The decision by RTÉ to ban an ad for the Church's publishing house, Veritas, with the word “crib” in it is “unwarranted and outrageous”, according to prominent commentator David Quinn. RTÉ has denied banning the ad, saying it advised Veritas to clarify with the Broadcasting Commission of Ireland whether its prohibition of advertising 'directed towards religious ends' applied to cribs.
However, Mr Quinn said that the station's precautions were “an obviously over strict interpretation of the law”.
“Newstalk is to broadcast the ad without any cuts at all, so why RTÉ might have a problem is a mystery,” he told ciNews.
Mr Quinn said that the rationale behind the law itself was questionable.
“A law which can lead to the banning of a harmless word like “crib” at Christmas time is a law which needs to be seriously questioned,” he said.
Meanwhile, in a statement, the Catholic Bishops have strongly protested that their agency, Veritas, had to drop the word "crib" from a radio advertisement before RTÉ would broadcast it.
They called the move an affront to Christians.
Following their winter meeting in Maynooth, the Bishops said expressing concern and disappointment at the editing of Veritas' first ever RTÉ ad campaign, which coincides with the run up to Christmas.
They say the removal of the word "crib" from the ad is both an affront to Christians and belies common sense in the context of Irish society and culture.
RTÉ has denied that it had banned the word. Station spokesman Peter Feeney said over a month ago its copy clearance committee concluded that an issue might arise if the Broadcasting Commission of Ireland consider that promoting the sale of cribs was directed towards religious ends, and therefore prohibited under its code.
RTÉ's committee advised Veritas to clarify the situation with the BCI.
It also said Veritas could alter the script, which it did, and it was then cleared for broadcast.
RTÉ understands that Veritas did not approach BCI with the matter, and says it continues to be willing to broadcast the original ad if BCI approval is given.
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