Today, we went to RTE, one of Ireland’s half-state-funded, half privately owned neutral news networks. After a short bus ride to RTE, we got off and were greeted by the tour people. We got to see their offices, but most importantly, we got to see where they do the daily news broadcast. We sat in both for the afternoon newscast, where they talked about Trump, Gaza, and a French director who was getting charged for harassment on set. We also got to see and walk around in the newsroom. What I found most interesting was that the teleprompter was analog and a lot older than modern ones tend to be. After a few fun pictures we got to talk to two guest speakers.
One guest speaker talked to us about the naturality of RTE and what happens if lawsuits come their way because of that. Talking to us about how it’s partially state-funded but is mostly privately owned. The other speaker was a former American correspondent during most of the trump era. He talked about the stories he did and how some of his favorites weren’t about Trump but were the most human ones, like Tangier Island and down-to-earth stories. He said in a non-Trump year, most stories he was asked to do covered whether Irish politicians were involved or visiting. If I weren’t feeling so terrible, I would have had a much better time. But overall, it was very cool learning about the inner workings of RTE and how different media is in Ireland compared to the US.
After a short rest, we learned some traditional Celtic dances, which, if I were better at, I’m sure I’d have a much better time lol. But in all seriousness, I kept asking We did we stop doing this? It was so fun and whimsical to just dance with everyone.