Listen back to features and interviews from 95bFM's daily news and current affairs show. Joel Armstrong, Sara Mckoy, Max Micheel, and Caeden Tipler focus on the issues of Tāmaki Makaurau and elsewhere in independent-thinking bFM style. Monday-Thursday 12-1pm on 95bFM.
“When Genocide Wasn’t News” is a recently released Canadian book that documents major Canadian news organisations' reporting on Gaza.
The book claims the media has “whitewashed Israeli violence, dehumanised Palestinians and smeared a growing protest movement.”
Gabriela Perdomo Páez, Assistant Professor of journalism at Mount Royal University, says journalists who support peace efforts can easily be accused of being “biased” in favour of those promoting peace.
For International Desk, Wire Host Caeden spoke to Perdomo Páez about Canadian news coverage of Gaza.
Recently, AI-enabled CCTV cameras, number plate recognition systems and other smart technologies have been rolled out in Tāmaki Makaurau, Auckland.While information about these technologies is limited, what is known is that they’re primarily being used to detect traffic violations at the moment, although ethical concerns have been raised about how this technology could be used in the future.
Oto spoke to Dr Mohsen Mohammadzadeh, A senior lecturer in the school of architecture and planning in the faculty of engineering and design at the university of Auckland about the rollout this new AI enabled surveillance technology in Auckland and it’s ethical implications.
As Israel’s war in Gaza nears its second full year since October 7th, 2023, multiple aid agencies and humanitarian groups have said that the prevalence of famine within the strip has gone beyond critical levels, with elderly Palestinians now succumbing to malnutrition-related deaths alongside the deaths amongst children that were reported earlier this year.
Israel, who have maintained a blockade on the Gaza strip since 2007, began significantly restricting the amount of aid entering the enclave following the beginning of the war. While spokespeople from the government have told the international community they were allowing adequate levels of aid to enter the strip during humanitarian pauses, humanitarian groups have said the volume of aid entering the strip was far below the level needed, and that reported attacks on both aid workers and Palestinians waiting for aid by IDF personnel weakened Israel’s claims of distributing aid effectively.
Oto spoke to Dr Ritesh Shah, a Senior Lecturer Critical Studies in Education at the University of Auckland to discuss why Israel has been facing international condemnation for its handling of aid distribution in Gaza.
If you'd like to attend the seminar that Ritesh will be speaking at tomorrow, you can find the details for it here on eventbrite:
For our weekly catchup with the Green Party, Oto spoke with MP Ricardo Menendez-March about the government’s plan to replace the National Certificate of Educational Achievement, The FBI office opening in Wellington and The party's call to the government to reverse changes to emergency housing access.
He spoke with Ritesh Shah, a Senior Lecturer Critical Studies in Education, about why Israel is facing international condemnation for how it’s handled aid distribution in Gaza.
And he spoke to Dr Mohsen Mohammadzadeh, A senior lecturer in the school of architecture and planning in the faculty of engineering and design at the University of Auckland about the rollout of AI enabled surveillance technology in Auckland.
Max spoke to Stuart McNaughton, a professor from the University of Auckland, to talk about the government’s decision to scrap NCEA by 2030.
On Monday this week it was announced by the government that they are planning to drop NCEA from the national curriculum by 2030, as a part of a new education overhaul.
Although the full details of the new program haven’t been released, the government is planning to replace the NCEA qualification, which has been in place for more than 20 years, with a new national system weighted heavily towards exams. Associate Education Minister David Seymour described the change as more “challenging” for students, which from his perspective can “only be a positive thing”.
Following on from our previous conversation with the Green Party’s Ricardo Menendez-March, Producer Max spoke to Stuart McNaughton, a professor in the faculty of arts and education at the University of Auckland, to talk about the new education reforms.
For Dear Science this week, our expert, Dr Daniel Thomas on history, pre-history, and the search for Atlantis
For our weekly catchup with the National Party, Host Sara spoke to MP Carl Bates about the reversal of the oil and gas exploration ban, yesterday’s announcement of an NCEA overhaul and US tariffs.
