Navigation for News Categories
Comment & Analysis
Featured Comment & Analysis stories
Hey big spenders: What foreign investors will really want from the infrastructure summit
Analysis - To attract crucial infrastructure investment from overseas, the government are looking at public-private partnerships, but what do investors want?
-
What does NZ need to be part of the quantum technology revolution?
11 Mar 2025We are now in the middle of the second wave of quantum capabilities, which heralds quantum computing, enhanced sensing systems and secure communication…
-
NZ's glaciers have lost nearly a third of their ice
10 Mar 2025Almost 300 glaciers have now vanished completely from New Zealand's mountains.
-
How far could JD Vance go?
9 Mar 2025Analysis - The new US vice president is one of Donald Trump's most prominent public admirers. But what's his endgame?
Comment & Analysis headlines with summaries.
-
The Sampler: What to listen to this week
9 Mar 2025Local producer Sola Rosa draws the curtain on his live band, and Japan's Ichiko Aoba softly soothes.
-
The surprising legal rules about trademarking sweary phrases
7 Mar 2025In New Zealand, people cannot register trademarks which are "likely to offend a significant section of the community", but what does that mean?
-
Consumer resistance is rising in the age of Trump. History shows how boycotts can be effective
7 Mar 2025In the US there are several month-long boycotts of Target are under way, and longer boycotts are scheduled of specific corporations, beginning with Amazon.
-
Donald Trump's big gamble
5 Mar 2025Analysis - Tariffs against Canada and Mexico deal a fresh shock to a slowing economy.
-
The atmosphere is getting better at cleaning itself - but that’s not all good news
27 Feb 2025The atmosphere makes its own 'detergent' to clean away noxious gases.
-
5 years on, Covid remains NZ's most important infectious disease
26 Feb 2025Analysis: On Friday it is five years since Covid-19 was first reported in New Zealand, and it continues to remain Aotearoa's most harmful disease demanding a strong response.
-
Anxiety over editorial policy and a billionaire on board at NZME
Mediawatch - NZME's top brass now have a billionaire on board who wants control and maybe more far-reaching editorial change.
-
Common ground for National and Labour?
8 Mar 2025Analysis - Chris Hipkins' state of the nation speech highlighted political bipartisanship, but less than an hour later National was taking swings.
-
The world is beginning to tire of Trump’s whiplash leadership
7 Mar 2025Analysis - One day, President Donald Trump imposed a punishing tariff regime against Canada and Mexico. The next, he froze auto duties for a month.
-
How Trump changed the world in a month
23 Feb 2025Analysis - Donald Trump spent the first month of his second term dismantling the global system the United States spent the past 80 years building, writes CNN's Stephen Collinson.
-
Would owning the rights to our face and voice reduce deepfake's harm?
21 Feb 2025Analysis - Not that long ago, the term "deepfake" wasn't in most people's vocabularies. Now, it is not only commonplace but is also the focus of intense legal scrutiny around the world.
-
Farming coops can get a bad environmental rap, but they can also be a force for good
28 Feb 2025Large-scale sustainable transformation rests on finding ways to orchestrate the efforts of many individuals and organisations towards a common goal, writes Stefan Korber.
-
Governments enjoy 'executive paradise' - longer terms won't change that
5 Mar 2025The question of a four-year term is once again enjoying a moment in the sun.
-
Review: Bird is a 'staggeringly brilliant blend of Ken Loach and a Grimm fairy tale'
23 Feb 2025Writer-director Andrea Arnold is a one-off. She seems to be rooted in British urban realism - films like Fish Tank and this week's Bird.
-
Trump is not putting America first - he is hastening its decline
Has any nation squandered its diplomatic capital and supplicated itself before its far weaker enemies as rapidly and brazenly as Donald Trump's America? Video
-
What’s the difference between burnout and depression?
Analysis: If your summer holiday already feels like a distant memory, you're not alone.
-
What was the 'mineral deal' that caused chaos in the White House?
1 Mar 2025Analysis - Underlying the angry exchanges were differences between Trump and the Ukrainian government over the deal that Zelensky was scheduled to sign.
-
NZ's barriers to economic growth
28 Feb 2025Analysis - Short-term thinking, political concentration and policy flip-flops all reduce economic growth, writes Kate Nicholls.
-
Analysis: Peters walks a 'tricky' diplomatic line in Beijing
27 Feb 2025RNZ's Corin Dann is in Beijing, following Foreign Minister Winston Peters as he meets with Chinese officials.
-
It feels like there's been more plane crashes: Here's the truth
Analysis - Dramatic images of several prominent aircraft crashes in the US might make it seem like the skies are becoming more dangerous - but a look at the statistics suggests the skies are about as…
-
Three days' grace for Andrew Bayly raises more questions
24 Feb 2025Analysis: National MP Andrew Bayly has got off lightly being allowed to resign as a minister - escaping the harsher sentence of being sacked by the Prime Minister.
-
Loss of forests brought new birds to NZ during the last Ice Age – we’re witnessing a similar process now
19 Feb 2025When people arrived on the shores of Aotearoa New Zealand and began to turn the land to their needs, they set in motion great changes.
-
Online violence and misogyny on the rise - NZ needs tougher response
18 Feb 2025The Human Rights commission's claim the Code of Practice for Online Safety and Harms was not fit for purpose apparently drew a sharp legal response from the agencies, which argued the commission…
-
What young vapers think about the law
17 Feb 2025The in-depth survey of 20 young people aimed to find out whether or not they wanted tighter vaping regulation to phase out nicotine.
Top News stories
- School lunch provider turns to Australia for help
- Marine precinct users in Tauranga feel lied to by mayor
- Hamish Kerr headlines biggest New Zealand team for World Indoor Champs
- Body of NZ soldier Dominic Abelen killed in Ukraine finally returns home
- Cook Strait ferry sailings cancelled due to large swells
