King’s Birthday Honours 2026 Rewards the Establishment
Barry Soper gets journalism honours. Elizabeth Rata gets education honours. Martyn sees no public virtue here, just the establishment pinning medals on itself.
mediawatch
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Barry Soper’s King’s Birthday Honour Is a Media Farce
Barry Soper gets a King’s Birthday gong for journalism. Martyn sees something else: a warning label for what happens when bitterness devours a career.
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Jim Grenon Media Influence and the Batchelor Case
Jim Grenon tried to keep his role funding Julian Batchelor’s failed TVNZ defamation case out of the news. The judge said no. That matters.
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RNZ Shake-up: Why Brent Impey Could Be Good for Public Radio
RNZ gets Brent Impey, Paul Thompson heads for the exit and Maiki Sherman’s fall still says plenty about political journalism. Martyn is not pretending to be neutral.
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Luxon John Campbell Clash Over Big Polluters
John Campbell asks why big polluters appear to be getting the law rewritten in their favour, and Luxon responds with a warning. That alone tells you how rotten this looks.
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NZ Corporate Media Awards Itself While Journalism Burns
NZ corporate media gave itself another shiny dinner while the Fourth Estate burns, the BSA gets torched, RNZ gets threatened, and journalism is eaten alive.
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Why trust Matua Shane Jones meeting Trump’s Mining Nazgul?
As Shane Jones courts international mining interests, critics warn donor influence and deregulation are reshaping New Zealand politics.
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Tommy Robinson and Israel’s Flag Day – two sides of the same fascism
From Tommy Robinson marches to extremist Flag Day scenes, critics warn modern nationalism is sliding deeper into open dehumanisation.
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Anti-Vaxx Protesters Target Jacinda Ardern Again
The anti-vaccine movement’s obsession with Jacinda Ardern shows how COVID-era anger has hardened into a permanent grievance culture.
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Israel panics over sexual assault of Palestinians, so launches defamation action.
Israel’s reported threat to sue over coverage of alleged abuse of Palestinian prisoners has intensified debate over propaganda, media narratives and war crimes scrutiny.
