Ireland: RTÉ unable to host Eurovision in the future?
The ability of the Irish public broadcaster RTE to organize televised events of great significance will be greatly affected by the changes currently made. Therefore, in the event that Ireland wins the competition again, a potential Eurovision hosting will be in danger.
Significant changes in RTÉ
RTE’s CEO revealed new plans that include selling off a significant portion of the Irish public broadcaster’s real estate and mobile assets in addition to shifting some of its programming to outside producers. RTE will no longer be able to cover significant events on their own, like Queen Elizabeth’s passing or the Pope’s visit to Ireland, according to a source associated with the organization.
Many RTE staff members are concerned about the widespread privatization of public television, as there is no similar case nowhere in Europe. RTE leaving EBU is not a likely scenario, according to the EBU, but it does state that the network’s “ability or inability” to host important events like Eurovision might be experienced in the future.
Moreover, plans also call for hiring outside producers to run well-known programs like “The Late Late Show“. Considering that “The Late Late Show” serves as the national selection format for Eurovision, it is currently unclear how the representatives of Ireland will be chosen in the future.
RTE’s response
When questioned about the issue, a representative for RTÉ stated that significant events like the Eurovision Song Contest “would always be produced through a combination of RTÉ staff and suitably qualified people working in the freelance community“. The spokesperson stated that:
This model is a standard practice across the industry and applies to all public service broadcasters where there is an in-house staff base.
Given that Ireland has not won the Eurovision since 1996, or hosted it since 1997 – 27 years ago – any future hosting would represent a special event which would require a core RTÉ team plus additional freelance resources.
This year, Bambie Thug represented Ireland in Malmö with their song “Doomsday Blue“, finishing sixth and bringing Ireland back to the top ten after thirteen years.
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