What future for Irish language journalism?

(A slightly amended version of a piece first published in The Irish Journalist, March 2014)

by Anton McCabe

Irish language journalism is facing serious difficulties, with there being no stand-alone national Irish language weekly paper. Three newspapers have been closed over the past half-dozen years after Foras na Gaeilge (the Cross-Border Irish language body) withdrew funding.

The Foras is currently examining applications for the contract for an Irish-language weekly online newspaper. All material is to be available free. According to application documents, it must be “primarily based on written reporting and written comment,” and provide both national and regional news. This contract would last for four years. The successful publisher will receive €300,000 per year.

Between 2008 and 2013, the Foras ended the contracts of three newspapers.

First to go in 2008 was the daily Lá Nua, published by the Belfast Media Group. The publishers proposed that it made economic sense to make it available free online, rather than distributed as a paid-for title through shops. The Foras rejected this. “If the plan to publish Lá Nua online is proceeded with, this equates to breaking the contract with Foras na Gaeilge, and if the contract is broken Foras na Gaeilge will not be able to continue with the agreed funding,” Foras Chief Executive Ferdie Mac an Fhailigh said at the time.

Connemara-based Foinse was a casualty the following year. In 1996 it won the tender to provide a weekly newspaper. It achieved significant name-recognition, and was recognised as providing high-quality journalism. At one stage it sold 4,000 copies per week However, it ceased publication for a time in 2009 in a funding dispute with the Foras.

Foinse applied to extend its contract for a further four-year term. However, this was awarded to Gaelscéal, a joint venture between the Connacht Tribune and Eo Teilifís. The Gaelscéal bid had proposed a target of 6,000 weekly sales within three years. This sales target was clearly unrealisable: Foinse, despite building up name recognition, had not achieved this in more prosperous economic times. An added obstacle to the sales target was that, as a condition of the contract, Gaelscéal was to make the paper available online free of charge three days after publication. When awarding the contract in 2009, Mac an Fhailigh said the standard of applications was very high: “We are pleased to offer the contract to Torann na dTonn Limited, a joint venture between the Connacht Tribune and Eo Teilifís, who have years of experience in the Irish media.” At the start of last year, the Foras withdrew the contract from Gaelscéal – on the basis that the sales target had not been met. It would be fair to say that Gaelscéal had not been to everyone’s taste, with an emphasis on hard news. There was an undercurrent of criticism from some in the Irish language community who saw aspects of its coverage as too controversial. The Foras subsequently launched a period of public consultation regarding future publications.

In further moves at the end of June, the Foras to end funding for monthly magazines Feasta and an tUltach, and news and information website Gaelport.

These closures leave Irish as one of the few significant European minority languages without a stand-alone weekly newspaper. The Irish Times publishes a broadsheet page each Wednesday. This suffers from the drawback of only being one page: and by the Irish Times not having the Northern market penetration it once had. Also on Wednesdays, the Irish Independent publishes ‘Seachtain’ as an insert. It benefits from having some experienced journalists, though has  to concentrate on the schools’ market. It suffers from the Independent’s weak penetration in the North.

In this situation trade unionists must be concerned about the number of journalists’ jobs that have been lost.

There must also be wider societal concerns. The existence of a media is important for any language and culture to develop. According to the censuses of 2011, over 40% of people in the Republic have some knowledge of Irish: and almost 14% in the North.

Irish language broadcasting is reasonably healthy, but there is a need for the written word. In promoting that, there is no evidence of a consistent strategy from the Foras. As Oscar Wilde said: "To lose one parent may be regarded as a misfortune; to lose both looks like carelessness."

It takes time for a print title, or website, to gain recognition. With no stand-alone Irish language weekly for the past year, the readership has lost the habit of buying a paper, and it will take time for them to develop the habit of logging into the new online paper.

This will have to bring together a new staff. Those who worked on Lá Nua, Foinse and Gaelscéal have mostly scattered. New journalists will need time to build up contacts, and develop an understanding of the issues in the Irish language sector. As a freelance contributor to Gaelscéal from its inception, I know the difficulties the (mostly) inexperienced staff faced in doing so. They were successful, but hampered

by the lack of continuity.

That lack of continuity will hamper Tuairisc, the new online newspaper. The Foras is funding this, and it is due to go online in late summer – with there being no newspaper in the 18 months since Gaelscéal closed.

This gap is particularly unfortunate as there are issues regarding the Irish language that are of particular interest to the Irish language community (to the extent such exists), and have to be examined. These are issues such as education, and whether a ‘total immersion’ (in Irish) approach is best, or a bilingual approach: the status of Gaeltacht areas: and the future of Irish-language ‘Third Sector’ organisations after the Foras’ ‘Samhail Nua Maoinithe’ (New Funding Mode).

Given its particular situation, Irish language media mostly needs subsidisation. This is not unique in the media. RTÉ and BBC are both publicly-funded because of their public service remit. The Broadcasting Authority of Ireland’s Broadcasting Funding Scheme was established to ‘provide funding in support of high quality programmes on Irish culture, heritage and experience’, and adult literacy, to local commercial and community stations. The sums involved in funding Irish-language media are small, and add to the cultural richness and diversity of society.

Declaration of interest: I have worked for Lá Nua, Foinse, Gaelscéal and An tUltach.