The Media Outlet has been independently certified according to the JTI Programme and CWA 17493:2019.
Certified by
Deloitte
Date of certification
17/03/2022
Contact details
477 Collins Street
3000 Melbourne
Australia
Media Outlet RTE News Legal Entity Raidió Teilifís Éireann (RTÉ) Date of first publication 15/12/2021 Date of Latest Change 24/01/2022
3. Public Service Media
3.1. Public Service Media Mission, Governance and Independence
The Media Outlet shall describe its public service mission and the legal instrument on which it is based. It shall describe its governance structure, including the role of all relevant governance bodies or organisations (for example, regulator, supervisory board, government/parliament role). It shall state how its financial income is generated and what proportion of its financial resources are totally or partially provided by public funds. It shall state if both external and internal governance measures guarantee its editorial independence.
Is the Media Outlet a Public Service Media?
YesWhat is the public service mission for which it is responsible?
RTE News is part of RTE which has the following mission statement:
Vision:
To champion Irish culture by captivating
audiences with trusted, engaging and
challenging content; celebrating our
country’s rich diversity; and cultivating
Ireland’s talent.
Mission:
To enrich Irish life with content that
challenges, educates and entertains.
Values:
As an organisation and individually, RTÉ will
be outward looking, creative, respectful,
sustainable and accountable, collaborative
and transparent, and will demonstrate the
following behaviours: Outward Looking
Have a deep understanding of its
audience and their needs.
Invest time and energy in
monitoring changes in the media
landscape.
Creative
Be resourceful and innovative
in how it makes its content. Be
brave, take risks and be willing to
learn from failures.
Respectful
Treat people, including staff and
partners, with respect, even when
it challenges. Nurture trust by
being fair and open about the
decisions it makes.
Sustainable and Accountable
Manage its business in a
responsible manner. Be
accountable to each other
within RTÉ and to audience and
stakeholders.
Collaborative
Work together, bringing the ‘One
RTÉ’ organisation to life. Join
forces with partners to meet the
needs of RTÉ’s audience.
Transparent
Make decisions openly.
Be upfront about the reasons
for the actions taken.
Vision:
To champion Irish culture by captivating
audiences with trusted, engaging and
challenging content; celebrating our
country’s rich diversity; and cultivating
Ireland’s talent.
Mission:
To enrich Irish life with content that
challenges, educates and entertains.
Values:
As an organisation and individually, RTÉ will
be outward looking, creative, respectful,
sustainable and accountable, collaborative
and transparent, and will demonstrate the
following behaviours: Outward Looking
Have a deep understanding of its
audience and their needs.
Invest time and energy in
monitoring changes in the media
landscape.
Creative
Be resourceful and innovative
in how it makes its content. Be
brave, take risks and be willing to
learn from failures.
Respectful
Treat people, including staff and
partners, with respect, even when
it challenges. Nurture trust by
being fair and open about the
decisions it makes.
Sustainable and Accountable
Manage its business in a
responsible manner. Be
accountable to each other
within RTÉ and to audience and
stakeholders.
Collaborative
Work together, bringing the ‘One
RTÉ’ organisation to life. Join
forces with partners to meet the
needs of RTÉ’s audience.
Transparent
Make decisions openly.
Be upfront about the reasons
for the actions taken.
Is this governed by legislation?
YesWhat law or legal instrument specifies its role and responsibilities?
The Broadcasting Act 2009
Provide a reference URL here.
https://revisedacts.lawreform.ie/eli/2009/act/18/front/revised/en/html
What are the stakeholders with which it has formal relations, and what is the nature of the relationship?
RTÉ is regulated by the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland (BAI) in relation to its
obligations as a public-service broadcasting
corporation. RTÉ (as required by the Broadcasting
Act 2009) cooperates with the BAI in the annual
and five-year public funding reviews carried out
by the BAI under section 124 of the Act. In October
2017 RTÉ submitted its five-year strategy 2018–
2022, Renewing RTÉ for the Next Generation for
consideration. In October 2018, the BAI endorsed
RTÉ’s strategic plan and recommended “at a
minimum, that RTÉ should receive an increase
in its annual public funding of €30m per annum”.
In late 2019, RTÉ published its Revised Strategy
2020–2024, a plan that brings Ireland’s public
service media to sustainability and addresses many
of the challenges RTÉ faces. RTÉ is fully engaged in
the subsequent annual reviews with BAI and has also
engaged fully with the Future of Media Commission
in relation to its role in recommending reform of the
future funding model for public service media.
