Te Pāti Māori says it will no longer engage with the New Zealand Herald after it ran a “disgusting attack on tangata whenua” on its front page.
In a statement, the party said it was referring to to a front page advertisement for right-wing lobby group Hobson’s Pledge in the August 7 edition of the Herald.
The ad called for the restoration of “the foreshore and seabed to public ownership”.
Te Pāti Māori said it would also write a formal complaint to the Broadcasting Standards Authority.
“We will not tolerate the spread of anti-Māori propaganda in Aotearoa. The front page advertisement was full of deceitful misinformation designed to sow resentment of our people,” co-leader Rawiri Waititi said.
“The New Zealand Herald have allowed themselves to be bought off by a well-resourced anti-Māori collective. They have promoted misinformation on their front page so they can feast off the anti-Māori agenda being pursued by this government.”
The other party co-leader, Debbie Ngarewa-Packer said the complaint was not about Hobson’s Pledge whose views were already well-known.
“It’s about the integrity of the media and their moral obligation to the indigenous people of this land. It’s about their obligation to do their due diligence and uphold the truth,” she says.
“Te Pāti Māori cannot engage with a platform that enables harm to our people and the spread of misinformation. We are therefore demanding NZME act immediately.”
Te Pāti Māori wants:
- the New Zealand Herald and NZME to make a written apology to tangata whenua in all publications and voice that apology on all radio frequencies;
- a formal apology to all staff members and advertisers;
- the review of its advertising standards, including the adoption of a robust plan and commitment to the protection of tangata whenua; and
- ensure a process for qualifying information as correct is adopted in these standards.
“Until our demands for reconciliation are met, the NZ Herald will remain whitelisted,” Waititi said. He was using the term ‘whitelisting’ in place of the traditional term ‘blacklisting’.
“The media have a long history of propagating anti-Māori narratives. They have fuelled fear, division, and racism for as long as they have existed in this country. Aotearoa will no longer accept this,” he said.
The New Zealand Herald has been asked for comment.