Journalists in Iran have been working amid hostile air strikes for almost a week since the start of the US-Israeli offensive while also facing repression from the Iranian regime.

Internet access in the country remains limited and information is scarce.

As war spreads across the region, Reporters Without Borders (RSF) has expressed its solidarity with journalists in the zone and has called on all parties involved in the conflict to guarantee their protection and the right to information.

• READ MORE: Iran war live: Trump says Iran being ‘demolished’ as Gulf attacks continue
• Al Jazeera’s live tracker on casualties
• US-Israel’s war on Iran – mostly negative scenarios for the Pacific
• Other US-Israel attack on Iran reports

“As the region goes up in flames, access to reliable information about the war following the attacks carried out by the United States and Israel, is more essential than ever — both regionally and internationally,” said Jonathan Dagher, head of RSF’s Middle East Desk, in a statement.

“Every single stakeholder involved in this war in Iran and the Middle East more widely is required, under international law, to guarantee the safety of reporters and their freedom to carry out their work.”

Although the situation was volatile and characterised by violence, respect for the right to information was still an obligation,” he said.

“The safety of journalists is non-negotiable. War must under no circumstances hinder the work of the press.

‘Release journalists’ call
“US and Israeli strikes against Iran must not endanger the media professionals covering those events. The Iranian regime must immediately release the journalists it is holding and cease all pressures against those covering the war.”

RNZ News

New Zealand’s Media Freedom Council has called Auckland Mayor Wayne Brown’s exclusion of some media outlets from his budget speech today “unacceptable”.

In an appearance at Auckland Transport’s Viaduct headquarters, Brown took time out of pitching his plan to sell the city’s holdings in Auckland Airport to complain about road cones, his “not financially literate” councillors and target the “nasty” media.

Brown’s team invited journalists from only a few organisations to the announcement. RNZ was allowed in, but Stuff, TVNZ and Newshub were not.

• READ MORE: Other mayor Wayne Brown and the media reports

Stuff reported among those allowed in were “business leaders, former politicians and former rugby league coach Sir Graham Lowe”.

Some reporters threatened to walk out of the event in protest, drawing this response from the mayor: “They weren’t invited, but some of the media have been pretty nasty. We did invite media who are sensible; and the media who are not weren’t invited, and have now decided, some of them, to bugger off — well, that’s all right with me”.

Stuff queried the mayor’s decision, and was told only a “select few journalists… we feel were best able to convey the mayor’s message” were invited.

Media Freedom Council chair Richard Sutherland — also head of news at RNZ — wrote to Brown shortly afterwards, to “express our deep concern about the attempted exclusion of journalists from today’s budget presentation in Auckland”.

In addition to RNZ, the MFC represents Newshub, Newsroom, NZME, Stuff, The Spinoff and TVNZ.

‘Today’s events troubling’
“Today’s events are troubling. The media plays a crucial role in informing the public and holding officials accountable. Denying access to journalists compromises the public’s right to be informed,” Sutherland wrote.

“Furthermore, we are aware that invitations that were issued were selectively targeted to specific journalists. It is imperative to ensure equal opportunities for all bone fide journalists to cover significant public events, irrespective of their perceived affiliations or perspectives.

“To be blunt, it’s unacceptable to cherry-pick journalists based on who you think will give you the easiest ride.”

Sutherland called Brown’s decision an “affront to the democratic process and an insult to voters”.

Brown did not take questions after his speech, saying he did not have time.

He has had a strained relationship with the media since taking the mayoral chains last year. Mediawatch in April described it as “frosty”, at best.

In January, as Auckland suffered its worst floods in living memory, he called journalists “drongos” in messages to friends, upset he had to cancel a tennis engagement to deal with the media. He later apologised.

He refused 106 media requests in his first month of office, granting only two.

‘Sell them all’
The guts of Brown’s speech was to convince his councillors that selling the city’s 18 percent stake in Auckland Airport was the only way to avoid massive cuts to services and rate hikes.

He has his deputy Desley Simpson on side. She told RNZ’s Midday Report she did not want to sell the shares at first, but had listened to advice and had been convinced.

She said the mayor’s second budget proposal was as good as it was going to get, and she hoped other councillors agreed to it.

“In my heart, I didn’t want to sell the airport shareholding. But professional staff advice has said ‘sell them all’. And you know, that’s a hard pill to swallow when in your heart, you want to keep them.

“It’s an emotional wrestle that I think a lot of people are struggling with.”

Simpson said selling shareholding was not just a short-term fix, and would save the council $100 million a year in debt interest.

The council’s debt is currently more than $11 billion.

This article is republished under a community partnership agreement with RNZ.

