Media in New Zealand
Encyclopedia
The media of New Zealand include television stations, radio stations, newspapers, magazines, films and websites. Mostly foreign-owned media conglomerates MediaWorks New Zealand, Australian Provincial Newspapers, The Radio Network
, Sky Network Television
and Fairfax New Zealand
dominate this media landscape. NZ On Air funds public service programming on the publicly owned Television New Zealand
and Radio New Zealand
, and on community-owned and privately owned broadcasters. Most media organisations operate Auckland
-based newsrooms with Parliamentary Press Gallery reporters and international media partners, but most broadcast programmes, music and syndicated columns are imported from the United States and United Kingdom.
There is limited censorship in New Zealand
of political expression
, violence or sexual content, although strict libel laws follow the English model
and contempt of court
is severely punished. The Office of Film and Literature Classification
classifies and sometimes censors films, videos, publications and video games, the New Zealand Press Council
deals with print media bias and inaccuracy and the Broadcasting Standards Authority
and Advertising Standards Authority
considers complaints. However, Reporters Without Borders
ranks New Zealand highly on press freedom, ranking it seventh-best worldwide in 2008, and eighth in 2010 (in the same 2010 study, for comparison, the UK placed 19th, and the US 20th).
The media of New Zealand predominantly use New Zealand English
, but World TV, Triangle TV
, Stratos TV
, Community Access and local Pacifica and Asia media organisations provide news and entertainment for linguistic minorities. The Waitangi Tribunal
decided in the late 1980s that the Government had an obligation to nurture the Māori language
and consequently Te Māngai Pāho
now funds iwi radio stations, the Maori Television Service
and other Maori programming on TVNZ, Radio New Zealand
and TV3
. MediaWorks operates two Auckland
ex-iwi radio stations commercially with limited Maori content: commercial nationwide dance network George FM
and hip-hop and R&B station Mai FM
.
. Provision was first made for the licensing of private radio and television stations in New Zealand by the Broadcasting Act 1976. In addition to a legacy
analogue network, there are three forms of broadcast digital television: satellite
services provided nationwide by Freeview and Sky
, a terrestrial
service provided in the main centres by Freeview, and a cable
service provided in Wellington
and Christchurch
by TelstraClear
. There are currently 11 national free-to-air channels, 22 regional free-to-air stations and several pay TV networks. Programming and scheduling is done in Auckland where all the major networks are now headquartered.
The first nationwide digital TV service was launched in December 1998 by SKY TV
, who had a monopoly on digital satellite TV until the launch of Freeview's nationwide digital Satellite service in May 2007. The Freeview terrestrial service, named Freeview|HD is a high definition
digital terrestrial television
service launched on 14 April 2008. The service currently serves areas surrounding Auckland
, Hamilton
, Tauranga
, Napier
-Hastings
, Palmerston North
, Wellington
, Christchurch
, and Dunedin
. Digital cable television currently operates in Wellington
and Christchurch
on TelstraClear's
cable TV system. High Definition programming is available from Freeview on terrestrial broadcast only and on SKY TV through the MY SKY HDi decoder. Only a limited range of channels are available in High Definition.
, ten are operated by MediaWorks New Zealand, three are operated by Rhema Broadcasting Group
and three are operated non-commercially by Radio New Zealand
. Most student networks belong to bNet
, most public service broadcasters belong to Community Access Broadcasters, and there are several iwi radio stations.
made the first broadcast in New Zealand from the University of Otago
physics department on 17 November 1921. The first radio station, Radio Dunedin
, began broadcasting on 4 October 1922, but it was only in 1925 that the Radio Broadcasting Company (RBC) began broadcasts throughout New Zealand. In 1932, its assets were acquired by the government, which established the New Zealand Broadcasting Board (NZBB). This would later be replaced by the New Zealand National Broadcasting Service (NBS) and the National Commercial Broadcasting Service (NCBS). In the 1950s, these merged to become the New Zealand Broadcasting Service (NZBS), a government department. In 1962, this gave way to the New Zealand Broadcasting Corporation (NZBC), an independent public body modelled on the BBC
in the UK.
Until the 1980s, stations used a series of call signs, consisting of a single digit and two letters (see left). In addition to YA National programme stations, YC Concert programme stations and a limited number of privately owned X stations, several stations were operated commercially by the government. In each region, the largest city was assigned a ZB station (1ZB Auckland, 2ZB Wellington, 3ZB Christchurch and 4ZB Dunedin) and a ZM music station (1ZM Auckland, 2ZM Wellington and 3ZM Christchurch). The Newstalk ZB
and ZM brands continue to be used by The Radio Network
. The second largest city was assigned a ZA station: 1ZA in Taupo
, 2ZA in Palmerston North
, 3ZA in Greymouth
and 4ZA in Invercargill
. In other towns and cities the final letter was assigned from the town or city name such as 4ZG in Gore and 1ZH in Hamilton. These ZA and other stations, also now owned by The Radio Network
, have been rebranded as Classic Hits
. 1YA, 2YK, 3AQ, 4YA were the first stations operating in the country's four main cities, and 5ZB was a mobile radio station broadcast in railway carriages during the 1940s.
subcarriers, but their adoption is not universal. Radio NZ uses RDS for its FM network, but commercial radio's adoption of the technology is not universal.
The very first station to broadcast on FM in New Zealand was a temporary station in Whakatane
called FM 90.7. The station ran from the 5 January 1982 until the 31 January 1982. The very first permanent station in New Zealand to broadcast on FM was Magic 91FM
in Auckland
broadcasting on 91.0FM followed by 89 Stereo FM broadcasting on 89.4FM. Both stations are no longer in operation; Magic 91 is the local Auckland frequency for ZM
and 89 Stereo FM today broadcasts a simulcasted FM version of Newstalk ZB
. Radio New Zealand started broadcasting on FM in the early 1980s and most networks now broadcast on FM.
Māori in New Zealand had non-literate culture before contact with the Europeans in the early 19th century, but oratory recitation of quasi-historical and hagiographical ancestoral blood lines was central to the culture; oral traditions were first published when early 19th century Christian missionaries developed a written form of the Maori language
to publish Bibles. The literature of New Zealand includes many works written in English and Maori
by New Zealanders and migrants during the 20th and 21st centuries. Novelists include Patricia Grace
, Albert Wendt
and Maurice Gee
; children's authors include Margaret Mahy
. Keri Hulme
won the Booker Prize for The Bone People
; Witi Ihimaera
's novel Whale Rider, which dealt with Maori life in the modern world, ' became a Nikki Caro film. Migrant writers include South African-born Robin Hyde
; expatriate
writers like Dan Davin
and Katherine Mansfield
often wrote about the country. Samuel Butler stayed in New Zealand and set his novel Erewhon
in the country. Karl Wolfskehl
prepared works of German literature
during a sojourn in Auckland. New Zealand's lively community of playwrights, supported by Playmarket
, include Roger Hall
.
The number of newspapers in New Zealand has dramatically reduced since the early 20th century as a consequence of radio, television and new media being introduced to the country. Auckland
's New Zealand Herald is the country's national newspaper and serves the upper North Island, Wellington
's The Dominion Post
serves the lower North Island and Canterbury's The Press and Otago Daily Times
serve the South Island. Provincial and community newspapers, such as the Waikato Times
daily, serve particular regions, cities and suburbs. Ownership of New Zealand newspapers is dominated by Fairfax New Zealand
and APN News & Media
with Fairfax having 48.6% of the daily newspaper circulation. Local and overseas tabloids and magazines cover food, current affairs, personal affairs, gardening and home decor, personal affairs and business or appeal to gay, lesbian, ethnic and rural communities.
and Jane Campion
. The cinema of New Zealand
includes many films made in New Zealand, made about New Zealand or made by New Zealand-based production companies
. Peter Jackson
's Lord of the Rings film trilogy
was produced and filmed in New Zealand, and animation and photography for James Cameron
's Avatar was primarily done in New Zealand; both films are among the highest grossing movies of all time. The New Zealand Film Commission
funds films with New Zealand content.
Mainstream American, British and Australian films screen in theatres in most cities and towns. Some arthouse films and foreign language films reach cinemas, including weekly Bollywood
screenings in many city cinemas. Asian films, particularly from India, China, Hong Kong and Japan, are widely available for rental on videocassette, DVD and similar media, especially in Auckland.
(Kiwiblog
), Jordan Carter, Peter Cresswell and Trevor Loudon
, and journalists and commentators such as Russell Brown
.
