Mediawatch: New Zealand's biggest media company took charge of its own destiny this year with a surprise management buyout, but also was not afraid to confront its own racist history.
Stuff's front page pledge to reeaders. Photo: supplied
Stuff chief executive Sinead Boucher bought the media business from its Australian owners earlier this year for $1. The company followed that up with its Our Truth, Tā Mātou Pono project, which saw some readers cancel their subscriptions, but also prompted a moving response from Māori and a record number of digital donations.
In one of its biggest investigations ever, Stuff has analysed its newspaper and online archives over the last 163 years and concluded that it has taken "a mono-cultural approach ... that prioritised Pākehā worldviews".
Its coverage had ranged from "racist to blinkered". On its front pages and in an editorial it apologised in English and te reo Māori.
Boucher, who is both chief executive and owner of Stuff and its 49 newspapers, told Mediawatch that the business fully expected their initiative would upset some readers. Some had cancelled their newspaper subscriptions, because they didn't like the idea of examining the past, or making an apology to Māori for the harm reporters had caused and the silencing of Māori voices.
These included one caller who complained about "the five pages of b....... you made me read this morning".
"But on the other side, we had a record day, biggest day ever by far, of people signing up to be digital contributors and voluntary payments or supporters through Stuff.
"We have had an outpouring of incredible support and reaction and thoughtful letters and comments from the public at large.
"And some amazing scenes in our local newsrooms too, where groups from either local iwi or individual Māori have come into our newsroom to speak openly and frankly about what this move meant for them and how they hoped it would really reset things for a new era of partnership and participation.
"We are really holding ourselves to account and we hope others also do as we go ahead to make sure we get it right."
Sinead Boucher: "We have had an outpouring of incredible support." Photo: supplied
She said the investigation is already prompting journalists to think deeper and harder about how they cover stories but she promised Stuff would not pull back from being challenging and asking hard questions.
"I think what we have been guilty of in the past, and so has much of the media, has been giving too much weight to a certain group of perspectives and voices and that's what we're really seeking to address there."
She said moves were also afoot to recruit more Māori reporters but newsrooms would need to be seen as an attractive option for a Māori school leaver or graduate to come into and the company would need to provide more than just good training programmes.
Wealthy backers
She said she had no shortage of potential backers but they rapidly lost interest when they were told they would not have any editorial control.
These are people unhappy with something, such as the government or an editorial position on an issue.
"That's absolutely not up for sale - I'd rather say goodbye to someone with deep pockets than see that kind of interference creep into our company," Boucher said.
However, she was not ruling out other financial pathways, such as listing the company. "But at the moment it's just me, and the team, and our company doing as best we can for the things we want to do."
'Amazing' year
Boucher also recalled the "worrying and bleak time" that the company faced as it went into lockdown in March. Since then she has bought the company for just $1 from its Australian owner Nine after a potential sale to NZME fell through.
"It's amazing to think where we've come from in the last six months but we were definitely looking ahead to think would we be able to survive as a business ... how long was the advertising going to be gone for, what would our owner do?
"All those sort of thngs were swishing around as we all sat at our kitchen tables trying to run what turned out to be the biggest news year ever as well, which is the other side of the context for us. As all the business side was going on, there was so much important news."
While the business has been brought back into New Zealand ownership, it hasn't changed "the overarching challenges" being faced by news media in this country and worldwide, Boucher said.
The rise of digital and the impact of the tech giants, such as Google and Facebook, continue to put pressure on the business at a time of record audiences for Stuff and other media.
"On the one hand you've got this disrupted advertising market that funds the journalism that we produce and, on the other hand, you've got more demand than ever and more need than ever for that journalism from the consumer."
Photo: 123RF
This has led to an increased emphasis on reader donations for the material they're reading. "But advertising still is and will remain a really critical part of funding that journalism."
She said she is not heading into next year planning any big restructurings or cost-cutting as that has already happened under previous owners.
"Our focus now is much more on how do we change for growth, would we be a potential acquirer of a new business or look at new areas to go into... we don't know what 2021 is going to bring across the board."
The business is also closely linked to the performance of the economy, because advertising and marketing are often axed when the economy dips.
While the business is stronger than she could have dreamed of at the beginning of lockdown, advertising levels have not returned to the pre-pandemic levels.
She is looking to Labour's promised second package for media that is aimed at supporting regional journalism.
She is also hoping that the government will follow the example of other countries and look to rein in the market power of the tech giants, who have "made enormous fortunes out of carrying content created by others".
"Journalism is needed more than ever to clean up the pollution that comes through those platforms yet ironically our existence and ability to do that is threatened by the success they have built largely off the back of the high quality content that others have created."