Each of our six major media firm chief executives has their own set of unique challenges and strategies. But there are some common themes, too, in their responses today to six set questions.<\/p>\n
Jodi O\u2019Donnell, TVNZ chief executive<\/p>\n
TVNZ chief executive Jodi O\u2019Donnell. Photo \/ Dean Purcell<\/p>\n
What\u2019s one word to sum up your mood heading into 2026?<\/p>\n
Ambition \u2013 at TVNZ, we\u2019ve got a big 12 months ahead of us. We\u2019ll debut a brand-new TVNZ+ platform in the first few months of 2026, and in June, we\u2019ll deliver our first pay TV event with the Fifa World Cup 2026. It\u2019s going to be huge!<\/p>\n
What surprised you in 2025?<\/p>\n
New Zealanders love sport, but I don\u2019t think I\u2019d appreciated just how much they love free-to-view sport. I\u2019ve had viewers come up and tell me just how much they enjoy seeing the cricket, or the hockey, or the football free-to-air. I\u2019ve had a lot of excited feedback on NPC and grassroots rugby being back on TVNZ 1 in 2026.<\/p>\n
What has been your biggest personal or professional success in 2025, and what\u2019s your biggest \u2018work-on\u2019 for 2026?<\/p>\n
2025 marked a huge financial turnaround for TVNZ. Like many local businesses, 2024 was tough for us. Returning TVNZ to profitability and being in a position to return a dividend took a lot of grit, determination and incredibly hard work from everyone at TVNZ. It\u2019s something I\u2019m really proud of.<\/p>\n
Looking ahead, 2026 is an election year, and that\u2019s where our newsroom shines. We care about getting the coverage right, so it can\u2019t be a tick box, \u2018job done\u2019 exercise. We need to continuously work on it to ensure we do the best possible job for our audience.<\/p>\n
Which competitor \u2013 either person or firm \u2013 do you admire most and why?<\/p>\n
Google \u2013 hats off to Google for once again managing to convince the Government to hit snooze on the Fair Digital News Bargaining bill. Around $2 billion in Kiwi ad dollars packed their bags and jetted off to global tech platforms. Meanwhile, NZ news media continued to play by the rules \u2013 responsible journalism, safe environments, and all that good stuff \u2026<\/p>\n
On the local media front, I think Sophie Moloney winning Deloitte CEO of the Year was a huge win for all media. To see a media CEO being recognised on that top stage is something for all of us to celebrate.<\/p>\n
How do you think 2026 will play out for New Zealand media \u2013 what would be a game-changer for your company\/audience\/clients?<\/p>\n
2026 will be the year New Zealand media businesses can harness real momentum. The economic recovery is fuelling optimism in the advertising market, but the real game-changer will be unlocking the power of AI. Those who can embrace it will set the pace for innovation and audience connection.<\/p>\n
What are your plans for the summer break?<\/p>\n
I\u2019m looking forward to heading to the beach with family, relaxing in the sun, maybe some fishing, and a ros\u00e9 or two to see in the new year. There is a lot to be done in 2026, so coming back with a full tank of energy and optimism is a must.<\/p>\n
Michael Boggs, NZME chief executive<\/p>\n
NZME chief executive Michael Boggs. Photo \/ Michael Craig<\/p>\n
What\u2019s one word to sum up your mood heading into 2026?<\/p>\n
Primed! Ready to take on 2026 with confidence \u2013 we have an excellent team of people, great tech and some of the best media platforms in the country across our audio, publishing and real estate channels. I\u2019m confident with the economic uplift, NZME is primed to have a strong and successful 2026.<\/p>\n
What surprised you in 2025?<\/p>\n
The phenomenal uptake of AI by individuals and businesses. It comes with both opportunity and risk for our business and personal lives.<\/p>\n
What has been your biggest personal or professional success in 2025, and what\u2019s your biggest \u2018work-on\u2019 for 2026?<\/p>\n
Success \u2013 navigating changes to our governance structure to ensure shareholders continue to see the opportunity that NZME will deliver for them.<\/p>\n
Biggest \u2018work-on\u2019 \u2013 delivering for our customers and shareholders at a faster pace.<\/p>\n
