OPINION
Thomas Cranmer has looked into the Public Interest Journalism Fund and started posting some very interesting observations on X. One of the statistics is the number of Total Content Views. NZ on Air claims that they’ve had 166 million views across 72,000 pieces of content. Sounds impressive doesn’t it?
But is it?
Well, that means each piece of content was viewed around 2305 times. Hardly seems to be much public interest, does it?
They’ve spent over $66 million doing that, too: $919 per piece of content.
Let’s look at that same time period, May 2021-June 2023 and compare our statistics with the PIJF.
The BFD had 31,350,952 page views (Google Analytics) of our content in the same period. We produced around 4500 pieces of content in the same period, and we did it with nothing other than our members’ support plus a little bit of advertising revenue. We have not received even one cent from the government coffers because we value our editorial independence and our audience far too much to compromise our values by accepting tainted government funds.
Those 4500 pieces of content have been viewed on average more than 6966 times, compared with the PIJF view average of just 2305 times. The BFD is more than twice as effective at retaining viewers as is the PIJF.
In other words, we produced the equivalent of 18% of the whole PIJF and we funded that all from our generous members.
The BFD is hitting home runs, and outscoring the regime-funded media in every material way.
The government and NZ on Air are celebrating the PIJF as successful in many, many ways except the worst way. It has been responsible for the degradation of support for the media because the funds were so appallingly tainted and influenced editorial direction, despite the loud protestations of those in receipt of the regime cash.
We are materially more effective at sharing news and information than all of the bludger companies who took the tainted cash. We did all that with around 1400 members.
Now imagine what we could do if we doubled our membership? Or tripled it?
Our members clearly think we deliver value. Our readership, which is many tens of thousands higher than our membership, clearly keeps on reading us, and we are getting more and more readers every single day.
Our members are our lifeblood. We appreciate each and every dollar that comes our way.
We also know that times are tough, and in media tougher than most other industries. But we aren’t funded by the millions and millions of dollars that other media are. We are funded by just a tiny portion of our actual reader numbers.
And now I have to be rather blunt. What is stopping you from contributing, either by becoming a member or by donating?
Because clearly, you are enjoying what we do. Some of you value it so much that you contribute. But what are the rest of you waiting for? Do you want us to slip away through lack of funding? Will you say after we shut down, ‘Gee I wish I’d been a member, they might have really done something amazing.’
You know what? We do amazing things, with a few paid writers and a cast of helpers volunteering because they really, really, passionately believe in the work we do. They are moderators, cartoonists, proofreaders, photoshoppers, quiz masters and any and everything in between. Every one of them is a valued member of the team.
But times are tough: advertisers are dropping everywhere. But we feel our mission to inform is so important that we keep on keeping on despite the tough times.
When times get tough the tough get going.
Now it’s time to ask those of you who are currently sitting by, while others do the heavy lifting, to do something. We need you to reach into your pockets and chip in, either with a donation or by becoming a member.
What is stopping you from doing that today?
Will today be the day that little nagging guilty feeling finally prompts you to join up?
I hope so.
We are beating the hell out of the regime media. Help us beat them some more.
Just Do It. No more excuses.
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