Why right wing media is bad for democracy and the planet

Written By: - Date published: 12:21 pm, February 19th, 2023 - 37 comments
Categories: climate change, Deep stuff, Environment, Media, science, the praiseworthy and the pitiful, us politics - Tags:

This week before Cyclone Gabrielle hit there was a noted level of scepticism about how bad things would get.  Newstalk ZB was, surprise surprise, particularly bad.

From Charlie Mitchell at Stuff:

“People contacted me from Napier saying some schools were shut there,” broadcaster Kate Hawkesby said on her early morning show, after reading the message from Tauranga.

“I just wonder what’s happened to us as a country that we’ve become this paranoid and this soft.”

This is all good red meat for Newstalk ZB’s core constituency, grumpy old white men who enjoy getting angry.

Mike Hosking joined in.  Again from Mitchell’s article:

“What we’ve done is whip ourselves into this extraordinary frenzy,” [Hosking] said, wondering why libraries were closed and trains weren’t operating.

”There is no reason for this level of hysteria.”

They both engaged in a bit of bob both ways covering all sides of the story and both also interviewed experts about the situation, who gave valuable information to listeners but I am sure you get the point.  This sort of anti intellectual schist is a core part of the business model.

They were both subsequently shown to be completely, and tragically wrong, just as the right wing media has been over the past 30 years when it comes to climate change.  And now that the change is happening in real time they are still wrecking what needs to be a proper debate with their stupid takes.

Hosking has been the king of the stupid take.  He said this about climate change in May last year in rubbishing a newly released Scientific tool that predicted inundation:

So, by the time you take the doubt, the fact we’ve been worried about these things seemingly forever, and this new addition of land movement, the question is, has a lot changed? They say, yes of course. Instead of your town being underwater in 60 years it might be 20 years. Then again, it might not.

What we do know is the media is always up for a good old scare story, hence, they continue to give precedence to the alarmism. But in the alarmism is part of the problem, how many times can they scream disaster before it wears off? It’s already started to wear off and has been doing so for years.

And any policy which addresses climate change is regularly ridiculed and attacked.  Think cycleways, wind turbines and Three Waters if you need examples.

One may wonder if engaging in anti expert rants and peddling to conspiracy theories is accidental or part of the business model.  I have very strong suspicions it is the latter.

From the looks of Dominion’s defamation suit against Fox News it appears that turbo charging frothing at the mouth of its followers is more important than the truth.  From Richard Luscombe at the Guardian:

Hosts at Fox News privately ridiculed Donald Trump’s claims that the 2020 election was stolen while simultaneously peddling the same lies on air, according to court filings in a defamation lawsuit against the network.

Rightwing personalities Tucker Carlson, Sean Hannity and Laura Ingraham are among those named in the $1.6bn action brought by Dominion Voting Systems, the seller of electronic voting hardware and software that is suing Fox News and parent company Fox Corporation for maligning its reputation.

“He’s acting like an insane person,” Hannity allegedly wrote of Trump in the weeks following the election as the host continued to push the so-called “big lie” during his top-rated prime time show, aided by a succession of election deniers he had on as guests.

Even billionaire Fox owner Rupert Murdoch was dismissive of the former president’s false allegations, the filing alleges, calling them “really crazy stuff” in one memo to a Fox News executive, and criticizing Trump’s scattergun approach of pursuing lawsuits in numerous states to try to overturn his defeat.

It was “very hard to credibly claim foul everywhere”, Murdoch wrote, adding in another note that Trump’s obsession with trying to prove fraud was “terrible stuff damaging everybody”.

They were particularly disdainful of Sidney Powell, one of Trump’s lawyers who repeatedly claimed that Dominion’s machines were changing Trump votes to Biden votes.

“Sidney Powell is lying,” [Tucker Carlson] wrote to a producer, the Dominion lawsuit alleges. He referred to Powell in a text as an “unguided missile” and “dangerous as hell”.

Trump, Carlson said, was a “demonic force” who was good at “destroying things. He’s the undisputed world champion of that. He could easily destroy us if we play it wrong.”

Laura Ingraham thought the same.

Fellow host Ingraham told Carlson that Powell was “a complete nut. No one will work with her. Ditto with Rudy,” referring to the former New York mayor and Trump supporter Rudy Giuliani.

Even Sean Hannity thought that what Powell was saying was bonkers.

Hannity, meanwhile, said in a deposition “that whole narrative that Sidney was pushing, I did not believe it for one second”, according to Dominion’s filing.

You may wonder what the link is.  Well both media outlets have been pushing ideas without proof in order to give their listener base their daily feed of grumpiness.  The Fox News example is particularly jarring.  They knew that what they were pedalling about Dominion was false.

Newstalk ZB’s model of trying to hold back progressive change just because it is progressive is very damaging.  At the very time we need a deep discussion of where we are going as a country they are holding things back because it is good for ratings.

We need to have an informed discussion.  Hosking and Co are not providing this.

37 comments on “Why right wing media is bad for democracy and the planet ”

  • Comments are now closed

  1. dvT 1
    19 February 2023 at 12:27 pm

    Hosting and informed in the same line. GEEZ

  2. Muttonbird 2
    19 February 2023 at 12:59 pm

    Mediawatch takes the diseased 1ZB out the back and shoots it:

    In a storm that killed people and destroyed homes, some front rank hosts in key time slots at our most popular national talk radio network obsessed about a missed day of school.

