Some of the best shows on Neon will take between a day and weeks to get through. Here’s a guide to the classics you’ve been holding off on, how long they take to watch, and why you should watch them. It’s a scientific fact that there’s too much TV and nobody has enough time. There’s … Read more
When Covid-19 forced New Zealanders to live most of their lives online it exacerbated the effects of digital exclusion. Jean Teng spoke to the organisations that kept vulnerable communities connected during the pandemic. From job hunting and banking to watching TV and scrolling through the news, there is hardly a corner of modern life untouched … Read more
The MacDiarmid Institute DiscoveryCamp gives Māori and Pasifika high school students a taste of life as a scientist. Teuila Fuatai finds the experience often leads to much more. Eden Skipper loves eeling. “It is a family tradition,” he says proudly. The 22-year-old of Ngāi Tahu descent grew up on the east coast of Canterbury, near … Read more
The first episode of our new podcast series tackles equality and equity and the role of our education system as a solution. Subscribe now to Conversations that Count – Ngā Kōrero Whai Take, for essential insight into the future of Aotearoa. The idea that all New Zealanders should have access to equal opportunities is one … Read more
You probably shouldn’t expect any happy endings from buzzed-about new Neon show Gangs of London, but maybe that’s not such a bad thing. The Hero’s Journey, a 17-stage literary structure popularised by the 20th century work of literature professor Joseph Campbell but present through centuries of storytelling, lays out for creators and consumers a well-trodden … Read more
After hitting a career-low in recent years, New Zealand’s most successful rally driver ever is ready to once again take on the world. He talks to George Driver from his Cromwell garage about reaching WRC success against all odds, the trauma and disappointment of the last few years, and his plans to build the world’s … Read more
The road to hell is paved with good intentions. The Mind Lab’s new leadership course is designed to replace those aspirations with action. One of Nobel Prize-winning economist Milton Friedman’s best-known quotes is “the only business of business is business”. For him and many others who believed that the market should decide, doing good was … Read more
The end of the wage subsidy is expected to trigger an avalanche of financial hardship requests. Budgeting services and financial mentors are bracing to meet it head on. It’s been a surprisingly quiet few months for most of New Zealand’s budgeting services. Spending was down during lockdown and with more than a million people tended … Read more
From the rubble of 2020 comes the opportunity to create a new future. Conversations That Count – Ngā Kōrero Whai Take will examine what that could look like. Subscribe here, and read host Stacey Morrison’s introduction below. ‘Unprecedented’ is starting to feel like a euphemism for this year. And it’s still only August. But from … Read more
It’s estimated about 6700 babies were born in New Zealand during alert levels four and three. Emily Writes spoke to new mothers around the country to find out what that experience was like. Preparing to give birth is a moment of intimidating uncertainty. Under Covid-19’s isolation and restrictions, as mothers around the country approached their … Read more
When Covid-19 forced restaurants to shut, they had to find new ways to feed their customers. At Auckland’s Cotto, their take-home service remained popular even after they opened their doors again. Alert level three seems so long ago now, but I still remember that bone-deep relief as its announcement opened up the prospect of takeaways: … Read more
Young, healthy and pregnant, Talia Cooper’s world was flipped on its head when she discovered a lump on her breast. She spoke to Fiona Rae about becoming a mum and going through cancer treatment at the same time. If there’s one message that Talia Cooper has for young women it’s this: know what’s normal for … Read more
Russell Brown talks to Auckland business RUSH about the challenges and rewards of being an ethical business in the competitive world of technology design. “We design technology to better serve humankind.” It’s the first thing you read on RUSH’s website, and it’s also written on a banner in the middle of its Parnell office. It’s … Read more
In the sixth part of a series sharing the stories of families learning from home during lockdown, Arihia Latham reflects on the life lessons her daughters will take into a new future. This month we acknowledged te wā o Matariki me Pūanga, the Māori new year. It’s been a year huh. I have heard people … Read more
