The former journalist and public relations executive Fintan Drury is to lead the new RTÉ Authority, it was announced last night.
The authority, which acts as the station's board, will also contain several members who are serving for a second time.
The names of the members were announced by Minister for Communications Noel Dempsey.
The authority is responsible for making all the long-term strategic decisions for the station, with day-to-day management the responsibility of an executive board led by director general Cathal Goan.
Mr Drury spent a period of his career working as a journalist with RTÉ, but in recent years his main activity has been running a company called Platinum, which is active in sports sponsorship and event management.
He set up Drury Communications in 1989 and developed the company into one of the largest public relations agencies in Ireland, prior to selling it in 1999.
Mr Drury is chairman of Paddy Power plc and also sits on the board of Anglo Irish Bank. He takes over from former Smurfit executive Paddy Wright.
Other members include Maria Killian, a consultant human resources manager; Patricia King,Siptu regional secretary; Ian Malcolm, a PhD student and journalist; Patrick Marron, a retired businessman and former member of the RTÉ Authority; Úna Ní Chonaire, an Irish speaker; and Stephen O'Byrnes, a public relations executive, who is serving a second term on the authority.
Mr Dempsey said the new authority was being appointed for a period not exceeding three years. "An election will be held among RTÉ employees in the near future to elect a representative to the authority," he said.
"I am delighted that people of such high calibre have accepted my invitation to become members of the RTÉ authority and I wish them well in the future," he added.
Mr Malcolm is the only member from Northern Ireland on the current authority. He has a background in journalism and edited the Antrim Guardian for several years before becoming a subeditor with the Newsletter in Belfast.
He is currently researching the attitudes of young Protestants in Northern Ireland towards the Irish language. He writes a column in the daily Irish language newspaper, Lá.