Predictable collapse in TV3 numbers

Written By: - Date published: 4:47 pm, June 8th, 2015 - 73 comments
Categories: Media, tv - Tags: , ,

In entirely predicable: news today:

Prime News outrates TV3 as audience numbers halve

…Gillman says it’s possible some viewers have tuned out following MediaWorks’ decision to axe Campbell Live and the company’s perceived lack of commitment to current affairs.

“MediaWorks obviously feel comfortable experimenting but they’ve had too many failures lately. They’ll be thinking long and hard about what to do now.”

Hey Mediaworks bosses, here’s a little Joni Mitchell number to help you with your deliberations.

73 comments on “Predictable collapse in TV3 numbers ”

  • Comments are now closed

  1. philj 1
    8 June 2015 at 5:14 pm

    Hey TV3 execs,
    Instead of Campbell Live I suggest you try broadcasting Goodnight Kiwi. Its a proven winner. And its even cheaper to produce than Roadcops. l won’t be watching though. Good luck selling TV3.

  2. Ennui 2
    8 June 2015 at 5:16 pm

    How richly royally deserved. Lets be clear that the decision was clothed as a commercial decision based on dollars. Let’s be generous and say it was…our much lauded managers Weldon and Christie made it. Would a shareholder feel any comfort in having such bad decision makers caring for their investment. Serves the whole lot of them right for being commercial incompetents: the investors for allowing an idiot like Weldon a management role, the managers for being crap decision makers.

    • Anne 2.1
      8 June 2015 at 5:29 pm

      Serves the whole lot of them right for being commercial incompetents: the investors for allowing an idiot like Weldon a management role, the managers for being crap decision makers.

      And don’t forget the fool-hardiness of appointing a well known corporate educated, politically motivated control freak like Julie Christie who held a grudge against John Campbell – and no doubt other journos – because they had the gall to hold John Key and other National luminaries to account for their impoverished decision-making and broken promises.

    • Rawsharkosaurus 2.2
      8 June 2015 at 6:56 pm

      It’s absolutely a commercial decision based on dollars. Not advertising dollars, though – it’s based on the 43,000,000 taxpayer dollars that the National Government handed out to Mediaworks. That sort of money buys a lot of silencing of inconvenient viewpoints…

  3. Gangnam Style 3
    8 June 2015 at 5:19 pm

    Totally predictable, its such a media/tv/radio no no, don;t let your watchers/subscribers/audience/customers even realise there is an alternative, a lot of ppl (like myself) have switched to the other news channels & realised the other news shows are just as good, just as watchable, so why would I need to switch back?

    I was going to write Campbell is probably laughing his arse off, but he is much too nice for that. I am not, & I am laughing my arse off at yet more rightwing blunders.

  4. Clean_power 4
    8 June 2015 at 5:21 pm

    TV3 and TVNZ should both be sold. Viewers will be the arbiters of what to watch.

    • tc 4.1
      8 June 2015 at 5:30 pm

      TVNZ needs to be split into a commercial entity (TV2) and public broadcaster (TV1) with all that free content (heartland) called back onto a free to air service.

      TV3 could disappear tomorrow along with Garner, Gower, Henry, Farrier etc and it wouldn’t be missed as it’s not adding anything of merit just celebrity schlock.

      Public broadcasting is a much needed long overdue public service in NZ, imagine the likes of JC being cut loose on Dirty Politics, State housing sell off, milkgate etc and you can see why NACT don’t want public broadcasting.

      • dukeofurl 4.1.1
        8 June 2015 at 5:32 pm

        You’re a bigger dreamer than the execs at TV3.

        Its a public asset , we want to keep it thanks very much

        • Colonial Rawshark 4.1.1.1
          8 June 2015 at 6:06 pm

          Dude, TVNZ is a “public asset” but that doesn’t mean it is a “public broadcaster.” You’ll note that there was no suggestion to sell TV2 off. Just to recognise what it has been for years – a commercial broadcaster designed to make money for the government.

      • Frank Macskasy 4.1.2
        8 June 2015 at 7:30 pm

        tc – precisely.

        Let’s imagine a dream scenario – TV1 becoming a non-commercial public broadcaster; John Campbell head of News & Current Affairs; Mihingarangi Forbes fronting a new hard-hitting current affairs programme with a budget of millions of dollars and the top investigative journos from print, radio, and TV media…

        *sighs*

        Then I woke up.

        And found myself living in New Zealand, 2015AD, where the height of print media “news” is a bare-chested John Key, and television’s main news stories are two screwy judges on X Factor with potty mouths…

        • Chooky 4.1.2.1
          8 June 2015 at 7:40 pm

          keep dreaming!…and it will become a reality (maybe)

          …change of government looming ( another dream)

      • Clemgeopin 4.1.3
        9 June 2015 at 12:15 am

        What an excellent idea!

        TV1 a 24 hour public broad caster, preferably with John Campbell as the CEO (along with presenting his own 30 minutes to one hour of Campbell Live to investigate in depth current affairs and also holding the government and the other crooks to account).

        A station with the BEST people and the BEST talent, with both young and old journalists on its staff. A model of quality for the country and the rest of the world.

        Bugger the crooked corporates and the money changers.

        Personally I do not mind not more than 10 minutes of commercials every hour to offset some costs, but the commercials should be few and HIGHLY sought after at very HIGH prices.

    • dukeofurl 4.2
      8 June 2015 at 5:34 pm

      TV 3 viewers for Campbell live were the highest for all its shows outside news , and then sometimes more than that.

      The viewers showed they wanted to keep the show.

      TVNZ cant believe their luck ( and that TV3 could be that stupid)

      • Frank Macskasy 4.2.1
        8 June 2015 at 7:45 pm

        Dukeofurl – if TVNZ really wanted a coup, they’d snap up Campbell (and his team) and give him his own show, at 7. (Mike Hosking can be reassigned to tea-making duties. Or washing cars. Somewhere useful for his mediocre talents.)

