Ian Dempsey has given his opinion on RTE’s plan to outsource children programming. In his article for the Irish Mail on Sunday the broadcaster said that he doesn’t understand the outrage, and feels that the outsourcing of programmes for kids can only lead to a higher standard of shows.
The Today FM presenter once fronted Dempsey’s Den, and while it performed well with audiences, it was “an absolute circus.” The 55-year-old feels that this new step will lead to an “increase in standards, innovation and success,” which will please children and their parents.
“Surely this is what everybody has wanted all along? An independent voice with new ideas and different ways of doing things? Modern young TV makers with their collection fingers on the pulse of trends and technologies?
“It was a one-camera show which evolved into an absolute circus with the introduction of viewer input, music videos, comedy and a couple of aliens.
“Our budget was non-existent but the will was there and we connected with the audience, their parents and, on another level completely, their big brothers and sisters,” he wrote.
“I know that RTE will still be very hands-on with every element of the production, so they will still be steering the show in the direction that they would like to see on the screen eventually,” he wrote.
