint, alleging that the segment breached regulations because it did not feature any voices opposed to same-sex marriage.
O’Latchford-Sullivan claimed that the “unbalanced” discussion amounted to a debate in which his side was denied a voice, because all three people present supported same-sex marriage.
RTE had argued that the expression had been a “personal viewpoint by Mr Murphy”, and not a formal debate on the topic.
However, the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland’s Complaints Committee has this week upheld the complaint, claiming that the segment broke requirements of “fairness, objectivity and impartiality”.
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