    Education is a wonderful thing. But perhaps it’s not our students who most need to sit down and take on board some information from people better informed than they are.

    https://www.rnz.co.nz/national/programmes/mediawatch/audio/2018878253/radio-hosts-fixate-on-schools-closing-as-gabrielle-closes-in

  3. Ghostwhowalksnz 3
    19 February 2023 at 1:02 pm

    Never mind, Hosking will do a complete volte farce this week like he always does. Which would be fine if he explained why he was wrong. Never does .

    He flip flops more than Luxon for the same reasons….marketing

  4. Ad 4
    19 February 2023 at 1:08 pm

    One of the many losses of the dead TVNZ-RNZ merger is a lost ability for synchronized nationwide messaging.

    The broadcast capacity would be stronger, the facts at least more consistent.

    Wasn't ZB once state owned?

    • Anne 4.1
      19 February 2023 at 2:28 pm

      Wasn't ZB once state owned?

      Yes. For many decades. Sold sometime in the 80s I think or maybe early 90s. Rogernomics.

  5. Ghostwhowalksnz 5
    19 February 2023 at 1:11 pm

    Strange bit of plagiarism in the stuff story by Charlie Mitchell

    https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/300809224/cyclone-gabrielle-scepticism-is-a-sting-in-covids-tail

    Its clearly a minimal rewrite of the RNZ Media Watch segment by Hayden Donnell

    https://www.rnz.co.nz/national/programmes/mediawatch/audio/2018878253/radio-hosts-fixate-on-schools-closing-as-gabrielle-closes-in

    Stuff and RNZ have a cross licensing agreement so could have used a story's with attribution.

    • mickysavage 5.1
      19 February 2023 at 8:34 pm

      Published before the Mediawatch post went up. I think both reporters were attracted by what was some very weird broadcasting.

      • Ghostwhowalksnz 5.1.1
        20 February 2023 at 6:33 am

        I knew this question of timing would arise.

        Stories are written often well before they go online ( time and date stamped often). When I worked for a newspaper with 300 journalists ( but I wasnt one) stories might be held over for all sorts of reasons and the editors like a pipeline of material that could have a placing at different days or even weeks later. Media Watch from memory has a regular day slot

        Like I said Stuff and RNZ have cross licensing and likely see stories ahead of publication for the general reader

    • Incognito 5.2
      19 February 2023 at 9:02 pm

      Go on then, point to the sentences and sections with similarity so high that it is likely a copy & paste job, aka plagiarism. Bold claims require bold evidence and I doubt that you have a leg to stand on – knock yourself out.

  6. tc 6
    19 February 2023 at 2:29 pm

    Dominion are doing everyone a favour. They may as well grab the next crop of ‘presenters’ from acting school.

    Murdoch's doubling down on his pursuit of crikey for defamation..at least he's out in the open about it unlike another who resides in this country at times.

    Across the ditch Albanese is doing squat about the murdoch dominated Oz market, no surprises there.

    Here Mr and Mrs Outrage carp to an ever declining demographic. Interesting times.

  7. Ad 7
    19 February 2023 at 7:03 pm

    Democrats and Labour worldwide have been repeatedly shown that campaigning on anger enabled the right to beat the left across Europe, UK, the US, India, Philippines and elsewhere.

    The first broadcaster to emulate Fox from the left with anger algorithms would enable the left to reverse the trend.

    All that hyper-femme kindness crap just ensured the left got their asses kicked.

  8. Thinker 8
    19 February 2023 at 8:37 pm

    What if people stopped listening to these guys and gals. Their ratings would plummet, their advertising income would drop and they'd be doing the breakfast shift at the Golden Arches, not ZB.

    We decry what they do but, as if we were watering the weeds in our gardens, we keep listening to them and they thrive.

  9. tsmithfield 9
    20 February 2023 at 7:23 am

    Several thoughts here. Firstly, the only strongly right wing prominent media people I am aware of are Hosking and HDPA. So, from the way I see it, the media is hardly right-wing biased.

    So, there should be plenty of counter-balancing views to whatever Hosking and HDPA have to say on the topic.

    Seconldy, if the finger can be pointed at right wing media, it can also be pointed at weather experts, civil emergency, government authorities for not acting a lot earlier in evacuating at risk areas. It is not like this storm came out of nowhere, and that its areas of rainfall wouldn't have been predictable within a time-frame to take action. Those authorities would have had a lot more knowledge of the actual situation than any media personality, and so should be a lot more accountable IMO.

    I think there should be a commission of enquiry after all this.

    • observer 9.1
      20 February 2023 at 8:20 am

      Out of interest, who are the left wing (or even liberal) equivalent of the radio hosts Hosking, Hawkesby, HDPA etc?

      Sure, individual reporters might have a leftish perspective, but there is no comparison between hosting an established radio show and writing about the environment for the Spinoff. The reach is a hundred times greater.

      Which lefties are on the back of the bus, on the billboards? I can't think of any.

