RNZ Morning Report hosts Corin Dann and Ingrid Hipkiss; Philip Polkinghorne. Photos / RNZ, Dean Purcell
RNZ funding under scrutiny after a period of staff, salary and bonus increases; High-level security for taxpayer-funded Philip Polkinghorne doco; TVNZ redundancy costs; NBR publisher returning home for new venture; A slightly bizarre newsprint squabble.
It should, by any measure, be a watershed year for our fully-funded public broadcaster.
RNZ’s flagship morning show Morning Report – whose hosts have included Kim Hill, Mike Hosking and Sean Plunket – marked its 50th birthday this week and the company itself will shortly celebrate its centenary.
Later this year, its Auckland staff will also, finally, move out of their cramped, labyrinth-like headquarters in Cook St, into the far more modern and airy sixth and seventh floors of the TVNZ building.
But among all the celebrations and new beginnings, a party-pooper could be looming.
For the past two years – as the media industry has burned with hundreds of job losses and closures of entire newsrooms – RNZ has been in a self-acknowledged position of privilege. As a couple of RNZ staff members mentioned to me in the street last month, without any sense of glee, they’ve been an “island oasis” in a raging sea.
In 2023/24, under the previous Labour Government, RNZ’s annual budget was boosted by almost $25 million, from $42m a year to $66.6m. That funding injection was maintained by the National-led coalition for 2024/25.
RNZ has said the new levels of funding – its first material increase since 2009 – have been critical for catch-up work and as it transforms into a digital-first media organisation.
The budget has also helped RNZ lift staff numbers from 309 to 347, while those earning more than $100,000 have increased from 107 to 145. The company’s overall salary budget increased from $32m in 2022/23 to $37m in 2023/24.
As other media companies feel the pinch, sources say Media and Communications Minister Paul Goldsmith and Finance Minister Nicola Willis and their officials are taking a laser-like look at RNZ’s funding ahead of the Budget next month.
“All budgets are under scrutiny,” a spokesman for Goldsmith said yesterday. “Decisions will be made as part of Budget 2025.”
One source says the $66.6m that RNZ receives directly through NZ on Air could be pared back, with at least some of that money redistributed to the broader media industry through NZ on Air’s contestable funding programme. That provides funding for specific shows and projects.
No decisions have yet been made, and among the considerations is whether RNZ’s funding should be maintained to ensure the organisation can, for example, continue to afford to send reporters on overseas political trips and – as it’s done most recently – commission its own political poll.
Right now, the likes of TVNZ and other commercial operators are feeling the pinch on a number of fronts: a subdued economy, becalmed legislation (the Fair Digital News Bargaining Bill) and expiring funding arrangements with Google and Meta.
NZME has just been through a round of job losses and is facing a potential boardroom coup, while The Spinoff and Newsroom have issued special pleas for reader donations. It is understood Stuff Digital – the digital arm of the publishing company – will very soon be fully or partially sold to Trade Me.
“RNZ has not been advised on our future budget,” an RNZ spokeswoman told Media Insider.
That exact line was reinforced by RNZ chair Jim Mather.
Media Insider understands RNZ’s board will hold its regular meeting next week, with budget discussions likely to feature.
RNZ fronts up on budget
Mather acknowledged, in an appearance before a Parliamentary select committee in December, that the company had been “in the privileged position of retaining its current funding” over the past year.
He also acknowledged the challenges for others.
“The combination of digital change, audience fragmentation and economic headwinds have been a volatile cocktail,” Mather said.
“The past year has been marked by a sharp decline in editorial staff and a reduction in journalism and programming content across Aotearoa New Zealand. These events have reinforced the merits of having a public media service.”
Nonetheless, he said the board managed the budget prudently.
Invited to respond to a question line by one of the select committee MPs that his organisation was “splashing the cash”, RNZ chief executive Paul Thompson said the Government was investing in the broadcaster to be a “stronger cornerstone” in a fragile media industry.
Select committee member and National Party MP Vanessa Weenink questioned the level of performance bonuses, around $227,000, she said, and roughly double the previous year.
“I’m just wondering what, if anything, is the link between organisational performance and the individual performance bonuses that were paid?”
Thompson responded: “We did set some very high targets for ourselves in our SPE [statement of performance expectations] this year and moving some of those attitudinal measures around our charter is really difficult.
“We’ve had success in some areas and we’ve still got work to do in others.
“And I acknowledge that in terms of payment of bonuses, they are all tied to KPIs [key performance indicators] and across a range of different individual performance areas and we map and track that and report that all back to the board.”
He was asked about RNZ paying bonuses to staff when others, including TVNZ, were not.
“Our bonus structure is very modest and it is designed to reward that exceptional performance and guided by the advice of the Public Service Commission that they are appropriate where they’re structured properly,” Thompson said.
“But look, we are very mindful that we do need to be prudent with those public funds and we will keep assessing the way that we run those incentives.”
