OK, so we’ve got rid of plastic bags. But what about all the other stuff? Phasing plastic packaging out is a mammoth task, but some of the industry’s main players are working hard to promote change. Next time you’re at your local supermarket, have a look around. Go up and down each aisle and have … Read more
The summer is nearly over and it’s time to harvest and store for the winter months ahead. Learn more about the maramataka, the Māori lunar calendar, here. Tēnā koutou te hunga e kauawhitia nei i tēnei kaupapa! We have reached Poutūterangi, the tenth lunar month of the Māori year, which is equivalent to the month of … Read more
Sam Brooks steps back in time to 2009, the year of Now! That’s What I Call Music 31. What did his younger self think of those songs – and do they still hold up today? The year was 2009 and it was full of, as your worst friend would say, ‘absolute chunes’. No album, no compilation, … Read more
The Monday Extract: John Walsh and photographer Patrick Reynolds join forces to present a handsome new book about some structures in Auckland. Mackelvie Street Precinct, Ponsonby Road and Mackelvie Street The treatment of the shops’ white cement-sheet façades may be inspired by the pressed-tin ceilings of their Victorian and Edwardian neighbours, but on a blue-sky day … Read more
Winston Peters has spent decades gaming MMP to keep himself in the position of king (or queen) maker. Asks Danyl Mclauchlan, are we really going to make it even easier for politicians like him? The Green Party has put forward a members bill which, among other things, advocates lowering the MMP threshold from 5% to … Read more
Buying your first home is confusing, stressful, and a huge financial decision – and nobody knows that better than those who have actually done it. Here’s The Spinoff’s advice, gleaned from sometimes brutal first-hand experience. Buying a home is intimidating. Buying your first home can be terrifying. Once the adrenaline rush from bidding at the … Read more
Alex Casey conducts a highly scientific study into the gendering of your morning cuppa. Gendering food and drink is all the rage these days, from National’s sausage sizzle innuendo to Whittaker’s new gender reveal chocolate bars. Blue for boys, pink for girls. Sausages for boys, clueless political chat for girls. It’s made some angry and … Read more
Good morning, and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Phil Goff confirms he’ll run for another term as Auckland mayor, Greens unveil members bill with sweeping electoral changes, and real estate agents are giving up. Auckland mayor Phil Goff has finally confirmed he’ll be seeking another term, and hasn’t shied away from the challenges Auckland … Read more
Last week we published a piece from a journalism student who feared there might not be a worthwhile career for them when they finally graduated. Today, a rebuttal from journalism academic Daniel Nielsen who says actually, it’s not as bad as you might think. In times of incessant job cuts, mergers, failed mergers, fake news, … Read more
How high is too high for the line that separates the political contenders and pretenders? Jake Metzger has a look at the issues around the heavily disputed MMP threshold. This piece was originally published on Radio NZ. Ever scratched your head, dumbfounded as to how a political party that garnered a mere 13,075 votes in … Read more
Can New Zealand afford for the world to give up meat eating, and go fully vegan? Can the planet afford for that not to happen? Here are the key issues around whether or not the world should make that choice. This piece by Emma Cropper was originally published on Newshub. While some have declared 2019 … Read more
More and more cases of the scary spotty disease measles are popping up in the news. Here’s what you need to know about whether you’re in danger. Getting a serious dose of measles isn’t a pleasant experience. The symptoms are extremely not fun. Ear infections. Pneumonia. The wild shits. Your brain literally swelling so much … Read more
Bringing you the best weekly reading from your friendly local website. A landlord: I was a landlord, and I hated the person it made me become “Two weeks ago we sold up our mum and dad investment and went back to just being a mum and dad. We sold it because we could, because we … Read more
Everyone knows it’s cold in Antarctica but knowing exactly how cold it is the job of Jeremy Rutherford, an environmental technician for NIWA who has just returned from nearly three weeks in Antarctica giving the weather stations their annual check-up. Every morning at Scott Base, someone heads outdoors to do the “daily obs” – the … Read more
