New Zealand might be beating the coronavirus but its media is taking a hammering — 437 media-related jobs have been cut so far in a country that only employs about 2,000 journalists

Mark Baker / AP

• In the last two weeks, 437 media-related jobs in New Zealand were cut as advertising plummets due to businesses struggling with the coronavirus.
• It's not clear how many of those are journalists, but with the entire country employing about 2,000 journalists, it's a brutal blow.
• New Zealand media commentator Gavin Ellis told Business Insider the country's media was already "distressed" due to advertising going offshore, via Facebook and Google.
• Along with the loss of full-time journalists, freelancers and columnists have been cut, leading to what The Spinoff founder Duncan Grieve told Business Insider was an even bigger loss of voices than the numbers indicated.
• The government hasn't acted yet, but it's listening. On April 15, in a highly unusual move, chief executives from most of the nation's largest media organizations were summoned (via Zoom) to explain the situation to a select committee.
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

New Zealand has been lauded by the Washington Post for crushing the coronavirus. But its effects are being felt on the very people providing the information — its national media is taking a hammering.

On April 15, in a highly unusual move, almost all of the heads of New Zealand's largest media groups and several smaller ones — covering print, radio, television, and online news — met on Zoom with the Epidemic Response Committee, a government select committee, to discuss the future of the country's media. 

See the rest of the story at Business Insider

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See Also:

• New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has been praised for her response to the coronavirus pandemic, with some saying she 'squashed' the curve. Here's everything you need to know about her.
• What the US can learn from other countries about when to lift a lockdown, and what can happen if we lift it too early
• Trump's plans to cut WHO funding amid the coronavirus could exacerbate the crisis and cost more American lives

SEE ALSO: The Washington Post says New Zealand is 'squashing' its coronavirus curve. An expert agrees but says the elimination policy could still fail.

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