New Zealand politicians and political groups operate blogs which, unlike overseas counterparts, allow comments. The former ACT party leader Rodney Hide
often comments from within the House of Representatives
and Craig Foss
operates a personal blog. The Green Party
expand on party press releases, and Labour
MPs discuss policy and Parliamentary business. Blogging is a central campaigning tool for many political lobbying groups. A 2007 New Zealand Herald article by Bill Ralston
described political bloggers as being potentially the most powerful "opinion makers" in New Zealand politics. A few weeks earlier the National Business Review
had stated that, "Any realistic 'power list' produced in this country would include either [David] Farrar
or his fellow blogger and opinion leader Russell Brown
." And in 2008 The Press
said that year's election "could be the time when New Zealand's burgeoning political bloggers finally make their presence felt". The article saw the increasing influence of the Internet (as opposed to television and radio) on people's lives and the number of professional journalists now maintaining blogs as the reason for the blogosphere's increased significance, alongside the fact that unlike newspapers blogs can link directly to facts and sources. The blogosphere has also make an impart on parliament – Russell Brown is quoted as saying, "Every now and then you see a line from the blog turn up in a parliamentary speech" and in December 2007 then prime minister Helen Clark
accused political journalists of "rushing to judgment" on their blogs.
, an Auckland man convicted of sedition
in 2006, is also a prominent blogger, often bringing up controversial points. The pamphlet for which he was convicted and imprisoned on a charge of sedition was published on his website. Selwyn was also criticised in parliament for sending letters about his prison experiences to his co-blogger Martyn 'Bomber' Bradbury
, who posted them on the blog. In August 2006, Sunday News
revealed a blog site set up by Wellington
-based national socialist
Nic Miller after personal details of four Jewish families living in the city were posted on it. The details were later removed from the site. On 23 Dec 2009, Cameron Slater
was charged with five counts of breaching name suppression orders; the charges relate to two blog posts that contained pictures which reveal the identities of two New Zealanders. On 11 Jan 2010, Slater published a blog post that used binary and hexadecimal code to reveal the identity of a person charged with indecent assault on a 13-year-old girl; the Nelson Bays
police announced that they would investigate this further breach of New Zealand's name suppression laws. On 1 June 2010, Dannevirke blogger Henk van Helmond was convicted of breaching a name suppression order and given a suspended sentence. The judge suppressed the publication of any details which might identify van Helmond's blog.
In January 2007 another controversial blog, CYFS Watch, appeared. The blog's stated aim was unveiling examples of alleged incompetence by the Child Youth and Family Service (known by its acronym CYFS) of the Ministry of Social Development
. The Ministry responded to the publication of the blog, which published the details of several social workers, by complaining to internet company Google
. The blog remained online until 22 February 2007 when Google deleted the site, due to the blog's anonymous author making death threats towards Green
MP Sue Bradford
because of her Crimes (Abolition of Force as a Justification for Child Discipline) Amendment Bill 2005.
printed an editorial that stated "[M]ost bloggers – and we're talking 95 per cent – are fly-by-night, gutless wonders who prefer to spit inarticulate venom under inarticulate pseudonyms." Since then though the newspaper has picked up multiple stories first broken on blogs (see below). Some current and former bloggers have worked in or for the media industry, such as Russell Brown
, Keith Ng, Tze Ming Mok and Dave Crampton. Political scientist Bryce Edwards (liberation) and Geoffrey Miller (Douglas to Dancing) have both written op-ed
s for The New Zealand Herald.
There have been many notable examples of bloggers breaking news stories and then having the media pick it up. Idiot/Savant revealed that neither Rodney Hide
nor Heather Roy
had been showing up to Parliament and that the ACT party had therefore not voted in the 2006 budget
debate, and The Dominion Post
and The New Zealand Herald
picked up the story. In February 2008 a blog post by Russell Brown about the Wikipedia article on Bill English
being edited from a computer at Parliament, based on a previous post at Labour Party
-leaning blog The Standard, received coverage in The New Zealand Herald
. The NZBC blog reported a similar story of a computer at Air New Zealand
being used to edit the Wikipedia article on Air New Zealand Flight 901
and it was picked up by The Press. In April 2008, blogger David Farrar
revealed the Green Party
's preliminary party list, and the story was subsequently picked up by NZPA and published on Stuff.co.nz
. In June blogger 'Skinny' revealed that a photo used in promotional material about the 2008 budget was of an American family, not a New Zealand one and the story was then published in The New Zealand Herald.
The Radio Network
The Radio Network is the wholly owned New Zealand division of radio company Australian Radio Network, a partnership of Clear Channel and APN News & Media. It is the owner and operator of the Newstalk ZB News service and nationwide Newstalk ZB, Classic Hits, ZM, Coast, Hauraki, Easy Mix, Flava and...
, Sky Network Television
SKY Network Television
Sky Network Television Limited , , is a New Zealand pay television service. On 30 June 2011, Sky had 829,421 subscribers, which comprises:*808,617 digital subscribers*20,840 other subscribers...
and Fairfax New Zealand
Fairfax New Zealand
Fairfax New Zealand Limited is the largest media company operating in New Zealand, and is part of Australia's Fairfax Media.Fairfax Media established its operation on the 1 July 2003 purchase of the publishing assets of Independent Newspapers Ltd...
dominate this media landscape. NZ On Air funds public service programming on the publicly owned Television New Zealand
Television New Zealand
Television New Zealand, more commonly referred to, and stylized as TVNZ, is a government-owned corporation television network broadcasting in New Zealand and parts of the Pacific. It operates TV1, TV2, TVNZ7, TVNZ Heartland, TVNZ U and new media services....
and Radio New Zealand
Radio New Zealand
Radio New Zealand is a New Zealand public service radio broadcaster and Crown entity formed by the Radio New Zealand Act 1995. It operates news, current affairs and arts network Radio New Zealand National and classical music and jazz network Radio New Zealand Concert with full government funding...
, and on community-owned and privately owned broadcasters. Most media organisations operate Auckland
Auckland
The Auckland metropolitan area , in the North Island of New Zealand, is the largest and most populous urban area in the country with residents, percent of the country's population. Auckland also has the largest Polynesian population of any city in the world...
-based newsrooms with Parliamentary Press Gallery reporters and international media partners, but most broadcast programmes, music and syndicated columns are imported from the United States and United Kingdom.
There is limited censorship in New Zealand
Censorship in New Zealand
Censorship in New Zealand has changed over the years to reflect the demands for a more liberal application of the law on contentious publications....
of political expression
Political censorship
Political censorship exists when a government attempts to conceal, distort, or falsify information that its citizens receive by suppressing or crowding out political news that the public might receive through news outlets. In the absence of unflattering but objective information, people will be...
, violence or sexual content, although strict libel laws follow the English model
English defamation law
Modern libel and slander laws, as implemented in many Commonwealth nations as well as in the United States and in the Republic of Ireland, are originally descended from English defamation law...
and contempt of court
Contempt of court
Contempt of court is a court order which, in the context of a court trial or hearing, declares a person or organization to have disobeyed or been disrespectful of the court's authority...
is severely punished. The Office of Film and Literature Classification
Office of Film and Literature Classification (New Zealand)
The Office of Film and Literature Classification is the government agency in New Zealand that is responsible for classification of all films, videos, publications, and some video games in New Zealand...
classifies and sometimes censors films, videos, publications and video games, the New Zealand Press Council
New Zealand Press Council
The New Zealand Press Council is a Non Governmental Organisation which exists to uphold standards in the New Zealand print media and promote freedom of speech in New Zealand. Founded in 1975, it is enabled to hear complaints against newspapers and other publications, particularly regarding...
deals with print media bias and inaccuracy and the Broadcasting Standards Authority
Broadcasting Standards Authority
The Broadcasting Standards Authority is a New Zealand Crown Entity created by the Broadcasting Act 1989 to develop and uphold standards of broadcasting for radio, free-to-air and pay television.The main functions of the BSA are:...
and Advertising Standards Authority
Advertising Standards Authority (New Zealand)
The Advertising Standards Authority is an organisation that investigates breaches of advertising standards in New Zealand.In 2008 there is a total of $2.3 billion spent on advertising in New Zealand. These advertisements attracted 671 complaints to the ASA with 153 being upheld or settled...
considers complaints. However, Reporters Without Borders
Reporters Without Borders
Reporters Without Borders is a France-based international non-governmental organization that advocates freedom of the press. It was founded in 1985, by Robert Ménard, Rony Brauman and the journalist Jean-Claude Guillebaud. Jean-François Julliard has served as Secretary General since 2008...
ranks New Zealand highly on press freedom, ranking it seventh-best worldwide in 2008, and eighth in 2010 (in the same 2010 study, for comparison, the UK placed 19th, and the US 20th).
The media of New Zealand predominantly use New Zealand English
New Zealand English
New Zealand English is the dialect of the English language used in New Zealand.The English language was established in New Zealand by colonists during the 19th century. It is one of "the newest native-speaker variet[ies] of the English language in existence, a variety which has developed and...
, but World TV, Triangle TV
Triangle TV
Triangle Television and Stratos Television are public service television stations based in Auckland, New Zealand. Triangle broadcasts across Auckland on analogue UHF, while Stratos broadcasts around New Zealand on the Freeview, Sky TV and TelstraClear cable digital platforms...
, Stratos TV
Triangle TV
Triangle Television and Stratos Television are public service television stations based in Auckland, New Zealand. Triangle broadcasts across Auckland on analogue UHF, while Stratos broadcasts around New Zealand on the Freeview, Sky TV and TelstraClear cable digital platforms...
