Gordon Campbell: Media collusion with National’s attack lines the real disgrace

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Jacinda Ardern
Why are we not celebrating the fact that New Zealand is the safest place on the planet to be right now, in the midst of the worst global pandemic in a century? Image: RNZ/Pool/Getty

By Gordon Campbell, editor of Werewolf

For most of the past week, any consumer of this country’s management of covid-19 would think New Zealand was actually Brazil, or Texas.

The media language has been full of claims of “botches” at the border, and laxness and inexcusable errors that amounted to a “national disgrace.”

Amid all this talk of “fiascos” and ”chaos”, anyone could be forgiven for failing to grasp that as yet, not a single person has become ill, let alone died as a result of these allegedly calamitous lapses in border security and quarantine testing. For weeks, no community transmission of the virus has occurred, anywhere, in New Zealand.

READ MORE: Two new coronavirus cases in NZ, taking active total to 22 – no community spread

This discrepancy is puzzling. Normally, the New Zealand media is proud to inform us if a Kiwi wins an OK dinghy contest in Scandinavia, or creates something that goes viral on social media.

Why are we not celebrating the fact that New Zealand is the safest place on the planet to be right now, in the midst of the worst global pandemic in a century? After all, it hasn’t been by accident that this country has become a safe haven in a world of carnage.

It has been the direct result of the actions taken by the same people now being denigrated – ie. everyone from the political leadership to the health and border security staff on the front lines.

It has been their hard work that has delivered this high level of security now being enjoyed by all New Zealanders. Unlike the citizens of other countries, New Zealanders do not feel they are taking a deadly risk every time they go out beyond the front gate. Politically though, that’s always the risk with managing public health – when it goes well, it is as if nothing has happened.

Past mistakes identified, rectified
I’m not suggesting that border lapses should not be reported. Some of the past mistakes – probably born of complacency about our early success – have been identified and rectified. Yet on the current evidence they have been corrected so far, without any serious consequence for anyone.

Again, why has the media – presumably through naivete rather than complicity – been so willing to piggy back on the Opposition attack lines in lieu of doing its own reporting on and evaluation of our response to the pandemic? Sure, good news tends to be boring, but the readiness to blow some of the lapses that have occurred right out of proportion has been inexcusable, and is of advantage to only one side of the political debate.

As things stand, National cannot win the election in September if the response to covid-19 is seen by voters to have been a success. National has a vested interest in diminishing that success.

The media surely, has to retain a healthy scepticism and a semblance of distance from this entirely sectarian political effort – rather than being such an avid accomplice of it.

The claims of laxness at the border are particularly rich coming from a National Party that has been enabled to cry crocodile tears unchallenged in news bulletins about the alleged carelessness and subsequent risk to public health created by how we’ve been treating returnees, and the entry of skilled migrants.

What? From the outset of this pandemic, National has criticised the government for going in hard and early and putting public health goals ahead of economic goals. It has made bogus claims that Australia has suffered lesser economic harm than we have, through being more sensitive to the needs of commerce.

It has also alleged that Australia has achieved better public health outcomes at the same time by doing so. None of this is true.

National alternative not credible
The alternative management approach to covid-19 that National has been promoting has no credibility, yet it has not been held to account on that score.

This is deeply unfortunate in the light of Election 2020. We can safely assume that a National-led government would have followed the example of Australia.

Thank goodness we dodged that bullet. We have 13 active cases, but Australia recorded nearly three times that number of new cases last Wednesday alone, and has 494 active cases in all. On Wednesday the state of Victoria called in the military to help it handle the 141 active cases in Victoria alone.

Comparing New Zealand with the outcomes in Victoria is a useful exercise. Victoria has a population of 6.3 million, half of it concentrated in Melbourne. It has had 1884 cases of covid-19 to date, and in 241 of those cases the infection occurred somewhere else in Australia, but where and how the infection was contracted in those 241 cases is not known. (No-one is calling that failure of tracing a fiasco, or a scandal).

Victoria has community transmission. We do not.

As of Wednesday, the reported transmission rate in Victoria was a frightening 1: 2.5 people.

Meanwhile and on the economic front… Qantas has been described last week as the kangaroo in the coalmine when it comes to the economic impact of the virus on Australia overall. On Wednesday, Qantas sacked 6000 of its staff, and indicated that the airline’s recovery plan might require the standing down of a further 15,000 staff.

Australia doing worse
In sum, and on the evidence, Australia has done no better than us in economic outcomes, is doing worse than us in public health outcomes and is headed in the wrong direction in controlling the disease.

Yet this failed model is what the National Party has been promoting all along, and is what would have adopted had a National government been in power here.

Perhaps the media could begin to raise this credibility problem, now that we’re on the verge of an election campaign where National’s main pitch to voters is that it is a safer pair of hands in a crisis, and is a better manager of the economy. In its dreams.

For the past three decades there is absolutely no evidence that has been the case, beyond its provision of an occasional sugar hit to the economy in the shape of tax cuts and asset part-sales. Sure, you can always keep warm for a while by burning the furniture, but this isn’t a sustainable way of running the economy.