Select committee member and Labour MP Reuben Davidson observed: “Just to jump in on this question line about RNZ splashing the cash, my sense is that it’s a fact that that funding boost was the first one since 2009″, adding it had allowed RNZ to have newsreaders on the night shift again “as opposed to the flash bells and whistles anywhere else”.
Thompson said of the funding increase: “We’re being very cautious about how we deploy these funds. We know it’s a once-in-a-generation opportunity to create the outstanding public media cornerstone that New Zealand needs. So we are very conscious of every dollar doing a job for the public.”
A peculiarly high level of security – usually reserved for exclusive screenings of Hollywood movies starring A-listers such as Tom Cruise or Julia Roberts – is being employed for a media preview of an upcoming TV documentary series on Philip Polkinghorne.
The retired Auckland eye surgeon was cleared by a High Court jury in September last year of the murder of his wife Pauline Hanna, following a salacious eight-week trial, featuring evidence of meth use and sex workers.
Polkinghorne has not spoken publicly aside from a brief statement of fewer than 50 words outside the court on the day he was found not guilty: “Today ... the outcome [is] a huge turning point in our lives. This process has taken a massive toll on so many of us and now we can grieve and let Pauline rest in peace, and that is the best gift we can possibly give her. Thank you.”
It is understood the documentary makers may have secured an exclusive interview with Polkinghorne, though they, their PR team and Three would not confirm that yesterday.
Media personnel were yesterday invited to a preview screening to be held next Friday under the strictest of security measures.
Journalists are being expected to sign non-disclosure agreements and cellphones will need to be handed in before entering the screening theatre.
“This screening will be monitored for unauthorised recording,” says a media advisory. “By attending, you agree not to use audio or video recording devices in the screening room.
“Security will be removing phones and recording devices on arrival and guards will be present in cinemas during the screening.”
None of this is uncommon for a preview screening of a Hollywood A-list movie or even a show or film at a slightly lower level. Security measures are normally a little more relaxed for something like a local documentary. The producers obviously have some sort of scoop.
As Media Insider revealed last July, more than $200,000 of taxpayer money is helping fund the documentary, Polk: The Trial of Philip Polkinghorne.
The three-part documentary will screen on Three over three nights, from Sunday April 13.
The documentary is being produced by Blonde Razor Ltd, whose directors are screen producer and director Mark McNeill and private investigator Julia Hartley Moore, who is no stranger to the television screen.
Hartley Moore is expected to feature in the documentary, which was originally called P.I Story.
NZ on Air said in April last year: “A documentary mini-series for ThreeNow and Three, P.I. Story tracks the course of an ongoing NZ trial.”
Pushed for more detail last July, an NZ on Air spokeswoman said: “P.I. Story tracks the course of an ongoing, highly topical NZ criminal case. The series starts when charges have been laid and follows the case through court to the concluding verdict.
“It is rare to have such access and insight to the workings of the judicial system and an opportunity to examine issues of social justice. While the trial itself will no doubt attract media coverage, a documentary is a different proposition and in this case has a strong business case for funding and was assessed as being likely to attract an engaged audience.”
The spokeswoman said NZ on Air had provided “last-in, gap funding”.
That meant most funding was coming from other sources, “creating excellent return on investment in a cost-per-minute sense”.
Is there still hope the NZME board and Jim Grenon can come to a compromise ahead of the company’s annual shareholders’ meeting in June? Grenon’s latest proposal relinquishes majority board control - as he releases his full new letter, NZME’s chair responds on what she says are the company’s concerns.
The Auckland businessman wanting an overhaul of NZME’s board says his latest plan was drawn up in the hope of a compromise with existing directors and to prevent the company from having to go through a drawn-out fight and more instability.
But Jim Grenon, who owns 9.97% of NZME, says it’s clear to him the NZME board “have no interest in that” and further believes it had an “attack lined up” on fellow NZME shareholder Troy Bowker, who has been proposed by Grenon as an alternate board director.
In a response to questions from the Herald, NZME board chair Barbara Chapman said the board was “open to further engagement with Mr Grenon and we have communicated this to him accordingly”.
READ THE FULL STORY AND LATEST JIM GRENON LETTER HERE
TVNZ has paid out more than $3 million in restructuring costs, its half-year report reveals.
Just under $3.1m has been allocated as reorganisation provisions on the state broadcaster’s consolidated financial statements as at December 31 – last year, TVNZ lost dozens of staff and saw the axing of top-ratings shows such as Fair Go and Sunday.
A TVNZ spokeswoman said of the $3.092m: “This reflects the provision (in the balance sheet) for costs incurred as a result of the 2024 strategic change process and predominantly reflects redundancy payments for impacted staff who departed TVNZ.”
TVNZ had 601 staff at the start of its financial year last July. That number is now believed to be down to about 550. The broadcaster had about 730 staff two years ago.
