NZME editorial staff are facing the prospect of further job losses. File photo. Photo: RNZ/ Brad White
The union representing journalists is urging the government to protect the media industry, with more possible job losses for editorial staff at NZME outlets New Zealand Herald, Businessdesk and Newstalk ZB.
In a Media Insider column published on the New Zealand Herald's website on Tuesday, NZME editor-at-large Shayne Currie wrote that journalists and editorial staff fear there may be job cuts after being called to a meeting on Wednesday morning "to provide details of some proposed newsroom changes".
E tū union negotiator and former Labour MP Michael Wood told RNZ he was aware of the meeting, but did not know the shape of those "proposed changes."
"The indication is there is potentially some change that could affect roles in the newsroom," he said.
It comes after NZME announced the closures of 14 community newspapers, and after a year of sweeping layoffs throughout the sector at large.
"We've seen major cuts over the last year at TVNZ to news and current affairs, we've seen cutbacks to community news at both NZME and Stuff, we've seen a number of newsroom restructures at multiple organisations... And now there is the potential of further impacts at NZME," Wood said.
"The totality of that is that fewer stories get told, newsrooms are less able to get out there when something happens, New Zealanders will receive less analysis of the things power people and organisations do, and that makes us weaker as a society and a democracy."
He urged the government to get involved.
"We think it's time the government woke up about this. The last minister for this area was sacked for doing nothing about, the current minister so far has done nothing about it except for back-pedalling on the Fair Digital News Bargaining Bill.
"We don't want the government running all of the news, but they need to make sure there's a sustainable news ecosystem."
Minister for Media Paul Goldsmith said he would not be intervening. He said he was doing what he could to help with broader issues for the changing sector, but it was for individual businesses to work out how best to respond.
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