More than a hundred of Māori media’s biggest names gathered for the Hawaikitangata wānanga to discuss the future of the sector on Friday.
Whakaata Māori Kaihautū, Shane Taurima, says the conference is especially significant given the recent funding cuts in the media sector.
“Kāre anō au kia kite i tētahi hui pēnei rawa te nui. Āhua tūmeke nei ahau i te kaha whakautu mai a te rāngai.”
(I haven’t seen a [Māori media] hui of this magnitude before. I was quite shocked at the strong response from the sector.)
“Engari me kaua hoki au e tūmeke, i te mea he nui ngā pēhitanga kei mua, kei runga hoki i a mātau, te ao pāpāho Māori.”
(But I shouldn’t be so shocked, because of the oppressions on Māori media at this time.)
More than 150 people registered for the wānanga hosted by Whakaata Māori, which is celebrating its 20th anniversary.
“Koinei te waka i tāraia mai e te iwi Māori, e ngā tīpuna Māori e 20 tau ki muri nei hei kawe, hei whakatairanga i tō tātau reo me ngā tikanga Māori. Mō wai te painga? Mō tātau te painga.”
(This is the waka that was sculpted by te iwi Māori and our ancestors 20 years ago - to carry and promote our Māori language and customs for our benefit.)
It was revealed last week that Whakaata Māori will see a $9.5 million funding decrease by 2027. Taurima says the aim of this wānanga is to find outcomes to rectify these issues.
“E 20 miriona tāra ka riro i roto i ngā tau e rua e tū mai nei - 10 miriona ki a Whakaata Maori, 16 miriona ki Te Māngai Pāho. Nō reira he poronga pūtea nui rawa atu tērā.”
“Me whakahuihui mai mātau i a mātau anō ki te kōrero mō tērā, engari ki te kōrero hoki mō ngā rongoā.”
($20 million will be lost in the next two years - $10 million to Whakaata Māori and $16 million to Te Māngai Pāho. That is a huge loss.
We must get together to talk about that, but also to discuss solutions.)
Professor Tahu Kukutai, a former journalist herself, was one of the keynote speakers at Hawaikitangata. She says the tides of the media world have changed drastically over the years.
“Everything about it has changed - the format, the operational model, the money flows, the audience. It’s all in complete disruption.
“That comes [with] massive challenges, but with challenge comes opportunities. So I guess today is about finding the opportunities and running with them.”
CEO of Te Mātāwai, Poia Rewi, believes that despite these challenges, Māori already have the tools to resolve these issues.
“He taniwha kei mua i te aroaro. Kua tae mai te Kāwanatanga hou, he tirohanga hou, he waiaro hou, he wairua hou.
Nā reira pai noa ēnei huihuinga kia mōhio ai te iwi Māori kei roto i ōna ringaringa anō tōna oranga.”
(There is a new monster before us. There is a new government, a new perspective, a new attitude, a new spirit.
So it’s good for us to meet like this, so Māori can see that their livelihood is in their own hands.)
“Koirā tā mātau karanga nui ki ngā minita o te wā me te Kāwanatanga - anei te rāngai e hiahia ana ki te mahi tahi - me mahi tahi [ki] te Karauna ki te whakapai ake, whakapakari ake anō hoki i te rāngai pāpāho Māori,” Taurima says.
(That’s our call to the current Ministers and the Government - the sector is here and willing to work together - we must work alongside the Crown to improve and strengthen the Māori media sector.)
Kukutai highlights the potential within the industry, encouraging them to forge their own path.
“I’m a firm believer in mana motuhake, and finding our own opportunities and driving them through.
“Governments will come and go, we will endure as a people - [we] do have a huge amount of opportunities to define our own futures.”