Annual Report 2020
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A Year in Review Annual Report & Group Financial Statements 2020 investigate, report, reflect, educate, entertain & celebrate Today, 02 Vision, Mission and Values tomorrow, 03 RTÉ: The Year in Numbers together 04 RTÉ: Some Highlights from 2020 RTÉ is Ireland’s national public-service media 16 Chair’s Statement organisation – on 18 Director-General’s Review television, radio, online and mobile. 20 Financial Review 29 RTÉ: Who We Are The 60th Annual Report and Group Financial Statements for 30 RTÉ: What We Made in 2020 the 12 months ended 31 December 2020 presented to the Minister for 50 RTÉ: What We Won in 2020 Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media in line with sections 109 and 110 of the Broadcasting Act 52 RTÉ: What We Did in 2020 2009. 64 Distribution, Digital, Delivery Is féidir leagan Gaeilge den Tuarascáil a íoslódáil ó rte.annualreport20.com 70 Statistical Information 78 Board of RTÉ 82 Executive 84 Corporate Governance 92 Board Members’ Report 93 Statement of Board Members’ Responsibilities 94 Independent Auditor’s Report 96 Financial Statements 103 Notes Forming Part of the Group Financial Statements 151 Appendix to the Group Financial Statements – Accounting Policies 158 2020 Performance Commitments 163 Other Reporting & Statistical Information 165 Financial History vision To champion Irish culture by captivating audiences with trusted, engaging and challenging content; celebrating our country’s rich diversity; and cultivating Ireland’s talent. mission To enrich Irish life with content that challenges, educates and entertains. values As an organisation and individually, RTÉ will be outward looking, creative, respectful, sustainable and accountable, collaborative and transparent, and will demonstrate the following behaviours: Outward Looking Sustainable and Accountable Have a deep understanding of its Manage its business in a audience and their needs. responsible manner. Be Invest time and energy in accountable to each other monitoring changes in the media within RTÉ and to audience and landscape. stakeholders. Creative Collaborative Be resourceful and innovative Work together, bringing the ‘One in how it makes its content. Be RTÉ’ organisation to life. Join brave, take risks and be willing to forces with partners to meet the learn from failures. needs of RTÉ’s audience. Respectful Transparent Treat people, including staff and Make decisions openly. partners, with respect, even when Be upfront about the reasons it challenges. Nurture trust by for the actions taken. being fair and open about the decisions it makes. 02 RTÉ: The Year in 36% RTÉ Player saw a 36% growth in viewing in 2020, with 67.5m Numbers streams. 90% of Irish people chose RTÉ as their primary source of information on the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020. 100 RTÉ Supporting the Arts partnered with more than 100 local, national and community arts events in 2020. 271,000 The RTÉ Guide bumper Christmas issue continued to be an Irish publishing phenomenon, with almost 271,000 copies sold. 1,400,000 1.4 million people tuned in to RTÉ Does Comic Relief, with over €5.8 million raised. 2,004,000 RTÉ grew its total weekly radio listeners to over 2 million in 2020, representing 51% of the adult 15+ population. 4,000,000 Almost 4 million individuals or 90% of the Irish TV population tuned in to RTÉ’s television services in the early stages of the pandemic (2 March–17 May 2020). 03 Thousands shared in St. Patrick’s Day fun with the #RTEVirtualParade. 04 05 Thousands more joined with RTÉ to #ShineALight. 06 07 Children (and parents) flocked to RTÉ’s Home School Hub. 08 09 1.7 million people watched The Late Late Toy Show on RTÉ platforms. 10 11 The Illuminations art project fostered solidarity and built resilience. 12 13 With profound sadness, RTÉ announced the death of Marian Finucane in January. 14 15 2020, the year of the pandemic, was a year of contrasts. While we were finding ways to negotiate Chair’s the difficulties and family tragedies the virus wrought, we also saw the emergence of new forms Statement of thinking, new ideas, new ways to communicate and new forms of community partnership. The media became a vital source of information; indeed, during the worst periods of lockdown it was a constant companion. It gives me great pride that the audience data for the period shows that RTÉ was at the heart of successive national moments throughout the year, bringing people together, clarifying and empowering through the unique position that public media inhabits. The pandemic also encouraged RTÉ to examine its operating structures and to design new and crisis-efficient modes of delivery. With the backing of the Board, RTÉ continued in its plan to stabilise the organisation’s finances, and we continued to assess RTÉ’s remit, seeking to maintain the best possible portfolio of services and content for audiences in