The Māori response to the Covid-19 crisis has been swift and strong. It’s not the first time (nor will it be the last) that Māori have stepped up in a national emergency, writes historian Aroha Harris. In recent weeks I’ve been pondering the iwi Māori capacity to mobilise and noticing how quickly and efficiently Māori … Read more
We still don’t know when we’ll be moving out of level three, but we do now know a lot more about what life will be like. Here’s what Jacinda Ardern has just revealed will change under alert level two. What’s all this then? As the slow march towards normality continues, we just got a lot … Read more
The legality of the actions taken in response to Covid-19 are coming under question. And some are very reasonable questions to ask, writes law professor Andrew Geddis. Questions over the legality of the various notices issued by the director general of health to enforce New Zealand’s Covid-19 “lockdown” have reached something of a critical mass … Read more
The 48-hour film festival is back, self-isolation style. While the judging panel is deciding the winners, The Spinoff is showcasing seven films from the competition. We’re sharing one a day in the lead up to the one-hour awards special, airing on TVNZ2. Today, Nothing to See Here by PickleThugs. Nothing To See Here is a … Read more
Three new permanent staff positions and casual shift work available. We entered the level four lockdown in the unfortunate position of having lost a few key senior staff in recent months, without yet having found their replacements. Now, with the white-hot first phase of the story starting to ebb, we’re recruiting some much-needed reinforcements. Our tight, … Read more
An independent, sensuous life unfolds in hundreds of brightly-lit scenes. I first heard of Ian Wedde in the 1960s, through his poetry. It was a jolt. Wasn’t verse supposed to be runic and remote? This guy was chatting to you! OK, chatting in a voice that was colloquial yet innovative; expansive and technically virtuosic, but … Read more
Working in customer service has never been easy, but now it’s pushing workers to the brink. Emily Writes talks to those on the other side of online shopping. Katie* has cried every day for the last few weeks. It’s a good day if she can make it to the end of the day before she … Read more
Good morning, and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Questions swirling about legality of lockdown, Microsoft moves towards much bigger presence in NZ, and Transmission Gully in turmoil. On one level, it’s quite a bizarre question – was it legal for the whole country to be ordered to go into lockdown? The question feels strange … Read more
We’ve known for a long time that there are significant issues with public-private partnerships, but the pandemic has highlighted just how risky they are, writes Matt Lowrie. This is an edited version of a story originally published on Greater Auckland. Covid-19 has dealt the massive Transmission Gully project another blow with announcement that the lockdown … Read more
It’s all about the lag. We’d be idiots to throw away what we’ve achieved. The Spinoff’s coverage of the Covid-19 crisis is only possible because of the support of members. If you can, please consider joining Spinoff Members here (and score a Toby Morris tea-towel) What a milestone: two days in a row with no new … Read more
For all The Spinoff’s latest coverage of Covid-19 see here. Read Siouxsie Wiles’s work here. New Zealand is currently in alert level three – read The Spinoff’s giant explainer about what that means here. For official government advice, see here. The Spinoff’s coverage of the Covid-19 outbreak is funded by The Spinoff Members. To support this work, join The Spinoff Members … Read more
The new fast-track process for major projects will need careful drafting to balance the short-term gains with the long-term effects on climate change, writes planning expert Hamish Rennie. David Parker has announced that some large, “shovel-ready” projects will begin sooner than planned, bypassing public consultation processes under the Resource Management Act. The aim is to … Read more
The latest in our series of charts, graphics and data visualisations by Chris McDowall. David Garcia worked with Chris to create today’s charts. These posts collate the most recent statistics and present them as charts and maps. The Ministry of Health typically publishes data updates in the early afternoon, which describe the situation at 9am … Read more
Nursing historian Pamela Wood looks at the near-impossible task facing nurses at the height of the Spanish flu pandemic. At the heart of nursing is the belief that all those who need medical care should have it, but in many overwhelmed health systems around the world it’s become necessary to triage patient care due to … Read more
In the second part of our new series with Kiwibank answering your questions about Covid-19’s impact on New Zealanders’ finances, a reader asks what the mortgage holiday offer is and what it would mean for their repayments. Kiwibank’s Nicole Pervan responds. Dear Nicole, I’d like your help in understanding the mortgage holiday offer. I am … Read more
