Māori Worldviews and Broadcasting Standards: What Should Be the Relationship? 2009
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Māori Worldviews and Broadcasting Standards PDF (745.8 KB)
Date published: April 2009
Author: Broadcasting Standards Authority
Scope
- Provides a platform for further discussion of the question about the proper relationship between broadcasting standards and Māori worldviews and interests
Results
- The BSA receives few complaints about Māori programmes and issues, or from Māori complainants
- Most are made under balance, fairness, and accuracy standards
- Freedom of speech allows Māori to be criticized but also preserves the right of Māori broadcasters to tell Māori stories from a Māori perspective
- There is some conflict between Māori notions of privacy and BSA privacy principles
- Māori broadcasters and journalists may define balance differently, but
- Many agree that the standards should be universal, but interpreted in a more culturally enlightened manner
- Improving the portrayal of Māori society and te ao Māori in the mainstream media requires a multi-pronged approach
- The BSA’s mandate does not extend to the underlying causes, the factors which contribute to a broadcast environment in which fair and informed coverage of Māori and te ao Māori continue to be problematic
- BSA has a role to play in persuading broadcasters to voluntarily agree to guidelines which, while carrying no legal force, can still go some way to raising awareness and changing attitudes among broadcasters
- The question for broadcasters and those who care about broadcasting in New Zealand is whether that change should be the result of legislative change or a voluntary move from within the industry to examine itself and seek ways to improve the picture for Māori – and, indeed, for all New Zealanders