New Zealand media camouflage political lobbying
Keywords:
journalism, newspapers, political lobbying, precision journalism
Abstract
Political lobbyists are a part of government decision-making processes, and many countries have stringent regulations to ensure their activities are somewhat transparent, especially as some use ethically questionable tactics. In New Zealand, however, there are no similar legislative regulations and lobbyists can stay undetected while trying to influence policymaking. More concerning, however, is that the results of this study indicates that lobbyists are also able to skirt around scrutiny in New Zealand media because of current journalism practices. This research’s content analysis indicates the media neglects to identify lobby organisations, thereby allowing them to operate without detection of their agenda, leaving the public unaware of who is influencing decision makers.
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References
Australian Government Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet, (2016). Who is on the register? Retrieved: http://lobbyists.pmc.gov.au/who_register_clients.cfm
Berg, K. T. (2012). The ethics of lobbying: Testing an ethical framework for advocacy in public relations. Journal of Mass Media Ethics: Exploring questions of media morality, 27(2), 97-114.
Callaghan, K. & Schnell, F. (2001). Assessing the democratic debate: How the news media frame elite policy discourse. Political Communication 18, 182-212.
Center for Responsive Politics. (2014). Lobbying database. Retrieved: https://www.opensecrets.org/lobby/
Comrie, M. (1997). Media tactics in New Zealand’s Crown Health Enterprises. Public Relations Review, 23(2), 161-176.
Comrie, M. (2002). Spin in the news. In J. McGregor & M. Comrie (Eds.) What’s news? Reclaiming Journalism in New Zealand (pp. 158-172). Palmerston North, New Zealand: Dunmore Press.
Crang, N. (2013). Lobbying disclosure bill fails but transparency encouraged. Retrieved from: https://goo.gl/KKqoBh
EPMU, 2011. Journalism Code of Ethics. EPMU. Auckland, New Zealand: NZ Amalgamated Engineering, Printing & Manufacturing Union Inc.retrieved January 2, 2017 http://www.epmu.org.nz/journalist-code-of-ethics/
Fang, L., 2014. Where Have All the Lobbyists Gone? The Nation, March 10-17, 2014. https://www.thenation.com/article/shadow-lobbying-complex/
Fitzpatrick, K., & Palenchar, M. J. (2006). Disclosing special interests: Constitutional restrictions on front groups. Journal of Public Relations Research, 18, 203-224.
Greisser, P. (2103). Behind the scenes in Brussels: An analysis of the lobbyists and their activities in a European context. (Master’s thesis, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands). Retrieved from http://www.oepav.at/de/beirat/
Hager, N. (2012). Twenty-five ways to have better journalism. In M. Hirst, S. Phelan & V. Rupar (Eds.), Scooped: The politics and power of journalism in Aotearoa New Zealand (pp. 211-226). Auckland, New Zealand: AUT Media.
Hager, N. (2014). Dirty Politics: How attack politics is poisoning New Zealand’s Political Environment. Nelson, New Zealand: Potton and Burton.
Hannis, G. D. (2014). News writing. In G. D. Hannis (Ed.), Intro: A beginner’s guide to journalism in 21st-century Aotearoa/New Zealand (pp. 199-217). Lower Hutt, New Zealand: New Zealand Journalists Training Organisation.
Harris, P. (2002). Defining and demystifying lobbying. Psychology and Marketing, 19(12), 987-992.
Harris, P., & McGrath, C. (2012). Political marketing and lobbying: A neglected perspective and research agenda. Journal of Political Marketing, 11(1-2), 75-94.
Haskell, D. M. (2011). What we have here is a failure to communicate: Same-sex marriage, evangelicals, and the Canadian news media. The Journal of Religion and Popular Culture, 23(3), 311-329.
Hogan, J., Chari, R., & Murphy G. (2011). Regulating Australia’s lobbyists: coming full circle to promote democracy? Journal of Public Affairs, 11(1), 35-48.