We have highly talented team members right across our business and I know they\u2019re looking forward to what we will achieve in 2026. We have a clear strategy, a well-positioned business and success is at the core of it. I\u2019m excited about what our people and NZME as a company will deliver in the year ahead.<\/p>\n
Which competitor \u2013 either person or firm \u2013 do you admire most and why?<\/p>\n
Sky TV \u2013 they delivered strong financial results in another challenging year, they\u2019ve secured some big broadcasting rights and their CEO, Sophie Moloney, deservedly won the CEO of the Year Award at the Deloitte Top 200. Not to mention, they\u2019ve hired our former CFO, David Mackrell, to join them next year!<\/p>\n
How do you think 2026 will play out for New Zealand media \u2013 what would be a game-changer for your company\/audience\/clients?<\/p>\n
I think you\u2019ll see a lot more collaboration across media companies. Combining resources to reach bigger audiences is a no-brainer when we\u2019re all in such fierce competition with huge global platforms like Google and Meta, who seem to have endless buckets of money.<\/p>\n
NZME is continuing to invest resources into its digital capability, including OneRoof, and we are excited about what will be delivered. This works hand in hand with our terrestrial and print businesses, which remain a core part of our business. <\/p>\n
What are your plans for the summer break?<\/p>\n
Initially spending time with the wider family then disappearing to the beach to relax, read and get myself and the business ready for an exciting 2026.<\/p>\n
Paul Thompson, RNZ chief executive<\/p>\n
RNZ chief executive Paul Thompson. Photo \/ RNZ<\/p>\n
What\u2019s one word to sum up your mood heading into 2026?<\/p>\n
Energised. RNZ is heading into 2026 with record audiences, growing public trust, and improvement across all RNZ National\u2019s main programmes. We\u2019ll have Guyon Espiner taking over Midday Report in 2026, Corin Dann stepping into the business editor role and a new host for Morning Report (Ed\u2019s note: John Campbell was announced for the role last week). I\u2019m really excited about what we are going to deliver for audiences in 2026.<\/p>\n
What surprised you in 2025?<\/p>\n
If 2024 was defined by disruption to the local media ecosystem with some major closures of media outlets here in Aotearoa, 2025 saw disruption to public media worldwide.<\/p>\n
The extent of this was hard to predict \u2013 in the US, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting closed, ending more than five decades of federal support for public media. The Trump administration also impacted public media outside of America with the dismantling of the US Agency for Global Media impacting services like Radio Free Europe, Voice of America and Radio Free Asia. The BBC director-general and head of news both resigned over the handling of an editorial lapse.<\/p>\n
I\u2019m president of the Public Media Alliance, the largest global association of public media organisations, and I think 2025 was a real reminder that public media faces our own challenges and we can\u2019t take our existence for granted.<\/p>\n
What has been your biggest personal or professional success in 2025, and what\u2019s your biggest \u2018work-on\u2019 for 2026?<\/p>\n
For me as chief executive, it\u2019s been seeing RNZ\u2019s strategy come together in a way that has meant we are reaching record audiences at a time when trust in RNZ is at its highest level. It was really satisfying to reach these milestones in a year where we were also celebrating our 100th birthday and undertaking some major projects, such as revamping our editorial systems and fitting out our new Auckland office.<\/p>\n
In 2026, I will continue to support our team as work continues for RNZ on its audio plan. The changes made to RNZ National are already having an impact with listeners and we want to build on that. The growing relevance of rnz.co.nz is getting our stories to more New Zealanders and we will continue to improve the website. We will also be moving to a new Auckland office in 2026, which will be a big change, having been our current premises on Hobson St for over 20 years. <\/p>\n
Which competitor \u2013 either person or firm \u2013 do you admire most and why?<\/p>\n
We don\u2019t consider other media our competitors; part of our role as a public media cornerstone is partnering with other media and sharing our content.<\/p>\n
