‘Twixt cup and lip: Language revitalisation strategies: a comparative approach with special reference to New Zealand Maori language policy

Abstract

This paper considers Te Māngai Pāho – Television RFP June 2018, a paper reflecting strategy and policy regarding Te Reo Maori in New Zealand. There is an attempt to aim for a wide view where as many positions as the author has found to apply to and, possibly, inform the policy from around the world have been examined. As the paper develops several themes emerge. One is the difficulty in moving from the local to the supra-local. Another is a review of the media that might best be used in language revitalisation and there is a critique of television using comparisons and contrasts with Ireland and other situations. Through the course of the paper many and various perspectives are considered including, inter alia, scopophilia, being a good neighbour, examples from personal experience with a considerable emphasis on possibilities on the internet. The intention is to approach Te Māngai Pāho – Television RFP June 2018 from a variety of angles particularly in terms of language and mind and then to evaluate those perspectives in the conclusion.