RNZ’s newsletter comes at a cost

In brief

• RNZ’s “free” newsletter competes for readers that private publishers need to survive.

• The last left wing government was generous with the funding and the current right leaning coalition reduced it. Could that influence RNZ’s leaning?

• With RNZ’s impartiality disputed, taxpayers deserve a clear account of the public benefit. 

The fight for your inbox

Private publishers spend a lot of time wondering how to pay for journalism. They chase subscribers, sell advertising, ask for donations and hope enough readers stick around. Building an audience can feel like keeping a leaky boat afloat. You work to bring readers in while others quietly slip away. 

Radio New Zealand’s daily newsletter might seem a small thing to complain about. After all, it’s just an email. A few headlines. Some links. Nobody is forced to open it. 

Private media are regularly told to innovate. Build relationships with readers. Find a niche. Develop products people want. 

RNZ pursues the same readers with public funding behind it. For private publishers, the question is how to make a living alongside a competitor whose funding comes from taxpayers.

From public radio to everywhere

RNZ’s original remit included independent news, music, culture and minority interests. Its charter also required it to consider what other broadcasters already offered.

In 2016, John Key’s National government updated the charter to support delivery across digital platforms. Labour supplied more fuel. In April 2023, broadcasting minister Willie Jackson announced an additional $25.7 million a year for RNZ, including $12 million for a new digital platform. The stated ambitions included reaching new audiences, expanding regional coverage and strengthening Māori and Pacific content.

The National-led Government later cut RNZ’s funding by $4.6 million a year in Budget 2025, about 7% of its annual Crown operating budget. That partially reversed Labour’s increase, leaving most of the funding boost in place.

Why does the country need RNZ doing an internet news service?

RNZ should be able to explain what it adds: reporting what would otherwise go undone, communities that would otherwise go unheard, or access that commercial outlets cannot sustain. It seems more like just a commercial competitor with an unfair advantage.

Public money should mean an absolute addiction to political neutrality

In our view, RNZ has too often given the left an easy ride. See just a few examples here, here, and here. Of course, RNZ is a valuable source of information for us and others, but that does not excuse overt political bias on the public dime. Could it be that RNZ believes it will get more funding from a left leaning government and that influences their thinking? 

Taxpayers are entitled to challenge both its editorial choices and the size of the operation delivering them.

Michael Laws, The Platform host and now NZ First’s Waitaki candidate, has publicly called for RNZ and TVNZ to be defunded. His concerns demonstrate how far the argument about state broadcasting has already travelled.

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