Dear old Winston has blown the cobwebs out this morning with a damning column on how much a mouth piece for Key, Mike Hosking has become...
In Newstalk ZB’s television advert, Mike Hosking breathlessly exclaims, “we keep pushing, asking the hard questions seeking clarity and ultimately resolution. We never sleep because your conversations never do, so if you want to be in the know, join us in the now”. How then does he reconcile such highfalutin claims with a disgraceful piece of writing he penned in the Heraldon August 13: Misery peddlers are milking a crisis?
It is the clearest sign yet that Mr Hosking is a National Party stooge. So much so, his show should be counted against National’s electoral advertising.
Mr Hosking has the temerity to believe that he knows more about what’s happening down on the farm than the elected Member of Parliament of a dairy farming electorate, who comes off a dairy farm and knows the difference between a cow and a bull? What is Mr Hosking’s farming experience, his local organic supermarket?
Unlike this well-paid mouthpiece farmers know our dairy industry is going through the floor. These are not my words but a Farmers Weekly commentator who further adds, “timber is having major issues, lamb and wool are suffering and Auckland house prices are going ballistic”.
So here are some facts Mr Hosking. Not your faux bonhomie but reality.
…as entertaining as Winston’s put down of Hosking is, it also touches upon a raw nerve of the media in this country.
With the killing off of TVNZ7, with the budget freeze at RNZ, with the mates rates deal for MediaWorks, the appointment of Paul Henry, Mike Hosking and demise of Campbell Live for political reasons and the axing of Dita De Boni for ‘budgetary’ reasons, our media doesn’t even pretend to be balanced any longer.
It’s not just putting up a commentator who is ‘left’, when the hosts are right wing fanatics because that only generates the pretence of balance. If Media are going to employ these biased individuals as hosts, then they have an obligation upon them to allow equally impassioned voices from the Left to participate.
Watch this remarkable take down of Hosking by Jane Kelsey a couple of weeks ago – why isn’t Jane allowed on more often and why aren’t progressive commentators as intelligent and articulate as her so rare now?
The reason why articulate and intelligent progressive commentators are effectively blacklisted now on most major networks is for political reasons. We have lapdogs instead of watchdogs and the powers that be are happy with that outcome.
Public Broadcasting must be a priority for any new Government coming into power in 2017.
I think Key is giving Hoskings One for the Team.
Mike Hoskings should be sacked as he is not delivering impartial news on the State Broadcaster TV One. A Maori broadcaster was immediately sacked for exactly the same offence.
I liken it to Nazi Propaganda delivered by Joseph Goebbels and the Third Reich in Germany 1933-1944, history often repeats itself unfortunately some of us will never learn.
To paraphrase Martyn, Jack if you think TV One is the ‘state broadcaster’ you don’t know the meaning of the words ‘state’ or ‘broadcaster’.
Both Hosking and Key are Sycophants and will do any thing for money.
Just take last Saturdays Rugby test and the Herald today, lots of articles regarding the AB’s and under at least three of them is a photo of Key, talk about promotion from the Herald towards Key, it is sickening.
The Guy is just using Ritchie McCaw for his own ends.
So shame on the Herald.
If you look at Key’s dismissal of people like Eleanor Catton, John Campbell and Jane Kelsey alongside his attitude to those like Hosking, with whom he is comfortable, you get a glimpse of something like a belief that we are now living in a “post-political” world, and that anyone who disagrees is at best out of step, and at worst one of those perennial malcontents of which there are always a few. Neoliberal values are now meant to be the invisible backdrop against which you can vote for better or worse managers but not for or against the system itself. To admit to politics would be to admit otherwise.
However, the neo-liberal creed is incapable of taking an invisible background role – it is always making itself visible in disconcerting ways, like the TPPA for example, or hungry children, or homelessness. Hence it ends up as a “non-political” position that demands continuous political defense.
They nicknamed him the “silent assasin” at Merrill Lynch, a leopard does not change his spots. He has a very big ego to feed.
`The Smiling Assassin’
“demise of Campbell Live for political reasons”…
Any evidence to back that statement Martin?
1. It’s Martyn
2. You’re new here aren’t you?
Lots of evidence Ben…if you choose to go back and do a bit of research on what Key has said re John Campbell, especially after Campbell did an investigative report on timeline expose on Keys lies and spy meetings…Key was out to get Campbell
Must be hard seeing the keyboard with such a myopic view of National’s political interference in New Zealand media Ben.
Yes Ben.
It’s called a discriminating mind…
Observe and deduce
Observe and deduce
@ Martyn re @ Ben. Brilliant.
@ Ben. You dear little sweetheart . I love you. I do xxxx
I adore you from near, and afar . I have a quantum adoration going on for you. I think we may have a parallel Universe thing going. Mmmmm.. Dear boy x
( The last time I levelled my bile cannon at you darling resulted in Scarlett Mod wiping out two hours work for the sake of a sentence therefore now, we’re in love . Like it or not. So, about that hug? )
The Trolls chucking out logical fallacies without caring to get details correct is ominous.
