Guidelines on Coverage of the General Election Issued

The Broadcasting Authority of Ireland (“the BAI”) has today (9th November 2015) published its Rule 27 Guidelines – General Election Coverage.  The Guidelines will come into effect immediately on the dissolution of the 31st Dáil and will remain in place until the closing of polling stations on the day of the Election.

The Guidelines are provided for under Rule 27 of the BAI’s Code of Fairness, Objectivity and Impartiality in News and Current Affairs and provide direction and advice to broadcasters as to how fairness, objectivity and impartiality can be achieved in their coverage of the forthcoming General Election.

As well as outlining the statutory requirements in respect of news and current affairs coverage, the Guidelines also address considerations such as the role and responsibility of broadcasting personnel, ensuring an appropriate range of views, the handling of opinion polls, the approach to social media, and the allocation of airtime.  As with previous Guidelines, compliance with a moratorium on coverage of the General Election will come into effect from 2pm on the day prior to the opening of polling stations and will end following the close of polling stations on the day of the ballot.

Speaking about the publication of the Guidelines, Michael O’ Keeffe, Chief Executive of the BAI said: “Broadcasters continue to play a key role in how the Irish public are informed about elections in Ireland and for this reason, the BAI is issuing specific guidelines that will apply to broadcast coverage of the forthcoming General Election. The Guidelines are intended to inform both broadcasters and the general public about the rules and standards that exist in relation to the coverage of the Election. ”.

In conjunction with the issuing of the Guidelines, the BAI has also established a dedicated email address for queries about the General Election Guidelines and their implementation. Requests for guidance on the application of the regulations can be emailed to election@bai.ie.

To download the 2015 Rule 27 Guidelines – General Election Coverage please click here.

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Media Queries to:

Catherine Heaney/Tony Heffernan

DHR Communications

01 4200580/ 087 2309835/087 2399508