The Mother Teresa of broadcasting

On RTE’s Morning Ireland programme today, one of the presenters expressed surprise that the Dell share price had risen on the news of the proposed job cuts.

Yesterday, Bank of Ireland announced annual profits of €1.96bn, an increase of 28% on the previous year. The share price promptly fell 3%, making a total fall of 14% from its 2007 high.

Both these events illustrate the high expectations and lack of sentiment of investors.

I’ve often thought that since RTE is a cosseted public service employer, with its employees cushioned from the realities of the real commercial world, the station may not be an appropriate commentator on business or commercial matters in general. They often come across as a broadcasting Mother Teresa, defending the “rights” of the worker or the consumer against the interests of “big business”.

RTE thinks that it's performed exceptionally well if it breaks even for the year, profit seems to be something of a dirty word there.