Printed from https://fyi.org.nz/request/17480-three-waters-jacinda-ardern-why-no-questions-during-interviews?unfold=1 on April 30, 2024 12:39

Three Waters - Jacinda Ardern - why no questions during interviews?

Micky Turner made this Official Information request to Television New Zealand Limited

The request was successful.

From: Micky Turner

Dear Television New Zealand Limited,

Can you please provide the following information:
_________________________
All written correspondence between TVNZ staff & Jacinda Ardern &/or her representatives from 1st October 2021 until now.
_________________________

What we are interested in here - is finding out to what extent Jacinda Ardern controls, scripts and stages her media interviews with New Zealand's public broadcaster - and to what extent TVNZ is complicit in complying with projecting a staged narrative on her behalf.

Cheers - Micky Turner

Link to this

From: Brent McAnulty
Television New Zealand Limited

Hi Mickey

You have put Three Waters in your subject line but not referred to it in your request. Is there anything you have missed in your request?

Regards

Brent McAnulty
General Counsel & Corporate Affairs Director

-----Original Message-----
From: Micky Turner <[FOI #17480 email]>
Sent: Monday, 8 November 2021 9:51 am
To: Brent McAnulty <[email address]>
Subject: Official Information request - Three Waters - Jacinda Ardern - why no questions during interviews?

CAUTION: This email originated from outside of TVNZ. Do not click links or open attachments unless you recognise the sender and know the content is safe.

Dear Television New Zealand Limited,

Can you please provide the following information:
_________________________
All written correspondence between TVNZ staff & Jacinda Ardern &/or her representatives from 1st October 2021 until now.
_________________________

What we are interested in here - is finding out to what extent Jacinda Ardern controls, scripts and stages her media interviews with New Zealand's public broadcaster - and to what extent TVNZ is complicit in complying with projecting a staged narrative on her behalf.

Cheers - Micky Turner

-------------------------------------------------------------------

This is an Official Information request made via the FYI website.

Please use this email address for all replies to this request:
[FOI #17480 email]

Is [TVNZ request email] the wrong address for Official Information requests to Television New Zealand Limited? If so, please contact us using this form:
https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://fyi....

Disclaimer: This message and any reply that you make will be published on the internet. Our privacy and copyright policies:
https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://fyi....

If you find this service useful as an Official Information officer, please ask your web manager to link to us from your organisation's OIA or LGOIMA page.

-------------------------------------------------------------------

hide quoted sections

Link to this

From: Micky Turner

Hi Brent,

I am interested to find out why Jacinda Ardern has done a number of recent interviews with TVNZ (including last Saturday and Monday) - but was never been asked about Three Waters.

It is a is a very controversial and topical issue. Maybe your political journalists have asked her some questions - but to be honest I doubt it.

Cheers - Micky

Link to this

From: Brent McAnulty
Television New Zealand Limited

Hi Micky

While it has been asked of the Prime Minister in several Monday post-Cabinet press conferences, the focus of our time with the Prime Minister has been on Covid-related matters.

We've done multiple stories on Three Waters. Katie Bradford has been covering this issue for several years. Q+A recently dedicated a whole segment on Three Waters with Christopher Luxon and Nanaia Muhuta.

Regards
Brent

Brent McAnulty
General Counsel & Corporate Affairs Director

m. 027 226 4913

-----Original Message-----
From: Micky Turner <[FOI #17480 email]>
Sent: Saturday, 13 November 2021 6:24 pm
To: Brent McAnulty <[email address]>
Subject: RE: Official Information request - Three Waters - Jacinda Ardern - why no questions during interviews?

Hi Brent,

I am interested to find out why Jacinda Ardern has done a number of recent interviews with TVNZ (including last Saturday and Monday) - but was never been asked about Three Waters.

It is a is a very controversial and topical issue. Maybe your political journalists have asked her some questions - but to be honest I doubt it.

Cheers - Micky

-----Original Message-----

Hi Mickey

You have put Three Waters in your subject line but not referred to it in your request. Is there anything you have missed in your request?

Regards

Brent McAnulty
General Counsel & Corporate Affairs Director

-------------------------------------------------------------------
Please use this email address for all replies to this request:
[FOI #17480 email]

Disclaimer: This message and any reply that you make will be published on the internet. Our privacy and copyright policies:
https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://fyi....

If you find this service useful as an Official Information officer, please ask your web manager to link to us from your organisation's OIA or LGOIMA page.

-------------------------------------------------------------------

hide quoted sections

Link to this

From: Micky Turner

Thanks Brent,

Please forward the information I requested.