International Federation of Journalists (1986). IFJ Declaration of Principles on the Conduct of Journalists. Brussels, Belgium: IFJ International Federatinon of Journalists. http://www.ifj.org/about-ifj/ifj-code-of-principles/
Kent, D. (1998). The joy of lobbying: Campaigning to influence government decisions and public attitudes. Wellington, New Zealand: Gateway Lobbyskills.
Krsmanovic, D. (2014). A Law and Economics Analysis of Lobbying Regulation: Towards an optimal structure through the Cost Indicator Index. Erasmus University Rotterdam. Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2669345
Lobbying Disclosure Bill. (2012). Evidence and submissions. Retrieved from: https://goo.gl/a8mDx6.
Louw, E. (2010). Political Media Practice: An Outline. The Media and Political Process (2nd Ed) (pp. 47-74). London: Sage.
Mallard, T. (2003, November). Lobbying and the government. Speech presented to the Four Winds Communications seminar, Wellington, New Zealand. Retrieved from: http://www.beehive.govt.nz/speech/lobbying-and-government
Malone, M. M. (2004). Regulation of lobbyists in developed countries: Current rules and practices. Dublin, Ireland: National University of Ireland.
McChesney, R. W. (2012). Farewell to journalism? Journalism Studies, 13(5-6), 682-694.
Mersham, G., Theunissen, P., & Peart, J. (2009). Public Relations And Communications Management: An Aotearoa/New Zealand perspective. North Shore, New Zealand: Pearson.
Meyer, P. (1991). The New Precision Journalism. Bloomington: Indiana University Press.
Ng, K. (2010). Astrotobacco. OnPoint blog. Retrieved from: http://publicaddress.net/onpoint/astrotobacco/
Parliament. (2013). Lobbying Disclosure Bill report. Government Administration Select Committee. Retrieved from: http://www.parliament.nz/en-nz/pb/legislation/bills/00DBHOH_BILL11278_1/lobbying-disclosure-bill
PRINZ. (2017). About PRINZ. PRINZ. Wellington, New Zealand. Retrieved: http://www.prinz.org.nz/Category?Action=View&Category_id=159
Reuters News Service (2016). Essentials of Reuters Sourcing. Handbook of Journalism. Reuters: Retrieved January 2, 2017 http://handbook.reuters.com/index.php?title=The_Essentials_of_Reuters_sourcing
Verica Rupar (2006) How did you find that out? transparency of the newsgathering process and the meaning of news, Journalism Studies, 7:1, 127-143, DOI: 10.1080/14616700500450426
Society of Professional Journalists, 2014. SPJ Code of Ethics. SPJ: Indianapolis, Indiana. http://www.spj.org/ethicscode.asp
Stauber, J., & Rampton, S. (2004). Toxic sludge is good for you: Lies, damn lies and the public relations industry. London: Constable & Robinson.
Stromback, J. (2008). Four Phases of Mediatization: An Analysis of the Mediatization of Politics. The International Journal of Press/Politics, 13, 228-246.
Tankard, J. W. Jr. (2001). The empirical approach to the study of media framing. In S. D. Reese, O. H. Gandy Jr., and A.E Grant (Eds.), Framing public life: Perspectives on Media and our understanding of the social world. (pp. 95-105). Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.
Thomson, S. & John S. (2007). Public Affairs in Practice: A Practical Guide to Lobbying. London & Philadelphia, PA: Kogan Page.
United Kingdom Public Affairs Council, (2014). Definition of Lobbying. Retrieved from: http://www.publicaffairscouncil.org.uk/en/resources/lobbying-definition.cfm
Yaeger, H. (2013). Lobbyists’ lobbying group wants a new name – one that doesn’t mention lobbying. Washington Post, Washington D.C.: WashingtonPost Publishing. October 15, 2013. goo.gl/0VEJ4R
Young, A. (2013, June 17). Speaker allows twice as many lobbyists to get free pass. New Zealand Herald. Retrieved from: http://www.nzherald.co.nz/politics/news/article.cfm?c_id=280&objectid=10890993
Young, A. (2003). The good lobbyist’s guide: A complete handbook for New Zealanders. Auckland, New Zealand: Exile Publishing.
