Eamon Ryan (Dublin Bay South, Green Party) | Oireachtas source

I fully agree with the Deputy. To back up his argument, and particularly the last point he made, I believe that if we become reliant on social media feeds where we only hear from people of the same views, that will result in a deepening sense of division and a coarsening of society. It will lead to a disparaging of other people in a way that is not good for our health, our souls or our future. Dr. Mike Ryan from the World Health Organization said at a conference yesterday that he has never before felt as threatened as he has in recent times. He was referring to the specific context of Covid-19 in recent years, but also to the wider sense of how stories are told and of the threats that exist in the social media environment if it is not a space for regulated journalism that asks the hard questions, provides a different perspective and presents different information in a way that is mediated by professional journalists. This is what our newspapers do, and this is why it is important that they survive and continue to develop to fulfil this critical role in our democracy. I support the Deputy's approach.

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