Public Address | Cafe | Speaker: Broadcasting and the Public Interest https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/ en-us Copyright (c) 2026 Public Address Brent Jackson https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370684#post370684 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370684#post370684 Interesting that the opposite statements F & G, and H & I, and J & K, come nowhere near to summing up to 100%. I guess this means that most of those polled were very unsure about :
F&G : Whether NZME and Fairfax NZ can continue successfully without a merger (71% unsure)
H…

]]> Tue, 21 Feb 2017 12:38:35 +1300 Geoff Lealand https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370676#post370676 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370676#post370676 This came this morning regarding the attempted merger of Fairfax & NZME;

Good morning

Having read your submission re the proposed merger of NZME/ Wilson and Horton and Fairfax I thought you would be interested in results we are releasing today of a survey of New Zealanders' views on this.

They…

]]> Mon, 20 Feb 2017 15:44:13 +1300 Ian Dalziel https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370660#post370660 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370660#post370660 One thing leads to another…*
I’ve just been reading through Christopher Fowler’s ‘Bryant and May’ series – highly recommended for the inner polymath and fact hoarder – a comment at his website lead me to this marvellous piece of Live New Yorker copy editing…
**WATCH: Andrew Boynton copy-edits recent speeches…

]]> Sun, 19 Feb 2017 12:23:56 +1300 izogi https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370658#post370658 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370658#post370658 Territorial content licensing restrictions could be a big part of that, I imagine.

Yes, I guess so. RNZ tends to produce much of its own content whereas TVNZ, except maybe for journalism, seems to sub-contract production of much of its content to other parties... or simply buy things.

It's really…

]]> Sun, 19 Feb 2017 08:50:47 +1300 Kumara Republic https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370648#post370648 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370648#post370648 I doubt there's any perfect solution to this... Ideally we'd have had a true public broadcaster for the last 50 years and it would have grown and developed in the way the BBC and ABC have over that time.

Sadly the ABC appears to have been corrupted.

https://www.theguardian.com/media/2016/dec/09/she-doesnt-get-what-we-do-has-abc-boss-michelle-guthrie-got-the-insiders-on-her-side

https://newmatilda.com/2016/07/06/decades-of-conservative-pressure-on-the-abc-are-paying-off/

http://www.smh.com.au/federal-politics/political-news/mark-scott-the-man-who-stands-between-the-abc-and-its-critics-20150626-ghyio6.html

]]> Fri, 17 Feb 2017 19:07:22 +1300 mark taslov https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370646#post370646 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370646#post370646 Fri, 17 Feb 2017 16:52:32 +1300 izogi https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370645#post370645 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370645#post370645 The meta-ness of prison rape jokes being funded by a Government entity and broadcast on a Government owned TV channel

I agree. I cringe every time I see or hear people joking about prison rape. In this day and age it shouldn't be normalised as acceptable, and it's worrying that…

]]> Fri, 17 Feb 2017 16:08:59 +1300 mark taslov https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370643#post370643 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370643#post370643 So you can imagine my bedazzlement when in the second episode:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sno08Roay9s

Pretty funny heh, widest audience? A man in woman’s underwear, for shame. The Effemimania is strong with this one.

To think that of all the scandals that could ruin an Auckland mayor, it’s crossdressing that might just [[https://tgmentalhealth.com/category/transgender-psychotherapy|break the…

]]> Fri, 17 Feb 2017 14:55:39 +1300 mark taslov https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370642#post370642 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370642#post370642 Just as an aside.

Beyond simply informing the public there is also benefit in entertaining the public. Currently NZ On Air does an admirable job of this, and once TVNZ was returned to its commercial operation its $15 million in Charter funding went to NZ On Air, which made it…

]]> Fri, 17 Feb 2017 14:55:31 +1300 Sacha https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370640#post370640 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370640#post370640 TVNZ just doesn't seem to make its visible and available the way RNZ does.

Territorial content licensing restrictions could be a big part of that, I imagine.

]]> Fri, 17 Feb 2017 13:17:46 +1300 izogi https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370639#post370639 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370639#post370639 *Put hand up*. Same here. The change of media landscape driven by technology needs to be factored in when it comes to what to do with TVNZ.