The media not caring that they’re now more Right Wing than a Fukushima Chicken is ominous .
That insufferable sneer on jonky is ominous .
The puffy cheeks of paula bennett as she shows off her pearly whit meat-eaters is ominous .
I’m genuinely beginning to feel nervous. We’re wading through the Rubicon and the water’s swifter, deeper and colder than I imagined.
It’s hard to conceive why any media business in New Zealand would want to put its support so blatantly behind one political party. It ultimately means it’s fortunes are anchored to that of the party they back. Where as once they may have been able to fudge neutrality, the personalities they now employ and their participation in sundry smear campaigns now gives that game away.
For example I am in little doubt from all the calls and emails from the NZ Herald that they are desperately looking for new subscribers, as I once was, but they seem blind to the fact that being the National Party’s journal is something that is bad for business. Similarly Newstalk ZB and Mediaworks although with the latter they are still at least trying to pretend there is some vague objectivity with “The Story”. The trouble is anyone who has listened to Garner especially leading up to the last election would know where his deep blue allegiances lie.
Is it that the big money that makes up National have got their men or influence in certain boardrooms to ensure their propaganda is unopposed?
Too busy playing with it like Hoskings.
Got rid of John Campbell and employed the porky little maori boy to cover the Tory views on TV3, clever move by Weldon and Key covering all the bases with the Right Wing propaganda machine.
There must be a couple of National hacks come onto this site Martyn, as you can always count on two down ticks whenever this lousy Govt is mentioned.
If we get a true Socialist Government in this country, (which at the moment I much doubt), the first two things they will have to do is clean out the top of Public Broadcasting and clean out the Public Service or else they won’t last past one term.
Labour was a Socialist Party but is no more. The faster it dies the better!!!
Its pretty obvious.who Mike bats for. Nothing to debate about really.
Same for the Herald – so, so obvious – just open your eyes a little wider Ben and the truth will smack you in the face.
NZ MSM – SOLD OUT the lot of them, and once you see this truth, it will set you free. Trust me on this one.
Its pretty obvious.who Mike bats for. Nothing to debate about really.
Same for the Herald – so, so obvious – just open your eyes a little wider Ben and the truth will smack you in the face.
NZ MSM – SOLD OUT the lot of them, and once you see this truth, it will set you free – and the weaker they become. Trust me on this one.
Might even bat for the other side?
We need a publicly funded not-for-profit television station.
Yes Kevin, this is a ‘need’.
Is anyone in Labour listening to us, or are they only listening to Hosking?
I’d only vote for a party that has a policy for a publicly funded not-for-profit television station. Dirty politics is inevitable with TVNZ the way it is.
Is Hosking even the author of the propaganda he claims credit for?
I would argue his “opinions” always reinforce a theme that Key or one of his minions lead in with. And these “opinions” have such a consistent bias toward National that it is probable that he is simply given a script to put the finishing “Mike” touches to, based on trends and focus group research!
It’s another take on the “If you tell a big enough lie and tell it frequently enough, it will be believed.” scenario.
Is Hosking even the author of the propaganda he claims credit for?
If he is not, the author should be sacked for being shallow, pretentious, uniformed and just plain thick.
When we restore true democracy (quite soon now) we know where to clean up and what to clear out.
This is what Hosking should be covering. The reason behind the rush and secrecy of the TPPA – UN Jubilee Mtg NYC Sept – preparation for One World Order (plse tolerate dramatic intro and music – meat of matter some way into interview):
(Plse forgive me Martyn for pushing this in here :D)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rkELgi6EkNo
I lived for nearly a year in an Eastern European country under one-party “socialist” governance.
The media’s role was to be an extension of the government; spouting the official Party line; influenced by Party apparatchiks; run by managers supportive of the regime…
Same policy as in the Eastern European, formerly “socialist” country.
The only difference is that the National Party mouthpieces here are better paid to prostitute themselves.
Crosby Texter Nationals PR Agency will be writing the script and briefing before each edition of Seven Sharp.
FYI Frank, Mike is not, and never has been, an actual Journalist. He is trotted out as such (except, carefully, by Steve Joyce) by many.
But he ain’t.
He is a “popularist”, “opinionated” entertainer – that’s all. I heard Larry saying tonight that he, and the rest of the ZB wankers, are all hired because they have “opinions”. I laughed out loud! As a 40 year broadcasting veteran, I thought they were hired to air the opinions of the callers. My bad, obviously.
I worked with Mike in 1979 briefly when he was a teenager with aspirations. He was a nice guy then. Brown-nosing gets you a long way obviously when the situation is right. He has a real flash car.
But he is still not a journalist.
