First interview: Paul Goldsmith outlines how he plans to tackle his new media portfolio - and the priorities; Scotty Stevenson moves into a prime breakfast radio role; A popular community title is saved in a last-minute sale; A magazine editor’s classy gesture ahead of the final edition; Newshub closure: The
Media Insider: New Media and Communications Minister Paul Goldsmith speaks; Scotty Stevenson’s new radio show; A lifeline for top newspaper that closed last week
New Media and Communications Minister Paul Goldsmith; Broadcaster Scotty Stevenson. Photos / Mark Mitchell, Jason Oxenham.
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He won’t say whether he’s seen former minister Melissa Lee’s much-hyped Cabinet paper - “I won’t get into how Cabinet operates and what’s coming and what’s going” - but his approach would be to “clarify what the priorities are and how I’m going to get there.”
“Part of that, of course, is - at the appropriate time - taking things through Cabinet. If legislation is required, that’s how it will roll.”
He does say “a lot of work” has been done already.
“I’ll certainly build on that but I obviously want to take my own soundings and form my own views. I also recognise there’s an element of urgency, so I’m not going to be taking forever.”
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He won’t give a timeframe, but he does outline what he has identified as the two biggest and broadest challenges facing the media and screen production industries.
“First, in the media space, is how do we ensure that we continue to have a strong and economically sustainable local media for the obvious reasons - it’s so fundamental to our democratic makeup - and recognising the challenges that they’ve got and the decline in advertising revenue.”
The most useful thing “we can try our best to do”, he says, is to even the playing field alongside the international tech giants, “recognising that it’s not a straightforward matter”.
There was no single solution but the Government would work “systematically through various things that can even things up, somewhat”.
While the National-led coalition has been previously lukewarm and occasionally downright opposed to the previous Government’s Fair Digital News Bargaining Bill - legislation that would force the likes of Meta and Google to pay for the journalism that helps sustain their business models - Goldsmith is more conciliatory.
“People make a very strong case for it [the Bill]; I’m certainly open to it, but I’m going to have to take a little bit of time to get some advice, and it’s something that we need to go through with the channels of government. But I’m certainly open to it ... [and] a full consideration of that.”
The select committee is due to report back on the Bill shortly.
One issue that he (and, to be fair, Lee) has identified is the proposed legislation doesn’t touch on the rise of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and tools that are stripping information from news reports to help drive international tech giants’ AI content machines.
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“How do you acknowledge that?” says Goldsmith. “If you can show me a country that’s sorted that out, I’ll be pleased to see it and learn from it. But yes, that’s a very rapidly evolving element of it.”
The second big challenge he’s identified is in the screen production sector, and ensuring the New Zealand voice continues to be seen and heard.
While there has been a lot of coverage of newsroom and journalism cuts in recent weeks, there is also immense pressure on the screen production industry with locally produced shows, such as Shortland Street, under threat.
“How can we continue to ensure that - in a world where there’s so much material competing for the eyes and ears of people - that we can still tell our own stories to ourselves, and see them?” says Goldsmith.
“How do we encourage the big streaming platforms to have a measure of local material as well?
“How can we ensure that we still have good local content in an age where people’s habits have changed dramatically?
“That doesn’t necessarily mean that you just have to carry on everything as it was. But we definitely need to be thinking about how we can keep that local element in place.
“Like I say, it’s early days, but I’ve identified the challenges. The solutions are things that we’ve got to work our way through.”
Goldsmith will undoubtedly be considering a mix of short-term solutions, alongside a longer-term more strategic approach.
For example, the government may well provide relief for broadcasters from paying Kordia transmission fees - they total around $40 million a year - as part of short-term relief options.
Before she was dropped as Media and Communications Minister this week, Lee had met with broadcasters. “I asked them to come back to me with any formal requests which I would look at when and if received,” she said.
While Lee said no decisions had been made, it’s likely to be an area Goldsmith might pick up on, as he and the Government consider ways to help the media industry in challenging economic times and digital upheaval.
As for his own news habits, Goldsmith says he’s a “big consumer” of all local news apps, TV news and morning radio. He also loves international podcasts for his global news - he namechecks the Wall St Journal’s Potomac Watch political podcast and the Financial Times’ Political Fix.
As Justice Minister, Goldsmith is heading to Geneva, updating the United Nations Human Rights Council on the Government’s law and order work. Ahead of that, he’s been in London, attending an Anzac dawn parade ceremony alongside the Duke of Edinburgh Prince Edward on Thursday morning local time (Thursday night NZT).
