16 AUGUST 2018
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

The New Zealand Taxpayers’ Union has endorsed Melissa Lee’s Broadcasting Amendment Bill, which would make NZ on Air more transparent about the performance of taxpayer-funded programmes.

“This could be called the ‘Spinoff TV Memorial Bill’. The failure of Spinoff TV, which was funded $700,000 and delivered abysmal viewership ratings, is just one example of NZ on Air wasting our money on pet projects that no-one wants to watch.”

“Many more programmes receive funding yet fly under the radar. Has anybody even heard of Game of Bros, which has received over $900,000 for three seasons, so far? Taxpayers deserve to know whether these shows are delivering value.”

“Critics of the bill are already trying to argue that funded programmes should be measured not on their ratings, but by the ‘public value’ they create. What self-interested nonsense. There is no public value in funding a TV show that no-one watches, no matter how wholesome or ‘diverse’ the content.”

ENDS

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