Mediawatch

Pope Francis's death prompts breaking news weirdness, Winston Peters butts heads with RNZ, identical Aussie twins go viral with synchronised eye-witness account, a Wellington councilor's on-the-record outburst - and a housing headline excluding renters Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

Jailed journalist Peter Greste tells Mediawatch about the worst times in his life up on the big screen in 'The Correspondent.' Also - the country’s main Christian broadcaster Rhema is bucking the trend of media contraction - even though its target market's shrinking and appealing to a broad church is tough in these polarised times. Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

Does TV doco Polk live up to the hype - or live down to the claims of tabloid clickbait? Also - further feedback 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 - five years in a row according to the most comprehensive annual survey of it carried out that's carried out here. And we’ve also been leading the world in the proportion of people who say they actively avoid the news. So no wonder our news outlets fear the worst when the AUT's Trust in news in Aotearoa New Zealand report comes out. But the latest survey shows the slump trust in our news media has stalled - and local outlets are actually more trusted this year. How come? Also Mediawatch talks to a longtime journalist striving to restore trust in local media in Canada with the help of fellow 'Ink-Stained Wretches. And they’re also coming to terms with the turmoil of Trump turning on former friends north of the border in a big way. Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

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 - but that was met with undue apathy by many in our media. We look at the latest figures for advertising income, the lifeblood of the media industry. Overall revenue’s up by a almost a quarter of a billion dollars - good news in tight economic times. But the bad news? The proportion going to our media is down while many more millions are going offshore to the tech titans that dominate the digital world. Where will this end up? Also two local papers in a row over. . . paper. Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

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 lie. But now some new numbers are on the way up - and that is news. But other economic numbers in the news are still bad news. We look at the the dire data and the claims of green shoots - and ask if the media might be mixing its messages - and confusing us all: Mistakes happen. Everyone makes them. That’s why security protocols exist— Security systems are only as effective as the people who use them. But looping a senior journalist into top level chat about imminent military strikes? easiest scoop ever That didn't stop the MAGA-men playing a lame blame game with the media. The bitter battle to control NZME - the company that publishes the Herald and owns NZTB - rolls on, mostly in exchanges of letters. Also - how producers behind the scenes can keep their presenters on the mic on the straight and narrow. Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

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 episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

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 shape the Herald homepage. All this will change what we see and read in the future. But NZME’s top brass now have another problem - a billionaire who’s backed alternative online outlets has bought a big chunk of the company and now James Grenon wants to control it. Also this week: how the media handled a rash of resignations from top public jobs and Wellington’s water woes - no resignations yet but plenty of headlines. Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

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 commentators claiming our defence spending’s going to have to go up ASAP. Right now the two main public media networks in the US face bids to de-fund them - even though their federal funding is tiny. They also face MAGA-driven inquiries into bias and how they stay in business. Public broadcasters elsewhere in the world also face more political pressure on their funding and even their legitimacy these days. This week ask the boss of the outfit that represents them around the world: how do you defend against de-funding? Also: school lunches have been in the headlines ever since the new cheaper factory-to-classroom ones appeared this year - or not, in some cases. And isolated cases of things going badly wrong have certainly been seized on by the media. Just teething troubles blown out of proportion because of politics? Or are our media rightly demanding more transparency? (more than on the cellophane lids of those boxes of burnt bolognese we’ve all seen in the news . . .) Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

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 confirmed 30 of its journalists jobs have gone. Our government says - again - its waiting to see what Australia’s government does when it comes to media policy. Mediawatch asks an Australian media expert if that makes sense - and if should media in both places beware of the billionaires. Also - this week our government unveiled a new slogan to tempt Aussie tourists across the Tasman. Everyone Must Go seems to have gone down well over there, if not here at a time when many Kiwis are going there for good. We look back at previous efforts to lure tourists across the Tasman. But tricky timing here when record-number of Kiwis have decided they must go over there for good. But some of the past efforts to attract Aussie visitors haven’t dated that well either: AUDIO: 23 feb 2025 TRAIL 02 champagne That;s later on in the programme But first - what happened after Destiny Church supporters disrupted Pride events in Auckland last weekend: Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

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