He also met with the UK’s secretary of state for culture, media and sport, Lucy Frazer, as well as other political figures.
I ask him if he’s spoken to his ousted predecessor, Melissa Lee. “Yes, we’ve touched base - I won’t go into details.”
Scotty Stevenson’s new radio gig
Media Insider picked it in February and now Scotty Stevenson has confirmed he is joining Senz radio as its new breakfast host, alongside former All Black Israel ‘Izzy’ Dagg.
The pair, already close mates, will become colleagues with the launch of their new show on Monday, May 6.
Stevenson - a highly respected interviewer, presenter and sports commentator - will retain his myriad responsibilities at TVNZ and told Media Insider he was excited about the new radio role. “We’ve got a lot to sink our teeth into and we can’t wait to get started.”
He said the new gig was an honour and to work with Dagg, “who I have known and admired for a long time, will be an absolute joy”.
“We know how passionate sports fans are in New Zealand and how hungry they are to start their mornings with comprehensive conversations and in-depth analysis with the game breakers and newsmakers. We’re going to have a lot of fun, absolutely, celebrating what we all love while discussing the biggest issues in sport.”
Dagg said: “Scotty and I have known each other for years. He’s a great friend and I’m pumped that we’ll be working together every morning and talking sport with Aotearoa.”
It’s a strong and understandable business move from Senz, which has struggled to get a foothold in the New Zealand market since its launch in mid-2021.
It’s lost millions of dollars since launch, struggling in worsening economic conditions. In February, the TAB took ownership of Senz from Australian-based Sports Entertainment Group and the new owners have been focusing on a strategy to turn around its financial performance.
Part of that will be the hiring of Stevenson. Senz breakfast now has an established broadcaster to anchor the show, whereas, in the past, it has relied on sports stars to draw audiences - Brendon McCullum partnered with Dagg initially in 2021, and when he was hired as England test cricket coach, league legend Tony Kemp came in.
Those names are all great from a marketing point of view, perhaps less effective when harder journalistic questions might need to be asked.
At TVNZ, Stevenson has been commentating on live sport, including cricket. He has also hosted an insightful new six-part interview series on TVNZ+ called The Upside - featuring interviews with Jason Gunn, Dame Valerie Adams, Scott Beard, Awa Puna, Hayley Sproull and Sir Graham Henry.
Senz content manager Reuben Bradley said the Senz team was thrilled to welcome Stevenson. “He brings a great versatility across multiple sports, a warm personality and a cheeky sense of humour that will keep Izzy on his toes every morning.”
Businesswoman buys Times
One of New Zealand’s leading community news titles has been saved - local businesswoman Bo Burns confirmed today she had bought Howick-based Times Media in a last-minute rescue.
The Howick and Pakuranga Times officially closed last week, with its final edition published on Wednesday, April 17.
In a Facebook post, titled ‘Farewell from the Times team’, editor Nick Krause wrote last week: “Hello, Times community. Sadly, the Times’ offices have closed.
“We just couldn’t get it over the line. A sale fell through on Monday. Receivers have been kind and considerate and tried to sell the company under administration. From the entire Times team including the founder Reay Neben and husband Brian, thank you for all your love and support over 52 years.”
The post generated a lot of support - and heartache - from members of the community.
One of those who responded was Burns, a Howick Local Board member, who stood for the Act party in the Botany electorate at the 2023 election.
“To Reay, Brian, their family and all my friends that I have made and still know, I’m truly sorry for your loss,” she wrote.
“I have huge amounts of amazing memories, stemming back to being that eager 18-year-old in my 2nd position in the workforce with them. One thing I have always loved and admired was Brian and Reay’s love for the community and also hiring so many families over the years.”
She said she wished “like anything” the Times’ doors had not closed.
“I’m really saddened.”
She said the hard work “and love that has gone into this community paper did not go unnoticed”.
Since then - and after a week of working furiously behind the scenes - Burns confirmed today she was the new owner of Times Media.
“I’m really, really excited and I haven’t felt excited about something like this for a long time, to be honest,” Burns told Media Insider.
As the new owner and publisher, she will spend the coming days and weeks pulling together a team of journalists, salespeople and other roles - likely around six or seven initially, about half the number of what the Times had before it closed.
Burns is planning to focus on the digital strategy for the Times first and foremost - through the Times’ website and digital versions of the weekly community newspaper.
At this stage, the print product won’t return. “I would like to get back to some platform of print but really a big drive is to read it digitally. It will be a digital paper, focusing on the digital assets for the company and brand.”
She sees a huge opportunity with more collaboration and interaction with advertisers and other community groups in Howick, Pakuranga and the broader east Auckland area.
