Summarised by Centrist
The New Zealand media landscape is suffering a second wave of closures and cutbacks. This, according to Newsroom’s Tim Murphy, mirrors the industry’s struggles during the COVID pandemic.
“Magazines like North & South and NZ Life & Leisure are disappearing from newsstands, while TV networks and newspapers are shedding staff and cutting costs to survive,” he writes.
Murphy details a grim roll call of media casualties in 2024, including the closure of 14 NZME regional newspapers, the end of popular TVNZ programmes like Fair Go and 1News Midday, and the shuttering of Crux, a South Island news site.
NZME, one of New Zealand’s largest media companies, warned shareholders of a poor third quarter, with profits dipping to their lowest since 2018. Sky TV echoed concerns, blaming economic pressure for declining customer and advertiser revenues.
Meanwhile, the government’s Fair Digital News Bargaining Bill, which is intended to secure revenue from tech giants like Facebook and Google, remains stalled. Critics warn that the bill could backfire if platforms retaliate by restricting news links, further reducing traffic to local media.
Murphy warns of a future where “surviving until 2025” may give way to “existing until 2026.”
