New Zealand faces the same media literacy challenges as the rest of the democratic world — accelerating misinformation, declining local journalism, algorithmic social media, and the erosion of shared information spaces. New Zealand's small media market makes these challenges acute: the commercial press has contracted significantly, regional and local news has collapsed, and the national broadcaster faces ongoing pressure. Grant funding supports media literacy education, quality journalism, misinformation resilience, and the research that documents how New Zealanders consume and evaluate information.
The information landscape
Media literacy challenges in NZ
The local journalism gap
New Zealand has experienced dramatic loss of local journalism:
- Hundreds of local newspaper closures
- Digital advertising revenue captured by global platforms (Google, Meta)
- Many communities with no local news coverage
- Democracy deficit: councils and local government unscrutinised
Broadcasting Standards Authority (BSA)
Standards for broadcast media; some media literacy resources.
New Zealand On Air
Funding for public interest broadcasting including journalism.
RNZ (Radio New Zealand)
Public broadcasting; education resources.
Ministry of Education
Media literacy in the New Zealand curriculum.
NZ On Air
Public media funding including journalism.
Journalism.nz
Emerging journalism support ecosystem.
Foundation for Public Interest Journalism
New Zealand journalism and public media funding.
Community foundations
Some local journalism support through community foundations.
InternetNZ
Internet governance and digital literacy, including media literacy components.
Google News Initiative (NZ)
Journalism quality and news literacy.
School-based media literacy
News literacy
Misinformation resilience
Māori media literacy
Pacific community media literacy
Local journalism support
Research
New Zealand's Foundation for Public Interest Journalism and NZ On Air have pioneered the use of grants for journalism — funding specific public interest journalism projects and investigative reporting that commercial media cannot sustain. This model:
- Funds specific journalism projects (not general operations)
- Focuses on stories that matter but wouldn't be commercially viable
- Includes accountability journalism, investigative reporting, and community news
- Is evidence-based (commissioned research on New Zealand's information gaps)
Applications for journalism support that fit the public interest model — not advocacy journalism, not commercial content, but genuine public interest reporting — are well-positioned.
Evidence-based programs
Media literacy research has advanced — prebunking, lateral reading, and news literacy approaches have strong evidence. Applications that build on this evidence, not just generic critical thinking, are more credible.
Local journalism priority
The loss of local journalism is one of New Zealand's most acute media literacy challenges — without local news, communities lack the information they need for democratic participation. Applications for sustainable local journalism models are high-priority.
Māori media recognition
Māori media — Te Ao Māori News, Māori Television, iwi radio — is an important part of New Zealand's media ecosystem. Applications that acknowledge and support Māori media literacy and Māori journalism are more comprehensive.
Scalable digital approaches
Given the scale of the misinformation challenge, applications with digital delivery — online curricula, YouTube resources, social media campaigns — can reach more New Zealanders than face-to-face programs alone.
Tahua's grants management platform supports media literacy funders and journalism organisations in New Zealand — with program reach tracking, knowledge outcome measurement, community engagement data, and the reporting tools that help media literacy funders demonstrate their investment in an informed Aotearoa.