The Press Ombudsman has said 2020 was a good year for Irish media as print and broadcasting rose to the challenge of broadcasting through pandemic.
However, Peter Feeney said there was a huge contrast with coverage online, where he said there was a huge amount of misreporting and inaccurate information.
Speaking to RTÉ's Morning Ireland, Mr Feeney said what people got online essentially was "pub talk" and although social media companies took significant measures to address it, he said it is very hard to address given the sheer volume of information online.
Mr Feeney said that social media had been a huge gain for the public in general, but that it also "carries harm" and can be an aggressive environment.