Mediawatch

Does TV doco Polk live up to the hype - or live down to the claims of tabloid clickbait? Also - further feedback on 'trust in news', new unofficial register lifts the lid on lobbying a little. Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

Another year - another drop in trust in the news here, according to the biggest annual survey of it. But the slump seems to have stalled and some outlets have even gained trust this time round - though we’re still world leaders in ‘news avoidance.’ Mediawatch looks at all this - and talks to a Canadian confronting the same trends there. New Zealanders’ trust in the news has been falling for years...

An outdoor ad company buys the country's largest radio network, NZME launches a positive news campaign - and Hayden launches an unauthorised theme tune. Also -Green MP Benjamin Doyle speaks out about a toxic online campaign against them that garnered widespread media coverage - and dire fake news about wolves. Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

Just two companies have carved up most of our grocery bills for years. The government says change is coming - but many in the media don't seem to believe it;s possible. Also - our media’s slumping share of ad income, and local papers' paper dispute. Just two companies have carved up most of what we’ve spent on grocery shopping for years. Now the government says change is coming to the duopoly - bu...

Green MP's social media spark controversy - and claims the media ran shy of the story. Also: NZME's bitter battle for control rumbles on, and the broadcasting watchdog sanctions Stuff for a ThreeNews scoop that fell short on fairness, balance and accuracy. Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

Are media confusing us with claims of green shoots in the economy at the same time as headlining more dire data? Also: the epic security fail at the top of the Trump regime that gave a journalist the easiest scoop he'll ever get - and the battle for control of NZME ramps up with a flurry of letters. But first -- it’s not news that our economy;s been going backwards - and the numbers on that don’t...

Billionaire Jim Grenon's letter-writing spree as he tries to take control of NZME's board & a click-driven incentive scheme at the company. Also - more journalists are killed in Gaza & an Oscar-winning filmmaker assaulted; Stuff quietly drops a disclosure commitment from its AI policy. Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

A Kiwi lifting the lid on Facebook's been gagged before she could talk to RNZ. Why? And what did she say before Meta called its lawyers? Also: news publishers' ownership in play & lifestyle journalism's being squeezed by our cash-strapped media, but RNZ’s boosting it and the country’s oldest magazine is shifting its focus. Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

Rivals appeal to NZME shareholders as Stuff carves its chief's one share into a million. Also: MAGA-powered podcasters control the zone - and have we lost the appetite for school lunch scrutiny? Rivals appeal to NZME shareholders as Stuff's chief turns one share into a million. Also: MAGA-powered podcasters control the zone, have we lost the appetite for school lunch scrutiny? Go to this epis...

The PM’s got plenty on his plate right now - including media hinting his time is up in the top job. Is that true - or fair? Also: a new move to use the media to improve integrity in public life and push back at vested interests. Sounds good, but are things really that bad? Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

A new poll piles pressure on the PM and his party, the billionaire bidding to unseat NZME's board hits back at claims about his intentions, a Paddington clarification Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

Concern over a sudden change of editorial direction at NZME as a billionaire bids for control. Also: reporting Wellington’s water woes and a sudden rush of top-level resignations. The publisher of the Herald and owner of Newstalk ZB has told its investors it’s going to set “a new tone” for New Zealand and “share stories of economic success and positive momentum.” NZME also plans to roll out AI to...

Midweek: The ever-present US President makes the most of set-piece media events. Also -billionaires seeking stakes in our media & rights to air rugby - and TV shows about life in NZ fifty years apart. Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

Chinese warships in the Tasman Sea promp big calls to bump up the budget for defence ASAP. Also - the super-heated headlines about factory-to-school lunches and we talk to the international outfit defending public broadcasters from de-funding. Chinese warships appearing in what we like to think of as our ‘benign strategic environment’ sparked something of a media frenzy lately - culminating in com...

Media go forensic on Andrew Bayly's ministerial resignation, the PM's ZB stumble, NZME's revealing annual results - & the real story of Golriz at PaknSave Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

Surviving 2025 in the intertwined industries of media and advertising. Should our government follow Australia’s media policy - and beware of billionaires? Also: decoding Destiny and the tricky task of luring Aussie tourists. Can the intertwined industries of media and advertising survive 2025 - and even thrive? That was the theme of a gathering in Auckland this week. One day later, the hosts of it...

Big names at the Herald lose their jobs in a major news rejig, a Wellington ginger group getting a helping hand - and attracting Aussies in 1962. Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

How plans for wealthy foreign investors hit the headlines this week - and how did paid-for propaganda end up on a major news website? Also: two business journalists want to make the most out of much-needed money for important investigative journalism Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

Comedian Guy Williams' Waitangi run-in with David Seymour - and the Act leader's pushback at the Herald; a new video channel proposal by NZME - and new government plans to help local media. Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

Trump’s alarmed the world with trade tariffs, turning off aid and proposing to take over Gaza. But New Zealand’s had its own diplomatic dramas in the news - with the media in the middle of them. Also: new news outlets popping up to push back fear of 'news deserts.' Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

The 'fake news' from Israel that strained our relationship with the US - and a long-suppressed offender’s name finally comes out. Also: Tributes to Jonah Lomu and Marianne Faithfull which missed the mark - and two reports on transport which didn’t. Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

Summertime - and the living is easy, the old Gerschwin song says. But he didn’t have to keep Kiwis tuned in during the summer news drought. Meanwhile the outside world has changed a lot since Christmas - and the media industry’s problems here haven’t taken a holiday either. Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

NZME's plan to cut nearly 40 staff including some big names, a s spiky editorial response to a reader questioning coverage - and a belated Mediawatch award for misinformation in 2024. Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

Mediawatch looks at how the media fared against the forces they faced in 2024 - and how one part of the media seems to be bucking the trend of decline. Also: Hayden Donnell's media Christmas wish. Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

Mediawatch’s not-very-prestigious and not-at-all coveted annual media awards - including biggest flip-flop; best and worst jingle and nickname; state-of-media analysis of the year, the awrd for pushing musical boundaries - and the Billy Connolly Trophy for a single animal making national news. Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details