Mediawatch

A triumph on a tragic day; political parties roll out crime control policies; creative interpretations of a pretty prosaic political poll.Mediawatch looks at how the media reacted to the shocking shootings in Auckland on a day the Women's World Cup kicked off. Also - coverage of political parties rolling out policies to combat crime - and the latest political opinion poll. Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

Nothing much changed in a 1News Verian poll released on Monday. Some commentators treated the boring results as a blank canvas on which to express their creativity.Nothing much changed in a 1News Verian poll released on Monday. Some commentators treated the boring results as a blank canvas on which to express their creativity.1News presenter Simon Dallow described the results of the newly named 1News Verian poll on Monday as a harsh verdict on the government."It is just under three months until the election and Labour seems to have been dented by a series of ministerial distractions," he said as he introduced the story at the top of the bulletin.Despite that effort to dress up the poll as a tough verdict on the government, it was mostly notable for how un-notable it was.Few parties moved more than the margin of error from the last 1News poll in May, which also showed National and Act with the numbers to form the next government - just. National and Labour both dropped the same amount: 2 percent.You might have thought the damp squib of a result would put the clamps on our political commentators' narrative-crafting abilities.Instead for some it proved to be a blank canvas on which they could express their creativity. At Stuff, chief politics editor Luke Malpass called the poll a "fillip for the right" under a headline hailing a 'centre-right surge'.One issue with that: the poll showed a 1 percent overall drop for the right bloc of National and Act.Fillips generally involve polls going up not down. Similarly, a drop in support doesn't traditionally meet the definition of a surge in support. The lack of big statistical swings wasn't enough to deter some commentators from making big calls.On Newstalk ZB, political editor Jason Walls said Labour was plunging due to its disunity."All has been really able to talk about is what's happening within the Labour Party - be it Stuart Nash, be it other ministers who are behaving badly. Jan Tinetti. Voters punish that. And we've seen that from the Nats in opposition. They punish disunity."It's uncertain what National's equivalent 2 per cent drop was down to. Perhaps voters punish unity as well.Mutch-McKay's own commentary was a bit more nuanced, placing the poll in the context of wider trends.On TVNZ's Breakfast the day after the poll's release, she said some people inside Labour couldn't believe the results hadn't been worse for the party.Perhaps that air of disbelief also extended to the parliamentary press gallery…Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

Midweek Mediawatch - Colin Peacock talks to Mark Leishman about intense coverage of a mother accused of killing her children - and the media finally covering the crimes of Sir James Wallace. Also: Tova O'Brien returning to the media as some senior news editors depart; the media response to the PM ruling out wealth taxes - and the tabloid scoop giving the BBC a big headache.Midweek Mediawatch - Mediawatch's weekly catch-up with Nights. This week Colin Peacock talks to Mark Leishman about intense coverage of a mother accused of killing her children - and the media finally covering the crimes of Sir James Wallace.Also: Tova O'Brien returning to the media as some senior news editors depart; the media response to the PM ruling out wealth taxes - and the tabloid scoop giving the BBC a big headache. Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

Recent reports have warned of a 'mortgage bomb' that could blow up - and a growing number of people unable to pay back debts. Is the story as explosive as some headlines would have you believe? Recent reports have warned of a 'mortgage bomb' that could blow up - and a growing number of people unable to pay back debts. Is the story as explosive as some headlines would have you believe? "Could you find an extra $1600 a month in the household budget if you had to?" Lisa Owen asked Checkpoint listeners on RNZ National last Monday. "That is the sharp end of the cost of living crisis for some Aucklanders - and that's on mortgage payments alone," she said, citing new numbers from Westpac.Many mortgages were fixed for two years in 2020 and 2021 at interest rates roughly half those on offer now - and when house prices were surging. What Lisa Owen dubbed 'The Great Refixing' could mean eye-watering leaps in monthly repayments - and not only for Aucklanders. This week, Newsroom reported a new survey saying 3 percent of mortgage-holders "could be facing the very real possibility of being forced to sell a property over the next year", according to the latest banking survey of just under 1100 people by research firm Horizon.That would mean about 42,000 home loans were in trouble, according to Newstalk ZB. BusinessDesk reported 70 percent of the same survey's respondents said they were "concerned they may not be able to afford payments" when they renew mortgages at current or higher rates. In June, National Party deputy leader and finance spokesperson Nicola Willis kicked off the party's annual conference warning of a looming "mortgage bomb"."The whole economy will shudder if it goes off," she said. In her column in Wellington's daily The Post last weekend, former National Party press secretary Janet Wilson called it "mortgage Armageddon" with "steadily increasing numbers of people in arrears". But how many? "When you apply for a mortgage at those very low rates on offer through the pandemic, chances are you would have been tested at rates that are closer to where we're at now," Westpac's Satish Ranchhod told Checkpoint this week. "The economy's in good shape ... and people have still got some buffers that are helping insulate them from that pain that's coming through from mortgages, as well as other living costs," he said. "There's definitely more signs of stress but it is definitely not unmanageable," ANZ Bank chief executive Antonia Watson told Newstalk ZB earlier this month. …Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

