Some simple could bring radical impacts, write Peter McKenzie and Thomas Gregory authors of a new paper on civilian casualties in overseas conflict for the New Zealand Alternative On 30 May 2006, Nabiha Jassim was shot and killed as her brother drove her through the streets of the Iraqi city of Samarra. Nabiha had gone … Read more
Rapper Tom Scott has dropped a brand new documentary about trying to make a living as an artist. So is it any good? Extremely unsuccessful former jazz musician Alex Braae had a watch. Tom Scott has always seemed to have an intimate understanding that he won’t get any rap game riches. At a time when … Read more
That poop-inspired kids’ clothing brand you keep seeing everywhere? Turns out it’s a viral marketing stunt. On Sunday, scrolling through Instagram as you do, I came across a sponsored post for a brand called Fe-Cál Kids. The post featured a photo of a little girl in a colourful short dress with the caption “the latest … Read more
The K Road festival, which turned five on Friday, has reached mainstream-level popularity without compromising its local acts focus. While the old-timers encamped in The Studio to sing the Flying Nun classics, Josie Adams went exploring. Not even the most determined and fleet-footed fan could hope to make every one of the 46 acts across … Read more
Business is Boring is a weekly podcast series presented by The Spinoff in association with Callaghan Innovation. Host Simon Pound speaks with innovators and commentators focused on the future of New Zealand. This week he talks to Hamish Pinkham, founder and creative director of Rhythm & Vines. This week’s podcast tells the story of how … Read more
On The Rag host Leonie Hayden got (fake) pregnant and decided to get a (fake) abortion. This is her story. Every year in New Zealand about 13,000 people have abortions. And every year in New Zealand about 200 people are denied abortions. Under our current abortion laws we have an illusion of choice. Abortion care … Read more
This week’s issue of Otago University student magazine Critic features a story on a landlord who gave tenants illegal fixed-term contracts for what was legally a boarding house. It’s just the latest in a string of shocking stories of exploitative Dunedin landlords and property managers, writes editor Charlie O’Mannin. Over the past few years Critic … Read more
It’s entirely possible to save a million dollars in your KiwiSaver account if you start early and follow a few basic rules, writes Martin Hawes. Over the coming years, we are going to have a new breed of millionaire: KiwiSaver millionaires. Who knows, you might be living next door to one. Currently, there are a … Read more
Russell Brown spoke to Dylan Haley about how he’s rejuvenating Gisborne’s film culture. Dylan Haley used to muse that he could do his work – creating poster and packaging art for film distributors – anywhere in the world. After all, he rarely saw his Hollywood clients in person anyway – the Los Angeles traffic made … Read more
More than 75 candidates across the country have already succeeded in their local election races, taking office unopposed. Thankfully The Spinoff is committed to saving our democracy. We challenged high-profile default winner, Whanganui mayor Hamish McDouall, to fight for his job in a political debate against local elections editor Hayden Donnell. The Spinoff local election … Read more
Good morning, and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Measles cases grow as outbreak spreads, far fewer young people committing crimes compared to a decade ago, and DHB psychologist strike to deepen. This is what an outbreak looks like. Measles cases and stories are starting to pop up all over Auckland, and worryingly, spreading further … Read more
More than 600 psychologists in New Zealand have voted to continue the strike they began last month. They say poor pay, long hours, and an institutional lack of respect are causing a mass exodus. A month ago, on the 31st July, 600 APEX psychologists in 16 District Health Boards (DHBs) stopped working overtime. APEX has since … Read more
Sunday Theatre’s new drama Runaway Millionaires tells the story of Kara Hurring, the Rotorua woman who in 2009 fled the country with $10 million which simply landed in her lap. Tara Ward reviews. What would you do if one day you discovered ten million bucks randomly sitting in your bank account? Would you come clean, or … Read more
In June Simon Day learned he was going to become a father – to twins. To find out what he was in for he spoke to Jay Reeve about his first five years raising twin boys. This story originally ran on Barkers 1972 blog I’ll never forget sitting in the dim of the radiology theatre at … Read more