      • tsmithfield 9.1.1
        20 February 2023 at 8:53 am

        Last time I looked, I think Newstalk ZB had about 30% of the radio market. So, I guess the make-up of the other 70% would answer that question.

        Probably a worry if the remaining 70% doesn't have any memorable commentators, because that would suggest that most of those listeners don't give a shit.

        • lprent 9.1.1.1
          20 February 2023 at 9:13 am

          30% of the commercial radio market is actually fuck all.

          Their criteria for ‘listening’ is that people hear it. Which in my case means that I am a ‘listener’ because it is usually on whenever I get in a taxi, or go to a shop, or somewhere where it is playing in the background. Which is a lot of public places.

          Which is why they claim 3.4 million people listen to commercial radio each week.

          The reality is that a few people seem to live with the radio on all of the time. Mostly because it is in their workplace of home. However most ‘listeners’ don’t choose to listen to it. They just get caught in someone else’s silly addictions.

          I never choose to listen to commercial radio. I don’t choose the playlist, and their news and commentary is farcical. I mostly listen to Tidal or Spotify for music. Mostly read my news because then you get some detail past the breathless hooks of news radio, and the moronic mutterings that are paid commercial opinions. If I need to listen to the news, I’ll use RNZ national programme if I’m in the car. But mostly I just use my phone to look it up.

          Who has the time in their lives to listen to idiots and their music selections and opinions.

      • Gosman 9.1.2
        20 February 2023 at 11:38 am

        There is nothing stopping you setting up a media platform to do this from a left wing perspective if you have the desire and motivations. Sean Plunkett did so.

  10. Peter 10
    20 February 2023 at 7:32 am

    Of course we need to have an informed debate. Hosking and co, zb, don't have to provide that or foster that.

    What they have to do is the same as has been highlighted with Fox very recently, get listeners/viewers.

    Any ethics are geared to that.

  11. Gosman 11
    20 February 2023 at 11:36 am

    This sort of thinking is dangerous because you make an argument there is a massive problem with the media and then leave it. Most reasonable people would then start to think that something should be done about it and that something should be driven by the Government.

    The reality is that there are multiple media options in our society from across the spectrum in NZ. That is the nature of having a free and largely unregulated media environment. If you don't like the editorial direction of one media outlet choose another. If you are worried that people are being fed disinformation then present the actual facts as you see them on the competing media. Make a case and let society work through everything to enable the majority to come to a view.

    What is not usually a viable (nor welcome) solution is to try to manage the messages from the media sources you dislike. That way leads to totalitarianism.

    • fender 11.2
      20 February 2023 at 6:25 pm

      There's a big difference between a media organisation that's disliked due to being incompatible with ones left/right preference and one that endangers lives due to playing down the severity of a fucking cyclone!!

    • adam 11.3
      20 February 2023 at 9:38 pm

      Sheesh Gossy trust you to go total straw man, nothing to see here BS.

      Freedom!!!

      The freedom to not die because someone tells lies for political point scoring is a big one in my world.

      Face facts mate – your right wing buddies lied (at worst) or twisted the truth (at best) to take a side swipe at the government rather than inform people of a disaster in the making.

      The fact your not sicked about that tells me more about you, than anything else.

      If a left wing media outlet had done it, you and yours would have been calling for blood.

      Me I'm just calling for them to loss their licence to broadcast. Because the public good, out does political point scoring every day of the week.

    • newsense 11.4
      21 February 2023 at 2:43 am

      I mean spot on-

      I can always get a channel to tell me what I want. If Fox isn’t as deranged, I can get Newsmax or some other pile of hot crap…hot isn’t hot, wet isn’t wet, tobacco is a pleasant smell and it works largely as a health tonic.

      The harm principle is supposed to be near and dear to liberal hearts, and here, as with the pandemic, the BS is dangerous and causing harm. Media should be free, but not to cause damage.

      Media carries an important duty to inform, otherwise it’s just propaganda or worse.

    • Incognito 11.5
      21 February 2023 at 8:31 am

      If you are worried that people are being fed disinformation then present the actual facts as you see them on the competing media.

      Nope, that’s not the way it works and you are conflating facts and opinions/ideas. Facts are not trophies that are won in/by competition, which is a moronic idea that begs the question why you’d even contemplate this let alone say it here on a free public forum!?

      STANDARD 6 – ACCURACY

      Broadcasters should make reasonable efforts to ensure news, current affairs and factual content:

      • is accurate in relation to all material points of fact
      • does not materially mislead the audience (give a wrong idea or impression of the facts).

      In the event a material error of fact has occurred, broadcasters should correct it within a reasonable period after they have been put on notice.

      https://www.bsa.govt.nz/assets/Uploads/BSA-Code-of-Broadcasting-Standards-Screen_FINAL.pdf

      Point 6.4 specifically refers to talkback and one could argue that Newstalk ZB reporting was “materially misleading with respect to any facts” [@ 6.1].

      The weakness in this system is the delay in correction, if any, which is kinda the critical issue in the context of a national emergency and it could have put people’s lives at risk. Such risk was, in fact, highly likely and predictable given that 4 people had died in (the) floods only 2 weeks prior.

  12. Mike the Lefty 12
    20 February 2023 at 11:52 am

    Hail the everlasting know-it-all Mike Hosking.

