NZ TV

A University of Auckland study has examined the thoughts of reality TV audiences in relation to the shows they consume.

The new book from Katherine Sender, Professor in Film TV and Media Studies at the university, is the first of its kind to look at makeover reality TV from the audience’s perspective.

“Audiences are extremely savvy when it comes to reality television. They know that producers cast candidates who will perform for the cameras, and that shows are scripted to some extent, and certainly edited, for maximum drama. Continue reading »

Phillip Leishman has passed away at the age of 61.

We reported last week that the veteran broadcaster was ill again after having a brain tumour removed last March.

Leishman’s close friend Des Coppins said over the weekend: “It was an aggressive form of cancer and it really caught up with him. Continue reading »

A University of Otago study has found a link between children’s TV watching habits and crime.

The study found that the risk of having a criminal conviction by early adulthood increased if children were exposed to more TV growing up.

“While we’re not saying that television causes all antisocial behaviour, our findings do suggest that reducing TV viewing could go some way towards reducing rates of antisocial behaviour in society,” said Dr Bob Hancox, of the Department of Preventive and Social Medicine.

“We can’t tell if it was a particular type of programme or just the fact they were watching TV at all.”

Watching a large amount of TV as a child was also associated with “aggressive personality traits, an increased tendency to experience negative emotions, and an increased risk of antisocial personality disorder in adulthood”. Continue reading »

A new survey has found (unsurprisingly) that kiwis like to skip ads on TV.

The Canstar Blue research found that 77 per cent of viewers avoid watching ads by some means or another, with 31 per cent of those doing so by fast-forwarding them on MySky.

The survey also found that our viewing habits are changing due to new technology and the availability of online content on devices other than TVs.

Also, the figures state that nearly half of all households surveyed had at least three TVs in their homes.

Media Watch president, John Terris, said the growing number of TVs in NZ households was a concern. Continue reading »

A Canadian study has shown that toddlers’ TV viewing habits have a significant direct impact on their fitness and size in later childhood.

The study claims that ever extra hour of weekly TV between the ages of two and fur leads to almost half a millimetre increase in waist circumference while each hour per week of TV watched by a two-year-old corresponds to a reduced level of long jump performance by the age of eight to ten.

Kids who watched more than 18 hours of TV a week were almost a centimetre wider around the waist by 10 years of age than those who didn’t. Continue reading »

Whitireia New Zealand Limited has purchased The New Zealand Film and Television School in Wellington City. The purchase will see The New Zealand Film and Television School become part of the Whitireia group as of 1 July 2012.

We are delighted with this development said Don Campbell, Whitireia group, Chief Executive. “The school will complement our programmes in the area of Arts and it will provide an important strategic addition to the Whitireia arts hub with our Performance Centre and Media Training Centre in Wellington City”

The Film and Television School location, brand and campus at 86 Vivian Street in Wellington City, will be retained, as will the one year Certificate in Film and Television Production programme. Whitireia is committed to retaining the strong industry relationships that the Film School has built up and the existing partnerships that are a feature of their success. Continue reading »

New research comparing news stories about Maori shown in Maori television news bulletins to English-language news has found that Maori news in English-language bulletins is relatively rare, and prioritises violence and criminality.

The study was published in the inaugural issue of MAI Journal: A New Zealand Journal of Indigenous Scholarship, published by Nga Pae o te Maramatanga. The paper by Dr Ray Nairn, Angela Moewaka Barnes, Dr Tim McCreanor, Belinda Borell, Jenny Rankine and Amanda Gregory is titled “‘Maori News is Bad News’: That’s certainly so on television.”

The researchers examined a representative sample of television news coverage of Maori stories gathered from Te Kaea (Māori TV), TV1 (both English-language and Te Karere), TV3 and Prime during a six-month period. They looked at how many Māori stories there were, and the tone of each piece. Continue reading »

The New Zealand political puppets familiar to viewers of Public Eye in the 1980’s are looking for a new home following the fire that gutted the Backbencher pub in Wellington.

20 puppets of former prime ministers and political figures used to adorn the inside of the pub on Molesworth Street before the fire three weeks ago.

Owner Alistair Boyce is looking to home the puppets ahead of the pub’s restoration, which could take up to six months.

“I don’t want them thrown away because they are a piece of New Zealand history, but they need restoration and they are incredibly expensive to restore,” he said. Continue reading »

Veteran New Zealand actor Grant Tilly has passed away at the age of 74.

Tilly, who was known for his roles on both stage and screen, had officially retired in the late 1990s but continued to perform in plays.

A founder of Wellington’s Circa Theatre, Tilly has appeared in the likes of Foreskin’s Lament, The Daylight Athiest, Middle Aged Spread and the TV series Gliding On.

“It is with extreme sadness that we note the death of Grant Tilly,” Circa Theatre said in a post on Facebook. “Grant was a founding member of the Circa Council and one of the country’s most talented and best known actors. He made a great contribution to the theatre scene in New Zealand. He will be sorely missed. Our sincere condolences go out to his family and friends.” Continue reading »

A call for donations has gone out to help freelance New Zealand cameraman Yves Simard and his family after they lost everything they owned in a house fire this week.

Simard, his wife and four children all escaped the fire safely but the blaze claimed not only the house but all of their possessions inside.

A PayPal link has been set up to allow kiwis who wish to donate an easy way to do it. All the money will go directly to the Simard family.

Head to this page in order to find out more and to donate, as a few dollars would mean so much to the family at this time.