Not a bad start – but the Assembly needs the people’s help with the big decisions

I err on the side of optimism.  I don’t know about you but I’m constantly frustrated at how the media comment on every cough and squeak of political debate but skate over the actual details of the policies that affect real life. Political chatter is the easy bit; they’ve being doing for decades,  ever since politicians insisted they weren’t responsible for anything like the terrible issues of  life and death  which were always down to somebody else, paramilitaries or the …

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The Irish Language Act: Real costs revealed by Conradh na Gaeilge

It’s finally here, the bill for the proposed Irish Language Act.  This is the estimated cost from Conradh na Gaeilge, the umbrella group for Irish language speakers and organisations advocating for legislation to protect the Irish language from capricious political attacks and to promote it resolutely as per the Good Friday Agreement and The St Andrews accord. The good news is that this estimate, put together by the organisation advocating for the legislation is a fraction of the price tags …

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By 2026 when the next BBC Charter runs out, how do you think the BBC should have changed?

Every five ten years the BBC’s Charter is renewed (though the licence fee can end up being renegotiated more frequently!) and the government of the day along with the broadcaster take the opportunity to examine what direction the BBC is currently heading and decide whether to change the course or trim the sails. One approach is to decide on the purpose and scope of the BBC and then set an appropriate licence fee (or determine an alternative revenue raising method) …

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Peter Hain: “since I was running the place I could more or less do what I wanted to do…”

The former Secretary of State for Northern Ireland [and Wales, etc! – Ed], Peter Hain, has been reminiscing about the good old days… “When I was Secretary of State for Northern Ireland in 2005-07, [Prince Charles] was delighted when I told him that since I was running the place I could more or less do what I wanted to do. “I was able to introduce a trial for complementary medicine on the NHS, and it had spectacularly good results, that …

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BBC NI’s “The Twelfth” live coverage in 2012 complied with impartiality guidelines, but questions must remain about how the Twelfth is covered

The BBC’s live coverage of The Twelfth of July parade through Belfast city centre becomes more anachronistic with every passing year. Last year, a complaint was made to the BBC and later in the post I’ll refer to the finding. While the capital city’s parade remains the longest across Northern Ireland (Armagh is the largest), the numbers of Orangemen and women marching in each lodge is thinning out, often marching two abreast where once eight would have walked, and nowadays …

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Licence fee freeze leads BBC NI slashes top journalist jobs…

Grim reading this morning in the Belfast Telegraph (h/t Nevin)… Hearts and Minds, as long expected, is to finally go. The production teams for three programmes will be to some extent amalgamated, and run on a rolling basis…. And some key assets are being got rid of, including Julia Paul who’s film pieces for Hearts and Minds have been some of the corporation’s consistently highest quality output: Politics reporters Yvette Shapiro and Julia Paul as well as environment correspondent Mike …

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Have you an informed interest in what the BBC broadcasts and publishes online?

BBC Audience Council Northern Ireland

The BBC Audience Council for Northern Ireland is currently recruiting new members. If you have an informed interest in what the BBC broadcasts and publishes online and an understanding of the needs of local audiences, you may want to apply for this voluntary position. Looking at some of the posts and comments on Slugger, some people certainly fit the bill! Audience Council meets most months and gives a voice to local audiences right at the heart of the BBC. Council …

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Does History Matter? BBC NI’s Festival of History & Broadcasting

BBC NI Festival of History and Broadcasting

I gave up history at the age of 14. Keeping on three sciences meant that it was a straight choice between geography and history. As a result, my knowledge of history is confined to the legend of Finn McCool, the Roundheads and the Cavaliers, and a link between the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand in an open top charabanc and the start of the First World War. Maybe if Horrible Histories had been around twenty five years ago I might …

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