Things that piss you off...

There was an interesting piece on RadioNZ National on the Mediawatch show looking at a perceived (right wing) bias in the media. 

A Newstalk ZB general manager explained that a right leaning position is simpler and more sound-bite friendly and tends to suit talkback. Lefties have to explain there liberal positions which are more nuanced and they tend to examine all angles of the issue and that just doesn't suit the talk back format. When you think about it like this, right leaning talkback radio really does suit the format. 

All of it's a good listen but the 'right leaning' hypothesis is about 10 mins in:

http://podcast.radionz.co.nz/mwatch/mwatch-2015082...

It's a good programme isn't it? That was last weekend, this weekend they had a good discussion about the Daily Show (Jon Stewart) vs John Oliver as valid journalism.

. 

Might need to dig up the audio from the show and have a listen.

http://www.radionz.co.nz/national/programmes/media...

http://www.radionz.co.nz/national/programmes/media...

Obviously not as there are lots of lunatics out there. It looks like we may have our third bush into the White House soon 

Funny, I've always thought of myself as quite lefty, but when I used to listen to Newstalk a few years back I actually quite liked Larry Williams. Obviously some of his opinions were a bit right, but he seemed to me to be the best interviewer as he'd actually listen to what they were saying and engage with it, as opposed to rabbiting on about his own agenda like most of them do. And he used to get interesting people on the show. Then again I haven't listened to it for ages so things might have changed?

I think the instant you cross over into the 'entertainment' realms as Stewart and Oliver do, its tough to be called journalists in the purest sense.

Just because I sell a car, doesn't make me a car salesman and I think the same goes for these two really. I get the point made about them but I just see it as entertainment and it is usually broadcast in those 'entertainment' time slots.

I'll add to that. Both of these two guys do make their living out of taking the piss out of blatantly stupid politicians. Thats low hanging fruit as far as I can see. As Oliver said, how does a nation of 300m go up again the 4m NRA. That right there shows the stupidity of the USA.

The only time I have been a lefty is when I played for Suburbs.

It must have been a few years ago, because the words agenda and rabbit sums it up perfectly.

Roger Rabbit? 

I listened to some of the pods last night.  Really enjoyable.

Its too bad this kind of stuff isn't more mainstream (who listens to the radio? honestly?

The Mike Hoskings piece is great.  While he is trying to say that Winnie is wrong, what he has said in the past kind of points out Winnie couldn't be more accurate.  not that anyone with a brain cell couldn't have figured out that Mike Hoskings loves National like I love pies, in that I want them all over my face.

The new bank notes, they look f**king uuuugly.

I thought the Aussie notes looked stupid, it looks like we took all of the stupid bits of the aussie notes and just filled it with more tacky crap.

They look like a NZ tourist shop exploded and all of the good shark fell off.

Kadashian Clan

Flags and the politics of distraction.

I like our flag

Between flags, All Black naming ceremonies at parliament and John Key telling us we don't understand anything there is some scary stuff going on AND being missed. 

Wouldn't it be nice to have some actual journalists instead of lackies and sycophants?

I'm deeply suspicious that they have deliverately chosen 4 pretty shark options so as no change takes place and they just used 26 million dollars of taxpayer money to distract us from Saudi sheep, hair-pulling, TTPA and the genuine issues facing this nation.

Needs more Wishart. 

Someone pointed out to me that it's interesting that the same people who have been so quick to jump all over Richie McCaw's endorsement of a new flag, are the same group who were so quick to tell Eleanor Catton to shut up, and keep out of politics.

Don Keys flag fetish smacks of someone who had grand designs of leaving his mark on the country, realised he failed and this is the last roll of the dice.

You don't change your flag based upon this, you change it if a monumental event occurred in your country (ditching the queen would be as good as it gets short of being invaded). He likes being seen with royalty and money so that won't happen on his watch.

tend to agree that a flag change is more appropriate if a big event happens in the country (such as ditching the queen). But given the process is now underway, I was open to changing it. But not sure I'm sold on any of the 4 final designs, so leaning toward voting for the current flag. 

I like the black and white Koru flag.

It's simple, and uniquely us.

Although maybe I'm too much of a hipster to like either of the Kyle Lockwood ferns anymore ...

Whichever one wins, I'm really looking forward to not looking like Australia's flag.

-- changed my mind, the Koru is just the least crap.

We should have this one:

Red Peak

..assuming the current flag doesn't win.

I think it's a lot closer than early polls showed.

Looking at the Stuff Poll yesterday (When process first announced their poll showed 75% for keeping old flag), todays shows 40% for keeping flag, 27% for Black fern/stars, 23% for Red fern/stars (Minimal for other 2)...

I know that is in no way scientific, but neither was their old one. I think it's pretty clear after the process our flag is either going to be the current one, or one of the Lockwood ones that have been shown around since the beginning of the process.

Yeah the other factor is who cares enough to vote. I'd guess that the voter turnout in people who want to keep the current one would be much higher than the voter turnout in people who want to change. A lot of people who want to keep this one are really passionate and fired up about it whereas from what I can tell most people who want to change think a new one is a good idea but aren't particularly fussed by the whole process.

Yeah alot of people will flag their vote

I hope anyone who either wants the current flag, or doesn't like the Lockwood ones pile on the Koru.

The refugee crisis and our stance as a Nation. We take less people per Capita that Australia and most developed nations (and less than some under-developed nations).

My pride in New Zealand diminishes with each flag discussion, human rights crisis avoided and environmental issue that we gloss over.

We are a little bit crap.  

I've always been torn on this issue because I just don't understand the ramifications etc.

But when John Key "WILL NOT STAND BY WHILE JORDANIAN PILOTS ARE DECAPITATED SO WE MUST SEND A SMALL NUMBER OF TROOPS TO THE CONFLICT ZONE" but will stand by while toddlers drown I cant help but feel like he is becoming more and more of a shark stain on our country.

That photo of the drowned toddler really got to me though.  The feels.

Yup, that photo was a massive reality check. Easy to read it and not really picture it but when you see him - and whether you have kids or not - it is truly, truly heart breaking and cannot be unseen. I'd take a month off work to build houses for these refugees no problem at all...

I'm not sure what its like without kids, but that little guy is only just older than my wee man so it really cut deep.  F**k being the cop that had to carry him away.

My 3yo girl will be getting an extra big hug tonight. I'm certainly guilty of not really understanding the depth of this crisis and am ashamed it's taken a shock like that to learn more and do something (however small) about it. 

Not sure where to start helping? Try this.

https://www.unicef.org.nz/syria

#raisethequota #refugeecrisis

Or just don't vote for any of the options if you don't like them. Then when the winner comes up against the current flag, vote for the current flag. 

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...when John Key "WILL NOT STAND BY WHILE JORDANIAN PILOTS ARE DECAPITATED SO WE MUST SEND A SMALL NUMBER OF TROOPS TO THE CONFLICT ZONE" but will stand by while toddlers drown I cant help but feel like he is becoming more and more of a shark stain on our country.

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I've borrowed this question as it's a brilliant one. Tweeted it to Andrew Little to ask him to raise this with JK who liked it and replied to me. will let you know any further response. Great, great question.