The quietest TV resignation ever - a popular face is missing as Fair Go returns; Ali Mau opens up about new venture; Gambling ads pulled after Lotto complaint; Sky’s delicate business move; Kiwi firm and the new Apple Vision Pro; New Zealand podcast features alongside Michelle Obama and Julia Louis-Dreyfus
Media Insider: Fair Go host resigns; Alison Mau opens up about new venture; Ads pulled after Lotto complaint; Sky TV’s delicate business move
Fair Go's Hadyn Jones and Pippa Wetzell; Former TVNZ broadcaster and Stuff journalist Ali Mau.
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More recently, Pippa Wetzell and Jones have fronted the top-rating consumer-crusading show.
But even Fair Go is not immune to big personnel and talent changes sweeping through media, as evidenced by the latest TVNZ marketing material.
Wetzell’s name and face are still in lights for Fair Go’s return on Monday, February 19, but Jones is no longer there.
November 2023
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February 2024
And the reason?
Jones resigned last year although there appears to have been minimal fuss, and certainly no fanfare.
TVNZ said last night that Jones had let viewers know on air that he was resigning - a spokeswoman sent Media Insider a brief clip from the end of a show in early October.
Standing next to Wetzell, Jones says: “Now that is it for me, I’m off on a wee adventure overseas with my family but I am leaving you in this woman’s capable hands; she is amazing ... 54 per cent of the time.”
The pair crack up at the joke; it basically sounds like Jones is off on holiday and will be back soon.
That impression is emphasised when Fair Go fans start asking about Jones’ whereabouts on the show’s Facebook page in the following weeks.
One of the page’s administrators wrote: “As Hadyn told viewers in October - he’s away roaming the world with his family. But thanks for the messages - it’s reminded us he owes us a postcard!”
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A TVNZ spokeswoman said last night that Jones had indeed resigned from the show - his departure, she said, had nothing to do with cost-cutting that is impacting TVNZ and other commercial media.
Jones is based in Taranaki and has been commuting to film Fair Go in Auckland each week.
“Hadyn let us know at the time that he wanted to spend less time on planes coming to Auckland each week and more time with his family,” the TVNZ spokeswoman said.
He won’t be officially replaced - existing Fair Go reporters will be rostered to co-present with Wetzell this year - so TVNZ has undoubtedly been able to bank some savings.
Jones continues to front another of TVNZ’s long-running and popular series - the weekly Good Sorts segment at the end of the 6pm news on Sundays.
The piece highlights Kiwis going above and beyond in their communities each week.
“We’re pleased that he’s chosen to continue with Good Sorts given he can be more flexible with how that segment is filmed for 1News,” said the spokeswoman.
Jones is still travelling - his latest Good Sorts pieces have been pre-recorded - and he could not comment in time for Media Insider’s deadline.
Jones, whose journalism career started at The Ensign in Gore and includes stints on the Holmes show, Close Up and 20/20, told the Herald of Good Sorts in 2010: “Some people think these stories are easy, but there’s a trick to them because I like to find a surprise in each one. You just need to take the time, and trust there’ll be a good story there.”
Meanwhile, as Media Insider reported in December, some of TVNZ’s highest-profile and most senior leaders will depart the business this month, amid a raft of big changes as the state broadcaster executes a heavy round of cost-cutting.
Twenty-four general manager roles have been dis-established and 15 new roles have been created, for a total headcount reduction of nine at some of the highest levels of the state broadcaster.
All major commercial media businesses have been cutting staff costs and other expenses but the TVNZ job losses are some of the starkest examples yet of the big economic and advertising revenue challenges facing the industry.
“It’s huge,” said one TVNZ source at the time. “Essentially content and commercial were the two that have been totally ripped apart.”
The state broadcaster is expecting a bottom-line $15.6 million loss for its 2023-2024 financial year after two years of profitability.
Previously, TVNZ has told Media Insider that “the challenges we saw in the advertising market in 2023 are continuing into 2024″.
