The Fold - podcast cover

The Fold

The Spinoffwww.thespinoff.co.nz
Conversations about the intersections of media, culture and technology in New Zealand, hosted by Duncan Greive, founder of The Spinoff.
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Episodes

Emergency episode: Today FM gets taken off air

After just a year of broadcasting, Today FM hosts Tova O'Brien and Duncan Garner took over the airwaves this morning to dramatically declare that Mediaworks was considering axing the fledgling radio brand. Duncan Greive sits down in this bonus monopod to discuss the potential future that faces Today FM's employees. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Mar 30, 202314 min

Guyon Espiner on NZ's troublesome lobbying laws

He's got one of the most prestigious journalism careers in the country, but RNZ’s Guyon Espiner is not slowing down anytime soon. His new series "Mate, Comrade, Brother" on political lobbying in New Zealand has already exposed a number of troubling incidents. He sits down with Duncan Greive to discuss why he supports lobbying regulation, along with a look back over a rich career in forward-thinking journalism. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Mar 26, 20231 hr

Dr. Jim Mather on the founding days of Whakaata Māori

The early days of Māori Television were chaotic. After the founding CE was fired and imprisoned for fraud, Dr. Jim Mather was tapped to lead the fledging broadcaster. An account with no previous media experience, he was an unlikely choice for the role, but ended up leading the channel through some of its greatest years. He joins Duncan Greive to talk his outstanding career in consultancy and governance, his current position as chair of RNZ, and his involvement with podcast sponsor oOh!Media. Lea...

Mar 19, 202351 min

Mukpuddy on keeping local animation alive for over 20 years

Animation studio Mukpuddy are creating cartoons that are loved around the world, and stand on the precipice of a monster global adaptation of Spike Milligan’s 'Badjelly the Witch'. But this moment did not come easy. Mukpuddy co-founders Ryan Cooper and Alex Leighton join Duncan Greive to tell the wild story of their journey from the basement to the big time and how they survived an inhospitable local media environment. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Mar 12, 20231 hr 2 min

The ABC’s Gaven Morris on fixing public media in New Zealand

Meet the mastermind behind the ABC's astounding digital transformation. Gaven Morris oversaw the entire news division of the ABC during a transition from a public radio and TV behemoth, to a market leading digital operation. He talks with Duncan Greive to share what he learned in that process, and give his advice on what the future of RNZ, TVNZ and NZ on Air should look like, now that the public media merger is no longer going ahead. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Mar 05, 202350 min

James Frankham on the evolution of NZ Geographic

How did Aotearoa's most-awarded magazine survive through some of the biggest obstacles in media history? New Zealand Geographic publisher James Frankham talks with Duncan Greive about the collapse of Bauer Media, taking the government to court, and the brilliant revenue model which helps NZ Geo turn a rare profit in print. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Feb 26, 202341 min

Georgia Rippin on the untapped potential of web-series

How does a young New Zealander end up amongst televisions big leagues? While production assisting on shows like Workaholics, Georgia Rippin saw the potential that web-series had when scaled for television. Now, Georgia has created Kold Open, a marketplace which aims to connect web-series creators with big studios that produce content for streaming services. She joins Duncan to talk about the power she sees in converting digital content for traditional mediums. Learn more about your ad choices. V...

Feb 19, 202336 min

Nick Vile on the legacy media form still thriving in a digital world

How can companies ensure their advertising dollar is being well spent? Ooh!media is using their fleet of digital bus stop billboards to transform the industry into one of the most responsive and creative forms of advertising available. General manager Nick Vile talks with Duncan about Ooh!media's ability to adapt in a quickly changing market, and why he feels optimistic about the financial year ahead. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Feb 12, 202337 min

Duncan Greive on stepping down as CEO of The Spinoff

For nine years he steered the ship he built, but last week Duncan Greive announced his surprise resignation as CEO of The Spinoff. He joins guest host, Jane Yee, to discuss how doing things differently took The Spinoff from an irreverent TV blog to a respected online magazine, and why he's decided to hand over the reins. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Feb 05, 202353 min

