TVNZ news and current affairs staff will learn tomorrow how many jobs will be axed as the state broadcaster moves towards an around-the-clock service.
But there are signs the losses will not be as high as feared, with TVNZ deciding against axing any programmes.
TVNZ has been reviewing its news and current affairs side for more than a year, and there were reports in March that as many as 75 jobs could go as it looked to shed $5 million from the section's $40 million budget.
But TVNZ spokeswoman Andi Brotherston said yesterday that while some jobs would be lost as a result of the review, new jobs would be created in other sections.
She could not say how many people would eventually lose their jobs, but said it would be small compared with the present 258 staff employed in news and current affairs.
Staff would be told which jobs were in the firing line at meetings tomorrow.
Tomorrow's news will be interesting. We can think of no end of potential cuts for TVNZ's news and current affairs services. Having up to three live crosses to different reporters on the same story night after night seems to us to be a wasteful use of taxpayer dollars. Did TVNZ need to send TWO weather presenters to the Chatham Islands recently? Does Tamati Coffey need to present the Breakfast weather from a different location every day?
The list is endless, and you can feel free to contribute any suggestions for TVNZ to consider. After all, it's OUR money that TVNZ is so adept at spending!
3 comments:
And the final part of your post clearly points to the proper solution of the issue: withdraw all taxpayer involvement, and let TVNZ (and all other taxpayer supported broadcasters) operate as commercial entities, so that the free market can decide who delivers content worthy of attention.
Bez
I won't be as bold as to say I was fishing for that answer Bez, but that is a darned fine answer. Perhaps it's something that Key et al could campaign on in 2011 ... once the "no asset sales in the first term' period has expired.
Sell it off now, we haven't watched any TVNZ for years since signing up for SKY, even on a bad day you can always find something of interest.
medusa
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