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Wishart v Radio New Zealand - ruling

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On October 10, 2024, journalist and author Ian Wishart filed a complaint against Radio New Zealand (RNZ) before the New Zealand Media Council, a self-regulatory body funded by the media industry. Wishart alleged that five RNZ news items contained factual inaccuracies and therefore breached Principles (1) (accuracy, fairness, and balance) and (6) (headlines and captions) of the Council’s code. He also claimed that RNZ’s subsequent corrections were insufficient under Principle (12) (corrections).

The disputed stories related to the heavy rainfall and flooding in Dunedin in October 2024, which RNZ described as the city’s “wettest day in a century.” Wishart argued that this statement was inaccurate, as it did not take into account data from all weather stations across Dunedin. The articles linked the extreme weather to the broader context of climate change, emphasizing the increasing frequency and severity of such events in New Zealand. Wishart suggested that the inaccuracy could distort public understanding of climate trends and undermine the integrity of climate-related reporting.

In its ruling of February 7, 2025, the Media Council dismissed the complaint. It found that the error was minor, that the consequences were not significant, and that RNZ had sufficiently corrected its reporting. The Council noted that the inaccuracy occurred during a civil defence emergency when RNZ reasonably relied on information from an official agency. Importantly, it concluded that there was no evidence of systemic bias or deliberate distortion in RNZ’s climate-related coverage.

While the case raised questions about the standards of accuracy in media reporting on extreme weather events, the Council underscored the importance of contextual accuracy and responsible sourcing during emergencies. It implicitly recognized that climate-related reporting involves complex and evolving scientific data but reaffirmed that minor statistical discrepancies do not necessarily amount to breaches of journalistic principles.

Wishart v Radio New Zealand

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An aim to achieve a quantifiable outcome within a given time-frame, set by an institution such as a national government.

Policy instruments are techniques or tools used by governing authorities to promote certain policies in order to achieve predetermined goals. Put simply, instruments are how a government tries to achieve its goals, with this taxonomy being focused on national policy instruments.

Risk is the potential for adverse consequences resulting from the dynamic interplay between (climate-related) hazards, exposure, and vulnerability of affected human or ecological systems.

Groups  of people who are adversely affected by climate change or the response to it

A set of principles, processes, and practices that build economic and political power to shift from an extractive economy to a regenerative economy.

Renewable energy means all forms of energy produced from renewable sources in a sustainable manner.

Fossil fuel is a generic term for non-renewable energy sources such as coal, fossil gas, and oil (including crude oil, and petroleum products), that can be used for electricity and heat generation. Fossil fuels are hydrocarbons formed from pressurised and heated organic material buried over millions of years.

Molecules in the atmosphere that play a key role in the greenhouse effect by trapping heat radiating from Earth’s surface.

Area of the economy in which actors engage in identical or related activities.

In human systems, the process of adjustment to actual or expected climate change and its effects, in order to moderate harm, increase resilience or exploit beneficial opportunities. In natural systems, the process of adjustment to actual climate change and its effects; human intervention may facilitate adjustment to expected climate change and its effects.

The management and allocation of funds, assets and investments to meet various objectives

Actions or measures to adapt freshwater, coastal and marine systems to climate change.

Climate change can have a range of impacts on technological system. Extreme weather events can cause infrastructure failures like power outages or damage to roads and bridges, as well as the impacts from waste following natural disasters. Human activities also cause technological impacts, such as the risks posed by oil spillage and leaks.

Oil is a combustible liquid fossil fuel composed mainly of hydrocarbons, occurring as crude oil and refined into petroleum products such as petrol, diesel and kerosene.

Actions or measures to adapt freshwater systems to climate change.

The release of heat-trapping gases, primarily from human activities such as burning fossil fuels, agriculture and industry.

This sector includes firms and individuals offering specialised expertise in fields such as law, accounting, consulting, science and engineering.

Extreme weather refers to events where a weather variable exceeds (or falls below) a threshold. Meaning it is significantly different from the average or usual weather pattern.

Fossil gas, commonly known as natural gas, is a fossil fuel consisting chiefly of methane with smaller amounts of other hydrocarbons and trace gases, found in underground deposits.

Wishart v Radio New Zealand - ruling

Risk

Fossil fuel

Greenhouse gas

Adaptation/resilience