        Campbell… TV1… Primetime viewing… That combo would send ratings of the scale.

    • Draco T Bastard 4.3
      8 June 2015 at 5:56 pm

      I’m pretty sure that the receivers are working diligently to sell TV3 – or, at least, were working diligently until they fucked up spectacularly.

      TVNZ, on the other hand, should be (as tc says) split into a commercial and public service arm. The public service arm to be fully government funded with no commercial activity at all with a focus upon, but not limited to, news, documentaries and current affairs.

  5. Maz 5
    8 June 2015 at 5:28 pm

    Well I for one don’t watch TV 3 anymore since Campbell Live’s axing, and neither do any of my friends. Hence, no surprise in the ratings slump. They underestimated Campbell’s viewership and thought they had a proposed audience for their replacement programme/s. What a shame! What next for TV3? A possible bailout maybe?

  6. Dan1 6
    8 June 2015 at 5:48 pm

    I am cheered that the pollsters have picked up my vibes. I thought my view of the world had been ignored. TV3 deserves its slide, and it won’t improve into the positives until they get rid of the right wing trolls in charge.

  7. Colonial Rawshark 7
    8 June 2015 at 6:08 pm

    WHere are all those dickhead right wingers who were insisting that TV3 bosses were correct in making a commercial decision to safeguard the interests of their shareholders by axing Campbell Live. Fucking Morans.

    • adam 7.1
      8 June 2015 at 6:29 pm

      Language Colonial Rawshark, language.

      No point calling the Tory scum F*&ing morans , especially when we’re not in mississippi. No wait, yes, when it comes to economics, they are all morans.

    • Matthew Hooton 7.2
      8 June 2015 at 7:29 pm

      It wasn’t a commercial decision. It was a political one.

      • Colonial Rawshark 7.2.1
        8 June 2015 at 8:02 pm

        Indeed, that’s the way it looked. And now we have confirmation that the numbers are horrific for the channel. Bad politics and bad business rolled into one.

      • Skinny 7.2.2
        8 June 2015 at 8:16 pm

        While I’d like to think it was a political decision they are restructuring so programing is all part of it. The opportunity to buy in low when it floats must be tempting. The blind trust player will be in, especially since he has insider information from his mate.

        • Matthew Hooton 7.2.2.1
          8 June 2015 at 8:30 pm

          When you restructure, you normally get rid of your underperforming people and assets and keep your better performing one. If I was working for one of the shareholding funds in New York i would want to know what the fuck Weldon thinks he is doing with my investors’ money.

          • Skinny 7.2.2.1.1
            8 June 2015 at 9:22 pm

            Holmes and Campbell were the peak times, once Paul was gone Campbell had a fairly free run. The show declined in viewership. TV stations need to keep refreshing, who is to say Campbell slotting in with say Sam Hayes and another front person wasn’t going to be a winner. The programmers are going on stats in front of them from a while back and plan ahead accordingly. For me the show was a 2-3 day out of the week watch at best. I’d rather tune in to checkpoint on RNZ, then network news +1 hour at 7pm.

            Each to their own I guess.

            • Colonial Rawshark 7.2.2.1.1.1
              8 June 2015 at 9:31 pm

              Yep Samantha Hayes deserved an extended run with Campbell to see how that would turn out – bloody marvellous, I suspect.

            • Matthew Hooton 7.2.2.1.1.2
              9 June 2015 at 5:51 am

              Perhaps, but that hasn’t happened has it. Management gets judged by what happens not what might have happened.

              • Skinny …
                9 June 2015 at 12:16 pm

                Nonsense this outfit is run by hedge fund traders they operate on speculative moves. He who is ahead of the Wall Street pack gain a bigger slice of the money go round. They take advice from the forward thinking AD men.

          • G-Rex 7.2.2.1.2
            9 June 2015 at 10:51 am

            Nailed it Hooton. Weldon has sabotaged TV3’s ratings and gifted TVNZ more advertisers. Because as ratings fall, advertisers will migrate to where the audience is.

            Weldon has to go.

          • Tracey 7.2.2.1.3
            10 June 2015 at 1:51 pm

            “you normally get rid of your underperforming people and assets and keep your better performing one.”

            Not always, politics exists in organisations as well. Also the way much restructuring is done you lose a number you didn’t want to lose cos they don’t want to work in the uncertainty and drop in moral.

            “If I was working for one of the shareholding funds in New York i would want to know what the fuck Weldon thinks he is doing with my investors’ money.”

            You could just ask your pal John Key, it would be quicker.

    • felix 7.3
      8 June 2015 at 9:59 pm

      Indeed CV.

      And apparently John Key’s bestie is rating terribly in the mornings, so I expect he’ll be for the chop next. Seeing as it’s all about ratings and commercial decisions, like.

    • M Scott 7.4
      9 June 2015 at 11:14 am

      “Fucking Morans.” Please do not impugn morans, RC. Morans are Maasai warriors, all of the same age group, given freedom to live the life of Reilly before getting curcumsised, having their lovely plaits shaved off and having to assume personal responsibility and facing the realities of life; getting married and becoming an elder etc. Actually, maybe their are a few similarities. I think the word you want is ‘morons’.

      [lprent: No they are referring to the moran in this photo and others like him.

      You can read more about this blowhard dimwit here. ]

    • SHG 7.5
      9 June 2015 at 11:04 pm

      Right, wrong, what? It’s a private company owned by American venture capitalists, they can do what they want. Just because you don’t like what they do with their toys that doesn’t mean it’s wrong.

  8. Paul 8
    8 June 2015 at 6:21 pm

    I will not watch TV3 after the political hatchet job on John Campbell.

  9. Red Blooded 9
    8 June 2015 at 6:40 pm

    You got what you deserve TV3. No tears for you in this household. Bloody marvelous.

  10. Kiwiri 10
    8 June 2015 at 6:40 pm

    I am so enjoying the boycott against TV3.

