Links to media.nzherald.co.nz There's been a huge furore in the last 24 hours over New Zealand's X Factor, thanks to some ill-considered comments by husband-and-wife judging duo Natalia Kills and Willy Moon. Now, New Zealand On Air has announced it is withdrawing funding from the show, although they suggest they... Read more →

New Zealand doesn't really do political scandals so the recent revelations surrounding newly elected Auckland Mayor Len Brown have, for some, been quite absorbing. For most, it has been a storm in a rather sordid tea cup despite the significant speculation as to whether the timing, revelations and subsequent debate... Read more →

In marked contrast to the woeful Fonterra performances on mainstream media of late, the new ACC chief executive Scott Pickering did an excellent job on Q&A this week following the latest privacy breaches within his organisation. Unlike his predecessors, this new CE appeared in control of the situation, was able... Read more →

Bit of a shout-out to Wellington Region Emergency Management Office this afternoon. A great example of people being organised and communicative long before a crisis hits, WREMOnz should be a case study for all NZ's civil defence organisations and especially the government ministry tasked with national organisation. WREMOnz on Facebook... Read more →

There's been much commentary on the Fonterra botulism scare and the subsequent reputational meltdown since the company broke the news of the contaminated whey just a fortnight ago. Heads have started to roll - first Gary Romano and now two other managers - and there will probably be other management... Read more →

It's been a very busy couple of months with some great personal highlights. As a rule, I tend not to post the personal stuff on here but it was a special moment at the end of May when I was inducted as a Fellow by the Public Relations Institute of... Read more →

I thought it was a hoax when I first read the tweets from journalists at the State Services Commission press conference today - they had, apparently, been banned from tweeting. Then, later this afternoon, out came the story via the Herald and Newstalk ZB that this had, indeed, been the... Read more →

The beginning of August saw Pacific Fibre close its doors after valiant attempts to finance and construct a second cable to secure New Zealand's connections to all things web. At the moment we have only the Southern Cross cable to keep us going, which to me seems utterly foolhardy -... Read more →

Brilliant timelapse photography from Jared Brandon. No comment to make on it - just absolutely worth sharing and watching. Stunning. Mt Ruapehu Timelapse from Jared Brandon Productions on Vimeo. Read more →

Couple of good clips from Air New Zealand this week. Firs one below takes a quick look at their use of social media. The second is Rob Fyfe talking about how the stories, the channels and the way they intersect change approaches and engagement. It's long, but worth sticking with.... Read more →