We Say – Council fortifies its walls

Auckland Council’s decision to shift its substantial advertising budget further away from community newspapers is yet another example of how this urban-centric council works. The decision, made by council staff and not elected representatives, seems to have been based entirely on economics, completely ignoring the fact that print is still widely consumed in the Mahurangi area, where people aren’t necessarily as connected to social media and websites.

When our advertising team contacted the Rodney Local Board to coordinate advertising and public notices in the wake of the Rodney Times closure, board democracy advisor Robyn Joynes responded that the board would not be publishing with the papers for now. She noted Mahurangi Matters “does not reach the whole of Rodney,” and said there needed to be a “wider conversation” on how to handle public notices going forward. It would be interesting to know how Ms Joynes justifies advertising with the Herald then, which has a tiny circulation north of Puhoi (reportedly around 1000, compared to 13,000 for this paper) and certainly does not cover the whole of Rodney either.

Democracy advisor Louise Healy later added that council would advertise in the Herald for the next two months “until a decision had been made about community newspapers. The legislation may also change, removing the requirement for public notification in print media.” Should this happen, it will, in all likelihood, mean it will be even more difficult to learn about council-driven activities such as private plan changes, roading projects, waste disposal, grant opportunities, environmental initiatives, and the list goes on. Unless you know where and how to go looking for such information, it is very unlikely that you will stumble across it. Unlike a newspaper, it won’t just be there when you turn the page, printed in a timely fashion so that you can participate in consultation processes. A less informed population, equates to a less engaged population. Perhaps that is the idea.

Up until now, council has been an infrequent advertiser in this paper at the best of times, but at least its notices were appearing in the Rodney Times. To replace a free, local newspaper with a paid national publication, is indefensible. Council has squandered an opportunity to strengthen its relationship with residents in the north by failing to communicate with them through a publication that is widely trusted and well-read. It has also made our job of keeping our communities informed just that little bit harder.