The 48-hour film festival is back, self-isolation style. While the judging panel is deciding the winners, The Spinoff is showcasing seven films from the competition. We’re sharing one a day in the lead up to the one-hour awards special, airing on TVNZ2 on Friday, May 8, at 9.30pm. Today, Duck 3D: 2D Busta’s from Flat … Read more
The Christchurch rebuild should act as a cautionary lesson as we contemplate the upcoming post-Covid recovery, writes James Dann. In uncertain times, it can be reassuring to look back at history as a guide. As the Christchurch earthquakes – the first just shy of a decade ago – were our last major disaster, and one … Read more
The winner of the Taite Music Prize for 2020 is Troy Kingi, for his reggae album Holy Colony Burning Acres. Troy Kingi and the Upperclass have won the Taite Music Prize, an award for artistic and creative excellence in New Zealand music. Holy Colony Burning Acres is the third instalment of Kingi’s 10-year plan: 10 … Read more
Benee’s new tune ‘Lownely’, a remix of the international hit ‘Supalonely’, is premiering right here, right now. She tells us about making music in unprecedented times. Local lass and global superstar Benee is a 20-year-old with 23 million monthly listeners. She’s gone from strength to strength since last year’s EPs Stella & Steve and Fire … Read more
Good morning and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Challenges loom in matching unemployed with rural jobs, trans-Tasman travel bubble agreed in principle, and Greens push for urgent Fair Pay Agreements. It is increasingly becoming clear that one of the country’s biggest economic challenges over the rest of the year will be matching people … Read more
Policy responses around the world are massive in scale and constantly changing. Covid-19 Policy Watch captures it in simple, easy-to-compare form. Click here to visit Policy Watch Yesterday New Zealand recorded zero new cases of Covid-19 for the second consecutive day. As almost everyone agrees, that is a tremendous achievement – albeit one that has … Read more
A global survey of the public relations industry puts the Ardern government top of the pile. As New Zealand records its second consecutive day of zero new cases of Covid-19, moving cautiously closer towards the goal of “elimination”, the government has received another international plaudit for the response – this time from public relations practitioners. … Read more
We’re beginning to solve a crucial part of the puzzle: just when, and for how long, are people infectious? I’ve pointed this out before, but it’s worth repeating. With Covid-19 we are trying to understand a virus and disease we’ve never encountered before. That means there are many gaps in our knowledge. All around the … Read more
It’s the penultimate episode of the season, so what better time to reveal what Jamie Fraser’s sperm looks like? Tara Ward recaps season five, episode 11 of Outlander. We’ve been surfing the Outlander wave for many moons now, but our beloved drama still knows how to surprise us like Jamie Fraser jumping out from behind … Read more
For all The Spinoff’s latest coverage of Covid-19 see here. Read Siouxsie Wiles’s work here. New Zealand is currently in alert level three – read The Spinoff’s giant explainer about what that means here. For official government advice, see here. The Spinoff’s coverage of the Covid-19 outbreak is funded by The Spinoff Members. To support this work, join The Spinoff Members … Read more
One month ago Bauer closed all its New Zealand mags, including Woman’s Day. This week a new issue of Woman’s Day went on the shelves. What’s going on? After a five-week absence, a major women’s magazine produced by Bauer has returned to New Zealand supermarkets and subscribers’ letterboxes. At first glance, it appears to be … Read more
The latest in our series of charts, graphics and data visualisations by Chris McDowall. David Garcia worked with Chris to create today’s charts. This work is entirely funded by the generosity of The Spinoff Members, with support from the Science Media Centre. These posts collate the most recent statistics and present them as charts and maps. … Read more
Today it was announced that Taika Waititi would be directing and co-writing a Star Wars film. It’s great news, but fans should probably not get too excited, writes Sam Brooks. In 2017, when a user suggested on Twitter that Taika Waititi should direct a Star Wars film, the director quote-tweeted them with this retort: I'd … Read more
The 48-hour film festival is back, self-isolation style. While the judging panel is deciding the winners, The Spinoff is showcasing seven films from the competition. We’re sharing one a day in the lead-up to the one-hour awards special, airing on TVNZ2. Today, Cookie Jar from team The Morris Buchanans. Cookie Jar is an exploration of … Read more