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Last week, Tourism and Hospitality Minister Louise Upston announced plans to double the tourism value by 2034, with increased funding to support the country in reaching this goal. The funding is primarily targeted at increasing the marketing of New Zealand tourism overseas, which has been met with mixed reactions from tourism operators in Aotearoa, many of whom have been struggling with existing tourist numbers.

Also this past week, the New Zealand government imposed sanctions on two Israeli ministers for ‘inciting extremist violence’ against Palestinians. While the move has received cross-party support, opposition parties such as the Greens and Te Pāti Māori have criticised the government for not taking further action against Israel.

In our weekly catchup with National's Tom Rutherford, Wire host Castor asked about each of these issues, beginning with the new tourism funding. 

Although the anti-stalking legislation has been praised as a step forward for women in NZ, activists have deemed the bill “the bare minimum,” and believe that some grey areas haven’t been addressed.

Producer Faith spoke to community worker Layba Zubair from Aotearoa Free From Stalking about why she believes that the bill needs to be modified to be more victim-focused, and that police need to be better-equipped to deal with cases of stalking.

The Act Party has unsuccessfully tried to pass legislation for the regulatory standards bill three times.

Producer Faith spoke to Emeritus law Professor Jane Kelsey from the University of Auckland about why she believes they should not progress a fourth time round.

This week on the Tuesday Wire...

For Dear Science, our expert, Professor Allan Blackman, chats with us about characterising liquid carbon, Antarctic base cleanup, and plants making their pesticides. 

In our weekly catchup with the National Party’s Tom Rutherford, Wire host Castor asked about new investment in tourism marketing and New Zealand’s recent sanctions on two Israeli ministers.

They also spoke to professional teaching fellow at the University of Auckland, Simon Schofield, about the proposed sick leave changes and how they could disproportionately affect women. 

Producer Faith spoke to Emeritus Law Professor Jane Kelsey from the University of Auckland about ACT’s regulatory standards bill, and whether the party should progress with it, after it failed three times.

She also spoke to Layba Zubair from Aotearoa Free From Stalking about the gaps in the anti-stalking bill.

180 mins. of unexpurgated, undulating, poweful pungency

Naarm-based musician Paul Bender (Hiatus Kaiyote) has begun a tireless and nobel social media call to action, after his project The Sweet Enoughs had their streaming profiles hijacked by what appears to be AI-generated music. Turns out, it's becoming a really common issue; the low barriers for entry of digital distributors and lack of verification processes, combined with the speed and scale of AI content, making it harder for artists to protect their creative identities and autonomy across streaming. Rosetta decides to investigate, chatting with Paul, Dave Gibson from Elemeno P about a similar experience last year, Recorded Music NZ CEO Jo Oliver, and AI Music researcher Dr Fabio Morreale.

Oto and Jaycee interivewed Kiwi-Filipino comedian James Roque about his upcoming 'Champorado' tour across Aotearoa and Australia and had an extended kōrero about Filipino food and has transnational experiences in the Canadian comedy scene.

This week on Dear Science our expert, Professor Allan Blackman, chatted with us about characterising liquid carbon, a New Zealand led cleanup in Antarctica, and plants making their own pesticide. 

On Friday last week, the consultation process for the proposed new English curriculum for intermediate and high school students ended.

The proposed English curriculum will result in senior high school students learning Shakespeare and 19th-century texts, and spelling and keyboard lessons for younger students.

However, concerns have been raised that the proposed curriculum is ‘Eurocentric,’ does not engage with Te Tiriti o Waitangi, and lacks Māori and Pacific text.

News and Editorial Director and Monday Wire Host, Joel, spoke to Claudia Rozas — a lecturer in Critical Studies at the University of Auckland, about why elements of te ao Māori should be incorporated into the English curriculum and the importance of Māori and Pacific text being engaged with.

Princess Lātūfuipeka Tukuʻaho of Tonga has called for legal personhood for whales, some of the most intelligent animals we share the Earth with.

This would not be the first time that governments have recognised personhood for non human things, New Zealand having done so with a mountain, Taranaki Mounga, and the Whanganui river.

Producer Samantha spoke with Dr Justin Sobion, Professor of Law at the University of Auckland about the legal and industrial implications of such a move.