LOCAL DEMOCRACY REPORTING: By Justin Latif of The Spinoff

John Pulu is one of the best-known television and radio personalities in New Zealand’s Pacific community.

He not only fronts TVNZ’s Tagata Pasifika Saturday morning show, but also hosts a four-hour Tongan-language current affairs and talkback programme on Pacific Media Network’s 531pi radio station every Wednesday afternoon.

Pulu says combating misinformation has been a major focus in his roles over the last year.

• READ MORE: Other Justin Latif Local Democracy Reporting articles at The Spinoff

“Covid is real, it’s happening, but I’m also a believer that listeners and viewers must make their own mind up. So rather than just us saying it, we’re in a position to connect our listeners to people who have the right information.”

The Ōtāhuhu resident not only ensures his audiences hear from Pacific epidemiologists and health clinicians, but thanks to his strong relationship with Jacinda Ardern, he’s able to ensure the prime minister can speak directly to Pacific audiences.

“I’ve lost count how many times I’ve interviewed her. It shows she is not just focused on one community or one group. And because the current outbreak is on our side of Auckland, having her front up is so important.”

Pulu says their relationship goes back to when Ardern was still an opposition MP.

‘Met her at movie screening’
“I met her at a movie screening when she came as Carmel Sepuloni’s date for the night. We took a selfie and she asked me to add her on Instagram. I didn’t realise she would be the leader of the nation one day.

“I wouldn’t say we’re BFFs [best friends forever], but we’re connected on social media and she’s always said I can get in touch whenever we want an interview, and she respects our community.”

Pulu, who is regularly interviewed by Tongan-language radio shows from Tonga and Australia for updates on the situation in Aotearoa, says the pandemic has made his life much busier.

“I consider myself very fortunate that I’m able to continue doing what I love and in a role where we can help make a difference by negating the misinformation that’s out there, and try and use our platforms wisely.”

Pacific Media Network chief executive Don Mann says the organisation, which annually receives $4.5 million in government funding, provides shows in nine different Pacific languages and also supports the Ministry of Pacific Peoples with public information campaigns.

“Part of our response has been to place Ministry of Health messaging on our channels and radio shows and to do that we’ve given up some of our airtime that we normally sell commercially, and we’ve been recompensed for that – not huge amounts, but it’s fair.”

Mann says the network’s two radio stations have experienced significant audience growth over the last 12 months, which he puts down to “people wanting information from a trusted source and in their own language”.

But Mann says people shouldn’t think Pacific and migrant communities consume their news in just one way.

“Our people are a sophisticated audience who are used to seeking information from multiple sources, from an entity like ourselves or from other organisations, and they are able to consume information in multiple languages.”

Covid news in the ethnic media
Gaurav Sharma was associate editor at the Indian News up until recently, when he had to return to India to be with family. He says his publication ran covid-related double-page spreads most of last year and he believes most ethnic news organisations have done an incredible job at covering the pandemic. His only complaint is that it took a while for the government to direct their advertising spend towards migrant-focused publications such as his.

“We took the initiative [to inform people about Covid] and the government advertising did come, but it came quite a bit later, maybe around August. And the proportion of funding that ethnic media gets is quite low. It has been a struggle at times for the media with advertising being down in general, but I think our media have done a wonderful job.”

Raju Ramakrishna lives and works in ethnically diverse Papatoetoe. He has noticed people have been much more reticent to venture outside during this latest lockdown.

“In the first few lockdowns, people were rushing in and out of the supermarket, but this time around people are more well-behaved in many ways – more circumspect, keeping to themselves, and there’s a feeling of uncertainty and insecurity.”

Ramakrishna helps run the Papatoetoe Food Hub and is well-known in Auckland’s Indian community as the former lead singer of a popular South Asian band. He believes his fellow Indians are keen to stay up to date with the latest covid news and comply with any restrictions.

“Generally South Asians conform to authorities and are quite compliant. In the circles I’m familiar with, people are well-informed and they know where to go when they need some information. Radio Tarana, which is the station most people listen to, is up to date with news and any breaking news is reported.”

Newly elected Indian-born Labour MP Dr Gaurav Sharma (who shares a name with the former Indian News associate editor mentioned above) attends numerous cultural events as well as being regularly interviewed on ethnic radio stations for his expertise as a medical doctor.

Positive information in cultural settings
“I think the information is out there. I know from talking to community leaders that every time there’s a level change, they have been sharing information through their networks and they’ve also been talking about it in their communal settings.

“It’s really positive to hear that people are accessing information in their own cultural settings and in their own language.”

According to the government’s Office for Ethnic Communities, $1.4 million has been spent on advertising for “culturally and linguistically diverse” audiences. Priyanca Radhakrishnan, who’s the minister for diversity, inclusion and ethnic communities,  says video updates in a range of languages have also been distributed through community networks.

