Jim McGuinness:JIM McGUINNESS, who has died aged 88, was a former editor of the Irish Pressand head of news at Raidió Telefís Éireann. He served in the latter capacity from 1966 until 1974, a period when RTÉ's coverage of The Troubles was under constant political scrutiny.
He believed that events in Northern Ireland would shape Irish history for the future; if RTÉ's news and current affairs coverage failed to meet the needs of the situation, history would condemn the organisation. RTÉ had to match the best international standards.
Accordingly, he was determined that loyalists and unionists would be given as much airtime as nationalists and republicans. However, relations between the government and the national broadcaster became strained. Matters came to a head in September 1972 following the transmission of a report by Kevin O'Kelly of an interview with Seán Mac Stiofán, then head of the Provisional IRA.
The report was held to be in breach of the Broadcasting Authority Act, and the entire RTÉ authority was dismissed.
Born in Derry in 1920, Jim McGuinness was one of the four children of William and Anastasia McGuinness. He was educated at Waterside boys' school and St Columb's College. Following his mother's death when he was 12, Ballyliffen, Co Donegal, where his grandfather lived, became a second home.
At the age of 18 he joined the IRA. Arrested in Dublin, he was interned in the Curragh for two years. After the Emergency he remained in the midlands, working for Bord na Móna, before moving to London to become a journalist with the Irish Press.
Appointed editor in 1953 he revamped the paper, hiring Brendan Behan as a columnist and recruiting Benedict Kiely and Seán White to the staff.
A profile in this newspaper marking his appointment concluded: "Whether he will be able to keep his political masters in order remains to be seen: but certainly they will not be able to muzzle him."
He parted company with the Press group in 1957 following a disagreement with Vivion de Valera. He moved to San Francisco, where a series of reports in a local newspaper won him the prestigious McQuaid Award.
Returning to Ireland in 1961 he was appointed head of information at RTÉ. He also served as head of RTÉ's publications division, and launched and edited the RTÉ Guide. He employed Patrick Kavanagh as film critic, and commissioned illustrations from artists such as Gerard Dillon and George Campbell.
In 1966 he succeeded Pearse Kelly as head of news. Expanding RTÉ's news coverage, he introduced programmes such as This Weekand News at One.
In 1974 he was transferred to the RTÉ archive department which he headed until his retirement in 1980. He bought the Garden Shop, a greengrocer's and delicatessen in Monkstown, Co Dublin, which he ran for four years.
A Francophile, he was an admirer of Charles de Gaulle, and in retirement learned French so as to read Le Monde. He enjoyed travel and spent holidays in France, South Africa and the US.
He is survived by his wife Sally (née Mariner), sons Pearse and Niall and daughter Mary.
• James Pearse (Jim) McGuinness: born February 17th, 1920; died August 22nd, 2008