The Front Page

While we’re on our summer break, The Front Page is taking a look back at some of the biggest news stories and top rated episodes from the podcast this year.   For decades, Waiwera Thermal Resort was one of the go-to places for Kiwis looking to cool off on a hot summer’s day.   This year though marked the final nail in the coffin for the once popular destination.   For six years, the complex has sat empty, but 2023 saw demolition crews come for the iconic slides, statues and pools.   So how did this tourist favourite end up a ghost town, and what warnings does it hold for other destinations?  The Front Page caught up with NZ Herald Property Editor Anne Gibson back in August to find out how this Auckland icon became a wasteland.  New episodes return January 15th.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

While The Front Page is taking its summer break, we will be shining a spotlight on some of the biggest podcasts and news events from the New Zealand Herald network over the last year.   In February 2015, Goy Thongsi went on a diving expedition in Christchurch with four men she hardly knew. Within a few hours of setting out onto the water, Goy was dead and missing, and a cloud of suspicion surrounded her diving companions.  In this season of the Herald’s true crime podcast, Chasing Ghosts, Open Justice journalist Hazel Osborne took a fresh look at this case, to see if there is any justice to be had for Goy eight years after her death.  Listen to this excerpt of Chasing Ghosts: Below the Surface now, and find the full season in the Chasing Ghosts feed on iHeartRadio or wherever you get your podcasts. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

While we’re on our summer break, we’re taking a look back at some of the biggest news stories and top rated episodes from the podcast this year.  Debt is one of those talking points we hear about from politicians constantly. How much should the nation’s finances go into arrears in order to pay for the things we need?  And on a personal level, private debt is also increasing at a time when the largest asset for many families – their house – faces an uncertain future.   Back in July, The Front Page caught up with the state of the country’s finances as part of the Herald’s Nation of Debt series.  Now, with a new government with new priorities around the economy, let’s revisit Damien Venuto's conversation with NZ Herald Business Editor at Large Liam Dann about where our focus should be when it comes to debt.   New episodes return January 15th.   See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

While The Front Page is taking its summer break, we are shining a spotlight on some of the biggest podcasts and news events from the NZ Herald network over the last year. In the last year, Journalist and legal columnist Sasha Borissenko embarked on a mission to investigate the truth - and debunks the myths - about weight in Aotearoa. She teamed up with the NZ Herald for Chewing the Facts, a podcast about how society has conditioned us to feel about our weight, looking at everything from the messages we receive around food and dieting, to the societal structures in place influencing our decisions. Listen to the first episode of Chewing the Facts now, and find the full series on iHeartRadio or wherever you get your podcasts.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

While we’re on our summer break, The Front Page is taking a look back at some of the biggest news stories and top-rated episodes from the podcast this year.   New Year’s Day, 2024 will mark 26 years since Ben Smart and Olivia Hope disappeared.  In the early hours of New Year’s Day, 1998, the two accepted an offer to stay aboard a man’s yacht while staying in the Marlborough Sounds. They were never seen again. Their disappearances and presumed deaths have been pegged on Scott Watson for over two decades, but despite still being behind bars, Watson has always maintained his innocence. The case has long divided the country between those who are convinced of Watson’s guilt, and those who don’t think justice was served. Last year, broadcaster Paul Henry wrote a powerful piece for the Herald, revealing his beliefs that – even if Watson is guilty – there has been a miscarriage of justice.   New episodes return January 15th.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

While The Front Page is taking its summer break, we will be shining a spotlight on some of the biggest podcasts and news events from the New Zealand Herald network over the last year.   In 2023, the New Zealand Herald partnered with broadcaster Sonia Gray for a new podcast called No Such Thing as Normal.  Based on Gray’s experiences as a parent of a neurodivergent child, and living with her own neurodivergence, this series saw her talk to experts and those with lived experience, to better understand how we can support and celebrate those whose brains are wired differently.  Listen to the first episode of No Such Thing as Normal now, and find the full series on iHeartRadio or wherever you get your podcasts. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

While we’re on our summer break, we’re taking a look back at some of the biggest news stories and top rated episodes from the podcast this year.   In a year of big changes for New Zealand’s media industry, one moment stood out from the rest.  Talk radio station Today FM came to a dramatic, expletive-laden end back in March. After only a year on air, Mediaworks made the shock decision to close it – sparking an on-air outburst by Today FM’s top talent.  While the station had struggled to chip away at Newstalk ZB’s audience, the sudden closure stunned the country and raised some stark questions about the future of the media industry.  The day it happened, the Media Insider himself Shayne Currie joined us to react to the news, and today we’ll revisit our immediate reaction to one of the most stunning moments of broadcasting Aotearoa has ever seen.   New episodes return January 15th.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

While The Front Page is taking its summer break, we will be shining a spotlight on some of the biggest podcasts and news events from the New Zealand Herald network over the last year.   This year marks 70 years since the Tangiwai rail disaster. 151 people died after the Wellington to Auckland express derailed, due to a lahar washing out the rail bridge over the Whangaehu river.   The tragedy is remembered as our worst ever rail disaster, but did we learn any lessons from this incident? In this collaboration between the NZ Herald and the Motuihe Group, broadcaster Hamish Williams seeks to answer these questions.  Listen to this excerpt from the first episode, and for the full season of Tangiwai – A Forgotten History, find it on iHeartRadio or wherever you get your podcasts. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

While The Front Page is taking its summer break, we will be shining a spotlight on some of the biggest podcasts and news events from the New Zealand Herald network over the last year.   Growing up in Australia with a Danish father and a Māori-Pakeha mother, Myjanne Jensen always had this sense of not feeling Māori "enough". After moving back to the Far North in 2021, she started her journey of coming home and trying to better connect with her roots.  In The Māori in Me, a podcast series from the NZ Herald, Jensen connects with other mixed-race Māori to discuss making that cultural connection and coming to terms with the complexity of their identities.  In this episode, she talks with renowned Māori academic and rights activist, Professor Margaret Mutu, about what life was like in the Far North at the start of the 20th century and the impact of colonisation on the region and beyond.  Listen to it now, and find more episodes of The Māori in Me on iHeartRadio or wherever you get your podcasts.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Despite headline-grabbing ram raids becoming less common, crime was clearly still on many New Zealander's minds and a key part of many political parties’ election campaigns in 2023. Today on The Front Page, we present some of the biggest crime stories we’ve covered this year including the Auckland CBD construction site mass shooting, and an exploration of how meth kingpin Xavier Valent became only the third NZ drug importer to be sentenced to life in prison. We also hear from psychotherapist and co-host of The Nutters Club  Kyle MacDonald, and NZ Herald Head of Newsroom Data Chris Knox for analysis on how much criminal activity there actually is in Aotearoa, and the psychological impact crime can have on victims. Follow The Front Page on iHeartRadio, Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts. You can read more about this and other stories in the New Zealand Herald, online at nzherald.co.nz, or tune in to news bulletins across the NZME network. Host: Damien VenutoProducer: Shaun D WilsonExecutive Producer: Ethan SillsSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.