Glen Kyne on Warner Bros. Discovery's future in New Zealand

Meet the kiwi in charge of some of the worlds biggest brands across Japan, Australia and Aotearoa. Glen Kyne went from running the commercial team at Mediaworks to fostering brands like CNN and HBO in the blink of an eye. He chats with Duncan about the future of the streaming wars, what might happen if the RNZ-TVNZ merger goes through, and what should be done if it doesn't. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jan 29, 202349 min

The Shit Show feat. Duncan Greive

This week, Duncan takes a break from hosting The Fold to guest star on an episode of The Shit Show. Hosted by Shit You Should Care About founder and personal friend, Lucy Blakiston. They talk Greta Thunberg, the Roanoke disappearance, and of course, AI. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jan 24, 202345 min

Madeline Chapman and Toby Manhire on Jacinda Ardern and the media

In the wake of Thursday’s astonishing announcement, Duncan Greive sits down with Jacinda Ardern biographer Mad Chapman and Gone By Lunchtime host Toby Manhire to discuss Ardern's complicated relationship with both mainstream and social media. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jan 19, 202354 min

Justin Flitter on the AI takeover

What in the Terminator has been going on in the news recently? 2022 saw AI skyrocket in the public discourse, with science-fiction becoming a looming reality. Founder of AI NZ Justin Flitter joins Duncan to discuss the rise of Dall-E 2 and ChatGPT, and discuss the way those in and out of the media should think about these tools going forward. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jan 15, 202343 min

Mini-pod: The danger of AI to the media industry

In the second of a pair of high summer solo podcasts, Duncan Greive talks about the stunning advances in consumer AI in 2022, from Dall-E 2 and Midjourney to ChatGPT. He runs through how they might impact the media and society, and explains why he believes it’s such a dazzlingly confronting technology frontier. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jan 08, 202316 min

Mini-pod: if the RNZ-TVNZ merger gets blown up, what should Plan B be?

In the first of a pair of high summer solo podcasts, Duncan Greive runs through an alternate way of achieving public media outcomes using RNZ and NZ on Air if (as looks increasingly likely), Labour abandons its plans to merge TVNZ and RNZ. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jan 01, 202318 min

The Spinoff presents SUPERPOD 2022

SUPERPOD is back! And for 2022, we're bigger than ever! Hosted by Gone By Lunchtime's Toby Manhire and featuring Jane Yee and Alex Casey from The Real Pod, Duncan Greive from The Fold, Leonie Hayden from Nē?, Simon Pound from Business Is Boring, The Spinoff editor Madeleine Chapman and The Spinoff Podcast Network's Te Aihe Butler, SUPERPOD 2022 is our multiverse of madness. From the Black Ferns' historic win to Mike King's villainous turn on Celebrity Treasure Island, we cover the incredible hig...

Dec 25, 20221 hr 10 min

RNZ's Paul Thompson on the future of public media in New Zealand

The country is experiencing the largest migration of audiences since the invention of the Television. As New Zealand's longest serving leader of a major media organisation, RNZ CE Paul Thompson has had a front row seat for all of it. He joins Duncan to talk about the function of publicly funded media, why the merger matters and what he has learnt from touring the world's state-owned broadcasters. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Dec 18, 202253 min

Mediawatch's Hayden Donnell on the biggest stories of the year

Who reports on the reporters? Hayden Donnell, senior producer of RNZ’s Mediawatch and former staff writer for The Spinoff sits down to discuss the countries 10 biggest media stories of the year. Hayden and Duncan discuss everything from the occupation of parliament to the looming public media merger. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Dec 11, 20221 hr 11 min

Amie Mills on NZ on Air’s confronting Gen Z research and a brave new remit

She’s Tumuaki o ngā Take Pūtea at Irirangi te Motu – the head of funding at NZ on Air – but Amie Mills is also one of the most open and curious minds in our media. She joins The Fold to talk about the challenges manifest in the organisation’s new research into the viewing and listening habits of Gen Z, before talking us through the profound changes NZ on Air has had to make in response to the media merger, which has seen its budget slashed. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/ad...

