The Irish Times, South Dublin City Centre

A Fine Newspaper...The Rest, Take Note!

(31 July 2010)

by: Jamie 5 out of 5

One of the big grievances I generally have with newspapers is that they either prize controversy over analysis (especially in opinion pieces where the author is clearly too passionate to back up their ideas logically) or they report items that, well, aren't news. As broadsheets go, The Irish Times is basically a paradigm - factual articles, analysis in opinion pieces and an appropriate lack of sensationalism. While occasionally there'll be the photograph of a "celebrity" (that word is a misnomer if ever there was one), the article on them is either brief or analytical - there are more important things to report on, and credit where credit is due, The Irish Times contributes its fair share on business and politics - maybe a little too much, but not to the depressing extent that RTE Radio talks seemingly endlessly about the recession.

The newspaper itself is well laid-out, with local and foreign news covered in separate sections and others, such as the arts and health matters, covered elsewhere (if indeed being covered that day). The opinion section is a vital component of the paper, and although some of the articles are factually wrong and downright bizarre, at least these are in the minority - for the major part, the opinion pieces are discussions of opinion as opposed to the loud shouting in the tabloids (*cough cough* The Sunday World *cough cough*). The letters section, of course, is always great fun; it can be frustrating trying to get a letter published on most topics, but I can recall milking five letters out of the Lisbon Treaty Dilemma section they had back in the Summer of 2008 - they seemed not to mind giving everyone's viewpoint, so the debate went on for ages and ages!

The sports section deserves particular praise, especially Tom Humphries; in spite of some truly diabolical articles he's written, his standard of journalism has been generally excellent. The reporting, though derived from the Guardian, is relatively neutral and the discursive pieces are refreshingly uninfuriating. I find that opinion pieces in football often descend into personal attacks and swipes at any player the writer happens not to like (a certain Roy Curtis springs to mind), but the articles here are more calm and analytical than rash and hotheaded.

As a young teenager five years ago taking interest in newspapers for the first time in my life, I found The Irish Times very heavy and at times irrelevant. At the time, I preferred The Evening Herald (an OK paper in spite of its flaws), but over time, I've come to prefer The Irish Times, mainly because it's the only paper that doesn't make me shake my head by the time I put it down. The Irish Times takes a fair bit of concentration to get used to and digest, but once you've settled into it, it can be quite a rewarding read.

Jamie would recommend. Jamie would use again.

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