In line with Government and BAI requirements, RTÉ’s
Fair Trading Policy and Procedures is published
on RTÉ.ie. The policy and procedures set out a
framework grounded on:
• Clear separation between commercial activities
and public services
• Fair trading in line with market principles
• Transparency and accountability
The Commission for Communications Regulation
(ComReg) previously designated RTÉ and 2rn
as having significant market power (SMP) in the
markets for the provision of transmission and
distribution services to radio broadcasters and the
DTT multiplex operator as well as the downstream
supply of DTT multiplexed services to broadcasters. The decision placed certain obligations on RTÉ.
GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation)
legislation came into force on 25 May 2018. GDPR
introduces new rights for individuals and introduces
new and increased obligations on organisations that
are data processors or data controllers, such as
RTÉ. It also gives new and extensive powers to the
privacy regulator, the Data Protection Commission.
RTÉ complies fully with GDPR legislation.
obligations as a public-service broadcasting
corporation. RTÉ (as required by the Broadcasting
Act 2009) cooperates with the BAI in the annual
and five-year public funding reviews carried out
by the BAI under section 124 of the Act. In October
2017 RTÉ submitted its five-year strategy 2018–
2022, Renewing RTÉ for the Next Generation for
consideration. In October 2018, the BAI endorsed
RTÉ’s strategic plan and recommended “at a
minimum, that RTÉ should receive an increase
in its annual public funding of €30m per annum”.
In late 2019, RTÉ published its Revised Strategy
2020–2024, a plan that brings Ireland’s public
service media to sustainability and addresses many
of the challenges RTÉ faces. RTÉ is fully engaged in
the subsequent annual reviews with BAI and has also
engaged fully with the Future of Media Commission
in relation to its role in recommending reform of the
future funding model for public service media.
In line with Government and BAI requirements, RTÉ’s
Fair Trading Policy and Procedures is published
on RTÉ.ie. The policy and procedures set out a
framework grounded on:
• Clear separation between commercial activities
and public services
• Fair trading in line with market principles
• Transparency and accountability
The Commission for Communications Regulation
(ComReg) previously designated RTÉ and 2rn
as having significant market power (SMP) in the
markets for the provision of transmission and
distribution services to radio broadcasters and the
DTT multiplex operator as well as the downstream
supply of DTT multiplexed services to broadcasters. The decision placed certain obligations on RTÉ.
GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation)
legislation came into force on 25 May 2018. GDPR
introduces new rights for individuals and introduces
new and increased obligations on organisations that
are data processors or data controllers, such as
RTÉ. It also gives new and extensive powers to the
privacy regulator, the Data Protection Commission.
RTÉ complies fully with GDPR legislation.
How is income generated?
Under the Broadcasting Act 2009, RTÉ is dual funded; This means that RTÉ is part-funded by a Licence Fee and part-funded by commercial revenue. Both sources of funding are necessary to allow RTÉ to fulfill its public service remit.
What portion of income is public funds?
59.4% of income in 2020 was from licence fee funds.
Source: https://www.rte.ie/annual-report-2020/business-review/financial-review.html
Source: https://www.rte.ie/annual-report-2020/business-review/financial-review.html
Does the governance guarantee editorial independence?
YesState here in what way.
Our Journalism Guidelines include the following statement:
5.1 Public Service – Integrity and Independence
RTÉ exists to serve the public. The public must have
confidence in the integrity and independence of what they
hear and see on RTÉ’s services:
• We must be editorially independent of government,
business interests, political parties, trade unions and
pressure groups.
• Nothing we do should give rise to any perception
that presenters, reporters or producers personally
benefit from their decisions as to who participates in
programmes, what products are featured and what
issues are discussed.
• There must be no grounds for the perception that
editorial decisions in some way reflect the personal
views of production teams.
5.1 Public Service – Integrity and Independence
RTÉ exists to serve the public. The public must have
confidence in the integrity and independence of what they
hear and see on RTÉ’s services:
• We must be editorially independent of government,
business interests, political parties, trade unions and
pressure groups.
• Nothing we do should give rise to any perception
that presenters, reporters or producers personally
benefit from their decisions as to who participates in
programmes, what products are featured and what
issues are discussed.
• There must be no grounds for the perception that
editorial decisions in some way reflect the personal
views of production teams.