David Lillis: The Atlas Network in New Zealand?

The Atlas Network in Our Media

Though well-known beforehand here in New Zealand, the Atlas Network (Atlas, 2025) came into particular prominence when Mihingarangi Forbes talked to David Seymour in an interview produced for Radio New Zealand by the Aotearoa Media Collective (Forbes, 2024).

In that interview Ms. Forbes questioned Mr. Seymour directly as to whether the Act Party has connections to that Network and whether he had taken advice from them in relation to the Treaty of Waitangi. He replied in the negative to both questions. We take it that, even if in the past he had worked for conservative think tanks, he no longer maintains links. I see no reason to doubt his word.

Indeed, Chris Trotter reports that Mr. Seymour was in the past employed by two conservative Canadian think tanks - the Frontier Centre for Public Policy and the Manning Foundation - both of which were in the past members of the Atlas Network (Trotter, 2024). However, prior links do not mean that Mr. Seymour maintains links today and Mr. Trotter says that Mr. Seymour’s past links to the Atlas Network do not make him a villain.

Mr. Trotter notes that left-wing politicians whose CVs show them working for “progressive” organisations, NGOs and left-wing think tanks that have links to billionaire donors, are not portrayed as evil-doers by the mainstream media. Having a background in the trade unions, student organisations and environmental group is seen as perfectly natural, and he asks where else left-wingers are to learn their trade.

Media Bias

Unfortunately, our mainstream media is very prejudiced – to the point of outright hostility of the current Government. Newsroom, The Post and Stuff are prime examples of New Zealand’s media problem. The opinion pieces of particular commenters are published regularly, as are left-leaning pieces from journalists who should really remain politically neutral and some of whom appear to have limited relevant training or expertise. Very little right-leaning material ever makes it into the mainstream media, and almost nothing from scientists who attempt to correct misconceptions on matters on which science has a bearing; that is, unless their views coincide with particular narratives. Thus the general public reads or hears almost exclusively only one side of any debate.

Social media provides another set of problems, whereby individuals who have little or no relevant training or professional experience can engage in vitriolic attacks, not only on Government and institutions, but also on private individuals - but where an incautious response could lead to the targeted person being sued for defamation. Here we have a more general concern about the power of social media to influence - and not always for the good.

On 22 December 2023, TVNZ published a programme from Mata Reports, called “Trick or Treaty? - Indigenous Rights, Referendums and the Treaty of Waitangi” on the 1News website, the TVNZ+ platform and the 1News YouTube channel (1News, 2023). During this programme, a number of negative assertions were made against the Atlas Network and subsequently Brad Lips, CEO of the Atlas Network, complained that the programme had breached Principle (1) – Accuracy, Fairness and Balance.

He claimed that the Atlas Network had played no role in the Australian Voice Referendum, did not receive funding from oil and gas companies and did not and would not have any role in New Zealand domestic politics, including discourse around the Treaty of Waitangi. His complaint was upheld on the grounds of lack of fairness, because the Atlas Network had not been approached for comment and TVNZ’s amendment had been inadequate (New Zealand Media Council, 2024).

I am neither a supporter nor an ideological opponent of the Atlas Network, but the considerable volume of negative discourse on it in both mainstream and social media evident in recent years prompted me to investigate the relevant literature and form an independent view. However, I believe that all New Zealanders should form their own independent views on the major political and social issues of the day and not allow themselves to be persuaded easily by media commentators, either those on the right or those on the left.

Other Commentators

Apart from Mihingarangi Forbes, others believe that the Atlas Network exerts negative influence here in New Zealand. For example, Dame Anne Salmond tells us that the Act Party, with its wealthy funders and well-documented links through the Taxpayers’ Union and the New Zealand Initiative with the Atlas global network of far-right think tanks, attacks equal opportunities programmes, ministries for women, Pacific peoples and Māori, and seeks a referendum on Te Tiriti (Salmond, 2024).‍

But what does Dame Salmond mean by “far-right” in this context, and are her characterizations of attacks on equal opportunities and on particular groups balanced and fair? To judge whether such commentary is balanced and fair we must know the detail and consider objectively the diverse range of possible rationales for particular policies or changes to legislation.

One student who has become a prolific blogger, known for her severe criticisms of the current Coalition Government’s education and economic policy, is also very concerned about links between the New Zealand Initiative and the Atlas Network (Eliott, 2025). She tells us that National is taking ideas from unelected advisors and trying to make them standard in schools. What else does she expect? Just how many advisors of any government are elected by the people?

We hear claims that Atlas is a long-time ally of the tobacco industry (e.g. Smith et al., 2016) and is funded partly by oil and gas companies. It does appear that Atlas has received funding from tobacco companies and this is a matter of genuine concern to the public. However, how much is truth and how much conjecture or urban myth? Did Atlas have direct or indirect influence in the Coalition Government’s “Getting to Smokefree 2025” initiative? Mr. Seymour has given an assurance that the tobacco industry provided neither funding nor influence (Gibson, 2024).