Bit over the top Frank, but there is an election in 2017. Are you saying the NZ Press are similar to the press in a one party Eastern Europe country?
One set of rules for right wing Tory broadcasters from Remuera Auckland, and another for Maori broadcasters on Maori TV.
Mike Hoskings is an A Lister and at the top of his game in the NZ broadcasting world so he can say what he likes.
Mike and John Key are old boys of the Linwood Biscuit Club in Christchurch
from the late 70’s early 80’s, so their roots go back along way.
This will die a natural death, Mike Hoskings is a key marketing tool in the National Party strategy, if he keeps slagging off, Little, Winston and Turei enough times, viewers will soon start believing him. Hoskings is a National Media Brainwashing Tool.
Heheheheehee….still, ….good on old Winnie.
Hehehehehee.
Only Winston , only Winston….it’ll be a sad day when we lose him ,…and , …as for that odious little pseudo journalist twerp Hoskings…the sooner we lose him the better.
NZ is rapidly turning into a Police State with a Stasi Network similar to East Germany in the 1950’s to the 1980’s maybe it is ingrained in John Keys Hungarian Heritage & Roots.
This is hardly news. We’ve known this for ages.
better to say it instead of assuming everyone knows. Doesnt everyone know how ‘chinese’ whispers ends up.
Oh Uncle Winnie, live forever!
This is one of the reasons Winston has it all over Andrew.
Winston isn’t relying on some poll to tell him he has done well. Winston is doing what he has always done. His credibility against this Government cannot in my opinion be questioned. He has stood up and won against JK time and time again.
I’m sure Winston still believes Winston can be PM. I think he can. If he continues to eat up the soft right centre that has started to abandon National and the Labourites who are falling away from a party slowly dying from loss of its own common roots.
NZ is starting to hurt. We are starting to lose focus from the suffering too. Which means we are starting to get angry. There will be a lot more protesting to come before the election but if Winston can be at the crest or forefront of the change he can be Prime Minister of NZ.
Well Said Rob!
And a very true metaphor in your third paragraph, a tree whose roots are dead also dies and as you say the Labour party has lost its common roots. The Labour party is dead but like a tree it will take some time to finally fall over.
They must have dirt on him.
Gutless spineless NZ Media, – is about the best thing one could say about this despot load of Tractors so called Forth estate.
We will never forget the way they eagerly took the bribe to stay gaged.
So do your best corrupted media & remember that what goes around comes back around one day.
NZ Media is absolute garbage with no one with any ability to do any critical analysis of any subject.
It is all a hyped up soap opera rah rah rah, ie Ritchie McCaw for a knighthood and future PM, what a load of crap the guy has been on the pigs back for the last 15 years and knows nothing about the real world, let alone doing an honest days work. It is all a media beat up with his best mate buddy John Key lingering in his hip pocket. Can’t wait for the next triple hand shake at the next World Cup, makes me puke.
The thing that annoys is that its the taxpayer who pays Hoskins salary,and the taxpayer who is used by National to push his forktongued speech, Hoskins couldn’t think of anything to say about Winston than “Oh hes bored”,well Mr Hosking I change the word to say “you are boring”.because you are.
Meanwhile John Campbell, Willie Jackson and Brian Gould are totally neutral and have never shown his political bias in any piece of work they have performed.
Hosking is a boring, white, semi-educated, upperclass, right wing, Remuera Boy.
We definitely need an independent State Broadcaster to supply independent critical analysis of New Zealand, its political parties, politicans and each parties economic and social policies.
I am sick to death of the rah, rah, rah, National rant by the likes of Mike Hoskings, Duncan Garner, Paul Henry and Paddy Gower, obviously they are on National’s payroll and a bought lackys.
It just goes to show how poorly educated the NZ public is when it comes to understanding, political, economic and social information. They basically believe everything they read in the press or hear over radio and television.
It may be futile, but I constantly send complaints to TV One about Hoskings. I would like to see a conceted effort to bombard them frquently with sack Hoskings. As a pensioner, I have time, so I do it on behalf of everyone. Even if they ignore me, I will continue to do so. 3, the Herald and Stuff cop it too.
PS. I write as a tax-payer sick of seeing my money spent on biased “journalist” –who don’t know the meaning of the word.
It’s worth remembering that 20 years ago, when he was a Morning Report host, Mike Hosking was a good journalist. He knew how to ask the tough questions. On his day, he could rip any politician to shreds. Back in my student activist days, I was once got an invitation to be interviewed on Morning Report and spent the whole morning praying that I’d get Geoff Robinson, not Mike. No such luck, although fortunately he was saving his powder for someone more important, Winston Peters if I recall correctly.
It has been tragic to witness his descent, first into egocentric popular journalism and more recently to so blatantly lose any notion of political neutrality that he can no longer be credibly associated with the word “journalism”.
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