, Community Access and local Pacifica and Asia media organisations provide news and entertainment for linguistic minorities. The Waitangi Tribunal
Waitangi Tribunal
The Waitangi Tribunal is a New Zealand permanent commission of inquiry established under the Treaty of Waitangi Act 1975...
decided in the late 1980s that the Government had an obligation to nurture the Māori language
Maori language
Māori or te reo Māori , commonly te reo , is the language of the indigenous population of New Zealand, the Māori. It has the status of an official language in New Zealand...
and consequently Te Māngai Pāho
Te Mangai Paho
Te Māngai Pāho is a New Zealand Crown Entity responsible for promotion of Māori language and culture by providing funding for Māori language programming on radio and television....
now funds iwi radio stations, the Maori Television Service
Maori Television Service
The Māori Television Service is a state sector organisation in New Zealand that was established on 7 May 2003 under the Māori Television Service Act 2003 to replace the Te Reo Māori Television Trust ...
and other Maori programming on TVNZ, Radio New Zealand
Radio New Zealand
Radio New Zealand is a New Zealand public service radio broadcaster and Crown entity formed by the Radio New Zealand Act 1995. It operates news, current affairs and arts network Radio New Zealand National and classical music and jazz network Radio New Zealand Concert with full government funding...
and TV3
TV3 (New Zealand)
TV3 is a New Zealand commercial television network, owned by MediaWorks New Zealand. Launched on 26 November 1989, the first private television network in New Zealand...
. MediaWorks operates two Auckland
Auckland
The Auckland metropolitan area , in the North Island of New Zealand, is the largest and most populous urban area in the country with residents, percent of the country's population. Auckland also has the largest Polynesian population of any city in the world...
ex-iwi radio stations commercially with limited Maori content: commercial nationwide dance network George FM
George FM
George FM is an Auckland dance music radio station, owned and operated by MediaWorks from Ponsonby Road headquarters and relayed on Freeview and radio frequencies around New Zealand...
and hip-hop and R&B station Mai FM
Mai FM
Mai FM - The Hottest Hip Hop and RnBMai FM is a Māori radio station located in Auckland, New Zealand. The station broadcasts on 88.6 FM in Auckland, 98.8 FM in Whangarei, 96.6 FM in Tauranga, 105.5 FM in Rotorua, 105.5 FM in Hawke's Bay, 97.0 FM in Manawatu and 88.9 FM in Christchurch. It plays...
.
Television
Television in New Zealand was introduced in 1960Timeline of the introduction of television in countries
This is a list of when the first publicly announced television broadcasts occurred in the mentioned countries. Non-public field tests and closed circuit demonstrations are not included....
. Provision was first made for the licensing of private radio and television stations in New Zealand by the Broadcasting Act 1976. In addition to a legacy
Legacy system
A legacy system is an old method, technology, computer system, or application program that continues to be used, typically because it still functions for the users' needs, even though newer technology or more efficient methods of performing a task are now available...
analogue network, there are three forms of broadcast digital television: satellite
Satellite television
Satellite television is television programming delivered by the means of communications satellite and received by an outdoor antenna, usually a parabolic mirror generally referred to as a satellite dish, and as far as household usage is concerned, a satellite receiver either in the form of an...
services provided nationwide by Freeview and Sky
SKY Network Television
Sky Network Television Limited , , is a New Zealand pay television service. On 30 June 2011, Sky had 829,421 subscribers, which comprises:*808,617 digital subscribers*20,840 other subscribers...
, a terrestrial
Terrestrial television
Terrestrial television is a mode of television broadcasting which does not involve satellite transmission or cables — typically using radio waves through transmitting and receiving antennas or television antenna aerials...
service provided in the main centres by Freeview, and a cable
Cable television
Cable television is a system of providing television programs to consumers via radio frequency signals transmitted to televisions through coaxial cables or digital light pulses through fixed optical fibers located on the subscriber's property, much like the over-the-air method used in traditional...
service provided in Wellington
Wellington
Wellington is the capital city and third most populous urban area of New Zealand, although it is likely to have surpassed Christchurch due to the exodus following the Canterbury Earthquake. It is at the southwestern tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Rimutaka Range...
and Christchurch
Christchurch
Christchurch is the largest city in the South Island of New Zealand, and the country's second-largest urban area after Auckland. It lies one third of the way down the South Island's east coast, just north of Banks Peninsula which itself, since 2006, lies within the formal limits of...
by TelstraClear
TelstraClear
TelstraClear is New Zealand's second-largest telecommunications company and is a wholly owned subsidiary of Telstra Corporation , with around 400,000 customers....
. There are currently 11 national free-to-air channels, 22 regional free-to-air stations and several pay TV networks. Programming and scheduling is done in Auckland where all the major networks are now headquartered.
The first nationwide digital TV service was launched in December 1998 by SKY TV
SKY Network Television
Sky Network Television Limited , , is a New Zealand pay television service. On 30 June 2011, Sky had 829,421 subscribers, which comprises:*808,617 digital subscribers*20,840 other subscribers...
, who had a monopoly on digital satellite TV until the launch of Freeview's nationwide digital Satellite service in May 2007. The Freeview terrestrial service, named Freeview|HD is a high definition
High-definition television
High-definition television is video that has resolution substantially higher than that of traditional television systems . HDTV has one or two million pixels per frame, roughly five times that of SD...
digital terrestrial television
Digital terrestrial television
Digital terrestrial television is the technological evolution of broadcast television and advance from analog television, which broadcasts land-based signals...
service launched on 14 April 2008. The service currently serves areas surrounding Auckland
Auckland
The Auckland metropolitan area , in the North Island of New Zealand, is the largest and most populous urban area in the country with residents, percent of the country's population. Auckland also has the largest Polynesian population of any city in the world...
, Hamilton
Hamilton, New Zealand
Hamilton is the centre of New Zealand's fourth largest urban area, and Hamilton City is the country's fourth largest territorial authority. Hamilton is in the Waikato Region of the North Island, approximately south of Auckland...
, Tauranga
Tauranga
Tauranga is the most populous city in the Bay of Plenty region, in the North Island of New Zealand.It was settled by Europeans in the early 19th century and was constituted as a city in 1963...
, Napier
Napier, New Zealand
Napier is a New Zealand city with a seaport, located in Hawke's Bay on the eastern coast of the North Island. The population of Napier is about About 18 kilometres south of Napier is the inland city of Hastings. These two neighboring cities are often called "The Twin Cities" or "The Bay Cities"...
-Hastings
Hastings, New Zealand
The city of Hastings is a major urban settlement in the Hawke's Bay region of the North Island of New Zealand, and it is the largest settlement by population in Hawke's Bay. Hastings city is the administrative centre of the Hastings District...
, Palmerston North
Palmerston North
Palmerston North is the main city of the Manawatu-Wanganui region of the North Island of New Zealand. It is an inland city with a population of and is the country's seventh largest city and eighth largest urban area. Palmerston North is located in the eastern Manawatu Plains near the north bank...
, Wellington
Wellington
Wellington is the capital city and third most populous urban area of New Zealand, although it is likely to have surpassed Christchurch due to the exodus following the Canterbury Earthquake. It is at the southwestern tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Rimutaka Range...
, Christchurch
Christchurch
Christchurch is the largest city in the South Island of New Zealand, and the country's second-largest urban area after Auckland. It lies one third of the way down the South Island's east coast, just north of Banks Peninsula which itself, since 2006, lies within the formal limits of...
, and Dunedin
Dunedin
Dunedin is the second-largest city in the South Island of New Zealand, and the principal city of the Otago Region. It is considered to be one of the four main urban centres of New Zealand for historic, cultural, and geographic reasons. Dunedin was the largest city by territorial land area until...
. Digital cable television currently operates in Wellington
Wellington
Wellington is the capital city and third most populous urban area of New Zealand, although it is likely to have surpassed Christchurch due to the exodus following the Canterbury Earthquake. It is at the southwestern tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Rimutaka Range...
and Christchurch
Christchurch
Christchurch is the largest city in the South Island of New Zealand, and the country's second-largest urban area after Auckland. It lies one third of the way down the South Island's east coast, just north of Banks Peninsula which itself, since 2006, lies within the formal limits of...
on TelstraClear's
TelstraClear
TelstraClear is New Zealand's second-largest telecommunications company and is a wholly owned subsidiary of Telstra Corporation , with around 400,000 customers....
cable TV system. High Definition programming is available from Freeview on terrestrial broadcast only and on SKY TV through the MY SKY HDi decoder. Only a limited range of channels are available in High Definition.
Radio
New Zealand radio is dominated by twenty-seven networks and station-groups, but also includes several local and low-powered stations. Eight radio networks are operated by The Radio NetworkThe Radio Network
The Radio Network is the wholly owned New Zealand division of radio company Australian Radio Network, a partnership of Clear Channel and APN News & Media. It is the owner and operator of the Newstalk ZB News service and nationwide Newstalk ZB, Classic Hits, ZM, Coast, Hauraki, Easy Mix, Flava and...
