Raidió Teilifís Éireann (RTÉ) is Ireland’s public service broadcaster. It was founded in 1926. The company runs three television stations (RTÉ One that serves the population with generalist programming, RTÉ2 focused on programming for youth, and RTÉjr that specializes in children’s programming) and five radio channels.
Media assets
Television: RTÉ One, RTÉ2, RTÉ News Now, RTÉjr, RTÉ One +1, RTÉ2+1
Radio: RTÉ Radio 1, RTÉ 2FM, RTÉ Raidió na Gaeltachta, RTÉ Lyric FM, RTÉ 2XM, RTÉ Chill, RTÉ Gold, RTÉ Junior, RTÉ Pulse, RTÉ Radio 1 Extra
State Media Matrix Typology: Independent State-Managed (ISM)
Ownership and governance
RTÉ is a statutory corporation whose main governing authority, the Board, has 12 members who are appointed in majority by the Government upon nomination by various bodies, most of them state authorities. The director general is appointed by the RTÉ Board following the approval by the government and by the Minister for Media, Tourism, Arts, Culture, Sport and the Gaeltacht.
Source of funding and budget
RTÉ is funded through a combination of revenues from license fees (a levy imposed on all households in the country specifically used to finance public media) and commercial revenue (mainly advertising income). According to the law, any household that has a television set must pay a license fee (that is collected by the Irish Post). The license fee is €160 a year.
The Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media collects the revenue and disburses it, without any other intervention from political authorities, to RTÉ (85% of the total revenue) and other institutions financed from this resource. In 2020, the broadcaster operated with an annual budget of €331.1m, according to a corporate annual report. The revenue from license fees accounted for over 59% of the total. In 2021, RTÉ had a budget of €344m, some 57% of it coming from the license fee revenue and the rest from commercial activities, according to a company annual report.
In January 2023, Ireland’s Minister for Media, Catherine Martin, said that the Irish government plans to reform RTÉ’s funding model. The planned reform is a response to the high license fee evasion rate, 15%, per European standards, which costs the company some €65m a year. Any alternative funding model for the Irish public broadcaster would not be dependent on owning a television set. The Irish authorities already rejected the idea of funding the broadcaster through general taxation.
Editorial independence
There are no rules or regulations imposed by the government that influence RTÉ’s editorial coverage. At the same time, there is no evidence of editorial control by the government at RTÉ.
The Broadcasting Act of 2009 has provisions that guarantee the editorial independence of the broadcaster. In addition to that, as of 2015, RTÉ has been required to prepare a public service statement that sets out the principles observed and activities undertaken by RTÉ in its attempt to fulfill its public service mission. The document further helps strengthen the editorial independence of the station.
In 2020, RTÉ also published a renewed set of Journalism Guidelines that nail down the editorial values that guide its coverage. They further protect the editorial independence of the broadcaster.
In line with the provisions enshrined in the Broadcasting Act, the RTÉ Audience Council advises the station’s board on specific issues related to RTÉ’s public service remit and the needs of its audience. The RTÉ Audience Council has 15 members who work on a voluntary basis. The council is appointed by the RTÉ Board.
September 2023