When it works well, this can mean the public reads about issues that may not see the light of day. 

But the consequences for getting something wrong, on both sides, can be enormous.

We’ve seen several TDs and ministers forced to resign in recent times following media scrutiny of their affairs.

For the media, defamation actions are incredibly costly to defend, whether they are right or wrong.

Fighting and winning can cost hundreds of thousands of euro, often with little or no chance of recovering any of that outlay in the event of a successful defence.

So, as long-needed defamation reform inches closer, what of Sinn Féin, the party that, at present, looks likely to be in government for the first time south of the border when the electorate has its say?

The recent decision of TD Chris Andrews to initiate legal action against both the Irish Times and its Political Correspondent Harry McGee over an article published last month has again put a spotlight on Sinn Féin’s relationship with the media.

The move has been described as a “sinister development” by the Irish secretary of the National Union of Journalists, Séamus Dooley.

Press Ombudsman Susan McKay said politicians should question whether suing journalists rather than making a complaint through the ombudsman’s office is in the public interest.

The latest case follows those taken in recent years, including by Mary Lou McDonald, Pearse Doherty, Michelle O’Neill, Martin Kenny, Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire, Aengus Ó Snodaigh, and Gerry Adams.

It also prompted the satirical site Waterford Whispers News to post a piece headlined ‘Only Sinn Féin TD Not Suing Media Outlet Feeling Left Out’.

In any functioning and healthy democracy, there should always be an element of tension between the media and the political elites that it has a responsibility to fairly question and hold to account.

But at times, Sinn Féin members have claimed that a media agenda is at play.

This was particularly pronounced after the 2016 general election when Pearse Doherty went as far as claiming the coverage of his party had affected the outcome of the poll.

“Look at the Irish Independent, look at the Irish Times, look at the election coverage of RTÉ and look at the amount of times Sinn Féin was mentioned… Put them into a category of whether it was a positive story or a negative story or a neutral and fair story. You will find they were very, very hostile towards Sinn Féin at that time. And that impacted on the campaign,” he said at the time.

Most elected members have positive working relationships with journalists based in Leinster House.

Many are exceptional media performers, such as Sinn Féin’s Louise O’Reilly and Éoin Ó Broin who are consistently well-prepared and articulate on television and radio panels.

Others, including David Cullinane, know how to drop responses to parliamentary questions to the right outlets at the right time to get maximum coverage.

But in line with a natural distrust of media, Sinn Féin politicians keep that little bit more of a distance than other elected representatives, both in Government and opposition.

Sinn Féin TDs never leak from their weekly parliamentary party meetings.

It could be said that this is to be admired when compared to Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael who almost use what is supposed to be a private discussion as an alternative to a press release. 

But it also shows the level of discipline within the party, especially when it comes to interactions with the media.

Sinn Féin the entity just about tolerates the media.

Unlike the other parties that provided wifi and dedicated working areas, it left journalists to their own devices at their pre-Dáil term meeting in September.

Desks were, however, provided for those covering Sinn Féin’s Ard Fheis in Athlone over the weekend.

There have also been issues in relation to interviews with both Mary Lou McDonald and Michelle O’Neill being cancelled, often at late notice.

In recent times, journalists from media outlets have been refused access to question the party leader.

Some have been told, on requesting sit-down interviews, that Ms McDonald believed it would be more appropriated to speak to a political editor, rather than a reporter with a junior title.

While spokespeople and backbenchers walk the Leinster House plinth for weekly media doorsteps, Ms McDonald, unlike other leaders in the opposition, is protected from the media, apart from a few selected opportunities.

This could come down to a move to cultivate her as a stateswoman ready to lead the country and for whom getting entangled in weekly media scrums is inappropriate.

Ms McDonald did, of course, face journalists in Athlone on Saturday at the party’s annual gathering where she was pressed on the most recent legal action.

The Sinn Féin leader denied her party is trying to silence the press, stating that everyone has a right to defend their reputation.

“All of you do a very, very important job in a functioning democracy and you will write your copy, broadcast your material and you know there’ll be the necessary tension and toing and froing it all of that.

There’s never an intention to make this about any individual. This is simply a situation where you have your jobs to do, we have ours to do. 

"As and when a line is crossed, as and when something is said or published that crosses a particular line, people have the right to use the mechanisms available to them to vindicate their name.”

In May of last year, the Index on Censorship organisation flagged Ms McDonald’s case against RTÉ with the Council of Europe as a threat to media freedom.

The London-based organisation said the High Court proceedings taken by the party leader over an interview on Radio One was evidence of a Slapp (Strategic Lawsuit Against Public Participation) action.

Ms McDonald drew further attention in October of last year when she was nominated for a ‘bully of the year’ award by an organisation that campaigns against powerful individuals using defamation laws to silence critics.

In putting Ms McDonald forward, the Coalition Against Slapps in Europe (Case) stated that the Sinn Féin leader is “not new to the Slapp scene”.

“However, April 2022 cemented the president of Sinn Féin’s reputation as a Slapp politician after she filed her third defamation case in the High Court.”

On Saturday, Ms McDonald rejected claims that her own actions have amounted to Slapp: “In the occasion, where a line is crossed, sorry, I reserve personally the right to defend my reputation.”

The case certainly drew heat on the party that is now focused on building momentum ahead of crucial local and national elections.

“It’s his decision to make”, was the most common refrain from elected representatives when asked about Mr Andrews' proceedings over the weekend.

But one senior TD noted: “I certainly have had plenty of opportunities to take cases myself over the years, but I didn’t. That’s the cut and thrust of politics.”

Speaking privately, one senior party official said he strongly disagrees with the notion of an elected representative taking a personal case against a journalist.

It was stressed that the party does not pay for legal cases and each individual member seeks their own advice and representation on such matters.

Sinn Féin TDs provide journalists with information to legitimately attack the Government’s record on all matters, from housing to health. 

But as it attempts to position itself as a government-in-waiting, its willingness to sue journalists and the media so frequently will come further under the spotlight.