Our Man In Stockholm

During a decade of social upheaval in Ireland, two referendums have been passed that have granted marriage equality to LGBT people and removed the constitutional ban on abortion. Una Mullally is an Irish journalist, podcaster and author who found herself thrust into the limelight, especially in the marriage equality debate, putting her in a somewhat unique position of documenting these historic ch...

From a youthful fascination with wrestling and getting paid in beer to commentate to becoming the voice of Cage Warriors and calling the UFC London card, Brad Wharton's ability to make viewers feel the atmosphere has made him one of the sport's most sought-after men on the mic.  We spoke about how he got started, having empathy for those in the cage and what makes a great commentator in one o...

There's a lot of people As the Covid-19 pandemic grips the globe, there's a lot of people working - including journalists, broadcasters, experts and interviewees, and the standard of set up has been, shall we say, less than brilliant.  With that in mind I spoke to sports broadcaster par excellence Niall McGrath, who is currently revamping his home studio, about how best to improve your home b...

In the midst of the Covid-19 pandemic, powerful people and their PR departments seem to be forgetting some basic things about journalists and journalism. Let's put that straight, shall we? 

On the latest episode of the Our Man In Stockholm Podcast, I spoke to journalist and historian Sid Lowe about how he got started writing about football, coping in these Covid-19 times and making an impression on a certain Spice Girl's husband...

This week I talked to Sarah Colgan of 20x20, an initiative to raise the awareness of and participation in Irish sport - from modest beginnings, their campaign has really changed the game in Ireland, and there are definitely lessons that can be learned elsewhere. 

From 1930s cartoons depicting the Jews as sly, hooked-nosed figures to conspiracy theories about Mossad interfering in modern elections and the "Great Replacement", antisemitism may have morphed and changed over the years, but it has seemingly always been with us - and the media still struggles to deal with it.  There is a new, coded language in use, but the message remains the same - the Jew...

I got a delivery of some new podcast equipment this week, so to test it out I decided to go through the 13 ethical rules of journalism observed by the Swedish Union Of Journalists.  The sound may not be perfect just yet, but the 13 rules are well worth exploring, and I try to give practical examples of situations in which they might apply - and some of them will surprise you...

Trans people and the issues facing them are one of the hottest cultural topics and/or battlefields we have at the moment, for a variety of reasons, and I for one don't mind admitting that I know so little about the subject that I'm embarrassed.  Rather than coming out with my own ill-informed hot takes and adding to the ever-grown pile of steaming manure that passes for mainstream media journ...

Ken Robertson is the man who has created some of the most attention-grabbing and eye-catching marketing and advertising campaigns in history - there's barely a person in the UK, Ireland or beyond who hasn't been enthralled, appalled or both by his work during almost two decades coming up with campaigns for bookmakers Paddy Power.  Now the owner of a new agency in Dublin called The Tenth Man,...

The first of a number of podcasts this week, looking at the general reporting around the Irish election and how the accents of those speaking on TV and radio and the positions they hold tell us how broken our media is. 

Conor McGregor, Kobe Bryant and Rory Best have all been in the eye of the media storm in their careers, and all have been redeemed to some degree - but why do some get forgiven, and others not? Who decides when they are welcome back into the fold? And is there anything that is irredeemable in this modern media world? 

Guitar player Dave Browne is the greatest Irish musician you may never have heard of - despite the fact that he holds three Guinness world records and plays to countless thousands of people every year.  Born in Dublin and raised in Cuffe Street, the lightning-fingered Dub played all 50 American states in under 40 days together with singer and songwriter Dave Rooney, and a brilliant documentar...

An update from somewhere between Los Angeles and Las Vegas, with some thoughts on the passing of a mentor and an idea about how to change the Patreon model. 

"Russian interference" is a new thing for many democracies, but since independence the Finns have worried about other countries spreading disinformation and trying to manipulate their political system.  I spoke to Mikko Salo of Faktabaari about how the Finns are tackling the problem of "fake news" with fact-checking and education - whisper it, but their approach seems to be working... 

There are many routes into journalism and not all of them go via formal training - Seán Sheehan (aka The Pod God, aka Seánie Podcast) has become one of the most respected and high-profile Irish sports podcasters through his passionate love of sport (especially MMA) and his unique ability to cause a row in an empty house.  A trained mathematician and economist, Seán is also working good number...

Despite seemingly overwhelming evidence of their avarice and incompetence, the British voters have given the Conservative party an overall majority following their general election. Reflections on an election where feelings were far more important than facts. 

NBA player Kyrie Irving caused a stir last week when he reacted to criticism from Boston fans over his off-season move to Brooklyn on Instagram. He might make millions of dollars a year playing a game, but that doesn't make him - or anyone else - immune from harsh words.  I talked to ex-basketball pro-turned-sports journalist John Karalis about living in that bubble, the responsibilities we h...

As the man behind the riffs on some of ABBA's most iconic hits, there is barely a person on the face of the earth who hasn't heard Janne Schaffer play guitar - but there's a whole lot more to the Stockholm fret king than just the pop songs loved by billions.  Almost five decades into a career that has seen him share a stage with everyone form Cliff Richard to Pink Floyd, the 74-year-old's pas...

Every journalist with a byeline has been abused and threatened online, but few have come face to face with their abusers.  Sami Koivisto, a Finnish journalist with public service broadcaster YLE, has had more than his fair share of death threats that inspired fear in him and those close to him, but when police offered him the chance to meet one of those who had posted threatening messages, he...

Every day, your newspapers and airwaves are full of angry contrarian commentators, all shouting over one another about how they are being silenced, but of course, "you can't say that in this country any more".  This is not unique to Ireland or England or Sweden; those demanding an "open and honest" debate (and who usually deliver anything but) are part of a broader movement using similar tact...

Until the recent release of a private recording of hime being racist, anti-Semitic and generally losing his shit, Richard Spencer was the acceptable face of neo-Nazism. Newspapers wrote puff pieces, TV stations gave him a platform, all oblivious to the fact that he is one of Hitler's heirs apparent.  So what can journalists and editors do to avoid this happening again? One is to verify that p...

While all journalism follows the same basic principles, court reporting is something of a special case - it requires sharp skills, an analytical mind and not least a working knowledge of the law and how it relates to your work as a reporter.  Sarah-Jane Murphy is one of Ireland's most skilled court reporters, and that should come as no surprise - a qualified solicitor with eight years of expe...

When is it OK to use anonymous sources? Can they be trusted? And can we as journalists be trusted to make that call? When it comes to establishing who said what to whom, modern journalism has become the Wild West. Keen to preserve their contacts, journalists are granting anonymity to sources that don't truly deserve it.  The result is, at best, partisan reporting of certain issues in politics...

Jo Kamenou describes herself as "one of the lads" at Bleacher Report Football - a woman in the previously male-dominated environment of sports journalism.  Forget the fact that fast-moving newsrooms are difficult enough places at the best of times. Even if things have improved in recent years, it's a tricky path to follow. Men often don't take kindly to women who know more about football or s...