, ten are operated by MediaWorks New Zealand, three are operated by Rhema Broadcasting Group
Rhema Broadcasting Group
Rhema Broadcasting Group is New Zealand's largest Christian media organisation, broadcasting four radio networks and a television station, and publishing a quarterly devotional publication, from the Rhema Broadcasting Centre on Upper Queen Street in the central Auckland suburb of Newton...
and three are operated non-commercially by Radio New Zealand
Radio New Zealand
Radio New Zealand is a New Zealand public service radio broadcaster and Crown entity formed by the Radio New Zealand Act 1995. It operates news, current affairs and arts network Radio New Zealand National and classical music and jazz network Radio New Zealand Concert with full government funding...
. Most student networks belong to bNet
BNET
BNET was an online magazine dedicated to issues of business management.It was owned by CBS Interactive and was a part of its business portfolio alongside ZDNet, TechRepublic, SmartPlanet before it was folded into CBS MoneyWatch, a sister personal finance site that was launched on April 6, 2009.BNET...
, most public service broadcasters belong to Community Access Broadcasters, and there are several iwi radio stations.
Early radio
Professor Robert JackRobert Jack (physicist)
Robert Jack was a Scottish-born physicist, professor and Dean of the Faculty of Arts and Science, University of Otago, and pioneer of radio broadcasting, New Zealand.- Early life and education :...
made the first broadcast in New Zealand from the University of Otago
University of Otago
The University of Otago in Dunedin is New Zealand's oldest university with over 22,000 students enrolled during 2010.The university has New Zealand's highest average research quality and in New Zealand is second only to the University of Auckland in the number of A rated academic researchers it...
physics department on 17 November 1921. The first radio station, Radio Dunedin
Radio Dunedin
Radio Dunedin is a radio station, broadcasting from Dunedin on 1305 AM and 99.8 FM. It is rated number 1 for 'Share of Commercial Radio Listening in Dunedin' in the Radio Audience Measurement Survey....
, began broadcasting on 4 October 1922, but it was only in 1925 that the Radio Broadcasting Company (RBC) began broadcasts throughout New Zealand. In 1932, its assets were acquired by the government, which established the New Zealand Broadcasting Board (NZBB). This would later be replaced by the New Zealand National Broadcasting Service (NBS) and the National Commercial Broadcasting Service (NCBS). In the 1950s, these merged to become the New Zealand Broadcasting Service (NZBS), a government department. In 1962, this gave way to the New Zealand Broadcasting Corporation (NZBC), an independent public body modelled on the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
in the UK.
Until the 1980s, stations used a series of call signs, consisting of a single digit and two letters (see left). In addition to YA National programme stations, YC Concert programme stations and a limited number of privately owned X stations, several stations were operated commercially by the government. In each region, the largest city was assigned a ZB station (1ZB Auckland, 2ZB Wellington, 3ZB Christchurch and 4ZB Dunedin) and a ZM music station (1ZM Auckland, 2ZM Wellington and 3ZM Christchurch). The Newstalk ZB
Newstalk ZB
Newstalk ZB is a nationwide New Zealand talk radio network operated by The Radio Network of New Zealand . It is available in almost every radio market in the country, and has news reporters based in many of them...
and ZM brands continue to be used by The Radio Network
The Radio Network
The Radio Network is the wholly owned New Zealand division of radio company Australian Radio Network, a partnership of Clear Channel and APN News & Media. It is the owner and operator of the Newstalk ZB News service and nationwide Newstalk ZB, Classic Hits, ZM, Coast, Hauraki, Easy Mix, Flava and...
. The second largest city was assigned a ZA station: 1ZA in Taupo
Taupo
Taupo is a town on the shore of Lake Taupo in the centre of the North Island of New Zealand. It is the seat of the Taupo District Council and lies in the southern Waikato Region....
, 2ZA in Palmerston North
Palmerston North
Palmerston North is the main city of the Manawatu-Wanganui region of the North Island of New Zealand. It is an inland city with a population of and is the country's seventh largest city and eighth largest urban area. Palmerston North is located in the eastern Manawatu Plains near the north bank...
, 3ZA in Greymouth
Greymouth
Greymouth is the largest town in the West Coast region in the South Island of New Zealand, and the seat of the Grey District Council. The population of the whole Grey District is , which accounts for % of the West Coast's inhabitants...
and 4ZA in Invercargill
Invercargill
Invercargill is the southernmost and westernmost city in New Zealand, and one of the southernmost cities in the world. It is the commercial centre of the Southland region. It lies in the heart of the wide expanse of the Southland Plains on the Oreti or New River some 18 km north of Bluff,...
. In other towns and cities the final letter was assigned from the town or city name such as 4ZG in Gore and 1ZH in Hamilton. These ZA and other stations, also now owned by The Radio Network
The Radio Network
The Radio Network is the wholly owned New Zealand division of radio company Australian Radio Network, a partnership of Clear Channel and APN News & Media. It is the owner and operator of the Newstalk ZB News service and nationwide Newstalk ZB, Classic Hits, ZM, Coast, Hauraki, Easy Mix, Flava and...
, have been rebranded as Classic Hits
Classic Hits FM
Classic Hits is an Adult Contemporary music radio network broadcasting in 25 markets throughout New Zealand, targeting 25 - 55 year olds. Its a family-focused radio network with some of New Zealand's most experienced broadcasters on air and behind the scenes. It currently has around 387,000...
. 1YA, 2YK, 3AQ, 4YA were the first stations operating in the country's four main cities, and 5ZB was a mobile radio station broadcast in railway carriages during the 1940s.
FM broadcasting
The United Kingdom and New Zealand until recently shared an FM broadcasting allocation of 88.0 – 105.0 MHz. This smaller allocation (less than 20 MHz [ie: 88 MHz – 108 MHz], typical of FM in the rest of the world) can be traced to the 405 line system's VHF allocation block. The UK adopted the 405 line system but NZ did not. NZ's allocation for FM remained smaller as if NZ had adopted the 405 line system. New Zealand considered adopting the 405 line system in the late 1950s to early 1960s but adopted PAL instead. This impacted the frequency allocation block for FM broadcasting making it smaller. New Zealand's FM frequency allocation issue was not fixed until the late 1990s, when the band was expanded to the full 20 MHz. Both New Zealand and the United Kingdom have the standard global allocation of 88.0 – 108.0 for FM now. NZ permits Radio Data SystemRadio Data System
Radio Data System, or RDS, is a communications protocol standard for embedding small amounts of digital information in conventional FM radio broadcasts. RDS standardises several types of information transmitted, including time, station identification and programme information.Radio Broadcast Data...
subcarriers, but their adoption is not universal. Radio NZ uses RDS for its FM network, but commercial radio's adoption of the technology is not universal.
The very first station to broadcast on FM in New Zealand was a temporary station in Whakatane
Whakatane
Whakatane is a town in the eastern Bay of Plenty Region, in the North Island of New Zealand, and is the seat of the Bay of Plenty Regional Council. Whakatane is 90 km east of Tauranga and 89 km north-east of Rotorua, at the mouth of the Whakatane River.The town has a population of , with...
called FM 90.7. The station ran from the 5 January 1982 until the 31 January 1982. The very first permanent station in New Zealand to broadcast on FM was Magic 91FM
Magic 91FM
Magic 91FM or 91FM was a local radio station in Auckland. 91FM began broadcasting on 91.0 FM using the call sign 1MJK in 1983 and was one of the first FM stations to start in Auckland and New Zealand, along with 89 Stereo FM...
in Auckland
Auckland
The Auckland metropolitan area , in the North Island of New Zealand, is the largest and most populous urban area in the country with residents, percent of the country's population. Auckland also has the largest Polynesian population of any city in the world...
broadcasting on 91.0FM followed by 89 Stereo FM broadcasting on 89.4FM. Both stations are no longer in operation; Magic 91 is the local Auckland frequency for ZM
ZM (New Zealand)
ZM is a New Zealand contemporary hit radio network owned by The Radio Network. It broadcasts 19 markets throughout mainland New Zealand via terrestrial FM, and worldwide via the Internet. The network targets the 15–39 demographic specialises in a chart-music playlist of pop, rock, hip hop and dance...
and 89 Stereo FM today broadcasts a simulcasted FM version of Newstalk ZB
Newstalk ZB
Newstalk ZB is a nationwide New Zealand talk radio network operated by The Radio Network of New Zealand . It is available in almost every radio market in the country, and has news reporters based in many of them...
. Radio New Zealand started broadcasting on FM in the early 1980s and most networks now broadcast on FM.
