RTÉ News and Current Affairs (Irish: Nuacht agus Cúrsaí Reatha RTÉ), also known simply as RTÉ News (Nuacht RTÉ), is the national news service provided by Irish public broadcaster Raidió Teilifís Éireann (RTÉ). Its services include local, national, European and international news, investigative journalism and current affairs programming for RTÉ television, radio, online, podcasts, on-demand and for independent Irish language public broadcaster TG4. It is the largest and most popular news source in Ireland – with 77% of the Irish public regarding it as their main source of Irish and international news. It broadcasts in English, Irish and Irish Sign Language. The organisation is also a source of commentary on current affairs. The division is based at the RTÉ Television Centre in Donnybrook, Dublin; however, the station also operates regional bureaux across Ireland and the world.

On 1 January 1926, 2RN, Ireland's first radio station, began broadcasting. Its first advertised news bulletin was put out on 24 May 1926. Nine months later, on 26 February 1927, the station broadcast its first daily news report.

During the Second World War, referred to in Ireland as The Emergency, media censorship of radio broadcasts (under the provisions of the Emergency Powers Act 1939) affected news bulletins. Before any news bulletin was broadcast, the script of the bulletin was read over the phone to the Head of the Government Information Bureau, Frank Gallagher. Censorship under the Act was lifted on 11 May 1945.

On 31 December 1961 Ireland's first national television station, Telefís Éireann, was officially launched. A new Television Complex was built at Donnybrook in Dublin and the news service was the first to move in. Charles Mitchel read the first television news bulletin at 18:00 on 1 January 1962. Andy O'Mahony was the station's other chief newsreader in the early days of the new service. The new studios were still being completed, so construction work was heard during news bulletins. Later, on Telefís Éireann's first full day of broadcasting, Broadsheet made its debut. This programme provided a more detailed analysis of topical matters and current affairs. There was a mixture of incisive and light-hearted items, unscripted studio interviews and filmed reports. Presented by John O'Donoghue, Brian Cleeve and Brian Farrell, some of these men would continue broadcasting with the station until the new century. Telefís Éireann's first full day also saw the first broadcast of the Nine O'Clock News, a half-hour bulletin including news, news view, weather, and sports results.

Broadsheet was broadcast for the last time in 1964. It was replaced by Frank Hall's Newsbeat, a news and current affairs programme that focused more on the light-hearted stories from around the country.

In 1966 Maurice O'Doherty joined the newsroom as a newsreader. Later that same year the station's new flagship news programme was broadcast for the first time. Seven Days had a production team with people such as Eoghan Harris, Brian Cleeve, Brian Farrell, and John O'Donoghue. In 1967 the programme merged with another, Division, and became 7 days.

The news was under the Telefís Éireann's (TÉ) news department, while public affairs came under TÉ's programming department. In the mid-1960s three public affairs programmes emerged. Home Truths, a series to help people with consumer issues, 7 Days, a series that looked a political policy, and Division, a series of debates between government and opposition party leaders. Each would come under pressures due to various different groups, including government ministers.

Home Truths was successful in bring ordinary issues to the fore, in one instance a programme exposing meat prices caused butchers and the meat industry to protest the new TV service, this in turn caused issues for the advertising sales department who were having to deal with boycotts or changes to their advertising schedule, this in turn caused problems for producers who felt force to take on more softer issues due to TÉ's commercial concerns.