Newsletter: OGAE’s Secretive Election Written by Ben Robertson on May 4, 2015 | 1 Comment

Welcome to another edition of the ESC Insight Newsletter for another week. The latest edition of the Newsletter is out and ready to view here.

This week we are all about Vienna with lots of happenings from around town and the news on the new Eurovision website and press happenings. We also review London’s party and give our highlights of the preview votes around the world. The Newsletter as always also features Robertson’s Reflection, where our Newsletter Editor Ben Robertson gives his weekly taste of things in the Eurovision world. This week he is very honest about his election for the Board of OGAE International, one he believes is full of missed opportunities for engagement with the passionate membership.

If we had elections in the public eye it would raise the profile of OGAE International. For most members the work it does revolves around the potential to get tickets for the live shows in Eurovision week. That’s an important part of the role, but it isn’t and shouldn’t be the sole focus of the organisation. But honestly such is the weakness of the current OGAE International system, the only connection fans have to it is a card and a possibility of six luxurious evenings standing up for hours on end in May. If they are lucky they may get the regular facebook or twitter updates. Rather than at any point discuss the exciting election candidates and manifestos, they provide us with daily updates of the 40 entrants which is so last month it’s embarrassing.

I’m proud to be vocal that this needs to change. OGAE International may be a secure organisation, but it’s frankly stuck-in-a-rut of the same old things being ok, which are out of date and are disengaging the membership. I’ve contacted the outgoing President and Secretary (for which there are no candidates, and there is no system to initiate a by-election) about publishing the manifestos, but there seems to be a belief that by emailing all the Club Presidents they have done all they need to, and it is up to them if they wish to publish further. There is constitutional confusion with International’s rules document (which I had to ask for a copy of) outlining the President’s Group as the ‘ultimate decision making body.’ However the interpretation of this is that the election for the next International President and Board should be on a need-to-know only basis, of no interest to ordinary members to access before the meeting. It only succeeds in making International look ineffective and secretive, favouring nobody and makes the entire fan club weaker.

To continue reading the rest of Robertson’s Reflection and all the other trappings of the Newsletter click onto this link. If you would like to sign up for the ESC Insight Newsletter to be delivered directly to your inbox sign up here.