As more businesses focus on e-commerce, the risk of cybercrime increases too. Visa’s Sam Gianniotis offers guidance on how businesses can protect their customers – and themselves – when operating online. With New Zealanders retreating into their homes as lockdown took hold, businesses realised that to stay open they’d need to adapt to an online-first … Read more
Two days before alert level four lockdown, Unity Studios was meant to open its doors for the very first time. First-time business owners Caitlin Day and Sophie Lax were forced to quickly become a virtual studio hosting classes and consults online. If you’ve never been on a Pilates reformer, the large machines look a bit … Read more
Maternal mental health is far more complex than most realise, and for many women, problems start well before the baby is born. Here, four women share their experiences of perinatal distress – and how to get through it. Josie Gritten has three littlies and she is a perpetual motion machine, a superwoman. One day she goes to … Read more
Stacey Morrison talks to Chloe Irvine about life with breast cancer through Covid-19. Breast cancer doesn’t wait for anything – not even a global pandemic. The effects and social restrictions of Covid-19 have put immense strain on women (and men) who are receiving treatment for breast cancer, and the pandemic has also caused delays in … Read more
In the 90s, the so-called information superhighway was more of a dirt road. Now it’s a multi-lane motorway. Vodafone NZ’s Sharina Nisha explains the technology that makes it all possible. They used to call it the information superhighway. Back in the heady days of the 1990s, the term was used to describe the burgeoning potential … Read more
A new report measuring New Zealanders’ financial wellbeing highlights how key sectors of our population are feeling stressed over money, and how Covid-19 has made that worse. Money can’t buy happiness, but it sure can help. After all, it’s what puts food on the table, a roof over our heads, and the power to buy … Read more
They’re here, they’re queer, and they’re at a precipice of a new frontier in both entertainment and performance. We’re Here is the new Neon show that takes drag out of the city and into small town America, writes Dejan Jotanovic. Drag, as an artform, isn’t by any means new. It was common practice in Elizabethan … Read more
With the Covid-19 lockdown casting a light on the value of essential workers, the movement to pay them the living wage is gathering momentum. Every night at corporate and government buildings across the country, long after most of the day workers have gone home, a largely unseen labour force of cleaners and security guards arrives … Read more
From Twin Peaks to The OC, a great soundtrack can elevate any TV series. Insecure is just the latest example – and with all its seasons now streaming on Neon, Laumata Lauano talks us through her favourite needle drop moments. Straight up: the Insecure soundtrack is fire. I’ve known this since Issa Rae’s character Issa … Read more
This month, Kiwibank reset its variable interest rates by 1%, from 4.40 to 3.40%. Kiwibank’s general manager of business banking Nigel Gaudin tells The Spinoff why this is a big deal for local businesses. Okay, what is a variable interest rate? And what have you done to it? A variable interest rate, sometimes called a … Read more
Over lockdown, people who worked live gigs had their careers shut down. Thanks to technology, the connection between music makers and audiences grew and now, they’re more in sync than ever. In the final days of level two, Auckland venue The Tuning Fork tested the waters of post-Covid connection. Soul singer Hollie Smith was performing … Read more
Alex Casey gives her boobs some TLC with help from Breast Cancer Foundation NZ. Here’s a confession: I went 28 years before checking my breasts properly. I mean, I’ve definitely checked that they are there, I’ve done that terrible pencil test to check if I could pull off going braless (I can’t), but I’ve never … Read more
The Maritime Museum’s volunteers share what the ocean means to them, and why sailing is more than an elite boy’s club. “This one would have been home built,” James Clarke says, pointing to a wooden sailboat on display at New Zealand Maritime Museum Hui Te Ananui A Tangaroa. This particular wing houses the museum’s collection … Read more
Cycling is an unusually controversial topic. The NZIER public good team explains why the government invests in cycle lanes, and why they make some people so mad. Under lockdown, we saw nature healing. The air was fresh and clean, native birdsong filled our ears, and bikes returned to the roads. It’s not surprising that bike … Read more
Covid-19 forced both shoppers and small businesses to quickly adapt to a digital-only world. As life returns to something closer to normal, Visa’s Marty Kerr explains how businesses can respond to consumers’ changed habits. It’s a situation so outlandish, not even the most doomsday-prepared could’ve had a plan in place. Before March 25, when the … Read more