There’s more. The last time around, even the hallowed Key/English administration ignored glaring social problems and serious infrastructural needs, while also hiding its head in the sand about the looming challenges posed by climate change.

Even so, the media has not held National to account for its years of neglect to anything like the same degree, and with nothing like the same accusatory tone we’re seeing today.

IMO, it was the social deficits that the coalition government has had to grapple with that constitute the genuine “National disgrace”.

Gordon Campbell’s article is republished with the author’s permission.

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15 COMMENTS

  1. Citation very much needed on the economic outcomes – it’s arguably still a bit early to tell, but when NZ’s economy is so much more dependent on exports and tourism from the outset, it’s something I’d worry about. And if you’re going to use national airlines as an example you might well look to Air NZ sacking 4,000 staff.

    There is also absolutely no shortage of screeching from right and centre right commentators, and their flying squads on social media comment areas, about Victoria’s response to this latest wave. They’re most certainly carrying on about this being a scandal and fiasco. I’m frankly relieved you’ve missed seeing it, Gordon, cause it’s ugly, but it is there.

  2. New Zealand is currently the envy of the world.
    These lies are clearly an act of desperation by the irrelevant.

  3. Desperate times call for desperate measures !

    “The Labour Party has soared sky-high in a new political poll, but the National Party’s support has plummeted to a near 20-year-low.

    With less than four months until September’s election, a newly-released Roy Morgan poll has Labour sitting at 56.5 percent and National at 26.5 percent. The Green Party stays above the threshold with 7 percent, while Act is on 3.5 percent. New Zealand First would be out of Parliament on these numbers if it didn’t win a seat as it only garnered the support of 2.5 percent of respondents.

    On Roy Morgan’s numbers, Labour could govern alone. ”

    https://www.newshub.co.nz/home/politics/2020/06/political-poll-labour-has-more-than-double-national-s-support-kiwis-happy-with-country-s-direction.html

  4. It’s a ploy by National party to discredit the excellent effort led by our PM to control the spread of Covid-19 ,who is envy of so many countries whose citizens have suffered and are still suffering for the laxity of their leaders to control the pandemic. Few lapses in a difficult situation does not wash away all the good work done todate. I am sure most New Zealanders are grateful for the freedom we are now enjoying, and it’s all due to the effort of our govt and the cooperation of all of us.
    A great article Gordon.

  5. Spot on Gordon.
    To many i have spoken to,they have agreed that the National party have appeared like entiteled, elete ,petulant, children,that have shockingly had their expensive toys taken away ,that they didnt share with others.
    They are furious and indignant in time out,and as they try to kick holes in their bedroom door,they are also destroying any
    credibility of integrity,and common sense.Lets hope they can see sense and show that we can all pull together in these very worrying times.

  6. Agree totally. So often the media response is outrage over a relatively minor glitch in an plan that is working well overall. Recent developments in Australia are ample evidence of the repercussions of reopening the economy too soon or too quickly. The effects of a second and serious wave of infections will certainly be more damaging both socially and ecomonicaly in the long term than a measured and cautious return to normalcy, if such a think is even possible.

  7. We are being given stories by the media much like the childrens story THE EMPERORS NEW CLOTHES. Wake up you tory idiots many of you would have died under a National Govt because you are the old and wealthy. Looking after your investments would cost the lives of many NZ people DO YOU CARE probably NO. Thank goodness we had Jacinda and a Labour Govt to look after us. Vote her back in to fix the poverty caused by John Key and his greedy mates

  8. Excellent article Gordon. The media seem to spend all their time pointing out the problems that occur while never publishing the stupid things done by those who seem to think they are far more able to manage than those in power. There was very little said about Simon Bridges driving back and forth between Wellington and his home in Tauranga because of poor quality broadband at home ( fibre at that) then saying he can’t be made to stay home. Always the same the media are very pro National no matter what they do. Look at the problems caused in Christchurch with their, no one will be disadvantaged saying then doing very little with most of Eastern side of the city.

  9. Well said Gordon. You have brought a lot of things back to people’s memories of National’s inaction to what was becoming a crisis in many social areas, before Jacinda and Labour rode in on a white horse.
    People so easily forget.
    Well done PM Ardern and her Government for keeping NZ safe as possible, especially when this pandemic can only be controlled and not eradicated. When are people going to get this fact!
    Thanks for your clarity. Kia kaha.

  10. Agree whole heartedly and I have always and will continue to support Labour however, while this Government or rather Jacinda has truly proven herself as a great leader and comforter in times of crisis it is otherwise a very mediocre Government.

    On every other respects, aside from the masterstroke of introducing school lunches, this Government has failed on nearly every election promise from transport to housing to capital gains tax to reducing child poverty to reducing the gap between rich and poor.

    Politics aside, its the heart of our current Prime Minister that shines through, over and above many other politicians.

  11. Thank you Arden and Bloomfield. Never mind the politics, no one could have done better.

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