In the second in our (rather sporadic) series “Why I love”, Hayden Donnell is convinced that Auckland’s best Mexican food is tucked away in an unlikely spot in Henderson. To find the best Mexican food in Auckland, you have to head west from the city centre, cross the causeway on State Highway 16 and exit … Read more
Love Island has smashed streaming records all over the world and Three’s purchase of the global rights, along with a pricey local franchise, will complete a radical transformation of the channel. This week The Spinoff learned that Mediaworks, parent company of Three, plans on launching a New Zealand version of ITV’s megahit Love Island. The … Read more
Arthur William Taylor was released from prison this month, and is set to continue his legal work started behind bars including campaigning to restore voting rights to people in prison. But why did prisoners lose the right to vote in the first place? On November 10, 2010, a young Simon Bridges took to the … Read more
The Wellington Phoenix managed to get a club record crowd when they last played in Auckland. Is the A-League missing out on a massive potential market? “Stand up if you love the Kingz, stand up if you love the Kingz…” rung out around Mt Smart Stadium for the very last time on Sunday 29 February … 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, with the interview available as both audio and a transcribed excerpt. This week Simon talks to Elisha Watson of underwear company Nisa. When … Read more
How will schools respond to their students walking out on strike later in March? The actions of two Auckland schools show competing visions on how to deal with the activism, with one Principal coming out in full support, reports Alex Braae. Schools are at odds with each other over how to respond to upcoming student … Read more
Frontline police in Christchurch have been told to carry guns until further notice following two incidents in the city during which police were shot at. But more guns are not the answer, argues Emilie Rākete. Last Saturday, the police say a man fired shots at a patrol car in Christchurch. Then on Tuesday, after a … Read more
The Real Pod assembles to dissect the fourth week on Married at First Sight Australia, with special thanks to Nando’s. Your favourite Married at First Sight Australia experts are back to look at a week on MAFS that may or may not have gone too far. Innes and Sam have gone full steam ahead in the sauna (allegedly), … Read more
The news that Reading Cinema’s wonderful cinema staff are being made redundant was a shock given Reading Cinemas had just said the complex would reopen. Emily Writes salutes the workers. This piece began as a tribute to my favourite cinema complex, and then the news broke that all staff there would be made redundant. Like … Read more
Easy baking to celebrate the best of late-summer fruit. This week and next, I’m sharing two recipes inspired by wild blackberries. Having grown up in the suburbs of Auckland, blackberry bushes were rather hard to come by, but now I find myself living a semi-rural lifestyle in the regions, blackberry bushes are rather hard to … Read more
The Hanoi Summit – the second of its kind between US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un – has disappointingly ended with no agreement being reached. Rebekah Jaung writes about the ramifications. T-shirts with caricatures of the two heads of state, King Jong Ale, and, images of crowds lining the streets of … Read more
New poetry by Semira Davis. Into the garden come into the garden where your mother and uncle lean the bamboo corpses into triangle arches for the beans the garden where the earth reads your palm and the life line the love line the heart line are dirty and mud come into the garden and … Read more
Heartbreak Island is back for another year, bringing more raunch and drama than ever before. Watch as Alex Casey dives in. What is Heartbreak Island? Is it a moral toilet? Is it an ambitious mutant? Is it a chance to get hotties to talk about climate change? Is it all just a bit of a … Read more
Good morning, and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Police order to be armed in Canterbury raises debate, Local Government NZ calls for more devolution, and appalling rates of strangulation cases revealed. All frontline Canterbury police have been told to arm themselves by their District Commander, reports Stuff. The order followed a shootout involving police, in which … Read more
Jacinda Ardern’s personality, relative youth and air of doing things differently are winning over the centre, but she needs to get moving on climate change, writes former National minister Wayne Mapp. In 2017, the day after Winston Peters had chosen which of the two major parties would be in government, I wrote a column about … Read more