Remember when politicians' kids were off limits to the media? Not any more. There seems to be a bit of an obsession with Stephanie and, in particular, Max Key. An obsession which ONE News takes to a new paparazzi low today: Max Key plays golf…
An excellent piece by Dame Anne Salmond in the Dominion Post yesterday (Tracey mentioned this in a post yesterday but it is worth further attention!): Erosion of democratic rights In the wake of the shooting of cartoonists and journalists in Paris, political leaders in New…
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The self righteousness of the leaders who marched in Paris was there for all to see, but few in the media decry and point out the hypocrisy. How smug the World leaders feel, marching for freedom of expression and the media which they largely control…
For family reasons he is stepping down... Nothing to see here says Chris Finlayson, great guy who did a great job Of far more importance is the arrival in yesterdays post of speeding fines for national's supporters. Woodhouse is moving quickly to say the enforcement…
"Advertorials" are content that is written by some external organisation and inserted into a media publication in such a way that it looks like content, not an obvious ad. The practice is on the rise in news papers, magazines, and TV. A perfectly natural and…
There was a fascinating interview on Radio New Zealand yesterday where Noelle McCarthy interviewed Political Scientists Bronwyn Hayward and Mark Boyd. Bronwyn is the head of the Department of Politics at Canterbury University and Mark is a Doctoral candidate for a PhD at Auckland University. The…
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Thanks to Key's fast and loose interpretation of proper process, SkyCity have played the government for fools. The Nats probably hoped to sweep the issue under the carpet with the traditional Christmas bad news dump (this year in brand new super-size!). No such luck. Even…
An estimated one and a half million people have marched in France in support of freedom of the press and in remembrance of those who died at the Charlie Hebdo siege. The march included a number of world leaders whose commitment to freedom of the press…
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Last night I sat down to watch the TV news. First up was an horrific item about the slaughtering of over 2000 innocents in Nigeria by Boko Haram. The reporting of it lasted approximately 1 minute, with no commentary other than the item itself. Next…
https://twitter.com/rupertmurdoch/status/553734788881076225 As a white bipedal male I wish to apologise for Rupert Murdoch being such a dick head. Maybe most of us are peaceful but until we recognise and destroy growing levels of stupidity within our ranks we must be held responsible.
Is it too late for a summer holiday rerun? I read this stunningly depressing piece last night, and was pondering a post, when I realised that I'd written it already, or something very much like it, back in 2009. So in the spirit of recycling...…
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bsprout on the Local Bodies blog, provides a case study, specific to Southland. At the same time, it outlines a more general pattern that can be seen in many places, each with their own local circumstances. The post below was originally posted on Local Bodies on…
Remember after Dirty Politics broke and John Key and others insisted that the left, including the Standard, were just as bad as the right? In August last year Danyl McLaughlan summed the situation up really well with this post which included the following passage: John Key…
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Disability covers a multitude of conditions and states from birth defects to mental illness, from paralysing accidents to workplace malfeasance. Whatever the reason for a person's disability if it is to such an extent that they cannot work we condemn them to a life of…
Yesterday John Key was reported as saying in response to the attack on Charlie Hebdo: "Our thoughts are with the families of those who have lost loved ones, those injured in this brutal attack, and the people of France ... [t]he targeting of journalists going…
The Authors of The Standard are now in holiday mode. Posting will be less regular and dependant on individual author enthusiasm. Open mike is your post. For announcements, general discussion, whatever you choose. The usual rules of good behaviour apply (see the Policy). Step up…
On this day when the world defiantly stands up for freedom of speech a political activist has been arrested in Australia for wearing a t-shirt that says "I'm with Stupid". The Guardian reports: The operator of a Twitter account parodying the Queensland premier, Campbell Newman,…
Like Karol I was shocked to wake up and read about the killing of staff at Charlie Hebdo and also the killing of two police officers, one of who, Ahmed Merabet, was reportedly of Muslim background. We should suspend full judgment on what has happened…
It is a shocking story to wake up to. A murderous act in a beautiful city. My condolences to those close to the people who were killed, and to the people of Paris and France. Stuff reports: Three masked gunmen shouting "Allahu akbar!" have stormed…
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A long, fascinating piece by Glenn Greenwald on The Intercept this morning. Please head on over there and read the whole thing, but here are some extracts: WITH POWER OF SOCIAL MEDIA GROWING, POLICE NOW MONITORING AND CRIMINALIZING ONLINE SPEECH ... Criminal cases for online political speech are now…
(Originally published at Boots Theory, but there were requests to cross-post it to The Standard. Suffice it to say your humble moderator will not be lenient on derailing, even if it totally proves her point.) One of the strategies of the right in NZ politics…
The Authors of the Standard are now in holiday mode. Posting will be less regular and dependant on individual author enthusiasm. Open mike will continue every day and prepare yourself for some year in review posts and some recycling of old stuff. And as R0b…
A little place by the beach - who wouldn't like to own one of those? Only one problem. As expected: 2014 Was The Hottest Year On Record Globally By Far The Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) has announced that 2014 was the hottest year in more than 120…