  11. linda 11
    8 June 2015 at 7:17 pm

    terrestrial broadcasting is a sunset industry,i think Campbell live had value but broadcasting infrastructure and 90 percent of the programing has no value what so ever the value is distribution and control of content and that monopoly has been smashed so sell them while you still can, in this age we don’t need keytv or keynewspapes iam boycotting the lot

    • Colonial Rawshark 11.1
      8 June 2015 at 9:33 pm

      And will end up smarter and calmer for having turned the MSM off

  12. The Other Mike 12
    8 June 2015 at 7:21 pm

    “MediaWorks obviously feel comfortable experimenting but they’ve had too many failures lately. They’ll be thinking long and hard about what to do now.”

    Ummmmm…. bring back John Campbell?

    He’d probably tell them to go an f*** themselves. I would.

    • Colonial Rawshark 12.1
      8 June 2015 at 8:03 pm

      For twice the money, twice the staff and full editorial control, why wouldn’t he go back?

  13. Matthew Hooton 13
    8 June 2015 at 7:28 pm

    The shareholders in New York and elsewhere will not be happy. Weldon is toast.

    • Frank Macskasy 13.1
      8 June 2015 at 7:32 pm

      Matthew – please don’t hold back.

      You’re obviously “in the know” – share with us, please.

      • Sacha 13.1.1
        8 June 2015 at 7:37 pm

        Weldon would have a certain amount of time to get results – but it will be more like one year than one week. They need to put their dumbed-down 7pm show in place and test its impact on follow-on audience numbers for a few different ‘reality’ shows to dis/prove their awesome theory.

        • Matthew Hooton 13.1.1.1
          8 June 2015 at 8:31 pm

          You have greater confidence in the patience of Wall Street fund managers than I do.

    • Weepus beard 13.2
      8 June 2015 at 7:35 pm

      I thought Weldon was under instruction from Wayne Eagleson.

    • Chooky 13.3
      8 June 2015 at 7:36 pm

      Now for the good News Story ….(drum roll )….”Weldon is toast”.

      Loud cheers from throughout New Zealand! ( and may his master go the same way)

    • b waghorn 13.4
      8 June 2015 at 7:42 pm

      How many of these shareholders would be nat party donaters.??

      • Matthew Hooton 13.4.1
        9 June 2015 at 7:37 am

        The shareholders are New York based vulture funds so probably none. And vulture funds aren’t interested in pleasing governments.

    • Richard Christie 13.5
      8 June 2015 at 11:07 pm

      Weldon is toast.

      I suspect he will be, but only if the upcoming replacement show tanks too. Road cops is a temporary filler.

      At least, this is what Weldon is hoping.

      • Colonial Rawshark 13.5.1
        8 June 2015 at 11:37 pm

        The NATs will provide a proven quantity like Weldon with a suitable follow up career

      • Wensleydale 13.5.2
        10 June 2015 at 7:03 am

        I doubt Weldon really cares. His type just shuffles from one cushy gig to another. You need a fucking exorcism to get rid of people like Weldon.

  14. Rodel 14
    8 June 2015 at 7:30 pm

    Donchalove the way the clean-powers of this world aren’t embarrassed to state their cliched solutions.I think they really believe what they say. Now that’s a worry.. they actually do have a vote in a democracy, do they?–oh well, so be it.

    Road Cops is better than the supercilious one and his fawners on TV1’s seven dumbed. ,but RT gives a different perspective on world news. Biased yeah but incisive. So does CNN and Al Jazeera has depth. Fox news is OK when the comedy channel has nothing on. ( 3 minutes maximum) or the brain starts to rot.BBC is a bit aristocracy biased. There’s a lot to watch- Forget Stephen Joyce’s mediaworks

    • Colonial Rawshark 14.1
      8 June 2015 at 8:05 pm

      Yep RT is quite biased on some issues but kudos to them as they are never afraid to interview pro-US and pro-EU officials (and ex-officials) either. There’s something quite nice about watching a non-imperial channel which isn’t always advocating for regime change or sanctions or drone strikes somewhere. Also Max Keiser and Stacey Herbert rule OK.

    • Colonial Rawshark 14.2
      8 June 2015 at 8:08 pm

      I hear UNOTELLY does a good hide your country of origin IP service for just a few bucks a month.

  15. appleboy 15
    8 June 2015 at 11:11 pm

    TV3 has not been on in this household since the last Campbell show. It won’t ever be turned on again.

  16. Kevin 16
    8 June 2015 at 11:54 pm

    My Freeview box died just minutes from the start of the final Campbell Live which pissed me off at the time. I haven’t replaced it as I don’t miss it. Anything interesting I download for my media player.

  17. OMBE 17
    9 June 2015 at 8:29 am

    One nights numbers dont tell the story. The connection to Campbell’s demise is a really long bow to draw, and maybe a triumph of hope over reality.

  18. Sable 18
    9 June 2015 at 10:13 am

    I personally think this is poetic justice. Lets hope John Campbell comes back in an on line format. That would really throw a spanner in the MSM’s works….

    • Clean_power 18.1
      9 June 2015 at 11:48 am

      There is always hope, but who is going to fund JC?

      • Clemgeopin 18.1.1
        9 June 2015 at 5:37 pm

        “who is going to fund JC?”

        The crucifiers?

        (…after soul searching like Saul after their Damascus moment?)