  13. roblogic 13
    22 February 2023 at 4:17 pm

    Scathing editorial in the ODT. If the storm isn’t happening in our studio in Auckland,!is it even real?

    https://twitter.com/nettieg3/status/1628220316299448320?s=46&t=KT133s1UWaUIazF2V5RhAQ

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    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    3 days ago

  • The Hoon around the week to Sept 30
    Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The five things that mattered in Aotearoa’s political economy that we wrote and spoke about via The Kākā and elsewhere for paying subscribers in the last week included:Labour presented a climate manifesto that aimed to claim the high ground on climate action vs National, ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    4 days ago

  • Litanies, articles of faith, and being a beneficiary
    Hello! Here comes the Saturday edition of More Than A Feilding, catching you up on the past two weeks.Friday 29Play it, ElvisElection Hell special!! This week’s quiz is a bumper edition featuring a few of the more popular questions from last weekend’s show, as well as a few we didn’t ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    4 days ago

  • Litanies, articles of faith, and being a beneficiary
    Hello! Here comes the Saturday edition of More Than A Feilding, catching you up on the past two weeks.Friday 29Play it, ElvisElection Hell special!! This week’s quiz is a bumper edition featuring a few of the more popular questions from last weekend’s show, as well as a few we didn’t ...
    More than a fieldingBy David Slack
    4 days ago

  • The ‘Recession’ Has Been Called Off, But Some Households Are Still Struggling
    While the economy is not doing too badly in output terms, external circumstances are not favourable, and there is probably a sizeable group of households struggling because of rising interest rates.Last week’s announcement of a 0.9 percent increase in volume GDP for the June quarter had the commentariat backing down ...
    PunditBy Brian Easton
    4 days ago

  • Climate Change: The wrong direction
    This week the International Energy Association released its Net Zero Roadmap, intended to guide us towards a liveable climate. The report demanded huge increases in renewable generation, no new gas or oil, and massive cuts to methane emissions. It was positive about our current path, but recommended that countries with ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    4 days ago

  • “Racism” becomes a buzz word on the campaign trail – but our media watchdogs stay muzzled when...
    Buzz from the Beehive  Oh, dear.  We have nothing to report from the Beehive. At least, we have nothing to report from the government’s official website. But the drones have not gone silent.  They are out on the election campaign trail, busy buzzing about this and that in the hope ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    4 days ago

  • Play it, Elvis
    Election Hell special!! This week’s quiz is a bumper edition featuring a few of the more popular questions from last weekend’s show, as well as a few we didn’t have time for. You’re welcome, etc. Let us press on, etc. 1.  What did Christopher Luxon use to his advantage in ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    4 days ago

  • Pure class warfare
    National unveiled its fiscal policy today, announcing all the usual things which business cares about and I don't. But it did finally tell us how National plans to pay for its handouts to landlords: by effectively cutting benefits: The biggest saving announced on Friday was $2b cut from the ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    4 days ago

  • Ask Me Anything about the week to Sept 29
    Photo by Anna Ogiienko on UnsplashIt’s that time of the week for an ‘Ask Me Anything’ session for paying subscribers about the week that was for an hour, including:duelling fiscal plans from National and Labour;Labour cutting cycling spending while accusing National of being weak on climate;Research showing the need for ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 days ago

  • Weekly Roundup 29-September-2023
    Welcome to Friday and the last one for September. This week in Greater Auckland On Monday, Matt highlighted at the latest with the City Rail Link. On Tuesday, Matt covered the interesting items from Auckland Transport’s latest board meeting agendas. On Thursday, a guest post from Darren Davis ...
    Greater AucklandBy Greater Auckland
    5 days ago

  • Protest at Parliament: The Reunion.
    Brian’s god spoke to him. He, for of course the Lord in Tamaki’s mind was a male god, with a mighty rod, and probably some black leathers. He, told Brian - “you must put a stop to all this love, hope, and kindness”. And it did please the Brian.He said ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    5 days ago

  • Labour cuts $50m from cycleway spending
    Labour is cutting spending on cycling infrastructure while still trying to claim the higher ground on climate. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The Labour Government released a climate manifesto this week to try to claim the high ground against National, despite having ignored the Climate Commission’s advice to toughen ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    5 days ago

  • The Greater Of Two Evils.
    Not Labour: If you’re out to punish the government you once loved, then the last thing you need is to be shown evidence that the opposition parties are much, much worse.THE GREATEST VIRTUE of being the Opposition is not being the Government. Only very rarely is an opposition party elected ...
    Bowalley Road
    5 days ago

  • Skeptical Science New Research for Week #39 2023
    Open access notables "Net zero is only a distraction— we just have to end fossil fuel emissions." The latter is true but the former isn't, or  not in the real world as it's likely to be in the immediate future. And "just" just doesn't enter into it; we don't have ...
    Skeptical Science
    5 days ago

  • Chris Trotter: Losing the Left
    IN THE CURRENT MIX of electoral alternatives, there is no longer a credible left-wing party. Not when “a credible left-wing party” is defined as: a class-oriented, mass-based, democratically-structured political organisation; dedicated to promoting ideas sharply critical of laissez-faire capitalism; and committed to advancing democratic, egalitarian and emancipatory ideals across the ...
    Democracy ProjectBy bryce.edwards
    5 days ago