At the same time, traditional broadcast audiences are falling and TVNZ is embarking on a major digital and cultural transformation, including upgrading the technology and user experience of its widely praised TVNZ+ on-demand platform.
“This will require significant investment, to be funded through cash reserves and earnings,” says the company’s four-year statement of intent, released earlier in 2023.
Ali Mau’s big career move
Ali Mau has been a journalist and broadcaster for 40 years, a familiar face as one of TVNZ’s stars across several high-profile shows (including Fair Go) for a good two decades, before she launched, in early 2018, a national #metoo investigation into sexual harassment, supported by Stuff.
Over the following five years, she and others brought to account a number of perpetators. The work was substantial and recognised - in 2021, Mau was named Reporter of the Year at the annual Voyager Media Awards. The judges described her work as “fearless, determined pursuits that deserve the highest commendation”.
She left Stuff last July but her passion for helping survivors has not dissipated. Over the past eight months, working with another #metoo campaigner, Zoë Lawton, Mau has been developing a new venture, Tika.
Several details came quietly into view this week. According to a new LinkedIn page, Tika (tika.org.nz) “is a non-profit organisation that will provide an innovative legal service to people who have experienced sexual harm”.
That support includes free legal advice and representation and special technology to identify alleged, repeat perpetrators.
The backdrop - and a motivating factor for Mau - is what she describes as New Zealand’s “appallingly low” reportage of sexual harm. According to official figures cited in a launch document for Tika, 92 per cent of sexual harm is unreported.
“That’s because of the barriers that survivors still face, which is fear of not being believed or they’re nervous about trying to negotiate the legal space alone,” Mau told Media Insider.
“Many, many people don’t know for sure whether what’s happened to them is illegal.”
Tika - translated from te reo Māori as truth, justice and fairness - will be a platform for people to report their experiences, including the name of their alleged perpetrator. Tika will then crosscheck its database for any other registered clients who have been harmed by the same person.
The site will be secure and private and follow-up discussions with Lawton, a barrister, would be legally protected.
“We’ve focused initially on groups because we know that group reporting has a number of advantages, including safety and comfort in numbers,” says Mau.
From her own experience as a reporter, survivors found “great comfort” in knowing they weren’t alone. Quite often a group approach meant a stronger legal case.
Tika will be “heavily survivor-focused”, says Mau.
A big motivating factor for survivors coming forward is a desire to ensure that what happened to them did not happen to anyone else.
“Survivors will be in a group and will be given their legal options along a range of pathways - criminal, civil, regulatory body or mediation. They can all decide individually and they can pull out whenever they want if they feel that they’ve gone as far along the process as they want to.”
Mau and Lawton have enlisted Maria Dew KC to help on civil cases and have been working closely with specialist police on their plans for when criminal complaints need to be laid.
An official launch date for Tika is to be confirmed, as Mau and Lawton seek funding. It will be this year; they have been in a number of discussions.
“Right now we’re exploring all possible fundraising avenues,” says Mau.
“We’d really like to hear from high net-worth individuals who this resonates with. We feel that there are probably quite a few out there because most of us know someone in our lives who has been affected by sexual harm and therefore will have an interest in this mahi.
“It’s not just for women in the workplace. It’s for men. It’s especially for Māori and Pasifika, LGBTQI+, disabled communities and migrant communities who are disproportionately affected by this issue of sexual harm. We need to be ready to go from zero to 100 at launch.”
Ultimately, they say, their mission lies in lifting reporting rates; eliminating guilt, shame, self-blame and isolation; opening up legal remedies for survivors and holding perpetrators to account.
Mau acknowledges the pivot away from journalism and broadcasting.
Much of her work now is on public comms, stakeholder management and rolling out the public legal information programme. “And, at the moment, raising money!”
“It’s my last big sprint and I want to make it meaningful,” said Mau, as she reflected on her four decades in media.