This Father’s Day, broadcaster Nadine Higgins reckons with her complex relationship with her estranged Dad who passed away last year. When someone you love dies, people console you for your loss. But in truth, we lost each other some time ago. Long before that Sunday when I woke inexplicably at 3.30 am, anxious but unaware … Read more
What’s the best way to get adults reading? Get them reading when they’re children – and there’s no better place to start than the Unity Children’s Bestseller Chart. These lists of the bestselling children’s books at Unity Wellington and Little Unity in Auckland cover the four weeks to August 29 2019. AUCKLAND 1 Te Tiriti … Read more
Leading New Zealand broadcaster has many questions for himself. As one of New Zealand’s leading broadcasters, Mike Hosking asks a lot of people a lot of questions. Including himself. Drawn from his published opinion pieces from the last few months, here is a selection of Hosking asking questions and answering them. Are the Asian internet … Read more
Alice Neville dives into Wellington’s doughy underbelly to uncover the eye-opening truth about the capital’s passion for this humble baked item. One of my first proper jobs was at Nikau Cafe in Civic Square, where I worked part-time while I was at university, circa 2004-6ish, making coffee and life-long friends. I also ate a lot … Read more
Eighty years ago, New Zealand declared war on Germany. We seem to take it for granted, most of us, that we needed to join the horrific struggle of the second world war. But the the reasoning may not have stacked up, writes historian Stevan Eldred-Grigg. On 1 September 1939, Hitler ordered his tanks, warplanes and … Read more
What are you going to be watching in September? The Spinoff rounds up everything that’s coming to streaming services this month, including Netflix, Lightbox, Neon, Amazon Prime and TVNZ on Demand. Click here to read our listings for August. The Biggies The Good Place (Netflix, Season 4 weekly, September 24) It’s weird that the smartest, … Read more
The Side Eye is a monthly non-fiction comic by Toby Morris, supported by NZ On Air. Read the rest of the series here.
A shocking Herald story alleging serious violence by of one of its grooms has forced an unprecedented move from MediaWorks. After further details emerged around the alleged behaviour of Chris Mansfield, a groom on the upcoming third season of Married at First Sight NZ, Three has made the unprecedented decision to cut his storyline entirely. … Read more
The Real Pod team assemble to discuss the brilliant Celebrity Treasure Island, The Block’s descent and worrying signs for the upcoming season of Married at First Sight NZ. It’s the show we didn’t know we needed, good-natured family entertainment that doesn’t forget the absolute drama. Shane Cameron nearly tore Jodie Molloy apart just because she … Read more
Over the course of the local elections period, The Spinoff will be publishing primers on some of the most interesting races around the country. Today, Alex Braae casts his eyes over the race for the Waitaki District mayoralty. The Spinoff local election coverage is entirely funded by The Spinoff Members. For more about becoming a member and supporting … Read more
Award-winning designer Nash Karaitiana just had his first show at NZFW. Alice Webb-Liddall caught up with him about his unique brand Unco, and his journey to Fashion Week. The Miromoda show at New Zealand Fashion Week is a must-see each year. Avante garde shares a catwalk with baggy streetwear, simple designs walking alongside wearable artworks … Read more
Turnout in our local elections has long been in decline, particularly among the young. Alex Braae looks at what’s being done to improve those stats, and find a lack of centralised funding and strategy. Our local elections coverage is fully funded by The Spinoff Members. For more about becoming a member and supporting The Spinoff’s journalism click here. This … Read more
The biggest popstar in the world, a trash country icon and a dancehall legend are what we’ve been listening to this month – it’s The Spinoff Music’s Songs of the Month for August. International Mess with My Head by Miranda Lambert I included Lambert last month, justifiably, because that song bangs. But I kind of … Read more
TaiTokerau Rugby League is a breakaway competition aiming to bring power back to the people in the Far North. But under the lead of CEO Hone Harawira, it’s not without its critics. Don Rowe reports. This feature is made possible thanks to The Spinoff Members. For more about becoming a member and supporting The Spinoff’s journalism click here. Three … Read more
To mark the centenary of Colin McCahon’s birth, a weekend of events in August included a bus ride to experience ‘McCahon’s Auckland’ and an ‘open home’ at the McCahon House Museum. Paula Morris takes the trip. Buckle up. The first bus to Titirangi leaves at nine AM on Saturday and there’s a certain giggly excitement … Read more