  • Road rage at Kia Kaha Primary School
    It is not the school holidays yet at Kia Kaha Primary School!It can be any time when you are telling a story.Telling stories about things that happened in the past is how we learn from our mistakes.If we want to.Anyway, it is not the school holidays yet at Kia Kaha ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    5 days ago

  • Road rage at Kia Kaha Primary School
    It is not the school holidays yet at Kia Kaha Primary School!It can be any time when you are telling a story.Telling stories about things that happened in the past is how we learn from our mistakes.If we want to.Anyway, it is not the school holidays yet at Kia Kaha ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    5 days ago

  • Road rage at Kia Kaha Primary School
    It is not the school holidays yet at Kia Kaha Primary School!It can be any time when you are telling a story.Telling stories about things that happened in the past is how we learn from our mistakes.If we want to.Anyway, it is not the school holidays yet at Kia Kaha ...
    More than a fieldingBy David Slack
    5 days ago

  • Hipkins fires up in leaders’ debate, but has the curtain already fallen on the Labour-led coalitio...
    Labour’s  Chris Hipkins came out firing, in the  leaders’ debate  on Newshub’s evening programme, and most of  the pundits  rated  him the winner against National’s  Christopher Luxon. But will this make any difference when New  Zealanders  start casting their ballots? The problem  for  Hipkins is  that  voters are  all too ...
    Point of OrderBy tutere44
    5 days ago

  • Govt is energising housing projects with solar power – and fuelling the public’s concept of a di...
    Buzz from the Beehive  Not long after Point of Order published data which show the substantial number of New Zealanders (77%) who believe NZ is becoming more divided, government ministers were braying about a programme which distributes some money to “the public” and some to “Maori”. The ministers were dishing ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    5 days ago

  • MIKE GRIMSHAW: Election 2023 – a totemic & charisma failure?
    The D&W analysis Michael Grimshaw writes –  Given the apathy, disengagement, disillusionment, and all-round ennui of this year’s general election, it was considered time to bring in those noted political operatives and spin doctors D&W, the long-established consultancy firm run by Emile Durkheim and Max Weber. Known for ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 days ago

  • FROM BFD: Will Winston be the spectre we think?
    Kissy kissy. Cartoon credit BoomSlang. The BFD. JC writes-  Allow me to preface this contribution with the following statement: If I were asked to express a preference between a National/ACT coalition or a National/ACT/NZF coalition then it would be the former. This week Luxon declared his position, ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    5 days ago

  • California’s climate disclosure bill could have a huge impact across the U.S.
    This re-post from Yale Climate Connections by Andy Furillo was originally published by Capital & Main and is part of Covering Climate Now, a global journalism collaboration strengthening coverage of the climate story. The California Legislature took a step last week that has the potential to accelerate the fight against climate ...
    Skeptical Science
    6 days ago

  • Untangling South East Queensland’s Public Transport
    This is a cross post Adventures in Transitland by Darren Davis. I recently visited Brisbane and South East Queensland and came away both impressed while also pondering some key changes to make public transport even better in the region. Here goes with my take on things. A bit of ...
    Greater AucklandBy Guest Post
    6 days ago

  • Try A Little Kindness.
    My daughter arrived home from the supermarket yesterday and she seemed a bit worried about something. It turned out she wanted to know if someone could get her bank number from a receipt.We wound the story back.She was in the store and there was a man there who was distressed, ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    6 days ago

  • What makes NZFirst tick
    New Zealand’s longest-running political roadshow rolled into Opotiki yesterday, with New Zealand First leader Winston Peters knowing another poll last night showed he would make it back to Parliament and National would need him and his party if they wanted to form a government. The Newshub Reid Research poll ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    6 days ago

  • September AMA
    Hi,As September draws to a close — I feel it’s probably time to do an Ask Me Anything. You know how it goes: If you have any burning questions, fire away in the comments and I will do my best to answer. You might have questions about Webworm, or podcast ...
    David FarrierBy David Farrier
    6 days ago

  • Bludgers lying in the scratcher making fools of us all
    The mediocrity who stands to be a Prime Minister has a litany.He uses it a bit like a Koru Lounge card. He will brandish it to say: these people are eligible. And more than that, too: These people are deserving. They have earned this policy.They have a right to this policy. What ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    6 days ago

  • More “partnerships” (by the look of it) and redress of over $30 million in Treaty settlement wit...
    Buzz from the Beehive Point of Order has waited until now – 3.45pm – for today’s officially posted government announcements.  There have been none. The only addition to the news on the Beehive’s website was posted later yesterday, after we had published our September 26 Buzz report. It came from ...
    Point of OrderBy Bob Edlin
    6 days ago

  • ALEX HOLLAND: Labour’s spending
    Alex Holland writes –  In 2017 when Labour came to power, crown spending was $76 billion per year. Now in 2023 it is $139 billion per year, which equates to a $63 billion annual increase (over $1 billion extra spend every week!) In 2017, New Zealand’s government debt ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    6 days ago

