Willie O’Reilly: Board appointment put Bass in difficult position

Surely, by now, politicians should be aware of conflicts of interest when making appointments to state boards

Larry Bass: his success and his relationship with RTÉ was at the heart of the problem of his appointment to the station’s board of management

Larry Bass, producer of Dancing with the Stars, resigned from the board of RTÉ last week. It was a short directorship, barely eight weeks.

Bass’s production company ShinAwil Ltd is a big supplier of TV shows to RTÉ. Its successes include The Apprentice, Dragons’ Den, Master Chef Ireland and, of course, the ratings topper Dancing with the Stars.

Bass has the Midas touch in spotting opportunity in international franchises while delivering high-production values to a ...