RTE to launch daily news bulletin for children

RTÉ is to run a daily television news service aimed specifically at children and broadcast on The Den, Network 2's afternoon children's show.

News2day starts from next Monday and will give a simplified version of some of the day's main Irish and international news, of interest to a younger audience.

The eight to 10 minutes slot at 5 p.m has been established in partnership with the National Children's Office, the State agency which aims to give a voice to children. It has contributed once-off funding of €200,000 to the service aimed at 7-12 year olds.

"We're hoping to get a new generation interested, from an early age, in what's going on in the world around them and to get our younger viewers involved in this programme," according to RTÉ's managing director of news, Ed Mulhall.

News2day will run for a year initially and will include show business items, packages about the natural world and animals, and will have significant child participation.

They also hope to have children e-mailing and texting the bulletin with the aim of running their comments across the screen.

"We will have live interviews as well as packages, will re-script a story of the day from the main news, as well as our own original stuff," said Mary Butler, the project manager.

Two local radio journalists, Ailbhe Conneely (23), from Portumna, Co Galway and Cathal Murray (26), from Athlone, Co Westmeath, have been chosen to present the bulletin.

RTÉ previously ran a weekly 20 minutes news slot for children but it was cut from schedules.

The principle of the new programme is the same as the long-running but now defunct BBC service for children, John Craven's Newsround.

Controversial issues would be dealt with "as sensitively as possible, being careful of the audience", says Ms Butler.