Radio New Zealand International: The Voice of New Zealand, Broadcasting to the Pacific

Abstract

In 1948 the New Zealand government launched Radio New Zealand, the shortwave division of the New Zealand Broadcasting Service. Initially, the intention was to use the service to build goodwill with audiences in the Pacific region and overseas. However, over the years the New Zealand government has shown anything but goodwill to the service. Frequent funding cuts and general lack of support rendered the service all but obsolete by the 1980s. It took a military coup on the island of Fiji in 1987 for the New Zealand government to realize it had no strong broadcasting voice in the region. The coup became the catalyst for the rebirth of New Zealand's shortwave service, now renamed Radio New Zealand International. This article examines the history of Radio New Zealand International, as well as the role it has played, and currently plays, in the Pacific region.