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COLUMNIST JOHN WATERS has resigned from the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland.
The BAI confirmed his resignation in a statement this afternoon.
The Irish Times writer was appointed to the authority by the government in September 2009.
He has served a two-year term on the Compliance Committees and, until today, was a member of the Contract Awards Committee.
The BAI described him as a “valued member” who brought “expertise and experience”.
Writing on his blog Tuppenceworth.ie this week, solicitor Simon McGarr criticised the journalist for his alleged part in a legal battle over an interview aired on RTÉ’s The Saturday Night Show.
According to reports, Waters was one of a number of people to send legal correspondence to Rory O’Neill (aka drag queen Panti), claiming defamation.
McGarr believes, however, that another letter – one of complaint reportedly sent to RTÉ – creates an “unusual situation” where one of the broadcaster’s regulators looked to “censor a citizen”.
He claims that as part of his appointment, certain “constraints on his behaviour” are expected.
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Please let the door hit him on the way out.
You may not like him (judging by your remark) but surely it’s in having diversity that we can have confidence in the outcome of such organisations. For the same reasons that the worst of criminals should have he best of legal representation (free if necessary) – to make sure the decisions are beyond reproach.
Delighted, people like Waters feel they have a right to publicly denounce and devalue LGBT people on different media formats, but when the tables were turned he didn’t appreciate it, I say to you John Waters!! There is noting like a taste of your own medicine, the gay community have had to put up with situations like these all our lives, imagine the shame and indignity of having to live as a second class citizen in your own country, and the insult of having people to vote on weather were entitled to out human rights, imagine what it feels like to have people cite religion as a barrier to those rights, imagine people who promote a fear, hate and disgust in human beings, you should all hang your heads in shame and do something positive and productive for the world
Yes Tony. Ask any divorced man.
Walters can dish it out but he cant take it. Pretty hypocritical if you ask me
John Waters:
“The way this is being set up where there’s almost a blackmail clause involved, whereby if you don’t support it you’re a homophobe. This bullying is actually silencing people and it’s preventing any kind of open discussion…. You’re sneered at and ridiculed.”
http://collegetribune.ie/index.php/2012/08/gay-marriage-is-a-product-of-this-bunker-mentality/
However if someone calls John a homophobe he’s allowed to try and silence people and prevent open discussion.
Ah shur hide behind being a religious nut
Conflict of interest. But he was appointed on a wink and a nudge by his own admission so he really shouldn’t have been there in the first place.
Karma is a bitch isn’t it. Mr Waters perhaps you should think (more) about your consequences of your hatred – as it was said by Rory / Panti … feck off outta my life.
Finally even Waters must have become tired listening to himself being an authority on just about everything!!!
Great news. If he could only stay quiet as well it would be a good day for me.
Comments are open now, awesome.
Dya know what… Good.
Based on his writings, I genuinely dislike the idea of him awarding contracts (especially given what could be regarded as bigotry in his writings), if indeed he let’s any of that impact his decision making process.
Was it something to do with http://www.broadsheet.ie/page/4/ waters panti and rte. Conflict of interest perhaps???
Bye now
If the Iona institute (and some of its journalist patrons) were to generate the same kind of intolerance and bigotry towards black people, asian people or muslims, there would be absolute outrage. Those who hide their blatant prejudices behind the shield of religious beliefs are the worst…
Interesting development, wonder why he resigned
Have a read: http://www.tuppenceworth.ie/blog/2014/01/21/rte-john-waters-and-regulating-outsider-voices/
I like Water’s writings from time to time. I don’t agree with his ideology, religious beliefs, beliefs on gay marriage either. But he’s exceptionally good when he writes about the media. That’s his forte and he’s untouchable in that sense. But he lot the plot in the last near decade. 15 years ago he was superb.
He also has courage – something the majority of our journalists will never have. He was a lone voice for many years on unmarried fathers rights. He still is at times. I once saw him get heckled by the audience on the late late show many years ago in Gay Byrne’s time – perhaps 20 years ago – for suggesting that men too suffer domestic violence.