The Coalition’s argument was that smoke-free legislation would have led to an increase in crime and the emergence of a black market for cigarettes. Like many others, I wanted to see a more explicit policy in relation to reducing incidence and minimizing harm, but perhaps we should give the current plan its chance - involving services that support cessation of smoking and messaging around marketing and promotion of health. If the plan appears to be ineffective, then we think again.

Atlas claims not to receive money from oil or other extractive industries. They say that over 15 years ago they received about 0.01 per cent of their budget from an oil company, but have not received any funding in over a decade and a half (Clarke, 2025). Here I take them at their word on the grounds that exposure of misinformation about funding would harm their reputation very badly. In any case, perhaps we should assume the truth from people by default, unless the available evidence points strongly otherwise.

More Critics of the Atlas Network and its Activities

Sam Williams of the Public Service Association writes that Atlas is a global network of right-wing ‘think tanks’ that organize and build power so that they can shape the systems and structures we live in, to advance their own interests (Williams, 2024). Mr. Williams does not clarify how or why he concludes that these right wing think tanks are there primarily to advance their own interests rather than working genuinely towards improving quality of life for everyone. Would he assert the same of domestic organizations that influence public policy, such as the Aotearoa Educators Collective, which influences education policy (Aotearoa Educators Collective, 2025)?

Mr. Williams says that local right-wing think tanks - the Taxpayers’ Union and the New Zealand Initiative - are both official partners of Atlas and that Atlas ideology aligns closely with the current government and its rush of regressive and reactionary policies. Indeed, both the Taxpayers’ Union and the New Zealand Initiative are members. However, whether current Government policy is regressive or reactionary depends on one’s point of view and one’s political opinions, and in any case it is not clear whether the Public Service Association should violate political neutrality and express political opinions of any orientation.

Further, he says that a useful way of looking at the Atlas Network is as a guide to how right-wing interests build and maintain their influence and power and when we see the machinations of the Atlas Network, we can choose to resist them and build something better instead. I am not a supporter of the Atlas Network because I do not know enough to form a credible judgement, but what would Mr. Williams build that is better? Does he have a view on left-wing think tanks or other left-leaning observers and commenters on New Zealand society?

Professor Mohan Dutta tells us that the global mobilisation of right-wing attacks on critical race theory is reflective of the influential role of the US in disseminating far-right ideology, offering the discursive infrastructure for potential US interference in democratic processes across spaces (Dutta, 2023). He says that the Atlas Network, a US-based global network of right-wing policy infrastructures, actively pushes policies promoting privatization, interfering with political processes and inserting right-wing neoliberal frames into electoral systems. However, where is Professor Dutta’s evidence for political interference?

Such interference may or may not be real, but does Professor Dutta have access to specific evidence for episodes of political interference overseas or here in New Zealand? Does he have a view on left-leaning think tanks?

Comment from the New Zealand Initiative

Dr. Oliver Hartwich, Executive Director of the New Zealand Initiative, writes that on the Left, a prominent blogger warns about corporate fascism (Hartwich, 2025). He says that the Atlas Network, a global association of free-market think tanks that gifted a camera to the New Zealand Initiative ten years ago, has become for the Left “a tentacled monster, controlling global politics”.

I have reached out to Dr. Hartwich and asked about his perspectives on media coverage of both Atlas and the New Zealand Initiative. Indeed, he is very concerned about attacks on his organization and its staff. He believes that Atlas is doing great work and says that there are reasons as to why the New Zealand Initiative is a member; simply he likes what they do and what they stand for, and the New Zealand Initiative shares the same values. However, membership does not mean that Atlas funds or controls the New Zealand Initiative. He says that no funding link exists and that Atlas does not tell the Initiative what to do.

The Atlas Website

Atlas describes itself as a nonpartisan, non-profit foundation that supports the development and success of pro-freedom organizations throughout the world. Its stated vision is of a free, prosperous and peaceful world where the principles of individual liberty, property rights, limited government and free markets are secured by the rule of law (Atlas, 2025).

Its stated approach is to cultivate a network of partners that share this vision. Its website says that to accelerate the pace of achievement of its partners in their local communities, Atlas Network’s strategic model - Coach, Compete, Celebrate! - is intended to inspire partners to improve performance and achieve extraordinary outcomes.

Atlas says that it recognizes that outsiders should respect the dignity, agency and enterprise of low-income communities, because only they can fix their problems. It says that freeing the enterprise of the poor - but not state interventionism or “development plans” - will make poverty history. It claims to invest in local change agents who know what needs to change.

Its public website records objectives such as promoting free societies and protecting civil rights, since only by protecting the civil rights of all can the institutions of liberal democracy truly flourish.