Lotto rails against gambling ads
A series of controversial website, television and radio ads for an offshore gambling company have been removed after the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) upheld complaints about them.
The New Zealand Lotteries Commission (Lotto) complained that the JackpotCity ads breached the gambling advertising code, saying they were targeted at children and were misleading. And while the ads themselves advertised “free-to-play” products, Lotto complained they were essentially enticing consumers to full gambling sites.
In its defence and through ad agency MBS Advertising, JackpotCity told an ASA panel that the commercials were not gambling advertisements as defined under the code and even if they were, they would not be in breach of it.
“The advertisements were promoting JackpotCity’s free-to-play gaming website. They are not likely to cause confusion for viewers about the difference between the free-to-play (.net) and the paid gambling sites (.com),” the ASA said, in summing up JackpotCity’s position.
MediaWorks told the ASA that it had removed all billboard advertising in July 2023 following an earlier ASA decision. It defended the radio ads but said it would be prepared to consider a time restriction on them, so they did not air during school drop-off or pick-up times.
NZME, meanwhile, told the ASA that it was no longer running any Jackpot City ads.
The ASA declined to rule on Lotto’s complaint about the billboard ad, given it had already done so in 2023.
But it upheld, in part, Lotto’s complaints about the website, television and radio ads.
On the radio and television ads, the ASA said its panel had unanimously agreed that they “had not been prepared and placed with a high standard of social responsibility to consumers and to society. This is because, based on present-day common internet practices, many consumers who [hear/view] this advertisement are likely to end up visiting a paid gambling website”.
The website ad, the ASA said, was misleading. “This is because the consumer takeout of the website is that it is a free-to-play gaming website for playing casino-like games, whereas the panel have determined that the true purpose of the website is to influence users’ behaviour to make them more likely to use JackpotCity’s paid gambling websites.”
The nature of the advertising was therefore not clear, which was a breach of the gambling advertising code.
It said the advertisements were to be removed.
Earlier, Internal Affairs said it was concerned the ads were a gateway to illegal sites.
“We see those sites as just being a gateway to an online gambling site where you can spend real money. We’re pretty clearly of the view that that advertising doesn’t meet New Zealand legal requirements and is unlawful,” Department of Internal Affairs (DIA) general manager of regulatory services John Sneyd told 1News.
Sky’s delicate business balance
An intriguing, bold, and possibly slightly risky new business approach from Sky TV, with its plan to open up more live sport to non-paying viewers.
It’s definitely a big win for sports fans - as they get more access to free games - and for the codes, as they attract more eyeballs.
Where many media businesses - such as the NZ Herald and Stuff - have offered digital content for free for years and only relatively recently moved to online subscription models, Sky is essentially moving the other way.
It’s had a substantial subscription service since 1989, largely based around live rugby, rugby league and other sporting rights.
According to its most recent annual report, Sky has just over 515,000 Sky Box customers and more than 465,000 streaming customers. They all pay for the privilege.
Now, led by respected chief media and data officer Lauren Quaintance and head of sales Ben Gibb, Sky is putting a huge effort into building a new advertising revenue stream - by showing more live sport, for free, on its Sky Open channel.
It announced yesterday that it would screen 25 Friday night NRL games, including seven Warriors matches, for free this season. There would be additional free matches for Anzac Day, the Magic Round and State of Origin I. Sky would also screen, for free, 19 Saturday Super Rugby Pacific games.
The games will start at the same time as those being screened simultaneously on the Sky pay channels, but they will be progressively delayed as ads are played during the matches. The delay, by the end of each game, will be about 12 minutes.
Sky has really not had a proper advertising model in all its time in existence. Its pay channels carry commercials, but the company has been careful they don’t interrupt live sport or movies.
Where Sky needs to walk a careful tightrope is in its handling of its loyal, paying customers.
Those one million subscribers form the company’s most critical revenue income.
