re_covering

With decades of experience as one of New Zealand’s most prominent television journalists, Mark Crysell recounts gaining unprecedented access to follow a set of unlikely New Zealanders into North Korea.

Season 4 Episode 1

Mark Crysell’s love of television and passion for telling a good yarn has led to him becoming one of New Zealand’s most prominent journalists.

He has reported for TVNZ’s Sunday programme since 2003, been TVNZ's Europe Correspondent based in London and won multiple awards including Best Current Affairs Reporter at the Qantas Media Awards, Best Weekly Current Affairs Report at the NZ TV awards in 2012, and Broadcast Reporter of the Year at the 2021 Voyager Media Awards.

In this episode, Mark tells media chaplain Rev Frank Ritchie of his early career highlights and then takes us behind the scenes of how he and his team gained unprecedented access into North Korea.

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After decades as one of the country's best-known journalists, Cameron Bennett took on a unique new challenge: to educate the nation on the New Zealand Wars and help tell Māori stories.

Season 3 Episode 8

A legendary figure in New Zealand journalism across several decades, Cameron Bennett is revered for his ability to tell a compelling story, his courage to report from some of the world's most dangerous places, and his broadcasting brilliance.

But his most recent work has presented a unique challenge. As well as helping tell the stories that matter to Māori for a Māori audience on Te Ao with Moana, Cameron has played a key role in producing an award-winning documentary series about the New Zealand Wars.

In this kōrero with broadcaster and media chaplain Rev Frank Ritchie, Cameron talks about being a Pākehā journalist at a Māori news organisation, regales us with tales of reporting from warzones, and lifts the lid on Paul Holmes' infamous interview with Dennis Conner.

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As fast-food workers suffered under the indignity of zero-hour contracts, Anna Burns-Francis stepped up to tell their stories. Her tireless reporting forced corporations to put employee welfare over greed.

Season 3 Episode 7

When Anna Burns-Francis began her investigation into zero-hour contracts, she was gobsmacked. Fast-food giants had been hiring Kiwis without guaranteeing them any work, all while preventing them getting another job.

Anna's tenacious reporting exposed how greed was being prioritised at the expense of worker wellbeing, pressuring some of the world's wealthiest corporations into changing their policies and setting the wheels in motion on a groundbreaking law change.

In this conversation with broadcaster and media chaplain Rev Frank Ritchie, Anna discusses taking on the big guns while at Campbell Live, the demands of being TVNZ's US correspondent, and how approaching a story with curiosity can foster care for each other.

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A shock diagnosis forced Simon Wilson to come to terms with his own mortality. Rather than let it derail his work, the veteran journalist made the bold call to bring readers along on each step of his gruelling cancer journey.

Season 3 Episode 6

Just before Christmas 2017, veteran journalist Simon Wilson received a life-changing phone call. He had prostate cancer, and it wasn't looking good.

Having just taken a job at the Herald, he bravely decided to let New Zealand have a peek behind the hospital curtain by penning his Cancer Diaries. Keeping a record of each brutal moment of his illness brought him catharsis and his readers comfort.

In this kōrero with broadcaster and media chaplain Rev Frank Ritchie, Simon discusses coming to terms with his own mortality, his experiences as the editor of several of New Zealand's top magazines, and the conundrum of paywalled journalism.

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As stories tumbled out about ACC's handling of sensitive client data, Anusha Bradley was there holding the agency to account. Her award-winning coverage prompted an independent review, policy changes and legal reform.

Season 3 Episode 5

When Anusha Bradley first reported on ACC staff's mishandling of a couple's sensitive case details, she had no idea she was about to be inundated with story after story about the Crown agency's failures.

Anusha's dogged and award-winning reporting exposed a lax approach to privacy and other systemic issues, prompting a review into how ACC handles private information and major law reforms for women who suffer birth injuries.

In this kōrero with broadcaster and media chaplain Rev Frank Ritchie, Anusha talks about the burden of carrying people's stories, her experience holding ACC to account, and why she's feeling buoyant about the future of journalism.

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Plunged into lawless South Sudan in 2017, Michael Morrah overcame danger and personal trauma to report on the brutal realities of life in the wartorn nation.

Season 3 Episode 4

When Michael Morrah was plunged into lawless South Sudan in 2017, evidence of brutality was everywhere - from filthy protection of civilian camps, to malnourished families, to child soldiers wielding assault rifles.

Spurred on by a desire to raise awareness of the scale of desolation and need in the wartorn nation, Morrah overcame danger and personal trauma to report on the plight of the people who lived there.

In this conversation with broadcaster and media chaplain Rev Frank Ritchie, Michael discusses his difficulties reintegrating to normal life after South Sudan, the elusive quest for work-life balance, and the changing culture of New Zealand's newsrooms.

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A wheelchair user all her life, Olivia Shivas' coverage on people with disabilities suffering horrific abuse in care hit uncomfortably close to home. Her courageous reporting would help expose injustice and give survivors a voice.

Season 3 Episode 3

Having used a wheelchair all her life, Olivia Shivas' coverage on people with disabilities suffering horrific abuse in care hit uncomfortably close to home.

But pushing through the personal mental toll of the hearings, the Stuff journalist's courageous reporting would help expose injustice and give survivors a voice.

In this conversation with broadcaster and media chaplain Rev Frank Ritchie, Olivia discusses her experiences as a journalist with a disability, the fight to overcome stereotypes, and how good-quality media coverage can give dignity to others with disabilities.

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Long before it made national headlines, Justin Latif faced an uphill battle to convince his bosses the occupation of Ihumātao was worth covering. The ensuing reportage opened up a national conversation about identity, land ownership and Māori rights.

Season 3 Episode 2

Long before it made national headlines, Justin Latif faced an uphill battle to convince his bosses the occupation of Ihumātao wasn't just some "small local thing" - and was actually a story worth covering.

But what began as a report about a few dissidents taking a stand against a property developer would soon spark conversations across Aotearoa about identity, land ownership and Māori rights.

In this kōrero with broadcaster and media chaplain Rev Frank Ritchie, Justin discusses the power of community journalism, overcoming work-induced panic attacks, and how the media can be a force for good.

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During the 2019 measles outbreak in Samoa Barbara Dreaver reported on an ill-equipped healthcare system, complex tensions between traditional and western medicine, and the tragic and preventable loss of life.

Season 3 Episode 1

When the measles virus travelled from New Zealand to Samoa in September of 2019 Barbara Dreaver followed.

On the ground, she found herself telling stories of an ill-equipped healthcare system compounded by complex tensions between traditional and western medicine. This formed the backdrop to the raw and tragic loss of 83 lives, with the majority of casualties being children.

In this conversation with media chaplain and broadcaster Rev. Frank Ritchie, Barbara opens up about the profound impact those stories had on her, as well as her distinct experiences of being detained in both Fiji and Nauru.

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Through the telling of one couple's devastating story, Susie Ferguson lifted the lid on the grief suffered by the hundreds of Kiwi families who lose a baby each year. The veteran broadcaster reflects on helping break NZ's final taboo.

Season 2 Episode 10

Horrified at witnessing multiple friends and co-workers grieve the loss of a baby, veteran RNZ broadcaster Susie Ferguson struggled to understand why it seemed to be something no one was talking about.

Her bewilderment led to The Unthinkable, an award-winning podcast series examining the intense anguish the death of a newborn causes, and why it remains a taboo topic in New Zealand despite affecting hundreds of families here every year.

In this conversation with broadcaster and media chaplain Rev Frank Ritchie, Susie reflects on making the series and the trauma of covering the Iraq War, and breaks down why she's stepping away from breakfast radio.

Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details