Community leaders across regional New Zealand are calling on Stuff Ltd to scrap its plan to cut 18 jobs from its regional newspapers.
Stuff Ltd has proposed cutting reporters, visual journalists, print producers, and a designer across Taranaki, Manawatū, Wairarapa, Nelson, Timaru, and Southland. Many districts would be left with just two reporters, and some whole regions with a single photographer. All but one regional print producer would go.
The company says rising print and delivery costs are behind the proposal. However, the plan keeps every page and every print day. Less than a week after announcing the cuts, Stuff began advertising for copywriters to write sponsored content for the same papers. Its newspapers already have no reporters at all in Otago, Tauranga, or the East Coast.
Hundreds of people, including local politicians, business leaders, educators, and Stuff journalists, have signed an open letter opposing the cuts. The letter, written by Stuff journalists, says the company is choosing to cut “people” rather than pages or print days, and warns readers will soon notice “zombie papers” that exist in name alone.
“The news is not made in a newsroom. It can happen anywhere, and any time, and we need to be there,” the letter says.
Nelson Mayor Nick Smith says he is worried about what further losses of reporting staff will mean for regions like Nelson.
“I recognise the financial pressures on Stuff but hope a way can be found to maintain the critical mass needed,” he says.
Palmerston North Mayor Grant Smith has written to Stuff management urging the company to keep both visual journalist roles at the Manawatū Standard.
“Having dedicated visual journalists on the ground matters. Local knowledge, established relationships, and the ability to be physically present when something happens cannot easily be replaced by remote coverage, contributed material, or imagery sourced elsewhere,” he says.
“Palmerston North and the wider Manawatū region have a wealth of stories to tell. We need local journalists on the ground to ensure those stories continue to be seen, recorded, and shared.”
The Manawatū Business Chamber has backed the same call. Chief Executive Amanda Linsley says the paper’s photographers are part of the fabric of the region.
“The photographers and videographers do an important job in our community. They are out there covering local events, sport, people, businesses, and the stories that matter to the Manawatū,” Amanda says.
“Local photos and videos also help people feel connected to what is happening in their own community and provide a record of the people and events that make up our region.
“Reducing the team to one person will inevitably mean less local coverage, and I believe that would be a real loss for the Manawatū.”
Manawatū Standard visual journalist and E tū member Warwick Smith says the support has meant a lot to staff.
“It’s been really humbling. People have stopped me at games and community events to ask if I’ll still be around. They know what it means if there’s only one of us left.
“I’ve done this job on my own before, for six months, and it nearly broke me. Things got missed because I couldn’t be in two places at once. Our readers noticed then, and they’ll notice again.”
E tū Assistant National Secretary Mat Danaher says Stuff should take the backing from communities seriously.
“When mayors, business leaders, journalists, and hundreds of locals all say the same thing, Stuff needs to listen,” Mat says.
“These are the people who read these papers, advertise in them, and appear in them. They know what happens when the reporter stops turning up to the council meeting or the courthouse. Nobody asks the hard questions, and things slip through.
“Stuff plans to keep every page and every print day while getting rid of the people who fill them. Meanwhile it’s replacing news with sponsored content. Readers will see through that, and so will advertisers.
“Journalists have offered to work with the company on a real plan for regional news. Stuff should take them up on it and drop these cuts. Every one of these voices is asking for the same thing: keep local reporters in local towns.”