RTÉ HAS announced that journalist and author Richard Crowley is to replace Mark Little as co-presenter of its current affairs programme Prime Time.
Crowley will take up the role, which will see him working alongside long-time Prime Timeanchor Miriam O'Callaghan, this day week.
He began his career with the Derry Journalin 1976 and has worked in the area of news and current affairs with RTÉ for more than 20 years.
Little announced in November that he intended to take a year’s leave of absence from RTÉ to explore the world of new media.
He left Prime Timelast month to pursue a project which he said would combine digital media and global journalism.
“The rise of social media platforms like YouTube, Twitter and Facebook provides an opportunity for journalists to change the way we report the world,” he said. “I would like to take a more direct role in that transformation.”
RTÉ said Crowley would continue to work on Radio One's Sunday afternoon news programme This Week.
Since joining RTÉ he has presented Morning Irelandand covered stories in the Middle East region since 2001. Last year, he presented a 10-part series on business and financial issues, which aired on RTÉ 2, entitled The Smart Money.
Crowley was also presenter and editor of a One to One series in which he interviewed a number of high-profile figures.His guests included UN weapons inspector Hans Blix; author Colm Tóibín; kidnapped BBC journalist Alan Johnston, former Fianna Fáil director of elections PJ Mara and businessmen Ulick McEvaddy and Ben Dunne.
His book No Man's Landwas published in October 2007.