Networks and personalities
| Network | Personalities |
|---|---|
| Coast Coast (New Zealand radio) Coast is a New Zealand radio network owned by The Radio Network that plays middle of the road music with an emphasis on music from the fifties and sixties... (40–59 Age Age may refer to:* Age , an aspect of mathematical model theory* Age , an international peer-reviewed journal operated by Springer.* The Age, a daily newspaper published in Melbourne, Australia* Agé, a god* Åge, a given name... AS Adult standards Adult standards is a North American radio format heard primarily on AM or class A FM stations.Adult standards is aimed at "mature" adults, meaning mainly those persons over 50 years of age, but it is mostly targeted for senior citizens... ) |
Mike Oliver (breakfast) Jacqui Tate (daytime) Rick Morin (drivetime) Ray Mankelow (weekends) |
| Easy Mix (30–54 Age Age may refer to:* Age , an aspect of mathematical model theory* Age , an international peer-reviewed journal operated by Springer.* The Age, a daily newspaper published in Melbourne, Australia* Agé, a god* Åge, a given name... F Female Female is the sex of an organism, or a part of an organism, which produces non-mobile ova .- Defining characteristics :The ova are defined as the larger gametes in a heterogamous reproduction system, while the smaller, usually motile gamete, the spermatozoon, is produced by the male... easy) |
Alison Leonard (breakfast) Mel Homer (daytime) Greg Prebble (drivetime) Raylene Ramsay (nights) Gael Ludlow (weekends) John Tesh John Tesh John Frank Tesh is an American pianist and composer of pop music, as well as a radio host and television presenter. His 10-year-old 'Intelligence for Your Life Radio Show' reaches 14.2 Million listeners/week, and is syndicated by Teshmedia on 400 stations in US, Canada, and the UK... (weekends) |
| The Edge The Edge (radio station) The Edge FM is a MediaWorks New Zealand New Zealand youth radio network, playing predominantly pop, rock and R&B. The network's flagship is The Morning Madhouse with Jay Jay Feeney, Mike Puru and Dom Harvey.... |
Mike Puru Mike Puru Mike Puru is a Radio DJ/Presenter best known for working at The Edge. He also competed on the 2006 New Zealand reality show Sing Like a Superstar and in the early 2000's he was Co-host of Flipside.... (breakfast) Jay Jay Feeney (breakfast) Dominic Harvey (breakfast) Chang Hung (breakfast) Megan Sellars (mornings) Clint Roberts (afternoons) Fletch (drivetime) Vaughan (drivetime) Will Maissey (drivetime) Brad Watson (nights) Sharon Wakefield (nights) |
| Flava Flava (radio station) Flava is a New Zealand hiphop and contemporary R&B music radio network. It broadcasts on 95.8FM in Auckland, 89.5FM in Rotorua, 106FM in Whangarei and on 96.7FM in Hawkes Bay... |
|
| George FM George FM George FM is an Auckland dance music radio station, owned and operated by MediaWorks from Ponsonby Road headquarters and relayed on Freeview and radio frequencies around New Zealand... |
Nick Dwyer (breakfast), Murry Sweetpants (breakfast), Bevan Keys (mornings), Clarke Gayford (afternoons) |
| Kiwi FM Kiwi FM Kiwi FM is a New Zealand Radio Network playing 100 percent New Zealand music both nationally and to the world via its 24/7 live stream. The network was designed specifically to showcase the best New Zealand music across the broadest range of genres, enabling greater access to an international... |
Wammo (breakfast), Angelina Boyd (daytime), Wallace Chapman (drivetime), Fleur Jack (nights) |
| Life FM | Burns (breakfast), Tash (breakfast) Holly (daytime), Asher Bastion (drivetime), Clint (afternoons), Dan Goodwin (nights), George Penk (nights) |
| LiveSport (sports talk) | Nathan Rarere (breakfast), Ian Smith (breakfast), Dean Lonergan (breakfast), Martin Devlin (breakfast) James McOnie (morning), Richard Loe (morning) |
| Newstalk ZB Newstalk ZB Newstalk ZB is a nationwide New Zealand talk radio network operated by The Radio Network of New Zealand . It is available in almost every radio market in the country, and has news reporters based in many of them... (talk Talk radio Talk radio is a radio format containing discussion about topical issues. Most shows are regularly hosted by a single individual, and often feature interviews with a number of different guests. Talk radio typically includes an element of listener participation, usually by broadcasting live... ) |
Mike Hoskings (breakfast), Leighton Smith (morning), Danny Watson (afternoon), Larry Williams (drive) Murray Deaker Murray Deaker Murray "Deaks" Deaker, ONZM, is a New Zealand sports radio and television talk show host, acclaimed sports author and New Zealand icon.He was a former club rugby lock and an opening batsman in club cricket, and prior to working in radio was principal of Takapuna Grammar School. As well as radio he... (nights), Willie Lose (nights), Kerre Woodham (nights), Paul Holmes Paul Holmes (broadcaster) Paul Holmes CNZM is a radio and television broadcaster in New Zealand. he hosts Q+A on TV ONE, and the Saturday morning radio show on Newstalk ZB, where for 23 years until December 2008 he hosted the weekday breakfast show, the long-standing number one rating breakfast show... (weekends) |
 Radio Live Radio Live Radio Live and Radio Live Sport are nationwide Auckland-based New Zealand talkback, news and sports radio networks owned and operated by MediaWorks New Zealand... (talk Talk radio Talk radio is a radio format containing discussion about topical issues. Most shows are regularly hosted by a single individual, and often feature interviews with a number of different guests. Talk radio typically includes an element of listener participation, usually by broadcasting live... ) |
Marcus Lush Marcus Lush Marcus Lush is a television and radio presenter in New Zealand.He made his first forays into television in the 1990s as a reporter co-presenting TV2's Newsnight alongside Simon Dallow and Alison Mau, but it was a 2003 episode of travel show, Intrepid Journeys, that set him on a new broadcasting path... (breakfast), Hillary Barry (breakfast) Michael Laws Michael Laws Michael Laws is a New Zealand politician, broadcaster and writer/columnist. He served two terms as a Member of the New Zealand Parliament, representing the National Party and New Zealand First . He was elected as Mayor of Wanganui in 2004, was re-elected in 2007 but announced his retirement from... (mornings), Andrew Patterson Andrew Patterson Andrew Patterson is a former Irish cricketer. He was a right-handed batsman and a wicket-keeper. He made his debut for Ireland against Wales in 1996, and went onto play for them in 61 matches, including two ICC Trophy tournaments... (midday) Willie Jackson (afternoons), John Tamihere John Tamihere John Henry Tamihere is a New Zealand media personality and former politician. He served as a Cabinet minister in the governing Labour Party from August 2002 to 3 November 2004.-Early life:... (afternoons), Maggie Barry Maggie Barry Maggie Barry, CNZM, is a New Zealand politician and a member of the New Zealand House of Representatives, first elected in the 2011 general election. She is a member of the National Party... (drivetimes) Karyn Hay Karyn Hay Karyn Hay is a New Zealand broadcaster and author, best known for hosting Radio With Pictures for five years during the 1980s. Currently a Radio Live host, Hay is married to Andrew Fagan, a former member of the New Zealand band The Mockers... (nights), Andrew Fagan Andrew Fagan Andrew Fagan is a prominent New Zealand writer, singer and songwriter. He was born in 1962 and grew up in Wellington. He gained fame in New Zealand in the 1980s as the lead singer of pop group The Mockers.... (nights), Martin Crump (late nights) Tony Murrell (weekends), Helen Jackson (weekends), Graeme Hill Graeme Hill Graeme Hill is a New Zealand broadcaster. He has been a weekend and fill-in host for Radio Live since the station's inception, and currently hosts a 10:00 to 14:00 talk show with a focus on music and science. He was previously an announcer on Radio Sport... (weekends) Martin Devlin Martin Devlin Martin Devlin is a New Zealand broadcaster, specialising in sports broadcasting. He is a former panellist and current host of Game of Two Halves on TV ONE. He also hosts Weekend Sport on Radio Live. He has previously presented Radio Sport Drive, Radio Live Devlin Live, Radio Sport Breakfast and... (weekends), Mike King (weekends) |
| RNZ National (talk Talk radio Talk radio is a radio format containing discussion about topical issues. Most shows are regularly hosted by a single individual, and often feature interviews with a number of different guests. Talk radio typically includes an element of listener participation, usually by broadcasting live... all ages Age Age may refer to:* Age , an aspect of mathematical model theory* Age , an international peer-reviewed journal operated by Springer.* The Age, a daily newspaper published in Melbourne, Australia* Agé, a god* Åge, a given name... ) |
Geoff Robinson Geoff Robinson Geoff Robinson is an Australian former professional rugby league player forCanterbury-Bankstown in the New South Wales Rugby League competition. Robinson primarily played at prop.-Playing career:... (breakfast) Sean Plunket Sean Plunket Sean Plunket is a New Zealand broadcast journalist and host of Sean Plunket Mornings on Newstalk ZB. He broadcasts Monday to Friday between 8.30am and Midday on 1035AM in Wellington and 89.5FM in Kapiti. He worked as one of two breakfast hosts on Radio New Zealand's weekday Morning Report between... (breakfast) Kathryn Ryan (morning) Jim Mora Jim Mora (broadcaster) James Mora is a New Zealand media personality.Jim Mora was born in Christchurch, and began his broadcasting career on radio in Dunedin, where he had studied at the University of Otago... (afternoon) Mary Wilson (drive) Bryan Crump (nights) Kim Hill Kim Hill Kim Hill is a Contemporary Christian Music singer. Aside from her career as a solo artist, Hill has also sung background vocals on projects by artists like Rich Mullins and others... (Saturdays) Simon Morton (Saturdays) Chris Laidlaw Chris Laidlaw Christopher Robert Laidlaw , Rhodes Scholar, All Black, diplomat, MP, talk radio host, author, is a 20th century New Zealand figure.-Academic and Rugby Union:... (Sundays) Lyn Freeman (Sundays) |
Print media
Maori language
Māori or te reo Māori , commonly te reo , is the language of the indigenous population of New Zealand, the Māori. It has the status of an official language in New Zealand...
to publish Bibles. The literature of New Zealand includes many works written in English and Maori
Maori language
Māori or te reo Māori , commonly te reo , is the language of the indigenous population of New Zealand, the Māori. It has the status of an official language in New Zealand...
by New Zealanders and migrants during the 20th and 21st centuries. Novelists include Patricia Grace
Patricia Grace
Patricia Frances Grace, DCNZM, QSO, is a notable Māori writer of novels, short stories, and children's books....