I am interested to see if or how the 'Prime Minister' avoids speaking about controversial issues and if TVNZ help keep those heated issues out of her spotlight.

As you have mentioned - there is more than enough coverage of Covid 19 related issues (7 hours a week).

Yours sincerely,

Micky Turner

Link to this

From: Micky Turner

Hi Brent,

I see this information was due on 6th December - how is it coming along?

Do you need more time?

Cheers - Micky

Link to this

From: Brent McAnulty
Television New Zealand Limited

Hi Micky

My apologies, in answering about Three Waters I omitted the answer relating to contact with the Prime Minister.

The Prime Minister does not control, script or stage her media interviews with TVNZ - and TVNZ is not involved in a staged narrative on her behalf.

I spoke to our Political Editor, who confirmed that TVNZ does not provide questions in advance to political interviewees. For the majority of interviews with the Prime Minister, there is no contact with her office in advance. On the rare occasion there is a 1:1 interview with TVNZ, we may provide an overview of topics we expect to cover. But this does not restrict us from asking other questions, and is not an opportunity for the Prime Minister to control the narrative.

This is entirely consistent with how we conduct interviews with other political figures.

As our political staff work within Parliament, any contact with the Prime Minister's office is in person, or by phone or text.

I'd be happy to discuss this with you further.

Regards
Brent

Brent McAnulty
General Counsel & Corporate Affairs Director

m. 027 226 4913

-----Original Message-----
From: Micky Turner <[FOI #17480 email]>
Sent: Friday, 10 December 2021 10:45 am
To: Brent McAnulty <[email address]>
Subject: RE: Official Information request - Three Waters - Jacinda Ardern - why no questions during interviews?

Hi Brent,

I see this information was due on 6th December - how is it coming along?

Do you need more time?

Cheers - Micky

-----Original Message-----

Hi Micky

While it has been asked of the Prime Minister in several Monday post-Cabinet press conferences, the focus of our time with the Prime Minister has been on Covid-related matters.

We've done multiple stories on Three Waters. Katie Bradford has been covering this issue for several years. Q+A recently dedicated a whole segment on Three Waters with Christopher Luxon and Nanaia Muhuta.

Regards
Brent

Brent McAnulty
General Counsel & Corporate Affairs Director

m. 027 226 4913

-------------------------------------------------------------------
Please use this email address for all replies to this request:
[FOI #17480 email]

Disclaimer: This message and any reply that you make will be published on the internet. Our privacy and copyright policies:
https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://fyi....

If you find this service useful as an Official Information officer, please ask your web manager to link to us from your organisation's OIA or LGOIMA page.

-------------------------------------------------------------------

hide quoted sections

Link to this

From: Micky Turner

Thanks Brent,

I guess there could be match fixing happening via private phones - but will give your Political Editor the benefit of the doubt.

If it is genuinely the case that the Prime Minister isn't rigging her interviews - I think TVNZ has a culture of bias at all levels - because not asking the PM about Three Waters while it is topical - is Omission Journalism.

Obviously the factors which cause this are:
Personal Ideological Views
Ideological Views of Louder Voices within TVNZ (some people may feel bullied)
Funding
New Zealand's Political Landscape

TVNZ goes to great extremes to avoid topics which they think Maori with certain ideological views will find confronting or upsetting.

They are even prepared to change history in order to avoid upset - as was the case in this story about a museum display where Māori Studies academic Dr Ella Henry threw a bit of a hissy fit and said many of the aspects within the displays are inaccurate.

"There is literally no evidence to suggest that Māori lived in caves," she said:

https://www.1news.co.nz/2020/06/11/cante...

Will there literally is evidence Maori occupied caves. Both archeological evidence and oral history:

https://www.whakatane.com/see-and-do/te-...
https://teara.govt.nz/en/photograph/2331...
https://nzetc.victoria.ac.nz/tm/scholarl...

TVNZ never corrected that story to ensure it was factually accurate. So we have a Maori Studies academic teaching a factually inaccurate Maori history at Auckland University of Technology and it goes completely unchallenged.

I find it unusual. But I think I'm the only one. It seems we are now living in The Line Experiment.

The same style of angled journalism (or ask no questions journalism) is applied to politics. Jacinda has even set her own ideology in stone via her NZonAir funding requirements - where journalists 'must' present a certain view or be denied funding.

Thanks for taking the time to look for the information in any case!

Cheers - Micky

Link to this

Things to do with this request

Anyone:
Television New Zealand Limited only: