The new show, titled ‘Upfront with Katie Hannon’, will include a new audience-focused hour-long live TV show on Monday nights, podcasts and online features written by award-winning journalist and broadcaster RTE.
The new series comes after Byrne announced earlier this year that she would be leaving the weekly current affairs show, ‘Claire Byrne Live’, after seven years at the helm.
Commenting on the news, Hannon said: “I’ve had the privilege of telling people’s stories in print, on television and on radio over many years now. But I have long believed that the most powerful journalism is where people are allowed to tell their own stories,” reports The Mirror.
Every Monday night, Katie will moderate a live show where the audience comes face to face with people whose decisions directly impact their lives.
The show will take audiences beyond the headlines of the big stories of the day to those who are living that story.
In addition to a live studio audience, there will be a larger social audience, where the audience will be able to interact directly with the live show.
Along with this, Katie will be engaging throughout the week in social conversations across digital platforms, where audiences can address the issues that matter to them and the people who would like to see their questions answered.
The series will also kick off with specials from around the country.
Upfront with Katie Hannon will air on Monday nights at 10:35 p.m. from January on RTÉ One and will be available to stream on RTÉ Player.
Katie Hannon has appeared on RTÉ Radio 1’s Late Debate and Saturday with Katie Hannon, as well as appearing regularly as a presenter on Liveline since 2018 and will also continue to present on the station.
She previously reported for RTÉ Prime Time for over 14 years, covering a wide variety of topics including major banking investigations, child protection failures, vaccine trials in children’s homes, the failures that led to the Rescue 116 tragedy and the Garda informer scandal.
Previously, she was also a political correspondent for the Evening Herald and the Irish Examiner, as well as a political editor for Sunday’s Ireland.
Broadcaster Colm Ó Mongáin was announced to replace her and present RTÉ Radio 1’s political radio shows Late Debate and Saturday with Colm Ó Mongáin from December.
He is currently Deputy Director of Foreign News at RTÉ News, is also a producer and co-host of RTÉ’s Brexit Republic podcast, and has produced and hosted the Pandemic podcast, a daily half-hour podcast on the COVID-19 crisis.
Colm previously served as the presenter and editor of This Week on Sundays on RTÉ Radio 1.
He has been a reporter for RTÉ News since 2006 and has reported from Israel, the Occupied Palestinian Territory, Mali, Ethiopia and across Europe. He previously worked for TV3 and Newstalk.
He said: “I’m delighted to be getting the opportunity to get behind the mic again and work with the ‘Late Debate’ and ‘Saturday’ teams. It’s a great time to be covering politics in Ireland and further afield and I can’t wait to bring listeners analysis and debate on the issues that affect them,” reports The Mirror.
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