But in terms of the work that I admired this year, I can\u2019t go past the extraordinary reporting around the former deputy commissioner of police and the work that went into ending suppression orders that ensured exposure of this issue. I acknowledge the work of our own Sam Sherwood and the Herald\u2019s Jared Savage, but there were journalists and news organisations involved across the board. This story demonstrates keenly the impact of journalism and its importance in holding those in power to account and ensuring the public\u2019s right to know is maintained. Also, a shout-out to journalists working in the regions. They play a critical role in keeping communities reliably informed despite reduced resources.<\/p>\n
How do you think 2026 will play out for New Zealand media \u2013 what would be a game-changer for your company\/audience\/clients?<\/p>\n
While the challenges for all media remain, I actually think there is cause for optimism in terms of a growing recognition of the importance of media in a functioning democracy.<\/p>\n
We regularly survey our audience as part of measuring our performance, and the Verian Value Indices survey results published in our annual report show welcome increases in trust as well as how people view our service and the importance of having a public broadcaster. <\/p>\n
As I mentioned above, journalists have really shown their worth in terms of the stories that they\u2019ve broken this year and I\u2019m hopeful that in 2026, journalism will continue to make an impact and be recognised for that.<\/p>\n
What are your plans for the summer break?<\/p>\n
We are looking forward to spending time with our daughters and having a break in Gisborne and Hawke\u2019s Bay.<\/p>\n
Sinead Boucher, Stuff chief executive<\/p>\n
Stuff chief executive Sinead Boucher. Photo \/ Michael Craig<\/p>\n
What\u2019s one word to sum up your mood heading into 2026?<\/p>\n
Buoyant \u2013 and not just because I\u2019m looking forward to plenty of time in the sea this summer. We\u2019ve had a brilliant year at Stuff, and 2026 is full of opportunity. I actually can\u2019t wait.<\/p>\n
What surprised you in 2025?<\/p>\n
A few things! The extent that (some) media commentators thought Stuff was heading down one path when we were actually off on another. The Police Commissioner announcing publicly he had enough information to charge Stuff over the Tom Phillips audio publication when police hadn\u2019t even interviewed us. <\/p>\n
What has been your biggest personal or professional success in 2025, and what\u2019s your biggest \u2018work-on\u2019 for 2026?<\/p>\n
Professionally, it has been seeing various long-term growth plans we laid over the last few years come to fruition just as we had hoped. A high point was Trade Me taking a 50% stake in Stuff Digital, recognition of the power and further potential of stuff.co.nz as New Zealand\u2019s biggest audience platform. I am thrilled to have the biggest property platform in the country as our co-owner and there is so much we can do together.<\/p>\n
I was also very pleased with the strong, sustained growth in digital subscriptions for our national publication The Post and Canterbury\u2019s The Press. Both of these are strong validation of our strategic plan and give us lots of confidence for some big projects we have underway for next year. <\/p>\n
Personally, I am very grateful for an enormously fun and stimulating year with friends and loved ones, old and new, and my truly excellent colleagues. I\u2019ve had the chance to do lots of interesting work with them, and get some pet projects off the ground, including our Life Savings campaign to fund safe swimming lessons for 10,000 children. It feels like it has been a particularly rich and rewarding year for work, relationships and play \u2013 that\u2019s the best success you can hope for.<\/p>\n
In 2026, we have to step it up again and make sure we are ambitious and fearless enough to meet the moment that technology is delivering. We are at the cusp of a new era of technological change and advancement \u2013 for good and bad. As media companies, we need to do a great job covering and explaining the age of AI for New Zealanders, given all the potential, profound implications for society, democracy and science. We will see new consumer devices designed for the AI world, new interfaces and browsers. How we all access, consume and interact with content and the world around us will change in the next year. So within our organisations, we have to be bold and determined in challenging ourselves around what we do and how we do it. Next year won\u2019t be time for status quo.<\/p>\n
