Centrist: TVNZ exec’s participation in hīkoi raises impartiality concerns

TVNZ’s chief content officer, Nevak Rogers, attended the Te Pāti Māori linked Toe Toitū Te Tiriti hīkoi in opposition to ACT’s proposed Treaty Principles Bill, while on annual leave.

Her posts on social media prompted questions from TVNZ staff. According to one source: “How appropriate is it… that the exec who could be heading up the news and content teams is posting from the hīkoi?”

While TVNZ defended Rogers’ right to participate as a private citizen, some staff view her public support as conflicting with TVNZ’s impartiality policy, introduced three months prior. Rogers oversees all non-news programming but is also a frontrunner for a proposed new role of chief news and content officer.

The policy, introduced three months prior, aims to build “transparency” and trust in news, which critics argue Rogers’ actions may undermine.

Her social media previously raised ire when she showed her and TVNZ’s CEO, Jodi O’Donnell, enjoying a pricey, taxpayer funded Los Angeles junket, which coincided with a contentious employment dispute affecting TVNZ staff back in New Zealand. The posts were later deemed inappropriate by TVNZ.

Editor’s note: TVNZ’s Independence & Integrity standards guidelines specifically mandate that the newsroom must operate without influence from “political, sectional, commercial or personal interests.”

By attending and publicly supporting the hīkoi associated with politically sensitive issues, Rogers arguably risks creating the perception that she—and potentially TVNZ—aligns with a specific political stance.

The Centrist is a new online news platform that strives to provide a balance to the public debate - where this article was sourced.