The BBC’s ‘Irish Troubles’Television, Conflict and Northern Ireland

Robert J. Savage

Rob Savage, professor of history at Boston College, has done extensive academic research on 20th century Irish politics and media. The BBC’s Irish Troubles, combines his expertise in both areas with a nuanced, detailed examination of the BBC’s role in reporting on Northern Ireland (NI) from 1968-’88. The story is replete with the bullying, favoritism, ineptitude and deceit practiced by British and NI officials. “Refusing to inform viewers fully of what was taking place in Northern Ireland,” the BBC coverage became dictated by “Government-imposed censorship, together with self-censorship practiced by anxious broadcasters.” The result was often a fabricated, self-serving narrative that did little to solve unrest. The heroes were a handful of intrepid reporters and news editors who tried to resist BBC censorship, as well as ordinary citizens who pressed for change. The final chapter, “Margaret Thatcher, the IRA and the Oxygen of Publicity” offers disturbing examples of how politicians sabotage the free press for political positioning. Relying on primary source material, Savage’s The BBC’s ‘Irish Troubles’ is an accomplished work of historical scholarship that contributes enormously to literature of NI.
Manchester University Press | $95 cloth / 288 pages / May 2015