  • If not now, then when?
    Labour released its fiscal plan today, promising the same old, same old: "responsibility", balanced books, and of course no new taxes: "Labour will maintain income tax settings to provide consistency and certainty in these volatile times. Now is not the time for additional taxes or to promise billions of ...
    No Right TurnBy Idiot/Savant
    6 days ago

  • THE FACTS:  77% of Kiwis believe NZ is becoming more divided
    The Facts has posted –        KEY INSIGHTSOf New Zealander’s polled: Social unity/division 77%believe NZ is becoming more divided (42% ‘much more’ + 35% ‘a little more’) 3%believe NZ is becoming less divided (1% ‘much less’ + 2% ‘a little less’) ...
    Point of OrderBy poonzteam5443
    6 days ago

  • Gordon Campbell on the cynical brutality of the centre-right’s welfare policies
    The centre-right’s enthusiasm for forcing people off the benefit and into paid work is matched only by the enthusiasm (shared by Treasury and the Reserve Bank) for throwing people out of paid work to curb inflation, and achieve the optimal balance of workers to job seekers deemed to be desirable ...
    Gordon CampbellBy lyndon
    6 days ago

  • Wednesday’s Chorus: Arthur Grimes on why building many, many more social houses is so critical
    New research shows that tenants in social housing - such as these Wellington apartments - are just as happy as home owners and much happier than private tenants. Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The election campaign took an ugly turn yesterday, and in completely the wrong direction. All three ...
    The KakaBy Bernard Hickey
    7 days ago

  • Bennie Bashing.
    If there’s one thing the mob loves more than keeping Māori in their place, more than getting tough on the gangs, maybe even more than tax cuts. It’s a good old round of beneficiary bashing.Are those meanies in the ACT party stealing your votes because they think David Seymour is ...
    Nick’s KōreroBy Nick Rockel
    7 days ago

  • The kindest cuts
    Labour kicks off the fiscal credibility battle today with the release of its fiscal plan. National is expected to follow, possibly as soon as Thursday, with its own plan, which may (or may not) address the large hole that the problems with its foreign buyers’ ban might open up. ...
    PolitikBy Richard Harman
    7 days ago

  • Green right turn in Britain? Well, a start
    While it may be unlikely to register in New Zealand’s general election, Britain’s PM Rishi Sunak has done something which might just be important in the long run. He’s announced a far-reaching change in his Conservative government’s approach to environmental, and particularly net zero, policy. The starting point – ...
    Point of OrderBy xtrdnry
    7 days ago

  • At a glance – How do human CO2 emissions compare to natural CO2 emissions?
    On February 14, 2023 we announced our Rebuttal Update Project. This included an ask for feedback about the added "At a glance" section in the updated basic rebuttal versions. This weekly blog post series highlights this new section of one of the updated basic rebuttal versions and serves as a ...
    Skeptical Science
    1 week ago

  • How could this happen?
    Canada is in uproar after the exposure that its parliament on September 22 provided a standing ovation to a Nazi veteran who had been invited into the chamber to participate in the parliamentary welcome to Ukrainian President Zelensky. Yaroslav Hunka, 98, a Ukrainian man who volunteered for service in ...
    Open ParachuteBy Ken
    1 week ago

  • Always Be Campaigning
    The big screen is a great place to lay out the ways of the salesman. He comes ready-made for Panto, ripe for lampooning.This is not to disparage that life. I have known many good people of that kind. But there is a type, brazen as all get out. The camera ...
    More Than A FeildingBy David Slack
    1 week ago

  • Youth justice programme expands to break cycle of offending
    The successful ‘Circuit Breaker’ fast track programme designed to stop repeat youth offending was launched in two new locations today by Children’s Minister Kelvin Davis. The programme, first piloted in West and South Auckland in December last year, is aimed at children aged 10-13 who commit serious offending or continue ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    10 hours ago

  • Major milestone with 20,000 employers using Apprenticeship Boost
    The Government’s Apprenticeship Boost initiative has now supported 20,000 employers to help keep on and train up apprentices, Minister for Social Development and Employment Carmel Sepuloni announced in Christchurch today. Almost 62,000 apprentices have been supported to start and keep training for a trade since the initiative was introduced in ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    12 hours ago

  • Government supporting wood processing jobs and more diverse industry
    The Government is supporting non-pine tree sawmilling and backing further job creation in sawmills in Rotorua and Whangarei, Forestry Minister Peeni Henare said.   “The Forestry and Wood Processing Industry Transformation Plan identified the need to add more diversity to our productions forests, wood products and markets,” Peeni Henare said. ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    13 hours ago

  • Government backing Canterbury’s future in aerospace industry
    The Government is helping Canterbury’s aerospace industry take off with further infrastructure support for the Tāwhaki Aerospace Centre at Kaitorete, Infrastructure Minister Dr Megan Woods has announced. “Today I can confirm we will provide a $5.4 million grant to the Tāwhaki Joint Venture to fund a sealed runway and hangar ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    13 hours ago

  • Updated forestry regulations increase council controls and require large slash removal
    Local councils will have more power to decide where new commercial forests – including carbon forests – are located, to reduce impacts on communities and the environment, Environment Minister David Parker said today. “New national standards give councils greater control over commercial forestry, including clear rules on harvesting practices and ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    15 hours ago