TVNZ announced in February a first-half operating profit of $11.8m – a positive sign that the state broadcaster is on track with its digital transformation after a challenging year.
However, the company is warning it might still fall into an operational loss for the full year, partly because of continuing challenging economic conditions and the requirement to invest in new technology.
TVNZ announced a net profit after tax of $53.1m for the six months to December 31. This included a non-cash adjustment of $41.3m to remove costs already accounted for in its 2024 financial year impairment.
While revenue was down slightly for the six months – by 1.9% to $152.7m – the company said it had slashed operating costs by almost $20m compared with the same period the previous year.
National Business Review (NBR) owner Todd Scott is certainly one of the more colourful and outspoken characters in the New Zealand media scene.
He calls it as he sees it – in December we awarded him the Nostradamus prize in our inaugural Media Insider awards for his very on-the-money prediction in early 2024 of the carnage that would soon unfold in the media industry. Other leaders were more Pollyanna-ish.
He made a similar prediction at the start of this year – and he’s been correct again.
But Scott is not just about highlighting the issues. He believes he has a real solution to the cutbacks that have hit many areas of the New Zealand journalism industry.
Scott is about to sell up in Fiji, where he and his wife Jackie have been based for several years, to return home to New Zealand, as the couple accelerate their relatively new business venture, New Media Solution (NMS).
Essentially, it’s a tech platform that allows publishers to run a content management system and paywalled news website and app. NBR uses it today and the Scotts have been marketing it in the United States.
Scott believes NMS is the platform to help rejuvenate regional New Zealand journalism and has drawn up a crowdfunding business plan to highlight exactly how that can be achieved.
“The focus [for NMS] is chiefly the USA, although we will get a couple of NZ companies on board in the first six months of next year,” he told Media Insider in December.
“I am also investigating establishing several regional online news services using the NMS platform in New Zealand.”
Regional New Zealand journalism has been particularly hard-hit in recent years, with the closure of community newspapers and newsrooms. While some newspapers have been saved by local staff or other community groups, many regions are without a voice.
A separate plan to save regional journalism had been raised by another publisher, South Island-based Crux owner Peter Newport, but that has not gone ahead at this time, after hoped-for Government funding did not eventuate.
Scott has tentatively labelled his own plan The Local Online – and is seeking support from the investment community.
He says $1 million would need to be raised to launch a news service in a specific region. That would fund four senior journalists on an average salary of $80,000; two co-editors on $110,000, and $310,000 in other costs, including an annual NMS subscription fee of $120,000.
The sites would need to draw 250 paying subscribers at $20 a month. “After 15 months (with 3750 subscribers), we are covering costs and would still have more than $500,000 in working capital,” says Scott.
The drawcard for audiences, as he sees it?
“Local news, no advertising, no government funding, no opinion.”
The senior journalists would live in the area, work from home and provide content people were prepared to pay for.
“Once we confirm the location, people in that region/town will be the most invested in its success – that’s why I am looking at crowdfunding the project,” Scott says.
“Because this NMS Pod initiative will be rolled out to other regions over time, I am hopeful of interest within the wider investment community.”
It was important, he said, to keep the operations lean.
“Given that Jackie and I don’t need a large shareholding in the regional Pods, our focus will be successfully setting them up and benefiting from recurring revenue from the NMS platform fees, while delivering great local news and great returns for our shareholders.”
Scott says he’s now on standby to return home to New Zealand ahead of the marketing and sale of his Fiji house – the “amazing island paradise we have called home for the last four years”.
He says the timing of his plans could not have been better, “both from a[n] NZ and international perspective”.
“Given what’s playing out in NZ with both NZME and Stuff, conversations are now very commercially sensitive.”
Stop the presses! It’s only April but this might be one of the more bizarre media industry tiffs and apologies of the year.
The new owner of the Horowhenua Chronicle published a piece recently, extolling the virtues of the quality of his grey, virgin fibre newsprint. Without naming names, it was an obvious dig at the recently launched community newspaper Horowhenua Star, which is published on 52GSM Norbright white paper.
“In short, the aesthetics of white paper may be appealing but the environmental and financial benefits of virgin fibre newsprint win the day,” Chronicle director Richard Christie wrote in the original article.
But the following week, he published an article headlined erratum/clarification, saying the 52GSM newsprint is not exposed to the bleaching levels he implied.
Christie offered his “unreserved apologies” to those upset by the original article and those who relied on the newsprint to make a living, including the printing company and the Star.
The Star’s owner, ID Media managing editor Ian Carson, wrote on the Kiwi Journalists Association Facebook page: “The reality is there’s very little difference in how the Star’s enhanced newsprint and the newsprint for the Chronicle are produced.
“It’s an odd way for a competitor to behave. By the way, the Star hasn’t made a complaint – it came from the Star’s irate printers, Beacon.”
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.
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