Ireland in the context of declining funding and revenues. This thinking contributed to a renewed and more urgent conversation about public service media. The arguments for the sustenance, protection and patronage of public media took on a real-time and real-world resonance as a result of the pandemic. While Covid-19 accelerated opportunities for change and digitalisation, it also exacerbated the challenges for impartial and independent journalism. As we assess a changed landscape, and consider the economic, editorial and creative implications for public service media, it is crucial to ensure that our audiences, our legislators and our regulators understand the critical role of public media in times of national need, and the Board remains committed to this goal. To survive, public media must continue to adapt. In many ways, on the cusp of a post-Covid world, the transformation has only just started. With this at the forefront of our minds, the work of the Future of Media Commission comes at a most critical time for Irish public service media. The outcome of this review will determine the future footprint of public service media for the next generation and will shape the future RTÉ. We continue to engage with the Commission and look forward to the conclusion of their review in 2021. Sadly, the RTÉ family was visited with its own tragedies in 2020. This time last year, reflecting on the sad passing of Gay Byrne, I said that his public service to the nation was indisputable. The same must now be said of Marian Finucane, of Larry Gogan and of Keelin Shanley, whose remarkable achievements in their service to us as citizens, and to our nation, say so much about the unique character and place of public service media in all our lives. 2020 was the year when empathy and connection emerged once more as defining elements and differentiators for public service media. Our audiences showed us, perhaps more clearly than ever, what they value and what they need from their national broadcaster. We will continue to evolve and adapt to meet that need, and will build stronger once the crisis has passed to ensure that our long patience as a nation has its just reward. Moya Doherty Chair 16 “ bringing people together, clarifying and empowering through the unique position that public media inhabits” RTÉ, as the national public service media, has unique responsibilities. At the heart of these is the Director- mission to provide people in Ireland with an impartial and comprehensive news service, and to entertain, inform and illuminate. Never was that mission more acute, and more demonstrable, General’s than in 2020. Review When the nation came together in crisis, audiences of all ages turned to the national broadcaster for information, advice, entertainment, companionship, diversion and cultural connection. In an era of misinformation and half-truths, millions of Irish citizens relied on public service media more than ever. Independent research showed that 90% of people turned to RTÉ News for vital information in 2020; B&A research confirmed that 4 out of 5 of those surveyed said that they were using RTÉ television or radio services for information, while 76% indicated that they would trust either of those sources above all others. It is remarkable, in retrospect, that RTÉ maintained full schedules across all services in 2020, and where necessary augmented planned coverage with additional live broadcasts and new programmes. While certain productions had to be suspended or stepped down due to public health restrictions, other dedicated programming was commissioned with exceptionally tight deadlines. Achieving this level of resilience and output under such challenging circumstances was far from easy. I am incredibly proud of the tireless work by our staff and our partners in the independent sector to find solutions and work with creativity, determination and commitment, to ensure that we deliver services for the people of Ireland. Research conducted at the midpoint of the year confirmed that RTÉ was the most recognised brand for supporting the nation during the Covid-19 crisis. This was thanks to the remarkable agility shown by RTÉ in 2020. From Ireland on Call, RTÉ Home School Hub and Illuminations to the #RTEVirtualParade, Letters from Lockdown, RTÉ Does Comic Relief and a record-breaking Late Late Toy Show, RTÉ delivered for audiences with content that was relevant and indeed a crucial part of our collective journey through a year like no other. From Shine A Light to the many musical performances that were the centrepiece of The Late Late Show, and from the intimate performances recorded in cultural venues across the country as part of the Courage series to the poetry and original writing featured in radio, online and television broadcasts, we saw how important the arts are to our audiences, and the extent to which our audiences relied on their public service media for cohesion and a unifying sense of purpose.