These days the platforms that pump news round the internet make more money out of it than the media who make it. In Australia they've done deals to ensure the media get more. Now the government also wants big fines for platforms publishing falsehoods. How will that work? And what's the story here?These days the platforms that pump news around the internet make more money out of it than the media who make it. In Australia, they've done deals to ensure the media get more. Now the government also wants big fines for platforms publishing falsehoods. How will that work? And what's the story here? Earlier this month, Australia's government announced new laws to beef up Australia's media regulator - the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) - to penalise the likes of Google, Facebook and Twitter for spreading harmful misinformation and disinformation online.Search engines, social media platforms, dating websites and online marketplaces could all be hit with fines of between nearly A$3 million (NZ$3.2m) and A$7m - or up to 5 percent of their global turnover if they fail to properly tackle disinformation. And for the first time, the communications watchdog ACMA could demand access to digital providers' documents related to fake news. "It will essentially mean that the regulator is able to look under the hood of what the platforms are doing," Australian Communications Minister Michelle Rowland told the media. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SX2BkNF5bx0The New Zealand government also wants to extend media content regulation to the online realm - but they're nowhere near as far down the track. After three years pondering the problem, the Department of Internal Affairs only recently released a discussion paper. Public input on that is open until the end of this month. By contrast, successive Australian governments have been willing to confront big tech companies in ways governments all over the world have been watching - including New Zealand. Google is now pushing back against a proposed law in Canada - the Online News Act - which would force tech companies to pay news organisations for each story accessed through its services. Google is threatening to cut Canadian news from online searches - and Facebook's owner Meta has followed suit. "Currently, we are proceeding towards ending the availability of news permanently in Canada," a spokeswoman told CBC News last week. Facebook tried the same tactic before in Australia, when it banned sharing of Australian news on the platform - but reversed the move within a week after a severe backlash. …Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

Warnings of a 'mortgage bomb' about to blow up; Australia puts big tech' under more pressure; Mary Holm's 25 years with readers and writers.Mediawatch looks at reports of a 'mortgage bomb' that could blow up the economy. Also - new moves to make Google and Facebook pay the media for the news they distribute - and who is the country's longest-lasting columnist Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

Mary Holm's been writing about personal finance weekly for the same paper for more than 25 years. But she tells Mediawatch it's really the readers who have kept it going. Mary Holm's been writing about personal finance weekly for the same paper for more than 25 years. But she tells Mediawatch it's really the readers who have kept it going. "I want to thank all those who have sent in letters over the years - and especially the majority whose questions didn't make it into the paper. Without them, there would be no column." Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

In this week's Midweek Mediawatch, Hayden Donnell talks to Mark Leishman about the Greens' entire manifesto crowded out by coverage of a single law and order tweak from Act . Also a Mediawatch mess-up; a sub-par speed limit story; more BBC presenter problems, commentators cheering Cane's kick (or was it a trip?) and remembering Steve Orsbourn.In this week's Midweek Mediawatch, Hayden Donnell talks to Mark Leishman about the Greens' entire manifesto crowded out by coverage of a single law and order tweak from Act . Also a Mediawatch mess-up; a sub-par speed limit story; more BBC presenter problems, commentators cheering Cane's kick (or was it a trip?) and remembering Steve Orsbourn. Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