Me too. I get that broadcast TV is still a thing for many people, but with respect I wonder if Dylan's assessment skipped…

]]> Fri, 17 Feb 2017 10:35:17 +1300 Dylan Reeve https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370638#post370638 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370638#post370638 Does anyone know why TVNZ doesn't dip into its (presumed) cache of great documentary programming from the past and sell DVD series? I'm particularly thinking of all the great documentaries screened in 1990. I was living back in NZ for the first time in 10 years and lapped it up.… ]]> Fri, 17 Feb 2017 09:56:56 +1300 Dylan Reeve https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370637#post370637 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370637#post370637 I just can’t take TVNZ seriously as a provider of any kind of public service. It’s a commercial broadcaster owned by the government.

Yes, that is currently by design. It's meant to be solely commercial. But it can be changed simply by passing new legislation.

Whatever value TVNZ has, it’s…

]]> Fri, 17 Feb 2017 09:51:58 +1300 sandra https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370636#post370636 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370636#post370636 Fri, 17 Feb 2017 08:58:45 +1300 Damian Christie https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370630#post370630 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370630#post370630 There must be money to be made there …

There's not. The DVD market isn't what it used to be, and people's interest in watching old 4:3 ratio docos from 20 years or more ago is pretty limited. These things are usually better in one's memory than in reality -…

]]> Thu, 16 Feb 2017 20:51:30 +1300 Damian Christie https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370629#post370629 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370629#post370629 The evening TV news stories and even their ordering are so identical across stations as to be more than a coincidence.

It's not a coincidence. Both networks are lining up stories according to a well established set of new values. Are they colluding or communicating these decisions to each other?…

]]> Thu, 16 Feb 2017 20:49:45 +1300 sandra https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370622#post370622 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370622#post370622 Thu, 16 Feb 2017 16:30:01 +1300 Rich of Observationz https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370621#post370621 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370621#post370621 the state should not fund a broadcaster

The BBC has cutouts that are (supposed to) protect it from political influence. For instance, presenters in news and current affairs are not allowed to disclose political opinions: a Paul Henry or Mike Hoskyns would not be employed by the BBC (or indeed…

]]> Thu, 16 Feb 2017 16:18:58 +1300 Kevin McCready https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370620#post370620 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370620#post370620 Thu, 16 Feb 2017 15:42:05 +1300 James Littlewood* https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370619#post370619 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370619#post370619 I just can’t take TVNZ seriously as a provider of any kind of public service. It’s a commercial broadcaster owned by the government.

Whatever value TVNZ has, it’s commercial, not civic.

So perhaps the debate on whether to keep it or not could be held solely on commercial terms, not…

]]> Thu, 16 Feb 2017 14:20:43 +1300 Lynn Yum https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370618#post370618 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370618#post370618 But certainly the idea that only journalism and educational documentaries are worthy is silly. Reality TV can be amazingly good at connecting people to others who are different from themselves, for example.

What I want to get at is to ask how we should see a public broadcaster in a…

]]> Thu, 16 Feb 2017 13:47:23 +1300 Dylan Reeve https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370616#post370616 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370616#post370616 From my experience in a CRI most CEOs are fundamentally accountants in nature. They focus on "business" and most Boards of Directors are the same. In that environment the "purpose" of the organisation gets lost.

Well I think the issue is that CEOs and boards are concerned with meeting objectives…

]]> Thu, 16 Feb 2017 10:39:35 +1300 Dylan Reeve https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370615#post370615 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370615#post370615 I agree that local programming is more than just journalism, so TOP’s focus is just too narrow. So what exactly do people want from a public broadcaster that reflect NZ culture in the first place? More Masterchef NZ? The Block? Shorty Street? Can someone provide some concrete example? You look… ]]> Thu, 16 Feb 2017 10:33:57 +1300 Bart Janssen https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370614#post370614 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370614#post370614 As long as the management was on board with the vision then I think any reasonable mixed use structure could be managed.

