Kedgley Sue: Television New Zealand Amendment Bill — Third Reading 
Kedgley Sue: Television New Zealand Amendment Bill — Third Reading 
[Volume:674;Page:20009] 
SUE KEDGLEY (Green) 
: 
 I worked as a reporter for Television New Zealand (TVNZ) in news and current affairs and as a director and producer when TVNZ was I might say in its heyday as a genuine public service broadcaster with documentaries and extended current affairs programmes screening regularly in prime time. As someone who was part of that era it is quite hard to figure out how we in New Zealand have ended up like this. We are one of the only countries in the world without a public service television channel with one of the most deregulated broadcasting media environments in the world with no restrictions on foreign ownership of media with no restrictions on cross-media ownership with no restrictions on pay TV and with no rules about just about anything. We are one of the only countries in the world with no regulated local-content quota on television. As a result we screen one of the least amounts of local programming in the world. 
It is also hard to believe that in probably half an hour’s time our only publicly owned broadcasting channels other than Maori Television will exist for the sole purpose of returning a profit and a dividend to the Government. One could be forgiven for asking what the point of that is. What is the point of having a publicly owned television channel that has no mandate other than to make money for its shareholder? There is no publicly owned television channel in the rest of the world with such a pathetic mandate. 
In the absence of any regulation or any restrictions in our broadcasting environment it raises the question of what would happen if National should it win the next election were to sell off TVNZ which is now nicely fully commercialised and ready for sale if it can find a buyer. That clearly is its agenda. What would happen if TV3 went bankrupt? Hopefully it will not but that is not beyond the realms of possibility. We could be left with one foreign-owned commercially driven network—such as that owned by Sky TV of which Rupert Murdoch owns 40 percent—controlling all the television channels in New Zealand. There is nothing in our media environment to prevent that. We could end up with pay TV and a couple of other channels owned by Murdoch that have a particular bias such as Fox Television. That could be all that is available in New Zealand so we could all be watching the equivalent of the Murdoch-owned Fox Television. There is nothing to stop that happening in New Zealand. 
Even if that rather alarming scenario does not play out there is no doubt that in the short term—now that TVNZ has no mandate to provide public service content—we will end up with less and less New Zealand content on television because we all know that it is much cheaper to buy imported programmes from offshore than it is to make New Zealand programmes. At a recent broadcasting seminar TV3 said that a commercial channel can afford to screen only about 20 percent New Zealand programmes; it cannot afford any more. That is what TV2 screens now; actually I think it is nearer 18 or 19 percent. So we will have channels in New Zealand—Television One TV2 TV3 and of course Prime Television—screening more than 80 percent foreign content. The only criterion for TVNZ about whether it will screen a programme will be made by the sales department of TVNZ and it will be based on whether it thinks the programme will produce enough ratings and attract enough advertising. Who will care whether the programmes are New Zealand - made? 
Under this new mandate TVNZ will become a nakedly commercial broadcaster indistinguishable from any other channel. We will end up with less and less news and current affairs as well because it is very expensive to make news and current affairs. The only thing that TVNZ bosses will be focused on is making money returning that dividend to the Government. TVNZ will have to fulfil this mandate no matter what personal misgivings it may have. Already the small amount of current affairs that we have on mainstream television— 
Campbell Live 
  
Close Up— 
is constantly interrupted with the hand-wringing mantra: “Oh sorry we have run out of time.” That is what we will hear over and over again because no one will have time for in-depth exploration of current affairs or for just about any other issue on this commercially focused TVNZ. 
One of the reasons that I believe we have ended up in this sorry state of affairs is that this Government like other conservative Governments is deeply suspicious—indeed it seems to dislike public broadcasting. I think it believes that public broadcasting has a left-wing bias and a bias against free-market ideology. George Bush spent years targeting American public service broadcasting John Howard spent years attacking Australian public radio and since the 1990s we have had sustained attacks on public service broadcasting in this country. 
In fact I came across an article from 1998 written by Denis Welch when he was exploring the attacks made on Radio New Zealand. It was most interesting because a whole series of letters attacking Radio New Zealand was uncovered. The letters had been written by the Business Roundtable and its lobbyist one Barrie Saunders who has now been appointed director of TVNZ. Barrie Saunders a lobbyist for the Business Roundtable said that Radio New Zealand’s programmes were inherently anti-market that they were left wing and that they were biased against the Business Roundtable. He said: “I … feel [that Radio New Zealand] is … beyond redemption … it should be shut down.” That guy who made a sustained attack against public service broadcasting has now been appointed to the board of TVNZ. He is a full-time lobbyist and he has been appointed to the board of TVNZ. A lobbyist is now being appointed to run TVNZ. It is quite clear what the agenda is; it is the same as it was with Radio New Zealand. His goal will be to shut down TVNZ. 
Interestingly it is a shame that Mr Ryall is not present because in the same article Mr Ryall said: “I’m not convinced that we want all our stations owned by Mr Murdoch.” Very prophetic this. He said: “In the seas of signals you’re going to want one or two lifeboats of New Zealand culture.” That was said by Mr Ryall in 1998 and it was very prophetic because that is what will happen. We will have all of our stations owned by Mr Murdoch and we will be looking for one or two lifeboats of New Zealand culture. 
Mr Coleman clearly shares Mr Saunders’ suspicion of those who work in public service broadcasting. Mr Coleman has no understanding whatsoever of the importance of public service broadcasting for a healthy democracy. We want broadcasters who are free from commercial pressures who are not beholden to any commercial or other interests and who are not solely driven by television ratings and advertising schedules. We want broadcasters who can look at different ideas and perspectives and speak without fear or favour. 
Mr Coleman has no understanding of and no support for public service broadcasting. Rather he supports the nakedly commercial broadcasting that others have pointed out has resulted in the atrocious scandal that we are seeing unfold in England where Rupert Murdoch’s empire has been engaged in shocking illicit behaviour. That is what happens when one has commercial media driven by the ratings and whose sole purpose is to bring in the ratings. They will descend to any level no matter how illicit to get their ratings. In New Zealand where we have no regulation whatsoever Rupert Murdoch could continue completely unfettered. If he is booted out of England then that maybe is what he will seek to do. There is nothing to stop him. There are no cross-media rules in New Zealand. He could take over our entire media without any problem because there are no rules. 
It is a very sad day. In about 20 minutes we will see the end of public service broadcasting apart from TVNZ7 but that too is to be booted out. The Government cannot find $15 million a year to fund one last public service niche broadcasting channel but it can find $45 million for a sweet-heart deal with private broadcasters.