Stories by Colin Peacock

The government's new media plan doesn't do much to aid the ailing industry, and a law change that might help has stalled.

The NZ Herald's streaming video service will be part of a restructuring that included the loss of 30 journalists' jobs, but it's not clear whether it will pay off, Mediawatch reports.

Mediawatch: Media management helped the government's new 'golden visas' into the headlines, but it also got obscured by the ACT leader's antics.

Mediawatch -Trump's alarmed the world with trade tariffs, turning off aid and proposing to take over Gaza. But New Zealand's had diplomatic drama in the news too - with the media in the middle of it.

Mediawatch - Summertime, and the living is easy, the old Gershwin song says. But he didn't have to cope with the Kiwi summer news drought. Video

Biggest flip-flop; best leading media by the nose; the Billy Connolly prize for breaking news about a single animal - Mediawatch's not-very-prestigious and not-at-all coveted annual media awards. Video

Mediawatch - The job losses came thick and fast in 2024: "I've worked in the industry for 30 years and never seen a year like it," RNZ's Guyon Espiner says.

Mediawatch - Australia's social media ban for under-16s was cheered on by the media, but it also highlighted their own dependency on big tech - and our own government's hands-off approach.

Both Taupō and Westport face saying goodbye to their only local newspaper - and local journalism.

A proposal to close 14 local North Island papers has prompted warnings of overseas-style 'news deserts' springing up here.

Mediawatch - The closure of 14 local papers in the North Island could see the end of a century-long history.

Mediawatch - Scams, spam, and disinformation and defamation still circulate on social media platforms that make little effort to counteract them. Will new laws help?

Mediawatch - "It's their media world now. We just live in it." What can the news media take away from Donald Trump's election victory?

Mediawatch - The award-winning magazine has adopted "radical transparency" in a bold bid to secure survival and turn readers into stakeholders.

Mediawatch - Media joined the chorus claiming the government will intervene in the council crisis in Wellington. Then they started saying they'd be better off out of it.

Mediawatch - One media executive says it could be "the end-of-days for journalism" in NZ if Google cuts ties with news. But why?

Analysis - Mediawatch looks at the background to the state broadcaster reducing scope and scale and asks if the scrapped media merger was a missed opportunity.

Mediawatch - Local media helped drive the backlash to the u-turn on rebuilding Dunedin Hospital. But can they campaign on issues while also reporting them fairly?

Coverage of the trial blurred the lines on reporting suicide - and raised questions about how mental health can be aired in a healthy way.

Mediawatch looks at a string of bad news about bad vibes in our big cities - with one in particular being singled out.

As one Māori monarch was farewelled and a new one appointed this week, it was aired in perhaps the longest multimedia coverage of any event in this country's history. Video

Some media queried how the $33b national transport plan will be funded. Others highlighted aspects that barely dent the budget.

Analysis - 'No-one watches the 6pm news anymore,' many claim, but plenty have read lots about the end of Newshub.

Analysis - Simon Tong's future as managing director of Fairfax Media was as uncertain as the future of the media company he led, writes Colin Peacock

The Fijian Prime Minister was "making up facts for a speech" when he criticised NZ media yesterday, says a journalist he has blacklisted.