Just echoing what Damien and Russell have said. This kind of thing could work well BUT it needs the right CEO.

From my experience in a CRI most…

]]> Thu, 16 Feb 2017 09:36:27 +1300 BenWilson https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370613#post370613 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370613#post370613 an important function of state broadcasters of record is their role in disasters, and radio and broadcast TV are relatively robust in the face of disaster.

This is important, as is the question of access. Considering that it took well over 8 weeks for my broadband to get connected at…

]]> Wed, 15 Feb 2017 23:19:41 +1300 BenWilson https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370612#post370612 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370612#post370612 I'm probably a minority audience but it has made broadcast TV pretty much unwatchable with its high percentage of dross and interruption style thinking.

I used to think so too, but when I moved house last year we decided not to go getting MySky again (yes, I know it's broadcast,…

]]> Wed, 15 Feb 2017 23:01:46 +1300 Ian Dalziel https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370611#post370611 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370611#post370611 As a mere taxpayer I couldn’t possibly comment without first knowing what our Union and chapel leader, Jordan Williams, thinks…

]]> Wed, 15 Feb 2017 21:26:21 +1300 Sacha https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370610#post370610 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370610#post370610 an important function of state broadcasters of record is their role in disasters

Radio NZ have once again been exceptional covering today's Chch wildfires. Mind you, it was TV3's Hamish Clark who earned awards for his immediate post-eqnz footage.

]]> Wed, 15 Feb 2017 20:37:09 +1300 Geoff Lealand https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370609#post370609 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370609#post370609 Wed, 15 Feb 2017 18:50:21 +1300 Lynn Yum https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370608#post370608 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370608#post370608 I’m curious about how streaming TV has changed the landscape on all of this. My experience over the past 3-4 years is that I have watched more great TV on Netflix than I ever did on broadcast.

*Put hand up*. Same here. The change of media landscape driven by technology…

]]> Wed, 15 Feb 2017 16:56:58 +1300 Dylan Reeve https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370607#post370607 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370607#post370607 Okay point taken from you and Russell both on that one, I guess it depends on the extra cost from actually programming and operating those freeview channels – putting together a schedule, producing links and teasers and all that stuff isn't quite as low cost as putting shows directly online.… ]]> Wed, 15 Feb 2017 16:34:28 +1300 Damian Christie https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370605#post370605 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370605#post370605 But the infrastructure already exists – there’s no real benefit in not using it.

Okay point taken from you and Russell both on that one, I guess it depends on the extra cost from actually programming and operating those freeview channels – putting together a schedule, producing links and teasers…

]]> Wed, 15 Feb 2017 14:59:34 +1300 Dylan Reeve https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370604#post370604 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370604#post370604 I often thought the solution would be to keep TV2 as it is, and make TV1 the 'public broadcaster'. It has a huge audience from the get-go, and you could even *possibly* keep it commercial, on the understanding that revenue (and therefore ratings) aren't the driving motivation on that channel.… ]]> Wed, 15 Feb 2017 14:43:00 +1300 Rich of Observationz https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370603#post370603 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370603#post370603 Like it or not it's still where the eyeballs are.

I said it had a long tail but that doesn't mean it'll last forever. And as Netflix and other things take the viewers away, revenues are falling, which means content budgets are falling, which means content gets worse, which drives…

]]> Wed, 15 Feb 2017 14:33:56 +1300 mark taslov https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370602#post370602 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370602#post370602 Wed, 15 Feb 2017 13:53:19 +1300 Russell Brown https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370601#post370601 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370601#post370601 I often thought the solution would be to keep TV2 as it is, and make TV1 the ‘public broadcaster’. It has a huge audience from the get-go, and you could even *possibly* keep it commercial, on the understanding that revenue (and therefore ratings) aren’t the driving motivation on that channel.… ]]> Wed, 15 Feb 2017 13:45:07 +1300 Barns https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370600#post370600 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370600#post370600 Wed, 15 Feb 2017 13:19:22 +1300 Damian Christie https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370599#post370599 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370599#post370599 Great post Dylan.