Her political background would not play a part in content decisions, she said.
She was well aware of the need for the community title to carry a range of views and news and there would be no bias. “I will have a team to ensure all voices are heard.”
She added: “When I heard last week it had gone into liquidation, I thought I just couldn’t let the legacy go, I love this community. I was sitting there saying ‘Oh my god, there’s no voice or platform’.
“I thought, I don’t think people actually realise how it’s connected the community, the groups, the community leaders, the schools ... everything.”
Life & Leisure editor’s classy gesture
One of New Zealand’s best lifestyle editors and editorial executives has revealed she and her business partner went without a salary for almost a year as they strived to save their magazine.
The 115th and latest edition of NZ Life & Leisure - to be released on Monday - would also be its last, its editor and co-owner Kate Coughlan announced this week.
I worked with Kate for many years at The Evening Post. She was then and is now one of New Zealand’s best journalists and editorial executives, with an eye for detail.
Her elegant writing was on full display in a classy letter to the magazine’s freelancers this week, in which she outlined the tough economic landscape - rising costs and falling revenue - that had impacted the 19-year-old magazine.
“We have all worked incredibly hard,” she wrote.
“You and our team here took on increasing responsibilities and looked everywhere to save a dollar. Lynley [Belton, her business partner] and I have tried everything to keep the magazine going, including taking no salary for almost a year and being on lean rations before that. It is no longer an option.
“The opportunity to tell stories of talented, entrepreneurial, hardworking New Zealanders has been a privilege and made us all proud: the people we featured, our readers who enjoyed our stories, and those of us who produced them. We learned, we shared, and we were uplifted.”
Coughlan acknowledged how NZ Life & Leisure embodied her freelancers’ philosophies “as much as mine”.
“We pushed against the relentless negativity of so much around us today by creating a beautiful, meaningful magazine that stood as a beacon of hope and positivity. We illuminated great things about our country seldom found elsewhere.”
In one piece of related good news, NZ Life & Leisure’s sister publication, New Zealand Lifestyle Block, will continue to be published under new owner Michael Andrew. It will be published every two months, rather than monthly.
“That’s right,” wrote Andrew on social media this week. “Amid a media crisis, with giants toppling across the industry, and the state of frenzied, sleepless exhilaration I find myself in, I’ve purchased a niche magazine about farming, growing, permaculture, soil health and self-sufficiency.
“It might sound like a cliché, but being editor of this mag has been the all-time dream job. Every month I have had the pleasure to meet and write about the most inspiring dreamers, regenerators and renegades rural Aotearoa has to offer.”
One Good Text
We catch up with Trish Sherson, co-founder and director of strategic communications and government relations firm Sherson Willis.
The Hui on the hunt for a studio
With Warner Bros Discovery confirming the closure of Newshub and cutbacks in other production areas, it will eventually vacate its Flower St studios in Auckland’s Eden Terrace.
It means the independently produced current affairs show The Hui - which is filmed there - will need a new location.
The show’s producers have been told they will need to have found a new studio by early October, which gives an indication of the timeframe Warner Bros Discovery is working to on, firstly, decommissioning all of the studio equipment before leaving the premises entirely.
It also indicates Stuff will have three months’ use of the Flower St studio to produce the 6pm news for Warner Bros Discovery’s Three before it too needs to find a new location. Stuff’s new service starts in early July, the day after Newshub’s newsroom closes down.
Aside from needing new studios - and there are, apparently, various options - The Hui, produced by Great Southern Television and funded by Te Māngai Pāho and NZ on Air, is unaffected by the earlier Warner Bros Discovery announcements.
It will continue to be available on Three, Whaakata Māori, RNZ and Sky Open.
When asked about the studio arrangements, a Warner Bros Discovery spokesman said yesterday: “Warner Bros Discovery will continue to support and broadcast The Hui until the end of its current season.”
Film production company’s $2.25m debts - liquidator
A New Zealand film production company has debts of more than $2.25 million - including hundreds of thousands of dollars to its headline star, a leading international comedian and actress, according to a liquidator’s report.
The boss of Stripe Studios (Comedy) Ltd claims a funding agreement U-turn by the NZ Film Commission (NZFC) is to blame for the liquidation - but the NZFC says it “rejects that it is responsible in any way for the financial circumstances” of the company.
American Iliza Shlesinger - who has featured in several Netflix comedy specials and alongside actors such as Mark Wahlberg in films - is among unsecured creditors owed $765,110 by Stripe Studios (Comedy) Ltd, according to the liquidator’s first report into the company.
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.