Zetter, L. (2008). Lobbying: The art of political persuasion. Petersfield, England: Harriman House.
Berg, K. T. (2012). The ethics of lobbying: Testing an ethical framework for advocacy in public relations. Journal of Mass Media Ethics: Exploring questions of media morality, 27(2), 97-114.
Callaghan, K. & Schnell, F. (2001). Assessing the democratic debate: How the news media frame elite policy discourse. Political Communication 18, 182-212.
Center for Responsive Politics. (2014). Lobbying database. Retrieved: https://www.opensecrets.org/lobby/
Comrie, M. (1997). Media tactics in New Zealand’s Crown Health Enterprises. Public Relations Review, 23(2), 161-176.
Comrie, M. (2002). Spin in the news. In J. McGregor & M. Comrie (Eds.) What’s news? Reclaiming Journalism in New Zealand (pp. 158-172). Palmerston North, New Zealand: Dunmore Press.
Crang, N. (2013). Lobbying disclosure bill fails but transparency encouraged. Retrieved from: https://goo.gl/KKqoBh
EPMU, 2011. Journalism Code of Ethics. EPMU. Auckland, New Zealand: NZ Amalgamated Engineering, Printing & Manufacturing Union Inc.retrieved January 2, 2017 http://www.epmu.org.nz/journalist-code-of-ethics/
Fang, L., 2014. Where Have All the Lobbyists Gone? The Nation, March 10-17, 2014. https://www.thenation.com/article/shadow-lobbying-complex/
Fitzpatrick, K., & Palenchar, M. J. (2006). Disclosing special interests: Constitutional restrictions on front groups. Journal of Public Relations Research, 18, 203-224.
Greisser, P. (2103). Behind the scenes in Brussels: An analysis of the lobbyists and their activities in a European context. (Master’s thesis, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands). Retrieved from http://www.oepav.at/de/beirat/
Hager, N. (2012). Twenty-five ways to have better journalism. In M. Hirst, S. Phelan & V. Rupar (Eds.), Scooped: The politics and power of journalism in Aotearoa New Zealand (pp. 211-226). Auckland, New Zealand: AUT Media.
Hager, N. (2014). Dirty Politics: How attack politics is poisoning New Zealand’s Political Environment. Nelson, New Zealand: Potton and Burton.
Hannis, G. D. (2014). News writing. In G. D. Hannis (Ed.), Intro: A beginner’s guide to journalism in 21st-century Aotearoa/New Zealand (pp. 199-217). Lower Hutt, New Zealand: New Zealand Journalists Training Organisation.
Harris, P. (2002). Defining and demystifying lobbying. Psychology and Marketing, 19(12), 987-992.
Harris, P., & McGrath, C. (2012). Political marketing and lobbying: A neglected perspective and research agenda. Journal of Political Marketing, 11(1-2), 75-94.
Haskell, D. M. (2011). What we have here is a failure to communicate: Same-sex marriage, evangelicals, and the Canadian news media. The Journal of Religion and Popular Culture, 23(3), 311-329.
Hogan, J., Chari, R., & Murphy G. (2011). Regulating Australia’s lobbyists: coming full circle to promote democracy? Journal of Public Affairs, 11(1), 35-48.
International Federation of Journalists (1986). IFJ Declaration of Principles on the Conduct of Journalists. Brussels, Belgium: IFJ International Federatinon of Journalists. http://www.ifj.org/about-ifj/ifj-code-of-principles/
Kent, D. (1998). The joy of lobbying: Campaigning to influence government decisions and public attitudes. Wellington, New Zealand: Gateway Lobbyskills.
Krsmanovic, D. (2014). A Law and Economics Analysis of Lobbying Regulation: Towards an optimal structure through the Cost Indicator Index. Erasmus University Rotterdam. Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2669345
Lobbying Disclosure Bill. (2012). Evidence and submissions. Retrieved from: https://goo.gl/a8mDx6.