  • New Zealand resumes peacekeeping force leadership
    New Zealand will again contribute to the leadership of the Multinational Force and Observers (MFO) in the Sinai Peninsula, Egypt, with a senior New Zealand Defence Force officer returning as Interim Force Commander. Defence Minister Andrew Little and Foreign Affairs Minister Nanaia Mahuta have announced the deployment of New Zealand ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 day ago

  • New national direction provides clarity for development and the environment
    The Government has taken an important step in implementing the new resource management system, by issuing a draft National Planning Framework (NPF) document under the new legislation, Environment Minister David Parker said today. “The NPF consolidates existing national direction, bringing together around 20 existing instruments including policy statements, standards, and ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 day ago

  • Government shows further commitment to pay equity for healthcare workers
    The Government welcomes the proposed pay equity settlement that will see significant pay increases for around 18,000 Te Whatu Ora Allied, Scientific, and Technical employees, if accepted said Health Minister Ayesha Verrall. The proposal reached between Te Whatu Ora, the New Zealand Public Service Association Te Pūkenga Here Tikanga Mahi ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 day ago

  • 100 new public EV chargers to be added to national network
    The public EV charging network has received a significant boost with government co-funding announced today for over 100 EV chargers – with over 200 charging ports altogether – across New Zealand, and many planned to be up and running on key holiday routes by Christmas this year. Minister of Energy ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 days ago

  • Safeguarding Tuvalu language and identity
    Tuvalu is in the spotlight this week as communities across New Zealand celebrate Vaiaso o te Gagana Tuvalu – Tuvalu Language Week. “The Government has a proven record of supporting Pacific communities and ensuring more of our languages are spoken, heard and celebrated,” Pacific Peoples Minister Barbara Edmonds said. “Many ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 days ago

  • New community-level energy projects to support more than 800 Māori households
    Seven more innovative community-scale energy projects will receive government funding through the Māori and Public Housing Renewable Energy Fund to bring more affordable, locally generated clean energy to more than 800 Māori households, Energy and Resources Minister Dr Megan Woods says. “We’ve already funded 42 small-scale clean energy projects that ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 days ago

  • Huge boost to Te Tai Tokerau flood resilience
    The Government has approved new funding that will boost resilience and greatly reduce the risk of major flood damage across Te Tai Tokerau. Significant weather events this year caused severe flooding and damage across the region. The $8.9m will be used to provide some of the smaller communities and maraes ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    6 days ago

  • Napier’s largest public housing development comes with solar
    The largest public housing development in Napier for many years has been recently completed and has the added benefit of innovative solar technology, thanks to Government programmes, says Housing Minister Dr Megan Woods. The 24 warm, dry homes are in Seddon Crescent, Marewa and Megan Woods says the whanau living ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    7 days ago

  • Te Whānau a Apanui and the Crown initial Deed of Settlement I Kua waitohua e Te Whānau a Apanui me...
    Māori: Kua waitohua e Te Whānau a Apanui me te Karauna te Whakaaetanga Whakataunga Kua waitohua e Te Whānau a Apanui me te Karauna i tētahi Whakaaetanga Whakataunga hei whakamihi i ō rātou tāhuhu kerēme Tiriti o Waitangi. E tekau mā rua ngā hapū o roto mai o Te Whānau ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago

  • Plan for 3,000 more public homes by 2025 – regions set to benefit
    Regions around the country will get significant boosts of public housing in the next two years, as outlined in the latest public housing plan update, released by the Housing Minister, Dr Megan Woods. “We’re delivering the most public homes each year since the Nash government of the 1950s with one ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    1 week ago

  • Immigration settings updates
    Judicial warrant process for out-of-hours compliance visits 2023/24 Recognised Seasonal Employer cap increased by 500 Additional roles for Construction and Infrastructure Sector Agreement More roles added to Green List Three-month extension for onshore Recovery Visa holders The Government has confirmed a number of updates to immigration settings as part of ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 weeks ago

  • Poroporoaki: Tā Patrick (Patu) Wahanga Hohepa
    Tangi ngunguru ana ngā tai ki te wahapū o Hokianga Whakapau Karakia. Tārehu ana ngā pae maunga ki Te Puna o te Ao Marama. Korihi tangi ana ngā manu, kua hinga he kauri nui ki te Wao Nui o Tāne. He Toa. He Pou. He Ahorangi. E papaki tū ana ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 weeks ago

  • Renewable energy fund to support community resilience
    40 solar energy systems on community buildings in regions affected by Cyclone Gabrielle and other severe weather events Virtual capability-building hub to support community organisations get projects off the ground Boost for community-level renewable energy projects across the country At least 40 community buildings used to support the emergency response ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 weeks ago

  • COVID-19 funding returned to Government
    The lifting of COVID-19 isolation and mask mandates in August has resulted in a return of almost $50m in savings and recovered contingencies, Minister of Health Dr Ayesha Verrall announced today. Following the revocation of mandates and isolation, specialised COVID-19 telehealth and alternative isolation accommodation are among the operational elements ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 weeks ago