  19. shorts 19
    9 June 2015 at 11:49 am

    I wonder if TV3 will now scarp all news and current affairs (unless NZOA funded) citing no one wants it (ratings) and screen more reality bullshit thats cheaper to buy/produce… further reducing their overheads as they position themselves for sale – christie and weldon at front of queue for big fat bonuses too

  20. Clemgeopin 20
    9 June 2015 at 12:02 pm

    TV RATINGS

    From Ratings website, Throng, from the last day of Campbell Live, Fri 29 May up to date.
    ————————————————————————————————————

    (6:00pm – 7:00pm)

    Fri 29 May 2015 One News : 685,730
    Mon 1June 2015 One News : 793,870
    Tue, 2 June 2015 One News : 781,950
    Wed,3 June 2015 One News : 747,100
    Thu, 4 June 2015 One News : 747,210
    Fri, 5 June 2015 One News : 803,690
    Mon,8 June 2015,one News : 789,740

    Fri 29 May 2015 3 News : 271,780
    Mon1 June 2015 3 News : 304,160
    Tue 2 June 2015 3 News : 205,010
    Wed,3 June 2015 3 News : 244,650
    Thu, 4 June 2015 3 News : 222,440
    Fri, 5 June 2015 3 News : 220,480
    Mon,8 June 2015,3 News : 269,790
    ——————————————————————————–

    (7:00 pm to 7:30 pm)

    Fri 29, May 2015 TV1 Seven Sharp : 411,580
    Mon 1 June 2015 TV1, Seven Sharp : 600,040
    Tue, 2 June 2015 TV1, Seven Sharp : 533,630
    Wed,3 June 2015 TV1, Seven Sharp : 517,000
    Thu, 4 June 2015 TV1, Seven Sharp : 536,610
    Fri, 5 June 2015 TV1, Seven Sharp : 520,720
    Mon,8 June 2015,TV1, Seven Sharp : 594,030

    Fri, 29 May 2015 TV3 Campbell Live : 484,850
    Mon, 1 June 2015 TV3, Road Cops : 212,010
    Tue, 2 June 2015 TV3, Road Cops : 211,400
    Wed, 3 June 2015 TV3, Road Cops : 142,400
    Thu, 4 June 2015 TV3, Road Cops : 135,350
    Fri, 5 June 2015 TV3, Road Cops : 163,730
    Mon,8 June 2015,TV3, Road Cops : 162,930
    ——————————————————————————–

    TV3 Management are a gang of highly paid, idiotic, prejudiced, clueless, corporate RW Nut jobs with lots of dough (including 43 Million dollar tax payer bail outs from this National Government!), but not much of brains, fairness or guts! A disgrace of a fourth estate, a supposed fourth pillar of democracy!

    ***********************
    BBC : Bring Back Campbell!
    ***********************

    Read two interesting articles and a picture on this matter : [The first one is brilliant]

    [1] http://thedailyblog.co.nz/2015/05/23/why-should-we-boycott-tv3-after-campbell-live-and-why-martin-van-beynen-is-so-wrong/

    [2] http://snoopman.net.nz/2015/05/28/the-4-million-newsroom-putting-your-money-where-your-eyes-gaze-crowdfunding-a-new-newsroom-model-that-has-the-shit/

    [3] A pictures tells a thousand words here:

    http://snoopman.net.nz/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/PooTube01.jpg

  21. Tracey 21
    10 June 2015 at 1:53 pm

    Will Come Dine with Me (NZ) have a list, written by Julie Christie of topics that CANNOT be discussed during dinner and the show?

    She could publish the guidelines to contestants for us, or do a reality show (uneditted) on the making of it sow e can see if they are allowed to mention

    poverty
    christchurch rebuild

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    Empty spaces, what are we living for?Abandoned places, I guess we know the score, on and onDoes anybody know what we are looking for?Another hero, another mindless crimeBehind the curtain, in the pantomimeHold the lineDoes anybody want to take it anymore?The show must go onSongwriters: Brian May / Freddie Mercury ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    2 days ago
  • Managing on-street parking for local benefit

    This guest post by Malcolm McCracken originally appeared on his blog Better Things Are Possible, and is republished here by kind permission. The case for Parking Benefit Districts: managing on-street parking for local benefit Parking is often the centre of debate in our cities; particularly on-street car parks, who gets ...
    Greater AucklandBy Guest Post
    2 days ago
  • Doubling down?

    This is a re-post from And Then There's Physics I wrote a post a little while ago commenting on a Sabine Hossenfelder video suggesting that she was now worried about climate change because the Equilibrium Climate Sensitivity (ECS) could be much higher than most estimates have suggested. I wasn’t too taken with Sabine’s arguments, and there were others ...
    Skeptical Science
    2 days ago
  • Too much haste & waste in Simeon Brown’s need for speed

    Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāLong story short, the Government’s myopia of only choosing transport policies that reduce travel times means we’re missing out on the health benefits of more cycling and walking, along with the health cost savings from fewer accidents, less pollution and mentally healthier ways of getting ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    2 days ago
  • What seemed so simple is now so complex

    The Health NZ rescue that seemed so simple back in July was presented to a Select Committee yesterday as a complex challenge that could take some years to sort out. In July, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon said Health NZ was on track to record a deficit of $1.4 billion for ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    2 days ago
  • The utterances of Shane Jones

    Let us consider the utterances of Shane Jones.Let us consider the derogatory terms of abuseNow is not the time for Green Wombles, it's black and white decision making.We will stand with the energy industry and ensure they are not monstered by Green Termites nibbling away at our economic capital.The Green ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    3 days ago
  • Ukrainian militia receives defective shipment of pagers that just send and receive messages

    There’s been a major setback for one Ukrainian-backed militia on the Russian border, after the group ordered a large shipment of pagers to use as improvised explosive devices. The plan was to litter the pagers throughout abandoned homes and buildings in hopes of wounding Russian soldiers. But upon arrival of ...
    The CivilianBy Ben Uffindell
    3 days ago
  • A constitutional shitshow

    Last month, we learned that the government was half-arsing its anti-gang legislation, adding a significant, pre-planned, BORA-abusing amendment at the committee stage, avoiding all the usual scrutiny processes. But it gets worse. Because having done it once, they're now planning to recall the bill in order to add another such ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    3 days ago
  • Political Round Up