So what’s the risk? In a cost-of-living crisis, some of them might be now more willing to give up their subscriptions and go for the free option - those prepared to have advertising to interrupt live rugby and league games.
Certainly, that might be an attractive option for casual Warriors and rugby fans. Seven Warriors games would be a strong pull factor.
Sky will be balancing that subscriber risk with the additional advertising revenue coming into its coffers - but knowing it can’t tip the balance too far.
As Sky CEO Sophie Moloney told Newstalk ZB’s D’Arcy Waldegrave last night: “Free to air does not generate what subscription does but it has a role to play.”
One Good Text
G.J. Thompson - one of New Zealand’s most renowned political consultants and strategists - has worked closely with Labour administrations and private clients over many years.
Bravo! The rising star of reality TV
Out of seemingly nowhere, and for the first time in its eight-year history, Bravo channel has become the fourth most popular free-to-air channel in New Zealand, behind TVNZ 1 and 2, and Three.
Nielsen ratings - for all audiences, aged 5+ - show Bravo finished ahead in 2023 of the likes of TVNZ Duke, Rush, Prime (now Sky Open), HGTV, Eden, and Whakaata Māori.
Kiwis certainly seem to be embracing the escapism that Bravo offers. Reality TV, more generally, is on the rise.
According to a press release issued today, the biggest hits on Bravo and ThreeNow were Below Deck Down Under, Below Deck, Below Deck Mediterranean, Below Deck Sailing Yacht, Vanderpump Rules, The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills, The Real Housewives of Orange County, Snapped, 24 Hours in A&E and film titles from the Bourne franchise.
Bravo described itself as the new number one challenger network in New Zealand. As well as the ratings success in the 5+ category, Bravo said it was also number one among key demos - women 25-54 and household shoppers with kids 0-14.
“Now in its eighth year broadcasting in New Zealand, Bravo has established itself as a much sought-after free-to-air destination for extraordinary reality, entertainment and true crime content,” said NBCUniversal executive and Bravo New Zealand executive chairman Chris Taylor.
“It’s exciting to see Bravo buck the linear viewing trend with viewing continuing to grow across both linear and VOD, demonstrating the pure strength and appeal of our content for Kiwi audiences.”
‘There is NZ mojo everywhere’
The Apple Vision Pro mixed reality headset is suddenly everywhere - on the cover of Vanity Fair, in reviews across America and even courtside for an NBA game in the US, where a Boston Celtics fan kept the rest of the crowd amused with his antics as he wore the goggles.
The virtual and augmented reality headset is enjoying favourable reviews as it hits the shelves in America. By all accounts, it offers a smooth transition between real life and virtual and augmented reality.
After donning the headset, you can use your eyes and fingers to flick through, and enter, apps as they appear in the real-life space in front of you - from meditation to sport, to photos and video, you’re suddenly immersed in a new digital world.
Air Vision Pro courtside is crazyyyy 😭 (via jonah_rothman/IG) pic.twitter.com/knGjcdUok9
— Overtime (@overtime) February 5, 2024
“A meditation experience was relaxing and the brief entertainment environments, such as being in a rehearsal space with Alicia Keys or playing in a field with dinosaurs, were vivid and enjoyable,” Axios’ Ina Fried wrote this week.
At $US3500 ($5727), the Apple Vision Pro is not cheap - but the early (rich) adopters have snapped it up.
No word yet on when the headset might be available in New Zealand - an Apple spokeswoman confirmed yesterday it was only available in the US for now - but there is already a strong Kiwi influence helping develop some of the immersive apps.
One such example is PGA Tour golf - the Virtual Eye graphics and tech wunderkinds at Dunedin’s Animation Research Ltd have been quick to pick up the ball.
Virtual Eye has produced the 3D golf course maps for the PGA Tour’s Apple Vision Pro app.
“We didn’t build the entire app but we provided all of the 3D course maps inside it,” says ARL head of sports Ben Taylor. “We maintain these each week, updating them to be exact digital twins of the real courses.”
