Indian Newslink 15th April 2018 Digital Edition

APRIL 15, 2018
14 Businesslink
Carol Hirschfeld keeps her head down
Mark Jennings
Some commentators have
rebuked the media over its
lack of vigour in questioning
Carol Hirschfeld on why she
lied to RNZ CEO Paul Thompson
about her meeting with Broadcasting,
Communications and Digital
Media Minister Clare Curran.
The presumption being that the
media is looking after one of its
own.
They are wrong.
Hirschfeld’s phone will be full of
voice messages and texts asking for
interviews.
Stories about high profile media
types like (Mike) Hosking, (Paul)
Henry, (Alison) Mau, (Duncan)
Garner or Hirschfeld hitting
turbulence are major generators of
audience interest in all forms of the
media.
Competition desperate
The idea of going easy on a
colleague doesn’t even enter
calculations when competition for
audience attention is as desperate
as it is now.
Newsroom, like all other media
organisations has asked Hirschfeld
for an interview and been turned
down. It is highly unlikely that she
will ever discuss the reasons for
misleading her boss.
Being an experienced journalist,
Hirschfeld knows that no matter
what explanation she produces,
Picture of Mark Jennings from Twitter
Carol Hirschfield (Courtesy: E-Tangata)
it won’t change the fact that she
told an outright lie.
While there may be some sort
of plausible explanation for not
telling the truth when first asked
about the meeting, there is no
way out of the pickle that she has
created by not owning up when
challenged subsequently.
Catastrophic chain of events
Close colleagues of Hirschfeld
say she is devastated by what has
happened.
What was probably a catch-up
by two people excited to discuss
the impact of an impending funding
boost for Radio New Zealand
(RNZ) set off a catastrophic chain
of events that neither would have
imagined.
The excitement was understandable
when you look at it in context.
The development of a high-quality
video component to complement
RNZ’s existing strong public radio
broadcasting would be close to, if
not the high point of their careers.
If they had been plotting to
circumvent or undermine RNZ’s
CEO and Board they would not have
done it over coffee in a crowded,
noisy Wellington café frequented by
journalists and lobbyists.
Hiding in Plain Sight
The so called “hiding in plain
sight” theory is too conspiratorial
by far.
The man who let Hirschfeld go
will also be upset.
In addition to any personal
feelings that he experienced over
the resignation of a close colleague,
Paul Thompson will be unhappy
with being thrust into public gaze in
this way.
It has given ammunition to those
who think the money earmarked
for RNZ+ should be spent on other
things.
RNZ+ is the name Curran has
given the television service she
wants RNZ to provide. A service for
which the Government could cough
up around $30 million.
RNZ+ Plans secret
The plans for RNZ+ have not
been revealed in any detail but RNZ
Chairman Richard Griffin told aSelect
Committee last Thursday (April
5, 2018) that there had been nine
different versions before he (and
presumably the Board) Thompson,
Hirschfeld and Curran all agreed.
The final plan seems to be
pared-back version of a linear
(conventional) TV channel - more
of a bulking-up of the existing video
that RNZ is currently providing.
Sources with knowledge of
the plans say that there was no
fundamental disagreement between
Thompson and Hirschfeld over the
direction.
RNZ+ will need to carry plenty
of strong content to satisfy its
current audience but it also needs
to be innovative enough to recruit
the younger demographic that its
radio product has been successfully
doing.
The Successor Issue
So, who will end up with the
tricky task of making it happen now
Hirschfeld is gone?
Thompson will be tempted to
turn one of his trusted lieutenants
and current Head of Digital, Glen
Scanlon.
Scanlan is now Acting Head of
News and regarded (inside and
outside RNZ) as highly competent.
Former TV3 and TVNZ Producer
Tim Watkin will also be pressing his
claims.
Watkin is RNZ’s Executive Producer
of Podcasts and Series.
Having had a spell as Deputy
Editor of the Listener, his journalistic
credentials are good and he
will know more about producing
TV programmes than most RNZ
executives.
Thompson also has Stephen
Smith to turn to. Smith worked
for TVNZ, Vodafone and Maori TV
before taking charge of branding
and marketing at RNZ. He has a
strong understanding of TV and
new media.
About the Minister
And what of Clare Curran now?
Supporters of better public
service media will be hoping that
she recovers from her self-inflicted
wounds and sees through her
plan to boost a part of the media
that has been neglected and in the
case of television (Maori TV aside)
abandoned.
When Curran picked up the portfolio,
there was an expectation that
public broadcasting would get some
overdue attention, particularly
given the opposition spokesperson,
Melissa Lee, also has a strong
interest and knowledge in the area.
Lee was a TV Producer before she
entered Parliament.
The Hirschfeld saga has damaged
Curran but whether it will mean
less money for RNZ+ won’t be
known until May 17 when Finance
Minister Grant Robertson delivers
his first budget.
It could be $30 million, it could be
less, or it could be zero.
Mark Jennings, former Head of
News and Current Affairs at Mediaworks
(TV3) is the Co-Founder
of Newsroom along with Tim
Murphy, former Editor-in-Chief of
the New Zealand Herald. Indian
Newslink has published the above
article, an updated version of
which appeared on the Newsroom
website under a Special Agreement
with www.newsroom.co.nz
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