    Note: An earlier version of this article noted Levy was a “party time Health NZ commissioner” - this has been updated - forgive my Freudian slip.Dr Lester Levy is charging $320,000 a year to be a part time Health NZ commissioner. Rachel Thomas reports that Levy is still teaching 2 ...
    Mountain TuiBy Mountain Tui
    3 days ago
  • Postcard from Sydney: Southwest and City Metro extension

    This is a guest post from Sydney reader Nik Clement After 2 years in Auckland I moved back to Sydney just over a year ago. While in Auckland, I went to the opening of Puhinui station and used it a fair bit, living in Manukau Central and being able ...
    Greater AucklandBy Guest Post
    3 days ago
  • Tolling revolt brewing in National heartland

    Kia ora. Long stories short, here’s my top six things to note in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, climate and poverty on Wednesday, September 18:Locals gathered in Woodville last night to protest at the National-ACT-NZ First Government’s decision to toll the new road linking the Manawatu and Hawkes Bay, saying ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    3 days ago
  • The doom spiral

    This is a re-post from The Climate Brink by Andrew Dessler In his last post, Zeke discussed incredible warmth of 2023 and 2024 and its implications for future warming. A few readers looked at it and freaked out: This is terrifying and This update really put me in a ...
    Skeptical Science
    3 days ago
  • Government directs Te Puni Kōkiri to conduct Māori Language Week in English

    The coalition government has issued a directive to Te Puni Kōkiri, the Ministry of Māori Development, instructing them that – in the interests of clear communication – they are to conduct this year’s Māori Language Week primarily or exclusively in English. The directive is in line with the Government’s policy ...
    The CivilianBy Ben Uffindell
    4 days ago
  • Government celebrates fact that New Zealand’s healthcare is so good people are queuing up for it a...

    At yesterday’s post-cabinet press conference, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon, flanked by his Health Minister Shane Reti and someone we can’t independently verify was a real sign language interpreter, announced that he had some positive news for the country. “Alright team, I’m just going to hand over to uh, Dr. Shane, ...
    The CivilianBy Ben Uffindell
    4 days ago
  • Heartwarming: Thoughtful driver uses indicator to tell you what they’ve just done

    It’s 4:10pm in the morning, and you’re in the middle lane heading north on the great southern motorway of our nation’s capital, Auckland. There are no cars directly in front of you, but quite a few in the lane to your left. Suddenly, without warning, a black ute enters your ...
    The CivilianBy Ben Uffindell
    4 days ago
  • NPC teams will now be allowed to actually use the Ranfurly Shield in play

    Following decades of controversy, the governing body of New Zealand rugby, New Zealand Rugby, has ruled that the team currently holding the Ranfurly Shield may once again use it in play during the National Provincial Championship (NPC). The ruling restores the utility of a prize that for many years was ...
    The CivilianBy Ben Uffindell
    4 days ago
  • Climbing out of the hamster wheel

    I arrived home with a head full of fresh ideas about mindfulness and curbing impulsive aspects in my character.On the second night home I grabbed a piece of ginger and began swiftly slicing it on our industrial strength mandolin, the one I have learned through painful experience to treat with ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    4 days ago
  • More Notes From Stinky Town

    Good morning, folks. Another wee note from a chilly Rotorua morning that looks much clearer than yesterday. As I write, the pink glow in the east is slowly growing, and soon, the palest of blue skies should become a bit more royal.A couple of people mentioned yesterday that I should ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    4 days ago
  • Make it make sense: why axe valuable local projects?

    Last week, Matt looked at how the government wants to pour a huge chunk of civic infrastructure funding for a generation  into one mega-road up North, at huge cost and huge opportunity cost. A smaller but no less important feature of the National Land Transport Plan devised by Minister of Transport ...
    Greater AucklandBy Jolisa
    4 days ago
  • Driving blind at higher speeds

    An open letter by experts about plans to raise speed limits warns the “tragic consequence will be more New Zealanders losing their lives or suffering severe injury, along with a substantial burden on the nation's healthcare and rehabilitation services”. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāKia ora. Long stories short, here’s ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago
  • 2024’s unusually persistent warmth

    This is a re-post from The Climate Brink My inaugural post on The Climate Brink 18 months ago looked at the year 2024, and found that it was likely to be the warmest year on record on the back of a (than forecast) El Nino event. I suggested “there is a real chance ...
    Skeptical Science
    4 days ago
  • National plan for 2000 more Kiwis a year in prison

    Open for allYesterday, Luxon congratulated his government on a job well done with emergency housing numbers, but advocates have been saying it‘s likely many are on the streets and sleeping in cars.Q&A featured some of the folks this weekend - homeless and in cars. Yes.The government’s also confirmed they stopped ...
    Mountain TuiBy Mountain Tui
    4 days ago
  • I Found a Note in a Tree

    Hi,On most days I try to go on a walk through nature to clear my head from the horrors of life. Because as much as I like people, I also think it’s incredibly important to get very far away from them. To be reminded that there are also birds, lizards, ...
    David FarrierBy David Farrier
    4 days ago
  • Jacqui Van Der Kaay: Politicians need to lift their game

    Declining trust in New Zealand politicians should be a warning to them to lift their game. Results from the New Zealand Election Study for the 2023 election show that the level of trust in politicians has once again declined. Perhaps it is not surprising that the results, shared as part ...
    Democracy ProjectBy bryce.edwards
    5 days ago
  • Police say they won’t respond to bomb threats anymore as ‘it’s never anything’

    Police Commissioner Andrew Coster says that New Zealand’s police force will no longer respond to bomb threats, in an attempt to cut costs and redirect police resources to less boring activities. Coster said that threat response and bomb disposal was a “fairly obvious” area for downsizing, as bomb threats are ...
    The CivilianBy Ben Uffindell
    5 days ago
  • A dysfunctional watchdog

    The reality of any right depends on how well it is enforced. But as The Post points out this morning, our right to official information isn't being enforced very well at all: More than a quarter of complaints about access to official information languish for more than a year, ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    5 days ago
  • Climate Change: The threat of a good example