Political reporters often say people need to get to know National leader Christopher Luxon. But he's ubiquitous in the media and has been in the job 18 months. Is it possible he's unknowable? Or is it time to retire the narrative?Political reporters often say people need to get to know National leader Christopher Luxon. But he is ubiquitous in the media and has been in the job 18 months. Is it possible he is unknowable? Or is it time to retire the narrative?Back in November last year, 1News political editor Jessica Mutch-McKay delivered some frank political advice to National leader Christopher Luxon during a panel discussion on RNZ's Morning Report."We've been encouraging him to do some more photo opportunities," she said. "People need to get to know him."The idea that voters have not got to know Luxon has become a kind of received wisdom in the press gallery and political circles.Newsroom political editor Jo Moir cited some on-the-street evidence for the theory on the site's weekly podcast Raw Politics back in April."Certainly I do my best to talk to people in the regions, have done a little bit of that lately," she said. "They still say they don't know who Chris Luxon is and what he stands for."That sentiment hit the headlines again this week after Luxon was confronted on his lack of cut-through with the public by cafe owner Michelle Cam during a carefully choreographed walkabout in Tawa.She recounted the conversation to Newstalk ZB's Nick Mills later that day."I just feel like I never see him out," she said. "It always seems to be Labour you see on TV and doing stuff in the media. We need to get to know him more. We need to know what he's about."Luxon's own MPs say the same thing. On Mills' show, National deputy leader Nicola Willis told him people just need to see the 24/7 Luxon she does."She was just really clear - 'more people need to get to know you'," she said. "And I think she's right. The more people get to know Chris, the more people hear National's plans, the more support we will get in this election."In March, National health spokesman Shane Reti blamed a poor preferred prime minister result for Luxon on voters not sharing his up-close, all-hours experience of the party leader. "I see the man that you don't see. I see the man after hours, and get to have those conversations and I think if New Zealanders can see that, they'll be as impressed as I am," he told RNZ."There are still many parts, many facets of Chris Luxon to be revealed to the public, and I'm impressed and I stand behind him."…Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

The New Zealand Herald column Sideswipe ended in May after a 21-year run. Its creator attributes its longevity to good curation and building a community.The New Zealand Herald column Sideswipe ended in May after a 21-year run. Its creator attributes its longevity to good curation and building a community.When Sideswipe ended in May, the question some people asked was how it had survived so long. The New Zealand Herald column collating quips and oddities from around the internet and sometimes from its readers ran for 21 years.When it started, the world wide web was still in its dial-up era. There was no Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Reddit, or TikTok. Even Myspace did not exist.When those platforms came along, some predicted Sideswipe's demise. Jokes and quirky news were not just easy to come by on social media; they often arrived unbidden, in a torrent.But Sideswipe kept trucking along in spite of that, outlasting every other column in the country and a number of media outlets - from Buzzfeed News to myriad local papers - that big tech did manage to murder.Even its death in May has not been permanent.Sideswipe has emerged, Jesus, or perhaps, cockroach-like from the grave, finding a place in The Listener's new digital subscription service under a new name, Ana Samways' Digital Bonfire.Samways said creating a community and careful curation were the keys to her column enduring in the face of online headwinds."I started before all that happened so I think I had a captive audience who couldn't be arsed finding their own content so they wanted it curated for them. They're busy people and you just have to scroll through so much to get the gold. So I think that's part of why it worked."Samways said Sideswipe was partly successful as one of the first "snackable" media offerings.It also helped that it did not have the same mean tone or toxic content of a place like Twitter, she said."Not being horrible because the internet is a nasty, nasty world out there and I think that really made a difference."Samways said there was not much fanfare at NZME over the end of the column, despite its longevity."My understanding is there was still a decent amount of engagement, decent amount of readers. Like everything these days, it comes down to money and you've only got a limited amount and you've got choices to make and you make choices based on what you think is going to be most profitable for your organisation."Ana Samways' Digital Bonfire might have elements of Sideswipe, but it was more likely to contain more opinion and investigative work, she said…Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details