He’s perhaps the only voice that questions feminism too. People like Water’s are needed. He’s worth 10 liberal authors.
Sam
“He’s perhaps the only voice that questions feminism”
That i think sums up everything about him Sam
*sighs*
We need counter voices. He was very much a counter voice on the childrens referendum too. If not for people like Water’s there wouldn’t have been a debate in the first place. It was gearing up to be a whitewash and foregone conclusion.
Also on the family courts.
These are most serious issues, and if not for Water’s wouldn’t have been highlighted.
@ Sam Aritan
He has courage – something the majority of our journalists will never have
he went on the Saturday night show
and told the unpopular truth,, that we can’t keep blaming FF for everything
the audience booed
Waters has the same right to a good name as anyone else. He’s neither censoring not attempting to censor anyone – he’s just defending himself against an allegation that Rory O’Neill made about him.
Loki
Have a look and see who appointed him to the BAI
Well said, Sam.
Ciaran
What exactly is “that” allegation?
Please be specific
@Mr L.Jay
Waters was accused of being homophobic.
Take all of Waters writing about gay people and substitute “gay” for “black”.
Does he come across as a racist?
Because it’s the same thing, discrimination based upon a factor the person has no control over (I’m not saying sexuality is the same thing as race btw – I am saying that the motivations for the discrimination are the same – a bias about a person based upon aforementioned non changeable factor)
If it’s not ok to make arguments like these about black people – then it’s not ok to make them about homosexuals.
If these comments would be deemed racist then they are homophobic.
Would Mr Waters be happy to use the same argument against black people being allowed to marry? Because there were plenty making those same arguments not that long ago..
From what I’ve read online about this over the last few days, the under current of homophobia and anti-gay sentiment is extremely pervasive through many of the writings of the Journalists connected to the Iona institute (and it has been for some time) ..
it’s vile and just because they use religion as a shield doesn’t justify the harm that homophobia can cause gay people, particularly the younger gay people who are highly vulnerable to suicide etc…
Do these so called Christians not realize that most gay people are aware (and conscious) of their sexuality from a young age? (even if often they don fully understand it until they are older) .. if anyone is a threat to children, it’s homophobic attitudes which promote the idea that bullying and vilification of people is ok- as long as it can be justified as an opinion base on a religious ideology….
Load of bullshit…
An it needs to stop..
Gay people are much more likely to suffer depression, anxiety and suicidal thoughts than their straight friends and family, and in a lot of case cases this is a direct result of poisonous homophobic opinions…
Thank f*ck these bible bashing- right wing- god fearing- hate mongers are a dying breed..
The suicide rates (and rates of self harm etc) will likely decrease as subsequent generations become more open, tolerant and evolved… already this is happening, and that’s a very positive thing for equality and the future…
At least 2 members of that self appointed “iona institute” are now writing for the Denis O’Brien stable, namely Quinn and Casey. People need to be aware of and careful of the creeping, sinister influence.
jeez
John Waters (and those of his ‘ilk’) seem to forget Ireland’s history. It was their Catholic ancestors, the Catholic Irish who suffered immense oppression, prejudice and discrimination under Protestant British rule for generations. People will look back and see the gay rights debate in the same context as any other human rights movement.
man + woman + 9 months = baby
man + man = nothing
woman + woman = nothing
So John Waters is / was in the BAI eh?
The same BAI that reckoned they couldn’t do anything about those YD billboards and deflected all complaints by posting a statement to say it was beyond their remit to do anything about these public advertisements?
Perhaps Im just reading too much into this.. ;)
Why on earth would the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland have the power to do anything about billboards for Youth Defence?
You’re not just reading too much into it, you’re just reading it wrong.
I just thought I’d point out that the man has a child with Sinead O’Connor……
so ????????????????????????????????????????????????????
No thanks. Even though I should be entitled to an opinion no doubt it would upset someone who would need to access the courts to make sure their hurt feelings were suitably compensated.
Will he get his job back driving An Post van?
Why do we need this quango anyway.
Good riddance.
Good luck to ya lad, mighty fella. xx
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