Sara also spoke with Greenpeace executive director Russel Norman, about the oil and gas ban reversal in New Zealand, and the plans in the US to repeal the finding that greenhouse gas emissions endanger human health.
Producer Faith spoke to Professor Treasa Dunworth from the University of Auckland about the government’s statement on Gaza.
Faith also spoke to the university’s Dr. Michael Rehm about the humidity standards in green homes, and what needs to change about the rating system.
They may be “green homes,” but there’s plenty of grey areas. Academics such as the University of Auckland’s Dr. Michael Rehm believe that the humidity standards on these eco-friendly houses need to be reassessed.
Producer Faith spoke to Michael about these standards, and whether they’re effective.
On Thursday last week, the coalition government passed legislation to reverse the ban on oil and gas exploration — a ban which had been initiated by the previous government in 2018.
Minister Shane Jones who drove the reversal, highlighted the impact of the ban on economic growth and energy supply in New Zealand. Opposition parties have voiced concerns about the impact of this decision for New Zealand’s climate commitments.
As well, yesterday Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Education Minister Erica Stanford announced an overhaul of the NCEA system, to be replaced with qualifications that they say will be better to understand, and more aligned with international standards.
Finally, as the United States places 15% tariffs on NZ exports, the Labour party have said the government needs to do more to strengthen our trade relationships to avoid a rise in the cost of living for kiwis.
Host Sara spoke with National MP Carl Bates about all these topics. Sara started by asking him to explain the government’s decision to reverse the ban on oil and gas exploration in New Zealand.
The International Court of Justice has delivered a landmark, albeit nonbinding ruling, that countries have a legal obligation to act on climate change.
In this context, climate news in this past week has raised worry for climate advocates.
The New Zealand government has passed legislation to reverse the 2018 ban on new oil and gas exploration projects, which is predicted to increase the country’s emissions by 14.2 million tonnes according to official analysis.
As well, the United States are seeking to negate the finding that greenhouse gas emissions pose any danger to human health, with the aim to reduce the power of the Environmental Protection Agency to restrict activities that produce these emissions.
Wire Host Sara spoke to Greenpeace executive director Russel Norman about these two cases and their potential consequences for global climate action.
From Dec 27 to Jan 18, all train lines across Tāmaki will be shutting down for summer maintenance, a closure which is expected to be the last of its kind ahead of the opening of the City Rail Link.
The current measles outbreak in Tāmaki is being continually monitored, with exposure sites being updated daily on info.health.nz. The public are encouraged to track whether they’ve been in possible contact with the virus, and get up to date on any vaccinations to limit possibilities of transmission.
Auckland Council are supporting arts initiatives across the summer months, with Music in the Park kicking off in early January, and Movies in the Park following in February.
Producer Jasmine Gray spoke to Councillor Julie Fairey about these topics, and also asked for comment following the attack by two gunmen at Bondi Beach earlier this week.
Yesterday, the latest six-monthly survey of housing support providers under the National Homelessness Data Project, or NHDP, showed that homelessness in Auckland has more than doubled in the year to September. The report also found that 14 of the 21 agencies interviewed reported an increase in homelessness.
As well as this, Australia’s ban on social media for children under 16 has taken effect. And according to an interim report into social media harm, a social media ban for children in New Zealand is worth exploring further.
And last week the Government announced the replacement of the Resource Management Act, or RMA. The coalition said its replacement will slash red tape and supercharge growth.
For our weekly catchup with the Green Party, Wednesday Wire Host Max spoke to MP Ricardo Menendez March about the Government’s new RMA reforms and a potential social media ban in New Zealand.
But first they discussed the latest report on Auckland homelessness.
The Parliament’s Workforce and Education Committee has released an interim report on an inquiry into the harm young New Zealanders face online. The government has recently announced an overhaul of the Resource Management Act and introduced two new bills in its place, the Natural Environment Bill and the Planning Bill.
