Alex Casey talks to Ali Mau about the launch of #MeTooNZ, a nationwide investigation into sexual harassment and assault. Ali Mau has never been busier. Not even one week after she launched #MeTooNZ, a nationwide investigation into workplace sexual harassment, Mau has been inundated with calls from hundreds of survivors wanting to share their experiences from … Read more
We reveal the shortlist of this year’s national book awards. Magazine writer Diana Wichtel, Wellington novelist Brannavan Gnanalingam and some other authors have made it onto the shortlist of the 2018 Ockham New Zealand Book Awards. The Spinoff Review of Books names these two authors straight off the bat and ahead of everyone else because we rate their … Read more
Spinoff Parents editor Emily Writes writes about co-sleeping and her long journey to self-acceptance about her style of parenting. The other day I said to my husband “I should really try to get the baby to sleep on his own tonight.” My husband smiled and gave me a hug. He knew that what I really … Read more
Two witches at The Spinoff respond to Al Nisbet’s terrible cartoon this morning, one which is not only confused about the meaning of ‘witch hunt’ but could also work to silence women emboldened by #MeToo. What in the name of Anjelica Houston’s wig is this?! Look, we honestly don’t know. We’ve tried burning it at … Read more
Spinoff literary editor Steve Braunias previews two big events – tomorrow’s announcement of the Ockham national book awards shortlist, and this weekend’s Writers and Readers programme at the New Zealand Festival in Wellington. Most weeks go by in the New Zealand literary scene without comment, without incident, without joy and triumph and alcoholic depravity. But … Read more
The Spinoff (or a sizeable chunk of it) went to Auckland City Limits on Saturday. Here’s our collective review. Head Like A Hole I’ve never seen a hard rock band perform at 1 pm. I’ve also definitely never seen a hard rock band do an energetic, spot-on and intermittently impressive cover of ‘Immigrant Song’ at … Read more
Danyl Mclauchlan makes the case that what the new leader of the opposition doesn’t say matters – and what he does say probably doesn’t. The new National Party leader Simon Bridges seems like a smart, talented guy who will only become prime minister through sheer dumb luck. For now he’s leader of the opposition and the … Read more
Air New Zealand’s new safety video has attracted criticism for being filmed in Antarctica, location of the airline’s 1979 crash. But, as NZ Antarctic Research Institute chair Sir Rob Fenwick writes, that shouldn’t take away from Air NZ’s world-leading work to address climate change, in Antarctica and elsewhere. Air NZ should be congratulated for its … Read more
It’s the day of everybody’s favourite celebrity GIF generator: The Oscars. We’ll be here from 2PM to discuss this year’s Academy Awards as they happen in real time. This content, like all television coverage we do at The Spinoff, is brought to you thanks to the excellent folk at Lightbox. Do us and yourself a … Read more
Ahead of Fall Out Boy returning to New Zealand on their MANIA tour next week, Alex Casey fulfils her teenage dream by getting one-on-one time with Pete Wentz. “What did you say? I’m sorry, I can’t hear you.” For someone who spent the better part of 2007-2008 daydreaming about the first words that Pete Wentz … Read more
We should promote everyone having a go at learning te reo Māori – but please think twice before you ask a Māori person to do the heavy lifting for you, writes Nadine Anne Hura. One thing I’ve noticed about being a te reo speaker is just how often people assume I can do translations. I’ve … Read more
On Saturday the second Auckland City Limits went down at Western Springs. Simon Day spent the day roaming the speedway with his camera. The Spinoff’s music content is brought to you by our friends at Spark, a major sponsor of Auckland City Limits. Listen to all the music you love on Spotify Premium, it’s free on all … Read more
For years, Milo has (literally) been milking its Health Star Rating thanks to a loophole which allows calculations on an ‘as prepared’ basis. Jihee Junn looks at how the Milo’s removal of its rating puts the spotlight back on the system’s shortcomings and why the HSR is due for a serious review. Milo has always … Read more
Rent Week 2018: Riding into office at least partly on the inability of the National government to solve – or acknowledge – the housing crisis in New Zealand, Labour now faces the titanic task of actually making something happen. Don Rowe speaks to Minister of Housing and Urban Development Phil Twyford about just how Labour … Read more
