2022 New Zealand Radio Awards

Radio ratings are not the only area in which our media are selective and approach from a partisan viewpoint. I searched news media in vain for a full list of finalists and winners at last night’s radio awards. Broadcasters NZME, MediaWorks and Radio New Zealand each praised their own successes but were silent on the achievements of others. So, for those of you who wanted an overall picture of what our radio industry achieved in the past year, here is the list posted by the Radio Broadcasters Association on its website.  Just click on the link below:

2022 NZ Radio Awards Finalists & Winners copy

Radio ratings recipe: Sliced, diced and spiced.

Today’s cookery class is about preparation or, more precisely, how to slice and dice.

The ingredients for this lesson are two major radio operators, 3.7 million people aged over 10, and one audience survey company. The recipe can be found in the GfK New Zealand Commercial Radio Second Survey 2022.

The real attraction of this recipe is that it can be cooked so many different ways and that makes it a favourite with the radio networks. The secret lies in the way you chop up the ingredients.

The best way to demonstrate the versatility of this recipe is to take you through the way it was cooked following the latest delivery of ingredients last week. Continue reading “Radio ratings recipe: Sliced, diced and spiced.”

The bad news is people are avoiding the news

 


Last weekend I received an email from an eminent journalist telling me that, with the exception of RNZ’s “Moaning Report”, he was avoiding the news. He is not alone.

He attached an essay from last Friday’s Washington Post that was headed “I stopped reading the news. Is the problem me – or the product?” It was written by Amanda Ripley. No, not the character from the Alien film and video game franchise, but a former Time magazine correspondent who has covered more than her fair share of horror. You can read her essay here. In it she shared a guilty secret: She has been actively avoiding the news for years. She is not alone. Continue reading “The bad news is people are avoiding the news”

Is that person with an iPhone a press photographer?

Last weekend at an outdoor cafe I photographed three sparrows that had been about to poop on my bald head.

I was able to do so because my picture-taking ability is ever-present: I am one of the 6.6 billion people on this planet who walk around with a camera in their pockets. It is as much a part of my iPhone as the speaking and texting functions.

I would not mention the defecating feathered friends, or my mobile phone, were it not for the fact that the previous day I had been engaged in a lively email exchange with a group of highly respected press photographers. We had been debating whether the iPhone would replace the truckload of camera gear that they had been carrying throughout their professional lives. Continue reading “Is that person with an iPhone a press photographer?”