TikTok for Good Award Goes to Jazz Thornton
It’s not quite the silver screen, but for the savants of the 16×9 phone screen, TikTok’s second annual For You Fest held in Sydney celebrates the top tier of talent to trends, including New…
News of New Zealanders via Global Media
Anna Fifield Returns to The Washington Post
For the past two years, Anna Fifield, 46, has been editor of the Dominion Post, New Zealand’s capital city newspaper. In January 2023, she returns to The Washington Post, where she worked as Tokyo…
Cheil’s Malcolm Poynton Talks Ideas That Move
Regarded as one of the world’s top digital minds when it comes to advertising creativity, New Zealand-born Malcolm Poynton, global chief creative officer at Cheil Worldwide, has built teams responsible for campaigns like British…
Behind the Mic with Groundbreaker Rikki Swannell
World Rugby talks to New Zealander Rikki Swannell about becoming the first female lead commentator on the men’s HSBC World Rugby Sevens Series and her life in sports broadcasting. As an experienced sports broadcaster, Swannell…
Substack’s Hamish McKenzie Always Has Big Ideas
Newsletter company Substack, co-founded by San Francisco-based New Zealander Hamish McKenzie (pictured right), is on a mission to disrupt the attention economy away from “cheap outrage and flame wars,” drawing in literati from Patti…
Olivia Shivas Helps Those with Disabilities Travel
In a Washington Post story, three travellers with disabilities, including New Zealand journalist Olivia Shivas, relate how they cope with an added layer of worry and logistics. In the podcast “What’s Wrong With You?”,…
Turning New Zealand into 1925 Montana
The Power of the Dog’s production designer Grant Major built the film’s ranch from the ground up on location in Jane Campion’s native New Zealand, which, thanks to its remoteness, was perhaps more convincing…
Jayne Nakata Promoting Women Podcasters in Japan
Jayne Nakata is a New Zealander living in the city of Iwaki, Fukushima Prefecture, and the voice behind the award-winning “Transformations with Jayne” podcast. Japan Times contributing writer Louise George Kittaka interviews Nakata for…
Primer’s Anna Saunders Looks Beyond Profit to Cause
Founded by former Marie Claire editors New Zealander Anna Saunders and Australian Felicity Robinson in 2019, self-funded publication Primer is the latest addition to the local crop of social enterprises – eco-friendly toilet paper…
Journalist Charlotte Bellis Questions Taliban
New Zealander Charlotte Bellis was the only female journalist at the Taliban’s first official press conference in Afghanistan last week and her bold question to the group of armed men who took over the…
Obscure Podcast Get Flushed Rated Highly
“Many is the podcaster who talks crap, but New Zealander Pete (perhaps understandably, he prefers not to share his surname) gets down and dirty with actual effluent in Get Flushed,” Fiona Sturges writes in…
Apple’s Zane Lowe the Great Communicator
When Apple launched its music streaming service in 2015, it hired New Zealander Zane Lowe to be, effectively, its face and voice. Apple Music may not do Spotify numbers but, in Lowe, they have…
Al Jazeera’s Elizabeth Puranam Reports from India
In the beginning it was a shock, people dying around her while desperate families begged hospital officials for help. Auckland-raised Al Jazeera anchor and journalist Elizabeth Puranam, 37, wouldn’t say she’s used to it,…
Rhys Darby and Terminix Unite for Campaign
New Zealand actor Rhys Darby joined Adweek for an exclusive interview about his new campaign with American pest control company, Terminix. Darby, 47, is no stranger to humour – or bringing it to the ads…
Sinead Boucher and Stuff Break up with Social Media
Stuff’s decision to quit Facebook did not come out of the blue. In 2019, after the horrific mass shooting at mosques in Christchurch was livestreamed on Facebook, the company, headed by Sinead Boucher, began…
Creative Facebook Appointment for Nicky Bell
Facebook has appointed New Zealander Nicky Bell – international innovation consultancy R/GA’s former SVP global client partnerships – as its new global VP of Creative Shop. In a statement announcing her Los Angeles-based appointment, Facebook…
Why NZ’s Cheeky New Porn PSA Went Viral
The New Zealand-made Keep It Real Online advertising campaign that reminds parents to speak to their children about the pitfalls of pornography and other internet harms quickly went viral when it was released in late…
Special Group Delivers for Uber Eats at Super Bowl
In just about every Super Bowl, there are ads – and, by extension, an agency or two – that come out of nowhere and make a splash, Doug Zanger reports for US industry publication,…
War Correspondent Kate Webb Subject in New Book
Vietnam was less quagmire and more a crucible for more than 468 women accredited reporters during a war where lives and deaths could never be measured by lines on a map. Journalist Elizabeth Becker’s…
Lucy Blakiston’s Insta Page Hugely Popular
Celebrities like Ariana Grande, Bella Hadid, Halle Berry, Reese Witherspoon and Chrissy Teigen are just some of the followers of Lucy Blakiston’s Instagram account, Shit you should care about. Morgane Solignac interviews the 23-year-old…
Sun Journalist Dan Wootton Heads to GB News
Lower Hutt-born Dan Wootton, 37, the Sun journalist who broke the story of “Megxit”, is leaving to present a daily show on GB News and write for Mail Online, Amol Rajan reports in a…
Is Letterboxd Becoming a Blockbuster?