Additionally, we have a responsibility, especially in an election year, to deliver the best and most impactful journalism for New Zealanders. I also feel strongly about protecting our digital sovereignty in the big tech power grab, and we might work on getting the phrase \u2018work-on\u2019 erased from the corporate lexicon. <\/p>\n
Which competitor \u2013 either person or firm \u2013 do you admire most and why?<\/p>\n
I was very pleased to see the very cool Sophie Moloney at Sky win the CEO of the year award \u2013 well deserved. She has done amazing things with that business, including picking up Three from Warner Bros Discovery. And I did laugh at NBR co-editor Hamish McNicol, who aptly described the timing of Stuff\u2019s Trade Me announcement on NZME AGM day as \u201celite shithousery\u201d. My phrase of the year, and I think it will be my personal mantra for next year. You have to take your fun where you can. <\/p>\n
I think Newsroom has also had a year of consistently good journalism. They are really clear on what they are there to do, and they do it very well.<\/p>\n
How do you think 2026 will play out for New Zealand media \u2013 what would be a game-changer for your company\/audience\/clients?<\/p>\n
A ballsy politician, like Anthony Albanese has been in this regard, prepared to really tackle the impact of global big tech on our society would be a game-changer for New Zealand media, our audiences and our democracy. <\/p>\n
Our Aussie mates are standing up for digital sovereignty, taking on the global players and showing what political courage looks like in the digital age. It\u2019s not just children and social media, or even platforms which publish our content and funnel all their profits offshore.<\/p>\n
We are now in an age where all creative endeavours \u2013 journalism, film, music, books, art \u2013 any artistic endeavour, is being hoovered up by rapacious AI players. If we don\u2019t protect the IP of that unique creative work, then our economy, and people\u2019s ability to create businesses and livelihoods from that work, is at threat. <\/p>\n
What are your plans for the summer break?<\/p>\n
This past year, I spent an enormous amount of time with The Rest is History podcast which fuelled a somewhat unexpected obsession with Admiral Horatio Nelson, 19th-century warships and thrilling maritime battles. <\/p>\n
As an antidote, I have dragged myself back into the present with an MIT summer course on Agentic AI. I\u2019ll spend my remaining time swimming, snoozing and trying to squeeze in plenty of time with loved ones.<\/p>\n
Sophie Moloney, Sky TV chief executive<\/p>\n
Sky TV chief executive Sophie Moloney. Photo \/ Jason Dorday<\/p>\n
What\u2019s one word to sum up your mood heading into 2026? <\/p>\n
Ready (for the holidays and 2026).<\/p>\n
What surprised you in 2025? <\/p>\n
That cowboys are the new White Walkers. <\/p>\n
What has been your biggest personal or professional success in 2025, and what\u2019s your biggest \u2018work-on\u2019 for 2026? <\/p>\n
2025 has been a big year for Team Sky \u2013 from overcoming satellite challenges early on, to completing the Discovery NZ acquisition, and renewing our rugby rights with NZR. I\u2019m super proud of how we\u2019ve pulled together to deliver for our customers. It wasn\u2019t always smooth sailing, but teamwork and collaboration made all the difference. <\/p>\n
Biggest \u2018work-on\u2019 is to ensure I attend more \u2018Mentor Walks\u2019 \u2013 a fabulous way to connect, learn and support w\u0101hine on their career journeys. <\/p>\n
Which competitor \u2013 either person or firm \u2013 do you admire most and why? <\/p>\n
Not a competitor to Sky but I adore the way Cam George leads the One NZ Warriors. He is a great communicator, cares about the footy players in the club, on and off the field, and is always fan-first. <\/p>\n
How do you think 2026 will play out for New Zealand media \u2013 what would be a game-changer for your company\/audience\/clients? <\/p>\n
