Irish Times editor denies a "vested interest" in maintaining the property market

Geraldine Kennedy says the paper did not compromise standards, and that it was the first to print speculation about the end of the property boom.

THE EDITOR OF the Irish Times has denied that the paper had a vested interest in providing positive coverage of the property market during the boom.

Geraldine Kennedy was speaking about Press Freedom in Ireland at a lunch for the European Association of Journalists, when she denied that the paper had compromised standards, according to RTE. Kennedy says that The Irish Times exposed estate agents – some of whom advertised in the paper – for quoting false prices.

She also says that the Times lead the way in publishing the views of economist Morgan Kelly in 2007, when he said the property bubble had burst.

Irish Times Ltd bought the property website MyHome.ie in 2006. The site accounted for an €8.5 million chunk of a €27.9 million after-tax loss in 2009, although the company’s managing director Liam Kavanagh said last October that MyHome.ie was “profitable”.

Geraldine Kennedy is to step down from her position as Irish Times editor in September.

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