  • Appointment of District Court Judge
    Susie Houghton of Auckland has been appointed as a new District Court Judge, to serve on the Family Court, Attorney-General David Parker said today.  Judge Houghton has acted as a lawyer for child for more than 20 years. She has acted on matters relating to the Hague Convention, an international ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 weeks ago

  • Government invests further in Central Hawke’s Bay resilience
    The Government has today confirmed $2.5 million to fund a replace and upgrade a stopbank to protect the Waipawa Drinking Water Treatment Plant. “As a result of Cyclone Gabrielle, the original stopbank protecting the Waipawa Drinking Water Treatment Plant was destroyed. The plant was operational within 6 weeks of the ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 weeks ago

  • Govt boost for Hawke’s Bay cyclone waste clean-up
    Another $2.1 million to boost capacity to deal with waste left in Cyclone Gabrielle’s wake. Funds for Hastings District Council, Phoenix Contracting and Hog Fuel NZ to increase local waste-processing infrastructure. The Government is beefing up Hawke’s Bay’s Cyclone Gabrielle clean-up capacity with more support dealing with the massive amount ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 weeks ago

  • Taupō Supercars revs up with Government support
    The future of Supercars events in New Zealand has been secured with new Government support. The Government is getting engines started through the Major Events Fund, a special fund to support high profile events in New Zealand that provide long-term economic, social and cultural benefits. “The Repco Supercars Championship is ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 weeks ago

  • There is no recession in NZ, economy grows nearly 1 percent in June quarter
    The economy has turned a corner with confirmation today New Zealand never was in recession and stronger than expected growth in the June quarter, Finance Minister Grant Robertson said. “The New Zealand economy is doing better than expected,” Grant Robertson said. “It’s continuing to grow, with the latest figures showing ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 weeks ago

  • Highest legal protection for New Zealand’s largest freshwater springs
    The Government has accepted the Environment Court’s recommendation to give special legal protection to New Zealand’s largest freshwater springs, Te Waikoropupū Springs (also known as Pupū Springs), Environment Minister David Parker announced today.   “Te Waikoropupū Springs, near Takaka in Golden Bay, have the second clearest water in New Zealand after ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 weeks ago

  • More support for victims of migrant exploitation
    Temporary package of funding for accommodation and essential living support for victims of migrant exploitation Exploited migrant workers able to apply for a further Migrant Exploitation Protection Visa (MEPV), giving people more time to find a job Free job search assistance to get people back into work Use of 90-day ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 weeks ago

  • Strong export boost as NZ economy turns corner
    An export boost is supporting New Zealand’s economy to grow, adding to signs that the economy has turned a corner and is on a stronger footing as we rebuild from Cyclone Gabrielle and lock in the benefits of multiple new trade deals, Finance Minister Grant Robertson says. “The economy is ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 weeks ago

  • Funding approved for flood resilience work in Te Karaka
    The Government has approved $15 million to raise about 200 homes at risk of future flooding. More than half of this is expected to be spent in the Tairāwhiti settlement of Te Karaka, lifting about 100 homes there. “Te Karaka was badly hit during Cyclone Gabrielle when the Waipāoa River ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 weeks ago

  • Further business support for cyclone-affected regions
    The Government is helping businesses recover from Cyclone Gabrielle and attract more people back into their regions. “Cyclone Gabrielle has caused considerable damage across North Island regions with impacts continuing to be felt by businesses and communities,” Economic Development Minister Barbara Edmonds said. “Building on our earlier business support, this ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 weeks ago

  • New maintenance facility at Burnham Military Camp underway
    Defence Minister Andrew Little has turned the first sod to start construction of a new Maintenance Support Facility (MSF) at Burnham Military Camp today. “This new state-of-art facility replaces Second World War-era buildings and will enable our Defence Force to better maintain and repair equipment,” Andrew Little said. “This Government ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 weeks ago

  • Foreign Minister to attend United Nations General Assembly
    Foreign Minister Nanaia Mahuta will represent New Zealand at the 78th Session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in New York this week, before visiting Washington DC for further Pacific focussed meetings. Nanaia Mahuta will be in New York from Wednesday 20 September, and will participate in UNGA leaders ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    2 weeks ago

  • Midwives’ pay equity offer reached
    Around 1,700 Te Whatu Ora employed midwives and maternity care assistants will soon vote on a proposed pay equity settlement agreed by Te Whatu Ora, the Midwifery Employee Representation and Advisory Service (MERAS) and New Zealand Nurses Association (NZNO), Minister of Health Dr Ayesha Verrall announced today. “Addressing historical pay ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 weeks ago

  • New Zealand provides support to Morocco
    Aotearoa New Zealand will provide humanitarian support to those affected by last week’s earthquake in Morocco, Foreign Minister Nanaia Mahuta announced today. “We are making a contribution of $1 million to the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) to help meet humanitarian needs,” Nanaia Mahuta said. ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 weeks ago

  • Government invests in West Coast’s roading resilience
    The Government is investing over $22 million across 18 projects to improve the resilience of roads in the West Coast that have been affected by recent extreme weather, Prime Minister Chris Hipkins confirmed today.  A dedicated Transport Resilience Fund has been established for early preventative works to protect the state ...
    BeehiveBy beehive.govt.nz
    3 weeks ago

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