, Albert Wendt
Albert Wendt
Albert Wendt, CNZM is a Samoan poet and writer who also lives in New Zealand. Among his works is Leaves of the Banyan Tree .-Biography:...
and Maurice Gee
Maurice Gee
Maurice Gee is a New Zealand novelist.-Awards and honors:Gee was awarded the 1978 James Tait Black Memorial Prize for his novel Plumb...
; children's authors include Margaret Mahy
Margaret Mahy
Margaret Mahy ONZ is a well-known New Zealand author of children's and young adult books. While the plots of many of her books have strong supernatural elements, her writing concentrates on the themes of human relationships and growing up.Her books The Haunting and The Changeover: A Supernatural...
. Keri Hulme
Keri Hulme
Keri Hulme is a New Zealand writer, best known for The Bone People, her only novel.-Early life:Hulme was born in Christchurch, in New Zealand's South Island. The daughter of a carpenter and a credit manager, she was the eldest of six children. Her parents were of English, Scottish, and Māori ...
won the Booker Prize for The Bone People
The Bone People
The Bone People is a Booker Prize-winning 1984 novel by New Zealand author Keri Hulme. Hulme was turned down by many publishing houses before she found a small publishing house in New Zealand called Spiral...
; Witi Ihimaera
Witi Ihimaera
Witi Tame Ihimaera-Smiler, DCNZM, QSM , generally known as Witi Ihimaera , is a New Zealand author, and is often regarded as one of the most prominent Māori writers alive.-Biography:...
's novel Whale Rider, which dealt with Maori life in the modern world, ' became a Nikki Caro film. Migrant writers include South African-born Robin Hyde
Robin Hyde
Robin Hyde is one of New Zealand's major poets. She was born Iris Guiver Wilkinson in Cape Town, South Africa and taken to Wellington, New Zealand before her first birthday. She had her secondary education at Wellington Girls' College where she wrote poetry and short stories for the school...
; expatriate
Expatriate
An expatriate is a person temporarily or permanently residing in a country and culture other than that of the person's upbringing...
writers like Dan Davin
Dan Davin
Daniel Marcus Davin was an author who wrote about New Zealand, although for most of his career he lived in Oxford, England, working for Oxford University Press....
and Katherine Mansfield
Katherine Mansfield
Kathleen Mansfield Beauchamp Murry was a prominent modernist writer of short fiction who was born and brought up in colonial New Zealand and wrote under the pen name of Katherine Mansfield. Mansfield left for Great Britain in 1908 where she encountered Modernist writers such as D.H. Lawrence and...
often wrote about the country. Samuel Butler stayed in New Zealand and set his novel Erewhon
Erewhon
Erewhon: or, Over the Range is a novel by Samuel Butler, published anonymously in 1872. The title is also the name of a country, supposedly discovered by the protagonist. In the novel, it is not revealed in which part of the world Erewhon is, but it is clear that it is a fictional country...
in the country. Karl Wolfskehl
Karl Wolfskehl
Karl Wolfskehl was a German Jewish author who wrote poetry, prose and drama in German. He also translated from French, English, Italian, Hebrew, Latin and Middle High German into German....
prepared works of German literature
German literature
German literature comprises those literary texts written in the German language. This includes literature written in Germany, Austria, the German part of Switzerland, and to a lesser extent works of the German diaspora. German literature of the modern period is mostly in Standard German, but there...
during a sojourn in Auckland. New Zealand's lively community of playwrights, supported by Playmarket
Playmarket
Playmarket is a not-for-profit organisation providing script advisory services, representation for playwrights in New Zealand and access to New Zealand plays....
, include Roger Hall
Roger Hall
Roger Leighton Hall, CNZM, QSO is a British born New Zealander actor and playwright, known for his comedies that carry a serious vein of social criticism and feelings of pathos.-Early years:...
.
The number of newspapers in New Zealand has dramatically reduced since the early 20th century as a consequence of radio, television and new media being introduced to the country. Auckland
Auckland
The Auckland metropolitan area , in the North Island of New Zealand, is the largest and most populous urban area in the country with residents, percent of the country's population. Auckland also has the largest Polynesian population of any city in the world...
's New Zealand Herald is the country's national newspaper and serves the upper North Island, Wellington
Wellington
Wellington is the capital city and third most populous urban area of New Zealand, although it is likely to have surpassed Christchurch due to the exodus following the Canterbury Earthquake. It is at the southwestern tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Rimutaka Range...
's The Dominion Post
The Dominion Post (Wellington)
The Dominion Post is a metropolitan broadsheet newspaper published in Wellington, New Zealand, owned by the Australian Fairfax group, owners of The Age, Melbourne, and The Sydney Morning Herald.- Foundation :...
serves the lower North Island and Canterbury's The Press and Otago Daily Times
Otago Daily Times
The Otago Daily Times is a newspaper published by Allied Press Ltd in Dunedin, New Zealand.-History:Originally styled The Otago Daily Times, the ODT was first published on November 15, 1861. It is New Zealand's oldest surviving daily newspaper - Christchurch's The Press, six months older, was a...
serve the South Island. Provincial and community newspapers, such as the Waikato Times
Waikato Times
The Waikato Times is a daily broadsheet newspaper published in Hamilton, New Zealand, with a circulation to the greater Waikato region.The Waikato Times started out as the tri-weekly Waikato Times and Thames Valley Gazette, first published on 2 May 1872...
daily, serve particular regions, cities and suburbs. Ownership of New Zealand newspapers is dominated by Fairfax New Zealand
Fairfax New Zealand
Fairfax New Zealand Limited is the largest media company operating in New Zealand, and is part of Australia's Fairfax Media.Fairfax Media established its operation on the 1 July 2003 purchase of the publishing assets of Independent Newspapers Ltd...
and APN News & Media
APN News & Media
APN News & Media Limited is an Australian and New Zealand media company. Divisions include newspaper publishing, online publishing, broadcast radio and outdoor advertising in Australia and New Zealand...
with Fairfax having 48.6% of the daily newspaper circulation. Local and overseas tabloids and magazines cover food, current affairs, personal affairs, gardening and home decor, personal affairs and business or appeal to gay, lesbian, ethnic and rural communities.
Film
The New Zealand film industry is small but successful, boasting directors such as Peter JacksonPeter Jackson
Sir Peter Robert Jackson, KNZM is a New Zealand film director, producer, actor, and screenwriter, known for his The Lord of the Rings film trilogy , adapted from the novel by J. R. R...
and Jane Campion
Jane Campion
Jane Campion is a filmmaker and screenwriter. She is one of the most internationally successful New Zealand directors, although most of her work has been made in or financed by other countries, principally Australia – where she now lives – and the United States...
. The cinema of New Zealand
Cinema of New Zealand
New Zealand cinema, can refer to films made by New Zealand-based production companies in New Zealand. However, it may also refer to films made about New Zealand by filmmakers from other countries...
includes many films made in New Zealand, made about New Zealand or made by New Zealand-based production companies
Production company
A production company provides the physical basis for works in the realms of the performing arts, new media art, film, television, radio, and video.- Tasks and functions :...
. Peter Jackson
Peter Jackson
Sir Peter Robert Jackson, KNZM is a New Zealand film director, producer, actor, and screenwriter, known for his The Lord of the Rings film trilogy , adapted from the novel by J. R. R...
's Lord of the Rings film trilogy
The Lord of the Rings film trilogy
The Lord of the Rings is an epic film trilogy consisting of three fantasy adventure films based on the three-volume book of the same name by English author J. R. R. Tolkien. The films are The Fellowship of the Ring , The Two Towers and The Return of the King .The films were directed by Peter...
was produced and filmed in New Zealand, and animation and photography for James Cameron
James Cameron
James Francis Cameron is a Canadian-American film director, film producer, screenwriter, editor, environmentalist and inventor...
