RNZ chief executive and and editor-in-chief Paul Thompson. Photo: VNP/Louis Collins
An external review of RNZ's coverage and complaints process regarding the conflict in Gaza found no breaches of policy or media standards, and gave recommendations to do better than "not breaching standards".
However, it did find the company "grudging" in its response to a complainant on the one occasion a complaint was upheld, and recommended showing "no hint of defensiveness" in future.
The assessment, undertaken by former RNZ editorial policy manager and communications consultant Colin Feslier, reviewed content and all complaints made to RNZ since the attack by Hamas and other Palestinian armed groups on 7 October, 2023.
The reason for commissioning was recognition that ongoing conflict in the Middle East is a contested issue, with strong, opposing views. According to the RNZ website, "due to the complex nature of the conflict and the level of feedback RNZ receives, it warranted an independent assessment".
Overall, it found RNZ was acting within its own policy, Media Council principles and the standards administered by the Broadcasting Authority.
The report reads: "Complaints to RNZ [...] and the decisions of the Media Council and Broadcasting Standards Authority give no reason for concern that RNZ is acting outside the Media Council Principles or the standards administered by the Broadcasting Standards Authority."
However, Feslier does make a series of recommendations for RNZ to build its reputation for accuracy, fairness and balance and "allow it to do better than not breaching standards".
He notes early on in the report the sensitivity of the topic: "The feelings of complainants are genuine and exist against a complex historical and emotional background."
The review found no complaints which were not, at least in part, motivated by emotion.
The report said special care should be taken in the handling of complaints and the management of stories likely to give rise to them, the report says - but there was likely no action that could be taken to eliminate complaints completely.
"New Zealanders have every right to complain for any motive they happen to have. But it is useful to see complaints as not simply bad experiences of media consumers - there is probably no action that media can take that would eliminate all complaints on such issues."
There was only once instance of a complaint being upheld on accuracy grounds; a statement that the International Court of Justice had found Israel "not guilty" of genocide rather than the correct "not found Israel guilty of genocide".
The report noted RNZ's response in upholding the complaint was "prompt, detailed and entirely warranted" but it "may have left the complainant feeling that the process was formal, and even grudging in accepting the validity of the complaint".
RNZ's response in that case was as follows: "Despite correcting the error quickly once it was drawn to our attention, RNZ found this to be a breach of the accuracy standard and your complaint is upheld".
Recommendations included responding to upheld complaints clearly and directly, with no hint of defensiveness, and creating a section on the website discussing sources RNZ trusts and its reasons for doing so.
It also recommended avoiding rounding numbers up or down, "although complaints about rounding or minor inexactitudes are unlikely to be upheld there seems to be no useful purpose served by writing stories in a way that is likely to trigger complaints such as these".
RNZ's director of editorial quality and training Jane Patterson said the assessment was already being incorporated into RNZ's training and reporting guidance for staff.
"There is merit in being more transparent and outlining the principles that guide our mahi."
Chief executive and editor-in-chief Paul Thompson said RNZ was committed to making these kinds of assessments publicly available.
"We want everyone to understand the steps we are taking as a public media organisation to ensure our work is always underpinned by fairness, accuracy, independence, respect, decency and diversity. This is a continuous process of improvement and review, and independent audits such as these allow for objective assessments of our work."
The full report, and others on RNZ's editorial processes, can be read here: https://www.rnz.co.nz/editorialreviews
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