“We also held a Zoom hui with Dr Ashley Bloomfield and ethnic community leaders around the South Auckland region to listen to their feedback and answer questions they had about Covid-19 and the vaccine.

“Concerns have been raised with us about whether the vaccine will be halal, for example, and Dr Bloomfield confirmed to the group of hundred plus attendees that it is.”

Raju Ramakrishna says if there’s any concern about people not being informed, it’s not for a lack of effort on the part of the media or the government.

“I know people are saying the messaging hasn’t been quite right, but I really think that’s not true. The messaging has been out there, so a lot of it boils down to carelessness, rather than people not getting the information.”

Justin Latif is the South Auckland editor at The Spinoff. This article is republished with the permission of The Spinoff and Local Democracy Reporting.

Media are a crucial part of the democratic process and accessibility to politicians is key to informing the public, say Pacific journalists visiting New Zealand. 

Esther Pavihi from the Broadcasting Corporation of Niue (BCN) and Tiana Elle Haxton of the Cook Islands Television News and Radio Cook Islands (RAR CK) are spending two weeks with RNZ Pacific in Wellington as part of the PCBL Media Exchange.

Both journalists say media access to MPs in New Zealand is different to their home countries.

READ MORE: Vanuatu government more open under information law, says journalist

New Zealand media often crowd MPs to ask questions as they walk into the debating chamber. This area is known as ‘the tiles’ or ‘the bridge’ and often has the dinging sound of the division bell in audio recordings. 

“The politicians are very welcoming of the media and their questions and for the members to respond immediately” said Pavihi.

“Back home that doesn’t happen, it takes us quite a long time to get a response from members of Parliament and that’s if we get one.”

LISTEN: Access to MPs crucial for democracy – Pacific journalists

The main chance to get comment from Cook Island MPs on a sitting day is when they take a break said Haxton.

“There’s a relatively alright relationship between the parliamentarians and the media but when it comes to asking the questions that people need to have the answers to, that is my area of focus.”

Access to MPs is made more difficult in the Cook Islands by the geographical spread of electorates across the ocean where flying to an electorate can take hours, and a sometimes unpredictable sitting calender.

Further differences include the rowdiness of the New Zealand Parliament’s Question Time which is an hour of 12 questions to Ministers designed to either support or expose the Government.

“It is a lot louder,” said Haxton.

“I noticed that people would intervene here and there and add their own comments from the sidelines and we don’t have that in the Cook Islands. You might have a couple of people  ‘mm-ing’ and ‘ah-ing’ but that’s about it.”

Shouting out across the chamber while an MP is speaking doesn’t happen in the Pacific Islands said Pavihi. 

“We’re more polite in how we discuss issues of national importance,” she said.

“Two opposite sides of the [NZ] house are barking at each other basically and the level of intervention and how the Speaker has had to stand on his feet to bring the house to order, that never happens back in Niue.”

Pavihi said debate does happen but is more polite and the MP who has the floor is allowed to speak for their allotted time without interruption.

“We want people to be able to hear what is said by a member rather than listening to a whole lot of arguments and quite petty things that are being called out,” said Pavihi.

This article is published under the Pacific Media Centre’s content partnership with Radio New Zealand.

On 24 November 2016, the Vanuatu Parliament unanimously passed an Act tabled by Prime Minister Charlot Salwai on the right to information.

The Act will provide for the guarantee of the right to information of all persons in Vanuatu.

The MAV described the RTI as “a ‘home-grown’ RTI – a major development and achievement not only for Vanuatu’s growing media industry but for the Vanuatu government also”.

In a statement, MAV said: “MAV understands that it takes many years for some countries in the world to have RTI. However, MAV is so grateful that the government can acknowledge the very important benefit of RTI and to provide all the necessary support for it.”

“This newly passed legislation will enable the people of Vanuatu access to government information, except information that is classified as ‘state secret’.

“It will also help government officers to keep records of government information… that [will] empower people to make decisions in the future so they can actively participate and contribute effectively to the development of the nation.”

In the lead up to the drafting of the Act, nationwide community consultations were conducted by Transparency International Vanuatu (TIV) to inform citizens of the Act and how it would impact on society as a law. TIV spent a year hosting public forums about the RTI policy in communities and schools throughout the islands of Vanautu, encouraging people to ask their MPs to vote for the Act.

The IFJ said: “The passing of the RTI Act in Vanuatu is a significant milestone in this country’s history. Public access to information is crucial for democracy. Enshrined in law, this will ensure that the Vanuatuan media will be able to report more accurately and responsibly on government activities, and that the public will be better equipped to engage in democratic processes.”

International Federation of Journalists