    Since taking office, the climate-denier National government has gutted agricultural emissions pricing, ended the clean car discount, repealed water quality standards which would have reduced agricultural emissions, gutted the clean car standard, killed the GIDI scheme, and reversed efforts to reduce pollution subsidies in the ETS - basically every significant ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    5 days ago
  • Vegas Baby

    Good morning, lovely people. Don’t worry. This isn’t really a newsletter, just a quick note. I’m sitting in our lounge, looking out over a gloomy sky. Although being Rotorua, the view is periodically interrupted by steam bursting from pipes and dispersing—like an Eastern European industrial hellscape during the Cold War.Drinking ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    5 days ago
  • Why Entrust Needs New Leadership

    I am part of a new team running in the Entrust election in October. Entrust is a community electricity trust representing a significant part of Auckland, set up to serve the community. It is governed by five trustees are elected every three years in an election the trust itself oversees. ...
    Greater AucklandBy Patrick Reynolds
    5 days ago
  • London Bridge is falling down

    In the UK, London is the latest of council groups to signal potential bankruptcy.That’s after Birmingham, Britain’s second largest city, went bankrupt in June, resulting in reduced sanitation services, libraries cut, and dimmed streetlights.Some in the city described things as “Dickens” like.Please, Sir, Can I have some more?For families with ...
    Mountain TuiBy Mountain Tui
    5 days ago
  • Govt may kick elderly out of hospitals

    The Government is considering how to shunt elderly people out of hospitals, and also how to cut their access to other support. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāKia ora. Long stories short, here’s my top six things to note in Aotearoa’s political economy around housing, climate and poverty on Monday, ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 days ago
  • Getting the nephs off the couch

    The so-called “Prince of the Provinces”, Shane Jones, went home last Friday. Perhaps not quite literally home, more like 20 kilometres down the road from his house on the outskirts of Kerikeri. With its airport, its rapidly growing (mostly retired) population, and a commercial centre with all the big retail ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    5 days ago
  • De moralibus orcorum: Sargon of Akkad, Rings of Power, Evil, and George R.R. Martin

    I have noted before that The Rings of Power has attracted its unfortunate share of culture war obsessives. Essentially, for a certain type of individual, railing on about the Wokery of Modern Media is a means of making themselves a online livelihood. Clicks and views and advertising revenue, and all ...
    A Phuulish FellowBy strda221
    6 days ago
  • 2024 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming News Roundup #37

    A listing of 31 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, September 8, 2024 thru Sat, September 14, 2024. Story of the week From time to time we like to make our Story of the Week all about us— and ...
    Skeptical Science
    6 days ago
  • Salvation For Us All

    Yesterday, I ruminated about the effects of being a political follower.And, within politics, David Seymour was smart enough on Friday to divert attention from “race blind” policies [what about gender blind I thought - thinking of maternity wards] and cutting school lunches by throwing meat to the media. Teachers were ...
    Mountain TuiBy Mountain Tui
    6 days ago
  • A warm embrace

    Far, far away from here lives our King. Some of his subjects can be quite the forelock tuggers, but plenty of us are not like that, and why don't I wheel out my favourite old story once more about Kiwi soldiers in the North African desert?Field Marshal Montgomery takes offence ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    6 days ago
  • Literal clowns are running the place, we must put a timeout on this stupidity… right Aotearoa?

    These people are inept on every level. They’re inept to the detriment of our internal politics, cohesion and increasingly our international reputation. And they are reveling in the fact they are getting away with it. We cannot even have “respectful debate” with a government that clearly rejects the very ...
    exhALANtBy exhalantblog
    7 days ago
  • Fact brief – Does manmade CO2 have any detectable fingerprint?

    Skeptical Science is partnering with Gigafact to produce fact briefs — bite-sized fact checks of trending claims. This fact brief was written by Sue Bin Park from the Gigafact team in collaboration with John Mason. You can submit claims you think need checking via the tipline. Does manmade CO2 have any ...
    Skeptical Science
    7 days ago
  • Judge Not.

    Judge not, that ye be not judged. For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again. Matthew 7:1-2FOUR HUNDRED AND FORTY men and women professing the Christian faith would appear to have imperilled their immortal souls. ...
    Bowalley Road
    7 days ago
  • Managed Democracy: Letting The People Decide, But Only When They Can Be Relied Upon To Give the Righ...

    Uh-uh! Not So Fast, Citizens! The power to initiate systemic change remains where it has always been in New Zealand’s representative democracy – in Parliament. To order a binding referendum, the House of Representatives must first to be persuaded that, on the question proposed, sharing its decision-making power with the people ...
    Bowalley Road
    7 days ago
  • Looking For Labour’s Vital Signs.

    Flatlining: With no evidence of a genuine policy disruptor at work in Labour’s ranks, New Zealand’s wealthiest citizens can sleep easy.PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN has walked a picket-line. Presidential candidate Kamala Harris has threatened “price-gauging” grocery retailers with price control. The Democratic Party’s 2024 platform situates it well to the left of Sir ...
    Bowalley Road
    7 days ago
  • Forty Years Of Remembering To Forget.

    The Beginning of the End: Rogernomics became the short-hand descriptor for all the radical changes that swept away New Zealand’s social-democratic economy and society between 1984 and 1990. In the bitterest of ironies, those changes were introduced by the very same party which had entrenched New Zealand social-democracy 50 years earlier. ...
    Bowalley Road
    7 days ago
  • Kōrero Mai – Speak to Me.