Dec 05, 20221 hr 2 min

Tracey Martin has the hardest job in NZ media

The former NZ First MP is leading the establishment board for ANZPM – the new entity which will run RNZ and TVNZ as they re-merge into a brand new, fit-for-the-future media powerhouse. Because they’re also being given nine figures a year by the government, the merger is causing consternation among private sector media – and Martin is tasked with figuring out how to keep everyone from freaking out. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Nov 27, 202251 min

Janine Morrell-Gunn on a groundbreaking career in television

She was arrested during the 1981 Springbok tour, not long after being announced as head girl of her high school – whatever she does, Janine Morrell-Gunn does it with her whole heart. Since those early peaks, she set off into the TVNZ newsroom of the 80s, before traversing into her life’s work in kid’s TV. She co-founded Whitebait Media, the iconic Ōtautahi studio behind What Now?, The Erin Simpson Show and many other hits, influencing generations of tamariki. She was just bestowed the NZ TV Lege...

Nov 20, 202254 min

Mister Organ has David Farrier hanging by a thread

He’s no stranger to chasing down oddballs on the internet, but Mister Organ saw David Farrier finally meet his match in his second feature length documentary. It began with a story about clamping that became a huge hit saga on The Spinoff, and ended with legal threats flying and some deeply freaky confrontations. Farrier joins Duncan Greive on The Fold to discuss the film, his hit newsletter Webworm and all the fascinating and formally inventive moves he's made over his career. Learn more about ...

Nov 13, 202247 min

Madeleine Chapman on her first year editing The Spinoff

She started her career at The Spinoff as a 22-year-old intern in 2016, and became its editor five years later. In between time she wrote two books and became one of the most admired writers of her generation for her wit, intellect and originality. Then she got a job she didn’t even want, becoming one of the youngest editors of a “mainstream” publication ever. Madeleine Chapman sits down with Duncan Greive to reflect on her unconventional path to the role, the early years of The Spinoff and some ...

Nov 06, 20221 hr 2 min

Jon Duffy on Consumer as the original member-funded media organisation

Consumer has had a big year – driving the conversation around the grocery duopoly in a way which has fundamentally reframed our view of supermarkets. Yet the challenges facing our consumers are big and complex, and the membership base is shrinking. He joins The Fold to explain why Consumer exists, and how it is evolving in the modern media environment. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Oct 30, 202250 min

Chris Parker is at his peak but still pining

One of the most talented creatives working in Aotearoa today, Chris Parker seems to never have met a medium he can’t master. He joins The Fold to talk about his new book, but we also traverse his comedy, his plays, his Instagram, his felting and his extraordinary reality TV appearances. But the most revelatory part of the conversation concerns why he still can’t get his dreams on screens. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Oct 23, 202253 min

Rewind | Viva La Dirt League on building a YouTube empire from West Auckland

10 years ago, Viva La Dirt League started doing musical parodies of gaming logic. Now, three friends have built out a truly unique YouTube channel with over 3m subscribers and revenue which would dwarf all but a handful of NZ media companies. They join the Fold to explain how they did it. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Oct 16, 202241 min

Rewind | Joe Daymond is building a comedy empire

In a few short years Joe Daymond went from sleeping on a mate’s couch to selling out Sky City Theatre with his stand-up show, all driven by a very smart and analytical use of social media. But the plan was always to build a TV empire – and with production company West Park, he’s already well on his way. [First released February 2022.] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Oct 09, 202247 min

Tova O’Brien on the Three news political dynasty and going up against Hosking

After an extraordinary decade with Three, during which she became the zeitgeist face of the press gallery, Tova O’Brien abruptly resigned late last year. After an ugly and public employment relations authority case, she finally got to start a new gig in a new medium with a new station at Today FM. Despite all that, she is crackling with energy as she joins Duncan Greive on The Fold. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Oct 02, 202241 min

The murk around the merger, Facebook in war mode and media after the monoculture

There is a lot going on in New Zealand’s media at the moment, so Duncan Greive takes the mic alone to deliver a solo podcast on the three issues which feel most pressing, including the freaky state of the TVNZ-RNZ merger, an increasingly isolated and aggressive Facebook and how the Queen’s death marked the end of a media era. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Sep 25, 202243 min

TVNZ CEO Simon Power has some notes for the government on its merger

Former National cabinet minister Simon Power was a surprise appointment to lead TVNZ, but his skills as a politician have come in handy with the biggest change at the state broadcaster in decades fast approaching. He joins Duncan Greive on The Fold to discuss the merger – why he believes in the concept but not the current bill, and his vision for ANZPM should he be appointed to lead it. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Sep 18, 202256 min
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