I've also thought about this quite a bit, being directly involved in the beginning and end of TVNZ 7 and being part of news and current affairs there since 2004 until a couple of years ago.

I often thought the solution would be to keep TV2 as…

]]> Wed, 15 Feb 2017 13:14:50 +1300 Tom Semmens https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370598#post370598 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370598#post370598 First of all, Gareth Morgan's rambling on public broadcasting simply confirmed to me he is just another in our lamentable history of somewhat to very odd millionaires feeling obliged to favour us with their brilliance via some sort of political vanity project.

Broadcast TV is pretty much obsolete technology –…

]]> Wed, 15 Feb 2017 13:11:45 +1300 Morgan Nichol https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370597#post370597 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370597#post370597 Broadcast TV is pretty much obsolete technology – looking at a clean sheet of paper, why would you spend millions on a dedicated radio pipe to do the same thing as near free internet bandwidth?

Like it or not it's still where the eyeballs are.

]]> Wed, 15 Feb 2017 12:47:45 +1300 nzlemming https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370595#post370595 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370595#post370595 Wed, 15 Feb 2017 12:25:26 +1300 Rich of Observationz https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370594#post370594 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370594#post370594 Broadcast TV is pretty much obsolete technology – looking at a clean sheet of paper, why would you spend millions on a dedicated radio pipe to do the same thing as near free internet bandwidth?

Of course it will have a long tail, but eventually (I'd give it 20 years,…

]]> Wed, 15 Feb 2017 12:23:12 +1300 Ian Pattison https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370593#post370593 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370593#post370593 Wed, 15 Feb 2017 12:23:04 +1300 Jason Kemp https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370592#post370592 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370592#post370592 I'm curious about how streaming TV has changed the landscape on all of this. My experience over the past 3-4 years is that I have watched more great TV on Netflix than I ever did on broadcast.

(Coincidentally I had a look at the new TV3 website and it looks…

]]> Wed, 15 Feb 2017 11:33:56 +1300 simon g https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370591#post370591 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370591#post370591 Often when we have these discussions people think only in terms of investigative journalism (this seems to be the case with Gareth Morgan) or academic documentaries. But public service broadcasting is more than that. It’s seeing ourselves and our culture reflected on screen – this has been NZ On Air’s… ]]> Wed, 15 Feb 2017 11:29:13 +1300 bob daktari https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370590#post370590 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370590#post370590 Wed, 15 Feb 2017 11:12:02 +1300 Hans Versluys https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370589#post370589 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370589#post370589 "Charter-style public service considerations should be reintroduced with a certain amount of airtime devoted to meeting public interest needs."
We already do this at Face TV but we're stymied by the inability to get a free Freeview frequency for non-commercial TV (we are on Sky TV only for that reason)…

]]> Wed, 15 Feb 2017 10:20:40 +1300 Dylan Reeve https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370587#post370587 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370587#post370587 I doubt there's any perfect solution to this... Ideally we'd have had a true public broadcaster for the last 50 years and it would have grown and developed in the way the BBC and ABC have over that time.

There was strong cultural resistance to it within TVNZ management though…

]]> Wed, 15 Feb 2017 10:03:12 +1300 Russell Brown https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370585#post370585 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370585#post370585 And in a nice bit of timing, The People’s Commission on Public Broadcasting and Media launched this morning. It’s backed by ActionStation and the Coalition for Better Broadcasting.

The panel appointed is quite impressive.

And there will be pubic workshops around the country.

]]> Wed, 15 Feb 2017 09:47:20 +1300 Russell Brown https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370584#post370584 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370584#post370584 Good point, Dylan. But having been in the building (well, at least once a week) at the time ...

How well the Charter worked can be debated, but it generally struck a reasonable balance between commercial operations and public service objectives.

There was strong cultural resistance to it within TVNZ…

]]> Wed, 15 Feb 2017 09:17:44 +1300 Public Address https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370583#post370583 https://publicaddress.net/system/cafe/speaker-broadcasting-and-the-public-interest/?p=370583#post370583 Discussion from blog post.

]]> Wed, 15 Feb 2017 09:17:44 +1300