    Good morning all you lovely people. 🙂I woke up this morning, and it felt a bit like the last day of school. You might recall from earlier in the week that I’m heading home to Rotorua to see an old friend who doesn’t have much time. A sad journey, but ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    1 week ago
  • Winning ways

    Hello! Here comes the Saturday edition of More Than A Feilding, catching you up on anything you may have missed. Street architecture adjustment, KolkataShare Read more ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    1 week ago
  • 48 seconds on a plan that would reverberate for a million years

    Despite fears that Trump presidency would be disastrous for progress on climate change, the topic barely rated a mention in the Presidential debate. Photo: Getty ImagesLong stories short, here’s the top six news items of note in climate news for Aotearoa-NZ this week, and a discussion above between Bernard Hickey ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    1 week ago
  • Using blunt instruments and magical thinking to ignore evidence of harm

    The abrupt cancellations and suspensions of Government spending also caused private sector hiring, spending, and investment to freeze up for the first six months of the year. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāThis week we learned:The new National/ACT/NZ First Coalition Government ignored advice from Treasury that it didn’t have to ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    1 week ago
  • Is This A Dagger Which I See Before Me: A Review and Analysis of The Rings of Power Episode 5 (Seaso...

    Another week of The Rings of Power, season two, and another confirmation that things are definitely coming together for the show. The fifth Episode of season one represented the nadir of the series. Now? Amid the firmer footing of 2024, Episode Five represents further a further step towards excellent Tolkien ...
    A Phuulish FellowBy strda221
    1 week ago
  • In Open Seas; A Book

    The background to In Open Seas: How the New Zealand Labour Government Went Wrong:2017-2023Not in Narrow Seas: The Economic History of Aotearoa New Zealand, published in 2020, proved more successful than either I or the publisher (VUP, now Te Herenga Waka University Press) expected. I had expected that it would ...
    PunditBy Brian Easton
    1 week ago
  • The Hoon around the week to Sept 13

    The podcast above of the weekly ‘Hoon’ webinar for paying subscribers on Thursday night features co-hosts and talking about the week’s news with:The Kākā’s climate correspondent on the latest climate science on rising temperatures and the climate implications of the US Presidential elections; and special guests Janet ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    1 week ago
  • Do or do not. There is no try

    1. Upon receiving evidence that school lunches were doing a marvellous job of improving outcomes for students, David Seymour did what?a. Declared we need much more of this sort of good news and poured extra resources and funding into them b. Emailed Atlas network to ask what to do next c. Cut ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    1 week ago
  • Dangerous ground

    The Waitangi Tribunal has reported back on National's proposed changes to gut the Marine and Coastal Area Act and steal the foreshore and seabed for its greedy fishing-industry donors, and declared it to be another huge violation of ti Tiriti: The Waitangi Tribunal has found government changes to the ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    1 week ago
  • Climate Change: National wants to cheat on Paris

    In 2016, the then-National government signed the Paris Agreement, committing Aotearoa to a 30 (later 50) percent reduction in emissions by 2030. When questioned about how they intended to meet that target with their complete absence of effective climate policy, they made a lot of noise about how it was ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    1 week ago
  • Treasury warned Govt lower debt limits meant less ‘productivity-enhancing investment’

    Treasury’s advice to Cabinet was that the new Government could actually prudently carry net core Crown debt of up to 50% of GDP. But Luxon and Willis instead chose to portray the Government’s finances as in such a mess they had no choice but to carve 6.5% to 7.5% off ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    1 week ago

  • Tourism on the table for Pacific Ministers’ meet-up

    Tourism and Hospitality Minister Matt Doocey will meet with Trade and Tourism Minister of Australia Don Farrell and Fiji Deputy Prime Minister Manoa Kamikamica in Rotorua this weekend for a trilateral tourism discussion. “Like in New Zealand, tourism plays a significant role in Australia and Fiji’s economy, contributing massively to ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    21 hours ago
  • Young people report on family and sexual violence

    The Te Puna Aonui Expert Advisory Group for Children and Young People has presented its report today on improving family and sexual violence outcomes for young people, to the Minister for the Prevention of Family and Sexual Violence, Karen Chhour.  The presentation at the Auckland event was an opportunity for ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    21 hours ago
  • $18 million being invested in the victims of crime

    The Government is putting more than $18 million towards improving the experience of the criminal justice system for victims, Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith and Minister for Children Karen Chhour say. “No one should experience crime, but for those who through no fault of their own become victims, they need to ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    21 hours ago
  • Landmark phonics check in te reo Māori

    For the first time, schools can use a purpose-built tool to check how a child is progressing in reading through te reo Māori. “Around 45 schools are trialling a New Zealand first te reo Māori phonics check, known as Hihira Weteoro. It will help kaiako (teachers) focus on what ākonga ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    22 hours ago
  • New sea walls safeguard Ōpōtiki’s transformation

    Two new breakwater walls at Pākihikura (Ōpōtiki) Harbour will provide boats with safe harbour access to support the continued growth of aquaculture in Bay of Plenty, Deputy Prime Minister Winston Peters and Regional Development Minister Shane Jones say. The Ministers and leaders from Tē Tāwharau o Te Whakatōhea and other ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 day ago
  • Kitmap to improve access to science infrastructure

    Science, Innovation and Technology Minister Judith Collins today announced an online platform to optimise the use of New Zealand’s science and technology research infrastructure and to link the public and private sector. “This country is home to world-class science, technology, and engineering expertise. Kitmap is set to empower Kiwi innovators, ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 day ago
  • Driving the uptake of low emission heavy vehicles

    The Government has launched the Low Emissions Heavy Vehicle Fund (LEHVF) to promote innovation and offset the cost of hundreds of heavy vehicles powered by clean technologies, Energy Minister Simeon Brown and Climate Change Minister Simon Watts say. “Boosting economic growth and productivity is a key part of the Government’s plan ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 day ago
  • Speech on replacing the Resource Management Act

    Replacing the RMA Hon Chris Bishop: Good morning, it is great to be with you. Can I first acknowledge the Resource Management Law Association for hosting us here today. Can I also acknowledge my Parliamentary Under-Secretary, Simon Court, who is on stage with me. He has assisted me in establishing the ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 day ago
  • Replacement for the Resource Management Act takes shape