Early last decade, Matthew Buchanan (pictured right) and Karl von Randow, web designers based in Auckland, were seeking a passion project, Calum Marsh writes for The New York Times. Their business, a boutique web…
Kiwi YouTube gaming comedy trio levels up
New Zealand-based YouTube comedy trio Viva La Dirt League – which is behind popular video game skit series like Epic NPC Man and Game Logic – has signed with Creative Artists…
Journalist’s Flock to Hamish McKenzie’s Substack
“Between the collapse of newspapers, the misfortunes of digital media, and the economic wreckage of the coronavirus pandemic, writing for a living can feel like a cold, dreary, morale-sucking march to the unemployment office….
Media Mogul Sinead Boucher Challenges Online Giants
Tucked away in Sinead Boucher’s sock drawer is the one-dollar coin that transformed the former journalist into New Zealand’s biggest media mogul, giving her a platform to challenge Facebook and other social media giants,…
Director Sam Stuchbury Wins Cannes Prize
Aucklander Sam Stuchbury has won a Silver Screen Young Director Award at Cannes for his work in raising awareness about the effects pornography has on children, directing the government-funded viral porn commercial “Keep It…
Robin Hammond’s Zimbabwe Images Show in France
New Zealand-born Robin Hammond is one of ten photojournalists whose work is currently on show at Fondation Carmignac’s newly opened private museum on Porquerolles island, France. Fondation Carmignac is exhibiting each photographer’s work in…
How Zane Lowe Became Pop’s Unofficial Therapist
Sitting in a studio in Culver City, California opposite New Zealand-born Zane Lowe, the grey-stubbled Beats 1 host and Apple Music honcho, musicians tend to unspool, even shed a tear, Melena Ryzik writes in…
Cheil CCO Martyn Poynton Takes Two Minutes
New Zealander Malcolm Poynton joined ad agency Cheil Worldwide at the beginning of 2015 as the network’s first global chief creative officer, following celebrated stints at SapientNitro, Ogilvy and Saatchi & Saatchi, Tim Nudd…
Twenty-Somethings Trio Helping Us Give a Sh*t
Most of us get at least a small percentage of our daily news from Instagram, according to lifestyle site, POPSUGAR. But there’s one account, the site says, that manages to cut through the noise…
Sun Journalist Dan Wootton to Host UK Radio Show
Executive editor and columnist at The Sun, New Zealander Dan Wootton, 36, will take over from Eamonn Holmes on the UK’s TalkRadio’s drivetime radio show in late February, the Belfast Telegraph reports. Wootton, who currently…
On The Road With Tama Muru, BBC Hardtalk Producer
For a lifelong news and sports nut who loves to travel, a job that requires meeting the world’s top newsmakers and athletes is a dream for BBC TV producer, New Zealander Tama Muru who grew…
Spinning Yarns With Beats 1 DJ Zane Lowe
New Zealander Zane Lowe, 46, has a healthy Cali glow, as you’d expect from a man who swapped the rainy gruel of London for the kale-flavoured, free-range chakras of LA four-and-a-half years ago, when…
New Zealand Hosts US Comedian Stephen Colbert
In a stunt hailed as a coup for the New Zealand travel industry, American comedian Stephen Colbert has screened segments from his trip here on The Late Show. New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern…
Media Man David Robie Discovers Another Iran
New Zealand author, journalist, media educator and retired university professor David Robie believes that Iran is a hugely friendly country despite propagandas by Western media, the Tehran Times reports. Robie spent several weeks travelling in…
Sandy Myhre Promoting Women in Motoring Industry
It seems the motoring world is only now taking notice of female car ownership. Statistics suggest women play an influential role in as much as 85 per cent of car purchases across the globe….