For New Zealand media, a sustained lift in consumer confidence would be a welcome driver, fuelling growth and strengthening the advertising sector. For Sky, undoubtedly completing the integration of Sky Free is a game-changer for audiences, partners and advertisers alike. <\/p>\n
What are your plans for the summer break? <\/p>\n
I\u2019m heading to Adelaide to enjoy the Ashes cricket test with my family, followed by some Kiwi beach action and a road trip back down the country to Whakat\u016b, Nelson. <\/p>\n
Wendy Palmer, MediaWorks chief executive<\/p>\n
MediaWorks chief executive Wendy Palmer.<\/p>\n
What\u2019s one word to sum up your mood heading into 2026?<\/p>\n
It\u2019s not one word, but expect the unexpected.<\/p>\n
What surprised you in 2025?<\/p>\n
I think we were all optimistic around the \u201cSurvive to 2025\u201d prediction but actually 2025 was much tougher than I expected.<\/p>\n
What has been your biggest personal or professional success in 2025, and what\u2019s your biggest \u2018work-on\u2019 for 2026?<\/p>\n
We\u2019ve had a real year of growth across the board in 2025 \u2013 audience, revenue, profitability and \u2013 most importantly \u2013 employee satisfaction. <\/p>\n
On a personal level, joining a gym and actually turning up! <\/p>\n
In 2026 ,I\u2019ll be working on more of the same.<\/p>\n
Which competitor – either person or firm – do you admire most and why?<\/p>\n
Mark Jennings and Tim Murphy for continuing to run a successful startup media company in a time of media turmoil.<\/p>\n
How do you think 2026 will play out for New Zealand media \u2013 what would be a game-changer for your company\/audience\/clients?<\/p>\n
I think we need to work together more as a sector \u2013 and realise that the opportunity comes from being better and stronger together. <\/p>\n
Our legacy in focusing on each other and local competition have made us what we are today, but now I think we need to evolve to more collaboration and finding synergies. That will change the game. <\/p>\n
I also think the Government needs to be more alive to supporting the sector and have their doors open to ideas and thoughts on how they can also work with us. It\u2019s been said many times, but local media is critical for thriving societies.<\/p>\n
What are your plans for the summer break?<\/p>\n
Nothing! The perfect holiday.<\/p>\n
Editor-at-Large Shayne Currie is one of New Zealand\u2019s most experienced senior journalists and media leaders. He has held executive and senior editorial roles at NZME including Managing Editor, NZ Herald Editor and Herald on Sunday Editor and has a small shareholding in NZME.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Each of our six major media firm chief executives has their own set of unique challenges and strategies.…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":201669,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[2246,95,9526,10779,2372,123696,17940,123699,138,4500,3937,2035,1651,3938,4377,1138,2082,71,123697,2964,75115,2936,661,1073,15150,5494,97879,10136,111,139,69,26263,1118,428,17146,45,7248,123698,4739,8861,3235,412,19346,223,2846,3755,584,437,6445,379],"class_list":["post-201668","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-business","tag-2246","tag-and","tag-another","tag-awards","tag-board","tag-boggs","tag-bosses","tag-boucher","tag-business","tag-changes","tag-chief","tag-deloitte","tag-digital","tag-executive","tag-executives","tag-firm","tag-for","tag-from","tag-frontrow","tag-half","tag-hear","tag-insider","tag-major","tag-media","tag-mediaworks","tag-michael","tag-moloney","tag-named","tag-new-zealand","tag-newzealand","tag-nz","tag-nzme","tag-of","tag-overall","tag-questions","tag-rnz","tag-seat","tag-sinead","tag-six","tag-sky","tag-sold","tag-sophie","tag-stuff","tag-the","tag-them","tag-third","tag-trade","tag-tv","tag-tvnz","tag-year"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/201668","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=201668"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/201668\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/201669"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=201668"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=201668"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=201668"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}