Vincent Browne asks: Is Ireland homophobic?
The motion for tonight's 'The People’s Debate with Vincent Browne' is: “That Ireland is Homophobic”. The topic for discussion follows a powerful speech given at The Abbey Theatre in February by Rory O’Neill, also known by his drag queen name ‘Panti Bliss’. His speech discussed the feeling of oppression felt by him, as a gay man living in Ireland. It also follows the decision by the Government to hold a referendum on civil marriage for same-sex couples in the first half of 2015, following a recommendation by the Constitutional Convention that the Constitution be changed to allow it.
A number of gay rights organisations as well as conservative organisations such as the Iona Institute will take part in the discussion. With 150-200 people taking part in each programme, The People’s Debate with Vincent Browne is TV3’s largest studio audience show to date. Airing on the first Wednesday of every month at 10pm, the two-hour-long debate style show gives the people of Ireland a platform to talk on important issues and voice their opinions in the media.
The People’s Debate is unique because it offers a platform to the people of Ireland and the programme format is almost exclusively dictated by the audience themselves. There is no programme format like The People’s Debate which offers the public a genuine forum to voice their concerns. Vincent Browne calls it ‘Democracy Television’.
The People’s Debate however is not without its challenges. Talking about how the format can sometimes be hard to manage, Lisa Marie Berry, Executive Producer of The People’s Debate with Vincent Browne, said: “The format of The People’s Debate poses many production challenges for many different reasons but mainly because it is so rare to have two hundred audience members who all have the opportunity to speak if they wish. We decided on this format because we wanted to produce a programme that was almost 100 % audience led without the panel of usual suspects and that all participants debate on an equal basis which has not been done before on Irish television. This is a public service and a vital platform for people to air their views and concerns about the big issues facing the nation. Yes it can sometimes get shouty and argumentative but isn’t that the nature of debate?!”