Journalist Mark Saunokonoko Sheds Light on Maddie
‘Maddie: A Door Marked Closed’ about the disappearance of three-year-old Madeline McCann is the latest investigation by Sydney-based New Zealand journalist Mark Saunokonoko. ‘Maddie’ debuted at No 1 on Australia’s iTunes podcast charts in…
Meet The Kiwi Whose Blog Went Big In Japan
“In 2011, two expats in Tokyo started a blog about making the most of Japan’s capital on a budget. Tokyo Cheapo is now one of the most popular English-language websites…
Colenso BBDO Auckland One of 2019 Contagious Pioneers
Colenso BBDO, Auckland have been featured as number one 2019 Contagious Pioneers in a ranking published by creative and strategic intelligence service website Contagious. Their Te Kupu App campaign was…
Why Aaron Stadlin-Robbie’s Podcast is Different
A New Zealander raised in Hong Kong, Aaron Stadlin-Robbie sees his new podcast, Talking Mental as a way to reach out to experts and break the stigma of men talking about mental health. Having…
Air New Zealand’s New Christmas Video Delights Again
“Air New Zealand has done it again with a charming – and funny – video which sees the world’s naughtiest children unite in a bid to get back in Santa’s good books after…
Wikipedia’s Man in NZ Is Mike Dickison
In the grand library of the Auckland War Memorial Museum on a Saturday morning in August, a small group of new and slightly nervous Wikipedia editors gathered for a day of training that would…
Journalist Gay Davidson Makes Media Hall of Fame
The late Gay Davidson has been inducted into the Australian Media Hall of Fame. The New Zealand-born journalist, who died in 2004, had the distinction of being the first female political correspondent for a…
NZ Police Makes the Most Entertaining Recruitment Ads
“New Zealand Police has launched a follow up to its popular effort to make the ‘world’s most entertaining recruitment ad’, with a focus on diversity.” Charlotte McEleny reports for
Aaron Stadlin-Robbie Talks Mental on Podcast
In his experimental new podcast Talking Mental, Hong Kong-raised New Zealander Aaron Stadlin-Robbie asks professionals for advice on how to manage his anxiety attacks. The realisation that opening up helps Stadlin-Robbie feel more in control…
Air New Zealand’s Place on the Global Runway
With a brand promise of ‘liberating from the ordinary’ and plans to surprise, innovate, out-manoeuvre and challenge convention, Air New Zealand stands out on the world’s tarmac with its quirky attitude and humorous ads….
NZ Herald Cartoonist Rod Emmerson Receives Award
Rod Emmerson, who is the editorial cartoonist for The New Zealand Herald, has been recognised for his popular artwork after receiving a new award he says “beats a knighthood”. While in California attending a conference for…
Meet Travel Blogger Tara Povey
New Zealand-born Tara Povey, a former pharmacist, runs her blog, whereistara.com from her home in Dublin. She talks to Denise O’Donague from the Irish Examiner about her career shift, and her award-winning Instagram account. Povey,…
National Geographic to Feature Whanganui River
When the Whanganui River was given legal personhood Danish freelance photographer Mathias Svold was so intrigued by the headlines that he went to Washington DC in the United States to pitch a story for…
Save Australia’s Ugly Animals with Zoë Bell
Australia’s Wilderness Society has launched ‘Save Ugly’ – a radical new conservation campaign to raise awareness of all the ‘ugly’ creatures that help make life possible, warts and all. To mark the launch, the society…
New Zealand Ad Genius On Show in Cannes
“Once again”, Down Under will be “well represented” at this year’s Cannes Lions, according to Doug Zanger writing for American trade magazine Adweek. “Going through the list of Cannes Lions winners from New Zealand and…
US-Based Radio Exec Andrew Jeffries Loves LA
Private shows by the likes of Ed Sheeran and Coldplay are all in a day’s work for Los Angeles based New Zealander Andrew Jeffries, who is executive vice president for programming across the West…
At Home with Newsreader Kay McGrath
For a woman who has appeared in living rooms across Queensland almost nightly for 30 years, Channel Seven newsreader New Zealand-born Kay McGrath is a little uncomfortable in her own. “I wish I hadn’t put…
War Correspondent Kate Webb Read Her Own Obits
She was sitting on the steps of her hotel, in the middle of Saigon, when the military jeeps zipped by, headed toward the sound of gunfire. So that’s where Kate Webb headed, too. “I…
Robin Hammond Image Best Nat Geo Picture
Documentary photographer New Zealand-born Robin Hammond’s image of Avery Jackson, a transgender child from Kansas City in the United States, has been selected as one of the National Geographic’s 57 best images of 2017. The…
New Cops Ad Drives Huge Increase in Web Traffic
How do you reach a broad cross-section of potential police recruits? Adweek asks. With an entertaining video that features a broad cross-section of police spokespeople. Ogilvy did just that for New Zealand Police, and…
