New Zealand Identity and Media

“Hometown Rehab” follows five dynamic youths (Ash, Scarfie, Hamlet, Hunter and James) in their quest to ride out their bogus University Club to the very end. After being shut down for extorting their tertiary institution of money, the Hometown Rehab club decide to spend what little money they have left. Towards the end, the group figure out that their small towns are just like everywhere else and end up disbanding their club, closer friends than they were before.
“Hometown Rehab” draws on ideas from “The Breakfast Club” such as contrasting personalities being thrown together and finding peace with stereotypes.

“Hometown Rehab” relates to the media as the characters were inspired by the stereotypes made by the blog-turned-Facebook page “Shit Towns of New Zealand”. The demographic for “Hometown Rehab” is 18 to 25-year-old females and males, this is because they are the leading contributors to the page’s success. Capitalising on the stereotypes made by the page allowed for humour and relatability. Part of New Zealand’s identity is its small towns and the way they are represented on the national stage. The web series acts as a metaphor for how New Zealand is represented internationally. The smaller towns are looked down on and dubbed as is insignificant by the bigger New Zealand cities, the same way New Zealand is looked down upon and labelled by the rest of the world. Like one big chain, the belittlement of smaller places can affect how they are represented in the media when in reality each place has its own unique charm that sets it apart from everywhere else.

When discussing the term of feminism in our Media Ecology Syndicate groups students of the New Zealand Broadcasting school could not all agree on what feminism is. On further discussions with the group we discovered that feminism is a movement that has been defined in many different ways by many different people. It can be seen as a movement that advocates for the equal rights of women or a movement that represents women wanting to be above men. Through this documentary, “Feminism in New Zealand media” we explore what New Zealanders on the street define feminism as and how New Zealand Media is involved. We talked to New Zealanders on the street to if we should define ourselves as a feminist nation. Steph Dhyrberg a self described “stroppy feminist”, lawyer and Wellingtonian of the year winner shares her understanding of what its like to be a feminist, the future for women in New Zealand and how us kiwis compare to the world. We ask what feminism is, how it is viewed and how both genders are treated in the media to a range of Christchurch locals as well as hearing Dhyrberg’s thoughts too. We came to the conclusion that New Zealand is heading in the right direction and that feminism no longer is seen as a ‘dirty’ club only women can be apart of.

Men’s mental health is an issue that is being frequently discussed in the New Zealand media today. Men particularly find this topic taboo, often hiding their emotions and avoiding the ‘uncomfortable are you okay’ conversation with friends and family. The features are all about reaching out for help and talking to someone when they are experiencing anxiety or depression. Three members of our team reached out to men in their family who have had varying experiences with mental health. Matthew Shepherd is a clinical psychologist in Auckland. He offered both his professional and personal experiences with mental health. Shepherd described common symptoms that appear when one is dealing with anxiety or depression, such as binge eating or noticeably a lack of eating and sleeping too much or having trouble falling asleep. He goes on to comment on the media’s impact and influence it has on the mental wellbeing of minority groups such as Maori, and emphasised the importance of asking for help, before it is too late. Paul Dunningham, a former member of popular 80s rock band Mi-Sex discussed his experiences with anxiety in the industry. He went on to explain how vulnerable performers can be when expressing personal emotion through their performances as well as how the media played a part in affecting his own mental health. Dunningham shared how he dealt with anxiety when touring with his band. Through acknowledging its presence and taking time out for himself he was able to continue doing what he loves without feeling the overwhelming presence of anxiety. Richard Williams spoke about how he dealt with the passing of his father due to suicide when he was 21 years old. He explained how important it is to reach out to close friends and family for help when feeling down. Williams discussed his opinions on how the media is positively raising awareness for mental health through Mike Kings avocation and Gumboot funding. Overall, these three features focus on raising awareness nationwide with discussion about the media's positive and negative influence in recognising mental health issues. A common message shared by all three men is to reach out to friends and family, seeking help when it is needed.

Pulling hundreds of thousands of visitors each year, the stadium played host to many famous sporting events, concerts and significant international visitors. The stadium provided plenty of opportunity for local media industry to show off their skills in one of New Zealand’s largest stadiums.

The ground was mostly used as a sporting venue, primarily rugby and cricket, but also hosted cultural events, boasting international acts such as Pearl Jam, U2, Dire Straits, Roger Waters and Tina Turner. Pope John Paul II even held a mass at the packed-to-capacity stadium in 1986, the only pope to ever walk New Zealand shores.

After laws in 1880 forbade charging entry to public reserves such as Hagley Park, local cricket and rugby fans established the Canterbury Cricket and Athletics Sports Co. Ltd. That year, a block of land was purchased from English entrepreneur Benjamin Lancaster for around £2841. This marked the start of what would be (in years to come) Christchurch’s very own Lancaster Park.

After officially opening in October 1981, the park was to undergo two major branding changes; the Jade Stadium (1998) and the AMI Stadium (2007). Regardless of which stadium stood on the land, the name Lancaster Park always held its place.

In the years of operational use, the stadium acted as a workplace for not only athletes but also various media, including commentators and camera operators. Geoff Clements was one of these exceptional talents, spending a large portion of his career working as a camera operator at Lancaster park.

As Lancaster park held a capacity of close to 38,000 people, it was able to draw in high profile events and concerts. This provided local media talent with a world class facility in which to practice their broadcasting skills.

One of his colleagues at the stadium, Richard Hansen, claimed that Clements was recognised as one of the top three cricket camera operators in world back in the 80’s due to his work at Lancaster Park.

Hansen noted that Clements’ two biggest passions outside of his family were sport and camera work. The stadium provided him with a space to combine his two passions with Hansen saying “Lancaster Park was Geoff’s theatre, it was the stage he could utilise to take his work to the world”.

The stadium was severely damaged in the Christchurch 2011 earthquake. In March 2017, a decision was made to demolish the stadium despite the land not being considered a red zone. The deconstruction began in 2018 and was concluded on October 15 of this year, coincidentally the same day the ground was opened 138 years earlier.

The future of a new stadium and Lancaster Park has been topical recently due to the new stadium being built in the CBD. The new stadium is to be built on a block of land surrounded by Tuam, Madras, Hereford and Babadoes Street. With its construction expected to get underway in late 2020, the new stadium could cost up to $520 million dollars to build. Lancaster Park previously could hold up to 38,000 people however this new, more expensive stadium is set to only have a maximum capacity of 25,000.

The Council approved a spatial plan for the Lancaster Park development in September this year and will be developed alongside community and sporting groups. The spatial plan will include sports fields for winter sports such as rugby and football and a cricket pitch for use in the summer.

Development of the spatial plan is not currently funded, and funding will be sought in the 2022-31 Long Term Plan for implementation of an approved landscape plan.