For our weekly catch-up with the National Party, Producer Vihan spoke to MP Carl Bates, who is also the Deputy Chairperson of the Workforce and Education Committee, about the new findings of the interim report, the new Natural Environment Bill, and the Fast Track Approval Amendments Bill.
The government has announced the overhaul of the Resource Management Act (RMA), which will be replaced by two different bills, the Planning Bill and the Natural Environment Bill. The RMA is set to be fully replaced by 2029.
The RMA, which has been in effect for 34 years, is polarising across the political spectrum.
In announcing the reforms, RMA Reform Minister, Chris Bishop, says that “pretty much everything” will be quicker and less costly under the new regime.
For our weekly catch-up with the ACT Party, News and Editorial Director and Monday Wire Host Joel spoke to MP Simon Court about this overhaul of the RMA.
They also discussed The Education and Workforce Committee’s interim report on the harms young people experience online, with a majority recommending a ban on social media for under-16-year-olds.
But first, they discussed the overhaul of the RMA.
On Sunday, “Block the Ban” held a protest against the government’s decision to ban new prescriptions of puberty blockers for young people with gender dysphoria.
The United Nations’ committee for the Convention on the Elimination of all forms of Racial Discrimination has released a report warning that New Zealand is at serious risk of weakening Māori rights.
And last week, the government rejected the recommended methane emissions targets.
This is despite officials warning against the government doing so, stating that lowering methane emissions targets could increase New Zealand’s contribution to global warming.
For our weekly catch-up with the Labour Party, Wire Host Caeden spoke to Shanan Halbert about all of these topics.
Safety measures on public transport are of growing concern this week following the fatal and unprovoked attack that took place on route 76 in East Tāmkaki on Monday night.
Earlier this week there were also multiple critical incidents that occurred simultaneously across Auckland’s West Coast beaches and waterways, seeing an unusually high deployment of emergency services and surf lifesavers for this early in the summer.
Swedish home and furniture retailer Ikea opened in Sylvia Park a week ago today, drawing huge excitement for many.
Producer Jasmine Gray spoke to Councillor Shane Henderson about these topics.
Last week was scrutiny week, where Parliament focuses entirely on holding government agencies and ministers to account, to check-in on how well the Government is performing.
Many of the questions surrounding scrutiny week have been focused on climate change, with many recent reports highlighting the Government’s questionable decision-making.. The biggest headline was that the coalition had chosen to reject all three of the climate change commission’s recommendations to strengthen New Zealand’s emissions targets.
Along with this, the United Nations released a new report, where they’ve warned that New Zealand is at serious risk of weakening Māori rights and entrenching disparities for the indigenous population. In the 14-page report, the UN expressed concerns over multiple government policies affecting Maori, including the disestablishment of the Maori Health Authority, cuts to public funding for Maori services, and minimising the role of Te Tiriti o Waitangi.
For our weekly catchup with the Green Party, Wednesday Wire Host Max spoke to MP Ricardo Menendez March about the report released by the United Nations, but first they discussed Scrutiny Week and the Government’s recent climate change decisions.
The government is pausing the new prescriptions of Puberty Blockers to gender diverse and transgender young people from the 19th of December onwards, following a similar move by the UK after the results of the NHS’s Cass Review.
Wire Producer Flo spoke to activist Lauren Craig about the effects of the legislation, her petition “Reverse the decision to deny transgender and takatāpui young people access to puberty blockers” against the changes and the wider political motivation for the policy.
If you'd like to sign this petition, you can find it here
The biannual Scrutiny Week took place in Parliament last week, with meetings across select committees and government departments focussed on scrutinising the outcomes of government work.
These include hearings on ministries like Health, Housing, Environment and Justice.
Wire Host Sara spoke to National MP Carl Bates about Scrutiny Week, firstly by asking him to talk about the meetings he was involved in
95bFM 