's Avatar was primarily done in New Zealand; both films are among the highest grossing movies of all time. The New Zealand Film Commission
New Zealand Film Commission
The New Zealand Film Commission is a New Zealand government agency formed to assist with creating and promoting New Zealand films...
funds films with New Zealand content.
Mainstream American, British and Australian films screen in theatres in most cities and towns. Some arthouse films and foreign language films reach cinemas, including weekly Bollywood
Bollywood
Bollywood is the informal term popularly used for the Hindi-language film industry based in Mumbai , Maharashtra, India. The term is often incorrectly used to refer to the whole of Indian cinema; it is only a part of the total Indian film industry, which includes other production centers producing...
screenings in many city cinemas. Asian films, particularly from India, China, Hong Kong and Japan, are widely available for rental on videocassette, DVD and similar media, especially in Auckland.
Internet portals and news websites
- 3news.co.nz3 News3 News is the television, internet and radio news service of New Zealand's TV3. Its flagship bulletin, which airs every evening at 6:00pm, is anchored by Hilary Barry and Mike McRoberts. Carolyn Robinson and Simon Shepherd are weekend and substitute anchors...
- google.co.nzGoogleGoogle Inc. is an American multinational public corporation invested in Internet search, cloud computing, and advertising technologies. Google hosts and develops a number of Internet-based services and products, and generates profit primarily from advertising through its AdWords program...
- newstalkzb.co.nz
- nzcity.co.nz
- msn.co.nzMSNMSN is a collection of Internet sites and services provided by Microsoft. The Microsoft Network debuted as an online service and Internet service provider on August 24, 1995, to coincide with the release of the Windows 95 operating system.The range of services offered by MSN has changed since its...
- nzherald.co.nz
- odt.co.nzOtago Daily TimesThe Otago Daily Times is a newspaper published by Allied Press Ltd in Dunedin, New Zealand.-History:Originally styled The Otago Daily Times, the ODT was first published on November 15, 1861. It is New Zealand's oldest surviving daily newspaper - Christchurch's The Press, six months older, was a...
- radionz.co.nz/newsRadio New ZealandRadio New Zealand is a New Zealand public service radio broadcaster and Crown entity formed by the Radio New Zealand Act 1995. It operates news, current affairs and arts network Radio New Zealand National and classical music and jazz network Radio New Zealand Concert with full government funding...
- scoop.co.nzScoop (news website)Scoop.co.nz is a New Zealand internet news site with a readership of 25,000 unique visitors a day, delivering 2,000,000 pages of information per month....
- skysport.co.nzSKY Sport (New Zealand)Sky Sport is a group of sports-oriented television channels operated by New Zealand's satellite pay-TV company, Sky Network Television. Sky Sport 1 was launched in 1990...
- stuff.co.nzStuff.co.nzStuff.co.nz is a New Zealand news website owned and operated by Fairfax New Zealand, a subsidiary of the Australian company Fairfax Media. Stuff hosts the websites for Fairfax's New Zealand newspapers, including the country's second and third highest circulation daily newspapers The Dominion Post...
- tvnz.co.nzTelevision New ZealandTelevision New Zealand, more commonly referred to, and stylized as TVNZ, is a government-owned corporation television network broadcasting in New Zealand and parts of the Pacific. It operates TV1, TV2, TVNZ7, TVNZ Heartland, TVNZ U and new media services....
Blogging
New Zealand's blogosphere is a small community of around 600 blogs that comment on New Zealand politics, society and occurrences. One list of over 200 "author-operated, public discourse" blogs in New Zealand (ranked according to traffic, links incoming, posting frequency and comments) suggests New Zealand blogs cover a wide range of ideological positions but a lack female contributors. Some personal blogs have been around since the mid 1990s, but there are now blogs about cities, science, law and fashion magazines. Political bloggers include current and former party apparatchiks such as David FarrarDavid Farrar (New Zealand)
David Peter Farrar is a New Zealand political activist, blogger, and pollster. He is a frequent commentator in the media on Internet issues. Farrar has held many roles within the New Zealand National Party and has worked in Parliament for four National Party leaders.His blog, Kiwiblog, is the most...
(Kiwiblog
Kiwiblog
Kiwiblog is a popular New Zealand right of centre politics blog written by David Farrar.Kiwiblog is one of the most widely read blogs in New Zealand...
), Jordan Carter, Peter Cresswell and Trevor Loudon
Trevor Loudon
Trevor Loudon is a New Zealand political activist who was vice president of the ACT New Zealand Party from 2006 to 2008. He has been involved in politics in Christchurch for many years, most notably the Campaign for a Soviet Free New Zealand a group which published dossiers on people involved in...
, and journalists and commentators such as Russell Brown
Russell Brown (New Zealand)
Russell Brown is a well-known New Zealand media commentator, and the owner of the Public Address community of blogs, and writes Hard News Hard News the blog is based on the Hard News radio slot spoken by Brown from 1991 to 2002 on bFM, an Auckland student radio station...
.
New Zealand politicians and political groups operate blogs which, unlike overseas counterparts, allow comments. The former ACT party leader Rodney Hide
Rodney Hide
Rodney Hide is a New Zealand politician who was leader of the political party ACT New Zealand from 2004 to 2011. From 2005 to 2011 he represented the electorate of Epsom as its Member of Parliament. Rodney Hide was Minister of Local Government, Associate Minister of Commerce and Minister of...
often comments from within the House of Representatives
New Zealand House of Representatives
The New Zealand House of Representatives is the sole chamber of the legislature of New Zealand. The House and the Queen of New Zealand form the New Zealand Parliament....
and Craig Foss
Craig Foss
Craig Foss is a New Zealand politician, and currently serves as a Member of Parliament.-Early years:Foss was born on 4 July 1963 in Lower Hutt, and attended Victoria University of Wellington, completing a BCA...
operates a personal blog. The Green Party
Green Party of Aotearoa New Zealand
The Green Party of Aotearoa New Zealand is a political party that has seats in the New Zealand parliament. It focuses firstly on environmentalism, arguing that all other aspects of humanity will cease to be of concern if there is no environment to sustain it...
expand on party press releases, and Labour
New Zealand Labour Party
The New Zealand Labour Party is a New Zealand political party. It describes itself as centre-left and socially progressive and has been one of the two primary parties of New Zealand politics since 1935....
MPs discuss policy and Parliamentary business. Blogging is a central campaigning tool for many political lobbying groups. A 2007 New Zealand Herald article by Bill Ralston
Bill Ralston
Bill Ralston is a New Zealand journalist, broadcaster, and media personality, active in television, radio and print. He has worked as a political correspondent, fronted the television arts show Backch@t, and was the head of news and current affairs at TVNZ from 2003 to 2007...
described political bloggers as being potentially the most powerful "opinion makers" in New Zealand politics. A few weeks earlier the National Business Review
National Business Review
The National Business Review is a weekly New Zealand newspaper aimed at the business sector. The paper is owned by Barry Colman who also publishes the Grocers Review and several other small trade publications....
had stated that, "Any realistic 'power list' produced in this country would include either [David] Farrar
David Farrar (New Zealand)
David Peter Farrar is a New Zealand political activist, blogger, and pollster. He is a frequent commentator in the media on Internet issues. Farrar has held many roles within the New Zealand National Party and has worked in Parliament for four National Party leaders.His blog, Kiwiblog, is the most...
or his fellow blogger and opinion leader Russell Brown
Russell Brown (New Zealand)
Russell Brown is a well-known New Zealand media commentator, and the owner of the Public Address community of blogs, and writes Hard News Hard News the blog is based on the Hard News radio slot spoken by Brown from 1991 to 2002 on bFM, an Auckland student radio station...
." And in 2008 The Press
The Press
The Press is a daily broadsheet newspaper published in Christchurch, New Zealand. It is owned by Fairfax Media.- History :The Press was first published on 25 May 1861 from a small cottage in Montreal Street, making it the oldest surviving newspaper in the South Island of New Zealand. The first...
said that year's election "could be the time when New Zealand's burgeoning political bloggers finally make their presence felt". The article saw the increasing influence of the Internet (as opposed to television and radio) on people's lives and the number of professional journalists now maintaining blogs as the reason for the blogosphere's increased significance, alongside the fact that unlike newspapers blogs can link directly to facts and sources. The blogosphere has also make an impart on parliament – Russell Brown is quoted as saying, "Every now and then you see a line from the blog turn up in a parliamentary speech" and in December 2007 then prime minister Helen Clark
Helen Clark
Helen Elizabeth Clark, ONZ is a New Zealand political figure who was the 37th Prime Minister of New Zealand for three consecutive terms from 1999 to 2008...
accused political journalists of "rushing to judgment" on their blogs.
Controversy
Blogging in New Zealand has not been without controversy. Tim SelwynTim Selwyn
Tim Selwyn is a New Zealand political activist who was found guilty of sedition on 8 June 2006, the first person charged with sedition in New Zealand for more than 30 years. He is also editor of magazine, has a with the same name....
