Anti-Maori themes in New Zealand journalism - toward alternative practice

Negative mass media representations of Maori are of major concern, impacting on Maori/Pakeha relations, how Maori see themselves, on collective health and wellbeing, and ultimately undermining the fundamentals of equity and justice in our society. In this article, we outline a number of important patterns that constitute the contextual discursive resources of such depictions identified in representative media samples and other sources and provide a set of alternative framings for each pattern. Our purpose is to challenge what Deuze (2004) has referred to as an 'occupational ideology' of journalism and ultimately to change Pakeha newsmaking practices that routinely undermine efforts to approach and attain social justice in the field of Māori/Pakeha relations in Aotearoa.