Mary Ellen Synon

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Mary Ellen Synon (born 1951) is an Irish-American journalist, currently writing for the Mail on Sunday and the Irish Daily Mail.

Contents

[edit] Life

[edit] Affair

In 1995 Synon made headlines in the British and Irish press over her affair with Mr Rupert Pennant-Rea, the deputy governor of the Bank of England. Pennant-Rea subsequently resigned.

[edit] Career

[edit] Sunday Independent

She became a regular freelance columnist for the Dublin-based Sunday Independent, and was noted for her opinions on asylum seekers, travellers, education and other controversial issues. After one such article [1] an unsuccessful attempt was made by a Travellers Rights Group to initiate a prosecution under the Incitement to Hatred Act. Her tenure culminated in an article penned in 2000 attacking the Paralympics for blind and disabled athletes in Sydney.[2]

In the article, she wrote: "It is time to suggest that these so-called Paralympics . . . are - well, one hesitates to say 'grotesque'. One will only say 'perverse'…Surely physical competition is about finding the best - the fastest, strongest, highest, all that. It is not about finding someone who can wobble his way around a track in a wheelchair, or who can swim from one end of a pool to the other by Braille." [3] She advised the disabled and blind to "play to your competitive advantage" and added: "In other words, Stephen Hawking shows his wisdom by staying out of the three-legged race."

The article, which was criticised by the NUJ (National Union of Journalists), was subsequently discussed in the Irish senate where Maurice Hayes, a senator, director of Independent News & Media, which owns the Sunday Independent, and acquaintance of the controlling shareholder, said it was indefensible, indecent and hurtful: "It should not have been written and if written, it should not have been published. I know that my views are shared by my colleagues on the Independent board and in particular by the chairman." The chairman, Tony O'Reilly, and his son, Gavin O'Reilly were both attributed opinions in the matter.

Under pressure from several Health Boards in Ireland (collectively very significant advertisers in the Sunday Independent), an official apology was issued by the paper, which they said was endorsed by Synon. Nevertheless she subsequently took issue with this apology and resigned shortly afterwards. Later in the same year, she was subjected to a bomb hoax at her home.[4] Synon currently contributes to the Irish weekly paper, the Sunday Business Post.

[edit] References

  1. ^ McCarthy, Dave. (2004)Synon Article. Traveller Visibility Group. Retrieved on December 29, 2006.
  2. ^ Dundon, Mary. "Pressure on Times to say sorry for Myers". Cork Examiner, 10 February 2005. Retrieved on 23 September 2007.
  3. ^ Leonard, Tom. "Athletes outraged as Paralympics called 'perverse'". Daily Telegraph, 19 June 2001. Retrieved on 23 September 2007.
  4. ^ Collins, Dan.package delivered to home of journalist was hoax bomb. Irish Examiner, 2000. Retrieved on 29 December 2006