NZPA cuts threaten news quality

25 June, 2008

The New Zealand Press Association has announced its plans to cut seven of its fifty-five positions, a move the EPMU described as reckless and likely to reduce news quality across our entire media and undermine the public's right to be informed.

NZPA is responsible for the bulk of New Zealand's syndicated news across print, broadcast and online media.

The proposed changes include cutting back the parliamentary bureau, cutting sports coverage, removing the organisation's sole South Island reporter, reducing the finance desk to just two staff, and removing one editor and one general news reporter.

EPMU national secretary Andrew Little says NZPA's proposed cuts are hard to understand and in an election year can only reduce coverage of political events.

"The purpose of our news media is to provide New Zealanders with the basis to make informed decisions in our democracy but in making these cuts the NZPA is neglecting its public duty.

"This will affect the quality of news in every single media outlet in the country and the decision to cut the parliamentary bureau and reduce news staff in an election year shows NZPA's disregard for the public's right to be informed.

"By cutting its only South Island reporter the NZPA is abandoning news gathering capacity for a quarter of the country's readership."

Little says the EPMU discussed the restructuring with NZPA after the original announcement and succeeded in getting concessions over the way any redundancies would be handled.

The redundancies have been dealt with through voluntary redundancy and resignation.