Eamon Dunphy quits Newstalk over interference

Eamon Dunphy has announced he is quitting his popular Sunday morning show on Newstalk, citing “management interference” as one of the reasons.

Dunphy, who made no bones about his displeasure at the sacking of Sam Smyth from sister station Today FM a few weeks ago, has claimed that Newstalk “is a very inhospitable place for journalists to work in”.

Dunphy doesn’t explicitly mention Denis O’Brien, whose Communicorp Group own both Newstalk and Today FM, but he does offer some insight into the regime there.

“We didn’t have the support we needed and life was made very difficult. There were edicts coming down from management encouraging us to put a positive spin on the news agenda. Given the crisis the country is in that was a joke.”

The cantankerous ex-footballer also made reference to Smyth’s departure in his statement in today's Irish Daily Star saying: “If someone of Sam’s experience is let go, it is deeply worrying.”

Dunphy’s show, one of the best on the station and one that was growing listeners based on the latest figures, will be missed and the question is who will take over the helm now, especially with the allegations made by the former host.

And all this follows the news earlier this week that chief executive of Today FM, Willie O’Reilly, quit the station for RTÉ.