Bringing you the best weekly reading from your friendly local website. Linda Clark: How the legal profession has excused and minimised the Russell McVeagh scandal “This shouldn’t need to be said, but young women drinking free alcohol is not the problem here. Yet that view has some powerful supporters. On Wednesday, the former solicitor general Mike … Read more
Avatars, chatbots and virtual assistants are getting smarter by the day, and the AI that powers them is helping customers get more of the right content at the right time. But humans will remain as important as ever. Nigel Piper looks at how (wo)man and machine can work successfully in tandem. The artificial intelligence (AI) … Read more
Over the years, TVNZ’s Ondemand service has spat out some pretty weird offerings. Alex Casey brings us the best of whats hidden on the homegrown streaming service. Who can forget the classic series I Can’t Stop Farting? The reality show about the perils of teaching women to drive? Whichever iteration of budgies, cats, kids or … Read more
Joshua Hitchcock is looking to Māori businesses to help solve the problem of Māori unemployment. In mid-February I travelled to Tauranga to attend Te Hekenga – The National Māori Business Networks and Māori Enterprises Conference. It was an uplifting experience. For two days we heard stories from successful Māori business men and women who have … Read more
Historians and language experts agree that the original meaning of the word Pākehā is most likely to be ‘pale, imaginary beings resembling men’, referring to a sea-dwelling, godlike people in Māori mythology. It has been used to describe Europeans, and then New Zealanders of European descent since before 1815. So why do some people object … Read more
In New Zealand, as in the rest of the world, the climate change conversation tends to focus on fossil fuels and renewable energy. But, asks Kieran Martin, when methane in the atmosphere can do far more damage than carbon dioxide, shouldn’t we thinking harder about cows? When it comes to fossil fuels we know what … Read more
Thirty-nine years ago, Eric Houghton’s father died in the Mount Erebus plane crash, along with 256 other passengers and crew. Now, he writes, Air New Zealand’s new Antarctica-set safety video is dredging up painful memories. 28th November 1979 was like any other day; I think it was a bit cloudy and temperate. I went to … Read more
Rent Week 2018: Shortland Street expert Tara Ward finds the best – and worst – places to live in the mythical Auckland suburb of Ferndale. It’s a hard road finding the perfect place to live, but friends, I bring exciting news. I’ve stumbled across a suburb that is the answer to every renter’s dream, a … Read more
Listen to Alex Casey, Leonie Hayden and Michele A’Court tackle the past month in women, news and popular culture. This month On the Rag, we look back at the revelations from the law world and the reality of workplace harassment. What else shouldn’t you ever, ever say in the workplace? What steps can you take … Read more
This week’s best-selling books at Unity Books in Wellington and Auckland. WELLINGTON UNITY 1 After Alexander: The Legacy of a Son by Jan Pryor (Heddon Publishing, $30) “The prologue in Jan Pryor’s memoir begins exactly 33 years to the day since her son died from cot death…The reader is drawn into the anguish of the … Read more
The Kings Arms, legendary Auckland music venue, closed forever on Wednesday night. Joel Thomas was there with his camera. The Spinoff’s music content is brought to you by our friends at Spark. Listen to all the music you love on Spotify Premium, it’s free on all Spark’s Pay Monthly Mobile plans. Sign up and start listening today.
We talk to Etienne Marais, event producer of Auckland City Limits and probably the only person to work at every New Zealand Big Day Out. Etienne Marais is one of the most experienced music event managers in New Zealand. He started by selling water at the first Big Day Out in Auckland in 1994 and has … Read more
Charlotte Fielding talks to a mum whose partner left when she was pregnant after a six-year struggle to conceive. It’s a story of daring to hope, of struggle and resilience, and of how we can make it through the most unexpected and gut-wrenching events. The door is propped open and Anna* is breastfeeding her four-month-old … Read more
The tar-black anti-rom-com You’re the Worst hits Lightbox today. Sam Brooks explains why the show is the most authentic, beautiful and relatable romance on television today. What’s the difference between being a good person and being a bad person who is trying to do good? Even more crucially, what’s the difference between being a bad person who doesn’t … Read more
New verse by Palmerston North poet Paula Harris. the life expectancy of a cloud I try to calculate if there is any point to health insurance or retirement savings or planning ahead women in New Zealand have an average life expectancy of 83.3 years giving us 3.3 years more than men … Read more