    Two new laws will be developed to replace the Resource Management Act (RMA), with the enjoyment of property rights as their guiding principle, RMA Reform Minister Chris Bishop and Parliamentary Under-Secretary Simon Court say. “The RMA was passed with good intentions in 1991 but has proved a failure in practice. ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 day ago
  • Tough laws pass to make gang life uncomfortable

    Legislation passed through Parliament today will provide police and the courts with additional tools to crack down on gangs that peddle misery and intimidation throughout New Zealand, Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith says. “From November 21, gang insignia will be banned in all public places, courts will be able to issue non-consorting orders, and ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago
  • New levy rates set to ensure continued funding of FENZ

    Minister of Internal Affairs Brooke van Velden says the Government has agreed to the rates for the redesigned levy that will fund Fire and Emergency New Zealand (FENZ) from July 2026.  “Earlier this year FENZ consulted publicly on a 5.2 percent increase to the levy. I was not convinced that ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago
  • Police allocate Officers to Beat and Gang Units

    The Coalition Government welcomes Police’s announcement today to deploy more police on the beat and staff to Gang Disruption Units.  An additional 70 officers will be allocated to Community Beat Teams across towns and regional centres.  This builds on the deployment of beat officers in Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch CBDs ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago
  • Consultation begins on significant updates to the biosecurity system

    Proposals to strengthen the country’s vital biosecurity system, including higher fines for passengers bringing in undeclared high-risk goods, greater flexibility around importing requirements, and fairer cost sharing for biosecurity responses have been released today for public consultation. Biosecurity Minister Andrew Hoggard says “The future is about resilience and the 30-year-old ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago
  • Wānaka community to benefit from new overnight health service

    Health Minister Dr Shane Reti says an Overnight Acute Care Service opening in October will provide people in Wānaka and the surrounding area with the assurance of quality overnight care closer to home.  “When I was in Wānaka earlier this year, I announced funding for an overnight health service – ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago
  • Preventing potholes with data-driven technology

    The Government is rolling out data collection vans across the country to better understand the condition of our road network to prevent potholes from forming in the first place, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says.  “Increasing productivity to help rebuild our economy is a key priority for the Government and increasing ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago
  • GDP data shows effect of high interest rates

    Gross Domestic Product (GDP) data for the quarter to June 2024 reinforces how an extended period of high interest rates has meant tough times for families, businesses, and communities, but recent indications show the economy is starting to bounce back, Finance Minister Nicola Willis says. Stats NZ data released today ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago
  • NZ to host first Fiji, Australia trilateral trade Ministers’ meeting in Rotorua

    Trade Minister Todd McClay will host Fijian Deputy Prime Minister Manoa Kamikamica and Australian Trade Minister Don Farrell for trilateral trade talks in Rotorua this weekend. “Fiji is one of the largest economies in the Pacific and is a respected partner for Australia and New Zealand,” Mr McClay says. Australia and New Zealand ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago
  • NZ hosts Annual CER Trade Ministers’ meeting in Rotorua

    Trade Minister Todd McClay will meet with Australian Trade Minister Don Farrell for the annual Closer Economic Relations (CER) Trade Ministers’ meeting in Rotorua this weekend.  “CER is our most comprehensive agreement covering trade, labour mobility, harmonisation of standards and political cooperation. It underpins an important trading relationship worth $32 ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago
  • Government proposing changes to jury trials

    The Government is seeking the public’s feedback on two major changes to jury trials in order to improve court timeliness, Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith says. “The first proposal would increase the offence threshold at which a defendant can decide to have their case heard by a jury. “The second is ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago
  • Business key to regional economic dialogue

    Local businesses and industries need to be front and centre in conversations about how regions plan to grow their economies, Regional Development Shane Jones says. The nationwide series of summits aims to facilitate conversations about regional economic growth and opportunities to drive productivity, prosperity and resilience through the Coalition Government’s Regional ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago
  • More funding for Growing Up in New Zealand study

    The Government is investing $16.8 million over the next four years to extend the Growing Up in New Zealand (GUiNZ) Longitudinal Study. GUiNZ is New Zealand’s largest longitudinal study of child health and wellbeing and has followed the lives of more than 6000 children born in 2009 and 2010, and ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago
  • Tough targets for charter schools will raise achievement

    Associate Education Minister David Seymour says that Charter Schools will face a combination of minimum performance thresholds and stretch targets for achievement, attendance and financial sustainability. “Charter schools will be given greater freedom to respond to diverse student needs in innovative ways, but they will be held to a much ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago
  • NZ votes for Middle East resolution at UN

    New Zealand has voted for a United Nations resolution on Israel’s presence in occupied Palestinian Territory with some caveats, Foreign Minister Winston Peters says.    “New Zealand’s yes vote is fundamentally a signal of our strong support for international law and the need for a two-state solution,” Mr Peters says.    “The Israel-Palestine ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago
  • Honouring the legacy of New Zealand’s suffragists

    Suffrage Day is an opportunity to reaffirm New Zealand’s commitment to ensuring we continue to be a world leader in gender equality, Minister for Women Nicola Grigg says. “On 19 September, 131 years ago, New Zealand became the first nation in the world where women gained the right to vote. ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago
  • Foreign Minister to travel to New York, French Polynesia

    Foreign Minister Winston Peters is travelling to New York next week to attend the 79th session of the United Nations General Assembly, followed by a visit to French Polynesia. “In the context of the myriad regional and global crises, our engagements in New York will demonstrate New Zealand’s strong support for ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago
  • Thanking social workers on their national day

    “Today, on Aotearoa New Zealand Social Workers’ Day, I would like to recognise the tremendous effort social workers make not just today, but every day,” Children’s Minister and Minister for the Prevention of Family and Sexual Violence Karen Chhour says. “I thank all those working on the front line for ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
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  • Minister of State for Trade heads to Laos for ASEAN meetings

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