4 Dec 2014

AAP says coverage of PNG adequate

7:44 am on 4 December 2014

Just over a year on from shutting down it's Papua New Guinea bureau, the Australian Associated Press says it's coverage of PNG issues is adequate.

In October last year the editor in chief of AAP, Tony Gillies, announced the decision to close its office in Papua New Guinea, after a 60-year presence in the country.

Tony Gillies says in a practical sense there have been no difficulties in covering PNG issues since then.

He says they use a combination of freelancers, global agency partnerships and former PNG correspondent staff to keep abreast of developments.

"A combination of those three things has enabled us to provide a coverage that our subscribers have seen as adequate, I guess. I concede that it's not always as good as having someone on the ground but for the purposes, for our needs at least anyway, it seems to be working OK."

Tony Gillies says it was a difficult decision to close down the PNG bureau, and only time will tell if it was the right decision in the long run, but the right call was made at the time.

The front facade of Papua New Guinea's parliament featuring recently removed anthropomorphic carved heads on the front lintel.

The front facade of Papua New Guinea's parliament featuring recently removed anthropomorphic carved heads on the front lintel. Photo: RNZ / Johnny Blades

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