I have no particular view on Atlas and I neither support nor object to any presence it might have in this country. I can neither confirm nor deny that Atlas keeps strictly to its stated vision and objectives. However, both mainstream and social media here portray Atlas as a dark and underhand agent that supports primarily big business, is a climate denier (e.g. Central News UTS, 2023) and gets involved in the politics of various countries in a way that acts against Indigenous people and other minorities. However, I see no compelling evidence of any hidden agenda but I do have a concern that it has received funding from the tobacco industry. My own opinion is that here in New Zealand we have the in-house capability to think critically for ourselves and to develop our own policy, but nevertheless we can learn from many; even from those in other countries.

Keeping an Open Mind

Debbi Gibbs, former Global Chair of Atlas, says that Atlas has no collaboration with any political party in the world, including New Zealand’s Act Party (Gibbs, 2024). Further, she states that Atlas has worked hard for Indigenous property rights and that the organisation had never heard of the Treaty Principles Bill. Curiously, she informs us that Atlas has provided funding for New Zealand’s Free Speech Union in fighting legislation that prohibits gangs from wearing gang patches in public (Free Speech Union, 2024).

While keeping an open mind on Atlas and other think tanks, both left- and right-wing, it would help our progress towards constructive and productive dialogue, and indeed towards a better society, if those who express their political opinions bring a degree of balance and fairness to the public domain. In other words, we don’t make negative accusations or spread negative information within the public domain without conclusive evidence. If indeed we receive information that Atlas, or any other think tank or lobby group, has exceeded its stated brief and has engaged in unethical or improper influence, then we expose them and drop them immediately. Unfortunately, other people’s websites very often do not provide compelling evidence, and nor does New Zealand’s mainstream media.

The Atlas Network has come in for scathing criticism from the Left, as has the New Zealand Initiative. However, the public can read about the Atlas Network and judge for themselves the extent to which it poses any existential threat to New Zealand, or indeed to any other country.

Dr David Lillis trained in physics and mathematics at Victoria University and Curtin University in Perth, working as a teacher, researcher, statistician and lecturer for most of his career. He has published many articles and scientific papers, as well as a book on graphing and statistics.

References

1News (2023). Trick or Treaty? Indigenous rights, referendums and the Treaty of Waitangi

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IDS0RBMspGk

Aotearoa Educators Collective (2025).

https://www.aec.org.nz/

Atlas Network (2025). Atlas Network

https://www.atlasnetwork.org/

Central News UTS (2023). The Atlas Network: Big oil, climate disinformation and constitutional democracy

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tlQOw6qpblY

Clarke, Emily (2025). How Atlas Network amassed a global network of free market think tanks and reached into Australia and New Zealand

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-04-24/atlas-network-think-tanks-active-in-australia-and-new-zealand/104788732

Dutta, Mohan (2023). Opinion: The far-right, misinformation, and academic freedom

https://www.massey.ac.nz/about/news/opinion-the-far-right-misinformation-and-academic-freedom/

Forbes, Mihingarangi (2024). MATA with Mihingarangi Forbes

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jawqYy3rgQw 

Free Speech Union (2024). Proposed ban of gang patches sets a dangerous precedent

https://www.fsu.nz/blog/proposed-ban-of-gang-patches-sets-a-dangerous-precedent

Gibbs, Debbie (2024). Q+A with Jack Tame (2024). The Atlas Network: What is it?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g7Ra5vzpOjA

Gibson, Gray (2024). Experts detail swathe of possible connections between Coalition Government politicians and tobacco industry; David Seymour responds

https://www.stuff.co.nz/politics/350463258/experts-detail-swathe-of-possible-connections-between-coalition-government-politicians-and-tobacco-industry-david-seymour-responds

Hartwich, Oliver (2025). Transparency versus Conspiracy

https://oliverhartwich.com/2025/09/26/transparency-versus-conspiracy/

Kierstead, James (2025). Hayek's real bastards

https://www.nzinitiative.org.nz/reports-and-media/opinion/hayeks-real-bastards/

New Zealand Media Council (2024). BRAD LIPS AGAINST TVNZ

https://www.mediacouncil.org.nz/rulings/brad-lips-against-tvnz/

Salmond, Anne (2024). How to split a Society

https://www.auckland.ac.nz/en/news/2024/01/17/how-to-split-a-society.html

Smith, Julia, Thompson, Sheryl and Lee, Kelly (2016). The atlas network: a “strategic ally” of the tobacco industry

Int J Health Plann Manage. 2016 Apr 28;32(4):433–448. doi: 10.1002/hpm.2351

https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC5716244/

Trotter, Chris (2024). Shrugging-Off The Atlas Network

https://theintegrityinstitute.substack.com/p/shrugging-off-the-atlas-network

Williams, Sam (2024). Understanding Atlas: how a right-wing network is building global influencehttps://www.psa.org.nz/journals/understanding-atlas-how-a-right-wing-network-is-building-global-influence