Taylor said the PGA Tour’s digital team reached out to Virtual Eye last year - they already work with them across a range of products, such as Tourcast, which lets fans watch every shot by every player on every hole.
“We have also built other experiences that have similarities to this kind of work, like the Emmy-award winning app we built for the America’s Cup. The new technology inside the Apple Vision Pro will give golf fans the tools to further immerse themselves into every PGA Tour tournament.
“The seventh hole at Pebble Beach last week looked awesome and this week the famous 16th at the Waste Management gives fans an idea of the enormity of the occasion when they are standing on the virtual tee box.
“Getting the courses ready without having the hardware in New Zealand has thrown up some challenges but the PGA Tour and Quintar, the official mobile AR and XR developer of the PGA Tour, have been amazing to work with.”
Taylor’s father, Sir Ian Taylor, says: “This highlights the opportunities countless New Zealand companies are taking up globally - we aren’t the only ones. We need to put to rest this idea that New Zealand has lost its mojo. There is mojo everywhere - we just have to start celebrating it.”
Kiwi podcast in lights
A further example of that New Zealand mojo can be found in the list of finalists announced this week for the global iHeartRadio Podcast Awards.
Among names such as Michelle Obama, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, and The New York Times’ The Daily podcast is The Spinoff founder Duncan Greive’s podcast The Fold.
The Fold - “conversations about the intersections of media, culture and technology in New Zealand” - has been nominated for best international podcast, alongside four other contenders: CTV Question Period with Vassy Kapelos (Canada); Dichosa Sexualidad (Mexico); The Imperfects (Australia) and Rocio Cordova (Mexico).
“It was truly a gigantic, unfathomable surprise,” Greive tells Media Insider.
“I would never have the gall to enter awards on this scale – it’s like a YMCA hooper declaring for the NBA draft. But I’m obviously thrilled, while having absolutely no clue, not even a sliver of a suspicion, about how it might have happened.”
There are 29 categories including news, business, sport and TV and film.
Obama’s podcast Michelle Obama: The Light Podcast is nominated for best advice/inspirational podcast, Louis-Dreyfus’ Wiser Than Me with Julia Louis-Dreyfus is up for best overall podcast and best host and The Daily is also vying for best overall podcast as well as best news podcast.
Greive says it’s a “pinch yourself” moment.
“Many of the nominees are some of the biggest names in podcasting, with huge crews and budgets. I have listened to and loved many of their products – so to be nominated alongside them is just really surreal.”
He’s recorded 179 episodes of The Fold.
Any standouts? Apart from the obvious (ha!).
“I recorded one with Janet Wilson while Judith Collins was National Party leader. She had been Collins’ press sec and Janet gave a withering insider’s view of Collins’ suitability for the role. That made the 6pm news and Collins was rolled not long after. So that was fascinating.
“But mostly I love talking to other people from different corners of the media. So I’ve loved conversations with Lucy Blakiston, my friend who runs Shit You Should Care About, Emma Espiner on being a writer turned doctor, Joe Daymond on his boundless ambitions in comedy and Mike Lane on all the unconventional decisions which make the Alternative Commentary Collective tick. Truly, I get some insight out of every one and love that sense of exploring the possibilities of media every week.”
The awards will be announced at the South by Southwest Festival in Austin, Texas, in March.
Media group cashes in on NZ sports teams
Australia-based media business Sports Entertainment Group (SEG), which owns the SEN network, has cashed in on its ownership of five professional sports teams in New Zealand and Australia, including the Otago Nuggets men’s and Southern Hoihoi women’s basketball teams.
According to a sharemarket notice in Australia, SEN raised $A1.5 million ($1.6m) for a minority stake in its sports team franchises. Aside from the two New Zealand domestic basketball teams, it also owns the Perth Wildcats NBL team, the Bendigo Spirit WNBL team and the new Melbourne Mavericks netball team.
