The future of longstanding Māori news and current affairs programmes – such as Te Karere and The Hui – are in doubt with the Government’s Māori media funding agency Te Māngai Pāho restructuring how it distributes funds after its budget was reduced from previous years.
Over the past three years, the agency received annual funding boosts of around $16 million. With the change in Government, the boosts have not continued with Te Māngai Pāho’s budget set to return to its baseline funding of $50 million.
Māori Development Minister Tama Potaka said the Government was focused on adhering to the baseline.
"I think that the present and future of Māori broadcasting has a lot of hope and has a lot of talent and it's important for us to be really clear about where the responsibilities for Government start and stops, but also where we can co-invest with iwi and other groups in Māori broadcasting, and I know some iwi, some Māori organisations, are very invested in it."
TVNZ’s flagship Māori news show Te Karere has been broadcasting for more than 40 years. The show received $2.7 million from Te Māngai Pāho for 260 episodes this year, with TVNZ contributing an extra $900,000.
1News understood a TVNZ application for next year’s funding round was unsuccessful, but the broadcaster was currently working on a second funding bid. The broadcaster declined to comment until Te Māngai Pāho had confirmed the next funding round.
A funding project application by Māori news and current affairs show The Hui has also been rejected. Executive producer Rewa Harriman said there was a bit of uncertainty amid its 10th season of broadcast.
"I understand that the funders are in a difficult position – they're facing funding cuts as well. The flow-on is now impacting the Māori media sector and obviously The Hui."
For the 2024/2025 funding round, The Hui received $1 million from Te Māngai Pāho, and $788,000 from NZ On Air Irirangi Te Motu for 40 episodes across mixed platforms. The show was produced by Great Southern Television.
Harriman said there were hopes of finding another path to keep The Hui on air and online.
"We've been telling our peoples' stories for 10 years now and we just want to be able to continue that. We've been advocating for them, we've been highlighting their challenges and issues, but also we've been celebrating in their successes as well."
Political reactions
Media and Communications Minister Paul Goldsmith said the Government made significant contributions to Māori broadcasting but referred any questions around Te Māngai Pāho funding to Potaka.
Labour MP Peeni Henare said questions needed to be asked: "If we think about the fight that we had for te reo Māori and the hard-fought gains for Te Karere we've got to ask the question – why, on such a successful show for TVNZ, is it one of the first ones on the chopping block?"
Green spokesperson for Māori development, and media and communications, Hūhana Lyndon said she was "definitely worried" for legacy programmes such as Te Karere, Marae and The Hui.
"What's to come? Those are some of the questions that we're asking right now in terms of what Te Māngai Pāho is proposing."
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