, an Auckland man convicted of sedition
Sedition
In law, sedition is overt conduct, such as speech and organization, that is deemed by the legal authority to tend toward insurrection against the established order. Sedition often includes subversion of a constitution and incitement of discontent to lawful authority. Sedition may include any...
in 2006, is also a prominent blogger, often bringing up controversial points. The pamphlet for which he was convicted and imprisoned on a charge of sedition was published on his website. Selwyn was also criticised in parliament for sending letters about his prison experiences to his co-blogger Martyn 'Bomber' Bradbury
Martyn 'Bomber' Bradbury
Martyn 'Bomber' Bradbury is a left-wing New Zealand media commentator, radio and TV host, and was executive producer of Alt TV - NZ's Alternative music and culture channel ALT TV. He is a blogger of the Tumeke! blog...
, who posted them on the blog. In August 2006, Sunday News
Sunday News
The Sunday News is a New Zealand tabloid newspaper published each weekend by the Fairfax group in Auckland. In addition to a self-described 'punchy' take on the news, it features coverage of weekend sport, entertainment, star gossip, fashion and TV listings.The Sunday News has editorial offices in...
revealed a blog site set up by Wellington
Wellington
Wellington is the capital city and third most populous urban area of New Zealand, although it is likely to have surpassed Christchurch due to the exodus following the Canterbury Earthquake. It is at the southwestern tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Rimutaka Range...
-based national socialist
Neo-Nazism
Neo-Nazism consists of post-World War II social or political movements seeking to revive Nazism or some variant thereof.The term neo-Nazism can also refer to the ideology of these movements....
Nic Miller after personal details of four Jewish families living in the city were posted on it. The details were later removed from the site. On 23 Dec 2009, Cameron Slater
Cameron Slater
Cameron Slater is a controversial New Zealand based Internet blogger who is best known for publishing the Whale Oil Beef Hooked blog. Slater is the son of former National Party President John Slater....
was charged with five counts of breaching name suppression orders; the charges relate to two blog posts that contained pictures which reveal the identities of two New Zealanders. On 11 Jan 2010, Slater published a blog post that used binary and hexadecimal code to reveal the identity of a person charged with indecent assault on a 13-year-old girl; the Nelson Bays
Nelson, New Zealand
Nelson is a city on the eastern shores of Tasman Bay, and is the economic and cultural centre of the Nelson-Tasman region. Established in 1841, it is the second oldest settled city in New Zealand and the oldest in the South Island....
police announced that they would investigate this further breach of New Zealand's name suppression laws. On 1 June 2010, Dannevirke blogger Henk van Helmond was convicted of breaching a name suppression order and given a suspended sentence. The judge suppressed the publication of any details which might identify van Helmond's blog.
In January 2007 another controversial blog, CYFS Watch, appeared. The blog's stated aim was unveiling examples of alleged incompetence by the Child Youth and Family Service (known by its acronym CYFS) of the Ministry of Social Development
New Zealand Ministry of Social Development
The Ministry of Social Development is a New Zealand government agency which has two main functions: providing social policy advice to the government, and providing social services. It is New Zealand’s largest government department employing people in over 200 locations around the country...
. The Ministry responded to the publication of the blog, which published the details of several social workers, by complaining to internet company Google
Google
Google Inc. is an American multinational public corporation invested in Internet search, cloud computing, and advertising technologies. Google hosts and develops a number of Internet-based services and products, and generates profit primarily from advertising through its AdWords program...
. The blog remained online until 22 February 2007 when Google deleted the site, due to the blog's anonymous author making death threats towards Green
Green Party of Aotearoa New Zealand
The Green Party of Aotearoa New Zealand is a political party that has seats in the New Zealand parliament. It focuses firstly on environmentalism, arguing that all other aspects of humanity will cease to be of concern if there is no environment to sustain it...
MP Sue Bradford
Sue Bradford
Sue Bradford is a New Zealand politician who served as a list Member of Parliament representing the Green Party from 1999 to 2009.- Early life :...
because of her Crimes (Abolition of Force as a Justification for Child Discipline) Amendment Bill 2005.
Relationship with other media
The majority of bloggers still rely upon the media for the provision of news stories to comment upon. However, they do not repeat the news, instead putting forward their viewpoint on it. The mainstream media at first was highly critical of bloggers. In January 2007 The New Zealand HeraldThe New Zealand Herald
- External links :* * *...
printed an editorial that stated "[M]ost bloggers – and we're talking 95 per cent – are fly-by-night, gutless wonders who prefer to spit inarticulate venom under inarticulate pseudonyms." Since then though the newspaper has picked up multiple stories first broken on blogs (see below). Some current and former bloggers have worked in or for the media industry, such as Russell Brown
Russell Brown (New Zealand)
Russell Brown is a well-known New Zealand media commentator, and the owner of the Public Address community of blogs, and writes Hard News Hard News the blog is based on the Hard News radio slot spoken by Brown from 1991 to 2002 on bFM, an Auckland student radio station...
, Keith Ng, Tze Ming Mok and Dave Crampton. Political scientist Bryce Edwards (liberation) and Geoffrey Miller (Douglas to Dancing) have both written op-ed
Op-ed
An op-ed, abbreviated from opposite the editorial page , is a newspaper article that expresses the opinions of a named writer who is usually unaffiliated with the newspaper's editorial board...
s for The New Zealand Herald.
There have been many notable examples of bloggers breaking news stories and then having the media pick it up. Idiot/Savant revealed that neither Rodney Hide
Rodney Hide
Rodney Hide is a New Zealand politician who was leader of the political party ACT New Zealand from 2004 to 2011. From 2005 to 2011 he represented the electorate of Epsom as its Member of Parliament. Rodney Hide was Minister of Local Government, Associate Minister of Commerce and Minister of...
nor Heather Roy
Heather Roy
Heather Roy , is a New Zealand politician and has served as an ACT Member of Parliament since 2002. From 2006 until 17 August 2010, Roy was ACT's Deputy Leader...
had been showing up to Parliament and that the ACT party had therefore not voted in the 2006 budget
2006 New Zealand budget
The New Zealand budget for fiscal year 2006-2007 was presented to the New Zealand House of Representatives by Finance Minister Hon. Dr Michael Cullen on 18 May 2006.This was the seventh budget Michael Cullen has presented as Minister of Finance...
debate, and The Dominion Post
The Dominion Post (Wellington)
The Dominion Post is a metropolitan broadsheet newspaper published in Wellington, New Zealand, owned by the Australian Fairfax group, owners of The Age, Melbourne, and The Sydney Morning Herald.- Foundation :...
and The New Zealand Herald
The New Zealand Herald
- External links :* * *...
picked up the story. In February 2008 a blog post by Russell Brown about the Wikipedia article on Bill English
Bill English
Simon William "Bill" English is the Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Finance and Minister of Infrastructure of New Zealand.English entered parliament in 1990 as a National party MP representing the Wallace electorate...
being edited from a computer at Parliament, based on a previous post at Labour Party
New Zealand Labour Party
The New Zealand Labour Party is a New Zealand political party. It describes itself as centre-left and socially progressive and has been one of the two primary parties of New Zealand politics since 1935....
-leaning blog The Standard, received coverage in The New Zealand Herald
The New Zealand Herald
- External links :* * *...
. The NZBC blog reported a similar story of a computer at Air New Zealand
Air New Zealand
Air New Zealand Limited is the national airline and flag carrier of New Zealand. Based in Auckland, New Zealand, the airline operates scheduled passenger flights to 26 domestic destinations and 24 international destinations in 15 countries across Asia, Europe, North America and Oceania, and is...
being used to edit the Wikipedia article on Air New Zealand Flight 901
Air New Zealand Flight 901
Air New Zealand Flight 901 was a scheduled Air New Zealand Antarctic sightseeing flight that operated between 1977 and 1979, from Auckland Airport to Antarctica and return via Christchurch...
and it was picked up by The Press. In April 2008, blogger David Farrar
David Farrar (New Zealand)
David Peter Farrar is a New Zealand political activist, blogger, and pollster. He is a frequent commentator in the media on Internet issues. Farrar has held many roles within the New Zealand National Party and has worked in Parliament for four National Party leaders.His blog, Kiwiblog, is the most...
revealed the Green Party
Green Party of Aotearoa New Zealand
The Green Party of Aotearoa New Zealand is a political party that has seats in the New Zealand parliament. It focuses firstly on environmentalism, arguing that all other aspects of humanity will cease to be of concern if there is no environment to sustain it...
's preliminary party list, and the story was subsequently picked up by NZPA and published on Stuff.co.nz
Stuff.co.nz
Stuff.co.nz is a New Zealand news website owned and operated by Fairfax New Zealand, a subsidiary of the Australian company Fairfax Media. Stuff hosts the websites for Fairfax's New Zealand newspapers, including the country's second and third highest circulation daily newspapers The Dominion Post...
. In June blogger 'Skinny' revealed that a photo used in promotional material about the 2008 budget was of an American family, not a New Zealand one and the story was then published in The New Zealand Herald.
External links
- Journalism, Media and Democracy Research Centre at AUT University