The five sports teams are collectively valued at $A40m and most of the $1.5m raised is being used to service SEN’s $A28.7m debt to the Commonwealth Bank of Australia.
According to reports in Australia, SEN sports analyst David Alcaro bought a 2.5 per cent stake in the sports teams for $A1m, Australian mining William Bloking purchased a 1 per cent stake for $A400,000 and beauty entrepreneur Jodi Millhahn invested $A100,000.
The move comes after the TAB announced in November it would buy SEG’s financially troubled New Zealand radio operation, SENZ, and take it over this month.
The betting agency bought SENZ for $4 million, taking ownership of SENZ’s digital radio operation and 29-frequency radio station. As part of the deal, SEG will still provide content to its former New Zealand arm.
SENZ launched with a range of top sporting names in 2021 - including Brendon McCullum, Israel Dagg, Ian Smith and Stephen Donald.
SEG reported a $10.1 million loss in the financial year 2023, with much of that red ink - $5.9m - flowing out of New Zealand.
A big move - and a big comp
Independent creative agency Federation has appointed Stanley Street ECD Brad Collett as its chief creative officer.
Over his career, Collett has fashioned some of New Zealand’s best-known brand campaigns including Tui, KFC, Lotto, Toyota, Heineken, The Warehouse, BMW, New World, and Rebel Sport.
“Federation has seen solid momentum over the last three years, retaining valued long-term relationships with key clients like Auckland Transport, Maritime New Zealand, Massey University and L’Oreal New Zealand, while bringing onboard new clients across 2023 including global on-demand delivery success story DoorDash, KiwiRail and The Co-operative Bank”, said Federation chief executive Sharon Henderson.
Collett’s new role follows other major Federation appointments - Olly Walker-Boden has been appointed into the role of managing director to lead the agency day-to-day, and global Effie-winning strategist Dan Bye joins as its first chief strategy officer.
Meanwhile, Collett has been named as one of five judges for NZME’s second annual Imprint Competition - celebrating and rewarding the very best and most innovative newspaper ads from NZME agency partners.
“I’m a huge fan of print ads, inky little masterpieces, being able to pick up and hold your creative baby in your arms is an amazing feeling,” says Collett.
Entries are open until May 20 and the winner will receive a trip for two to attend Advertising Week New York. Last year, OMD won the prize for McDonald’s/DDB’s ‘cheesy’ front-page NZ Herald advertisement.
Aside from Collett, the other judges are Tracksuit head of marketing Mikayla Hopkins; Kiwibank brand and marketing general manager Simon Hofmann; The Monkeys creative director Christie Cooper and NZME group creative director Graham Dolan.
News bill: Media firms, CEOs front up
A big week for our media companies, as they front up to Parliament to discuss the Fair Digital News Bargaining Bill.
Most of them will be arguing in favour of the bill when they appear before Parliament’s economic development, science and innovation select committee on Thursday.
The bill - which would force the likes of Google and Meta (Facebook) to the table to negotiate with media companies, or otherwise pay for news - faces an uncertain future under the new coalition Government.
Sources have previously said that National has softened its view on the bill that’s before the select committee, although it may well want changes.
Through a spokesman, Media and Communications Minister Melissa Lee told Media Insider in December: “After considering the best way forward to address any concerns, changes and impacts on stakeholders who have already submitted, the minister has confirmed to the leader of the House to recommend that the Fair Digital News Bargaining Bill remain re-instated for the purposes of select committee processes.
“This does not preclude the minister deciding to discharge the bill after considering the findings and any recommendations of the select committee in charge.”
Bonus Media Insider content
It’s been another huge week in the world of news and media; there will be bonus Media Insider coverage over coming days.
- Editor-at-Large Shayne Currie is one of New Zealand’s most experienced senior journalists and media leaders. He has held executive and senior editorial roles at NZME including Managing Editor, NZ Herald Editor and Herald on Sunday Editor and has a small shareholding in NZME.