Louw, E. (2010). Political Media Practice: An Outline. The Media and Political Process (2nd Ed) (pp. 47-74). London: Sage.
Mallard, T. (2003, November). Lobbying and the government. Speech presented to the Four Winds Communications seminar, Wellington, New Zealand. Retrieved from: http://www.beehive.govt.nz/speech/lobbying-and-government
Malone, M. M. (2004). Regulation of lobbyists in developed countries: Current rules and practices. Dublin, Ireland: National University of Ireland.
McChesney, R. W. (2012). Farewell to journalism? Journalism Studies, 13(5-6), 682-694.
Mersham, G., Theunissen, P., & Peart, J. (2009). Public Relations And Communications Management: An Aotearoa/New Zealand perspective. North Shore, New Zealand: Pearson.
Meyer, P. (1991). The New Precision Journalism. Bloomington: Indiana University Press.
Ng, K. (2010). Astrotobacco. OnPoint blog. Retrieved from: http://publicaddress.net/onpoint/astrotobacco/
Parliament. (2013). Lobbying Disclosure Bill report. Government Administration Select Committee. Retrieved from: http://www.parliament.nz/en-nz/pb/legislation/bills/00DBHOH_BILL11278_1/lobbying-disclosure-bill
PRINZ. (2017). About PRINZ. PRINZ. Wellington, New Zealand. Retrieved: http://www.prinz.org.nz/Category?Action=View&Category_id=159
Reuters News Service (2016). Essentials of Reuters Sourcing. Handbook of Journalism. Reuters: Retrieved January 2, 2017 http://handbook.reuters.com/index.php?title=The_Essentials_of_Reuters_sourcing
Verica Rupar (2006) How did you find that out? transparency of the newsgathering process and the meaning of news, Journalism Studies, 7:1, 127-143, DOI: 10.1080/14616700500450426
Society of Professional Journalists, 2014. SPJ Code of Ethics. SPJ: Indianapolis, Indiana. http://www.spj.org/ethicscode.asp
Stauber, J., & Rampton, S. (2004). Toxic sludge is good for you: Lies, damn lies and the public relations industry. London: Constable & Robinson.
Stromback, J. (2008). Four Phases of Mediatization: An Analysis of the Mediatization of Politics. The International Journal of Press/Politics, 13, 228-246.
Tankard, J. W. Jr. (2001). The empirical approach to the study of media framing. In S. D. Reese, O. H. Gandy Jr., and A.E Grant (Eds.), Framing public life: Perspectives on Media and our understanding of the social world. (pp. 95-105). Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.
Thomson, S. & John S. (2007). Public Affairs in Practice: A Practical Guide to Lobbying. London & Philadelphia, PA: Kogan Page.
United Kingdom Public Affairs Council, (2014). Definition of Lobbying. Retrieved from: http://www.publicaffairscouncil.org.uk/en/resources/lobbying-definition.cfm
Yaeger, H. (2013). Lobbyists’ lobbying group wants a new name – one that doesn’t mention lobbying. Washington Post, Washington D.C.: WashingtonPost Publishing. October 15, 2013. goo.gl/0VEJ4R
Young, A. (2013, June 17). Speaker allows twice as many lobbyists to get free pass. New Zealand Herald. Retrieved from: http://www.nzherald.co.nz/politics/news/article.cfm?c_id=280&objectid=10890993
Young, A. (2003). The good lobbyist’s guide: A complete handbook for New Zealanders. Auckland, New Zealand: Exile Publishing.
Zetter, L. (2008). Lobbying: The art of political persuasion. Petersfield, England: Harriman House.
Published
30-11-2017
How to Cite
Strong, C., & Tyler, F. (2017). New Zealand media camouflage political lobbying. Pacific Journalism Review : Te Koakoa, 23(2), 144-158. https://doi.org/10.24135/pjr.v23i2.96
Section
Articles (Unthemed)
Copyright (c) 2017 Catherine Strong, Fran Tyler
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
