26 Oct 2015

The Shape of the Media

From Labour Day, 8:00 pm on 26 October 2015

Jim Mora anchors a panel discussion with Fran O’Sullivan from the NZ Herald, Duncan Greive from The Spinoff, and Associate Professor Darrin Hodgetts from Massey University and international expert Professor Graeme Turner to discuss the the media.

During the conversation, which includes an opening statement from Prof Turner, they tackle a whole range of questions. In an era when traditional media is changing rapidly, what’s the future for quality journalism? What alternatives can online media offer audiences? How is it paid for? What’s the effect of social media and celebrity culture? What are the implications for New Zealanders who can now get access to instant information wherever they are?

The wide-ranging talk takes in developments at the NZ Herald and NZME, as well as the burgeoning website devoted to quality local writing, The Spinoff. The relationship between the exercise of power and the conduct of the media is explored, along with the effects of celebrity culture. Debate is brisk at times, but there is also a considerable amount of agreement about the trends which have developed so far in a rapidly-changing media landscape.

This panel discussion was recorded in front of an audience at the Auckland Art Gallery on 23 October 2015, and staged in association with Massey University.