Barry Soper has been reporting on politics for over 43 years. Photo / Greg Bowker
Barry Soper has been reporting on politics for over 43 years. Photo / Greg Bowker
Newstalk ZB’s Barry Soper has been reporting on politics for 43 years. In that time, he has covered 11 different prime ministers, from Robert Muldoon through to Chris Hipkins, and outlasted most of them in the hustle and bustle of the Beehive.
And while he has left his role as political editor and moved to Auckland, the now-senior political correspondent has a lot to say about those he has covered during his time - including the most recent person to vacate the top job.
Speaking to Paula Bennett on her NZ Herald podcast, Ask Me Anything, Soper said that one issue journalists face when grilling politicians these days is that many politicians have become focused on what he sees as scripted answers that never answer what was asked of them.
“The problem with politicians is you usually know the answer yourself and you know what they should be saying, but they don’t say anything, and that’s the problem. Politicians I’ve found over the years are verbose to the extent that they talk themselves around a corner, and sometimes a door opens and they go in, and it’s too late to rescue themselves.”
With Ardern, Soper said that she was too pre-rehearsed at times and did not respond well to being interrupted. He compares the polarising response to her in the community to former Labour Prime Minister David Lange, who enjoyed significant popularity in his first term before it all fell apart in his second.
And while he thinks that she has a similar need to be loved as Sir John Key did, Key flourished more by being self-deprecating.
“He made a dick of himself on so many occasions, falling off catwalks and breaking legs at Chinese festivals, doing derpies at universities. People love that. I remember going on the first trip that John Key did, and we were in the islands, and he did the hula, and he said to me on the plane on the way back, ‘Oh, I think I might have made a bit of a dick of myself there’.
“And I said, ‘No, people love seeing that sort of crap’. And they do, as long as then he’s prime ministerial when that’s required.”
It’s the same quality that Soper believes will make Ardern’s successor, Chris Hipkins, succeed better with the wider public.
“People, they relate, and they’ll relate to Chris Hipkins much more than they’ve in recent years related to Jacinda. He’s a nice guy, he’s down-to-earth; he’s a Hutt boy, you know? He’s self-deprecating, so he’s a different kettle of fish.”
Newstalk ZB senior political correspondent Barry Soper with his sixth child, Iggy. Photo / Mike Scott
Soper won’t be based in Wellington to see this all unfold. He and his wife, Heather du Plessis-Allan, have moved back to Auckland this year to raise their son, Iggy, who was born last year. Iggy is Soper’s sixth child, but he said being the primary caregiver for the first time has been a very different experience.
“I’ve had to explain to my older kids and apologise to them [as] when you have your first families, you tend to be pursuing your career, trying to make money, buying houses, so you don’t have the same time. Now, I’m an old geezer, far too old to be having kids, and he has been fantastic. He’s the joy of my life. He’s just wonderful.”
He said the experience of working from home and looking after Iggy has opened his eyes the experience of solo and stay-at-home parents.
“I take my hat off even more to what you once were as a solo mum,” he said to Bennett. “How on earth you cope as a solo mum, I’ll never know. That it’s so hard, emotionally, work-wise, and lonely. So I take my hat off generally to women that do it, and it’s sort of opened my eyes totally to child rearing.”
Listen to the full podcast for more from Barry and his advice for understanding politicians, memories from his time with the Press Gallery, and his experiences as a stay-at-home dad.
Ask Me Anything is an NZ Herald podcast, hosted by Paula Bennett. New episodes are out every Sunday.
