Media Insider: This North Island town's newspaper was closing. And then the editor stepped up

Taupō plays host to many newsworthy events, including, this year, the Ironman. Photo / Graeme Murray

Taupō‘s last remaining community newspaper was due to roll off the presses for the final time tomorrow. Now, it’s been saved in a last-minute deal, with its editor buying the newspaper from publisher NZME and ensuring a vital community lifeline has been saved.

The deal is set to pave the way for several other NZME community newspapers – which were also due to be closed this month – to be bought by local interests.

In a piece of very good news at the end of a year of mass journalistic and media casualties, Taupō & Tūrangi Herald editor Dan Hutchinson and NZME have announced the acquisition, with both parties indicating some of NZME’s other 13 community titles might also be saved.

Hutchinson earlier told Media Insider that the chances of the Taupō paper closing were “close to zero”, and he has been true to his word – a purchase price has not been disclosed, but it is likely to be a nominal sum.

The paper will continue to be printed by NZME.

Last week's edition of the Taupō & Tūrangi Herald.

“There is huge commercial support for that title, and while it might not have the scale to make it attractive to a corporate owner, as a small owner-operated business, it stacks up well,” Hutchinson told Media Insider last month.

In announcing the acquisition today, he said: “I appreciate the opportunity NZME has provided to continue a news service for the wider Taupō district. Those managers who facilitated this put a lot of work into it and have done this community a huge favour. It’s a good news story and hopefully paves the way for a few of the other papers to be picked up too.

“The Taupō & Tūrangi Herald has performed relatively well, despite the economic headwinds this year and we hope the community will continue to support us as we transition to new ownership.

“This is a very vibrant and rapidly developing district, where people just get on and do things and that is exactly what we will do. We are essentially just another small business providing an important link for the local community.”

Earlier this year, Stuff closed the Taupō Times, as well as several other North Island community titles.

The Taupō & Tūrangi Herald’s closure would have left the community – the district has a population of more than 42,000 people – without a local news source.

It had been one of 14 NZME titles due to close this month – among others are the Horowhenua Chronicle, whose origins stretch back 131 years, and the Te Awamutu Courier, whose origins go back 113 years. The media company has said its community network remains unprofitable, despite its best efforts to improve its financial position.

Taupo & Turangi Herald editor - and now owner - Dan Hutchinson.

Hutchinson told Media Insider the paper would take a break for Christmas, and be back in January, either on January 9 or 16.

“I have a reasonably large team at NZME to cater for in the last few days of the year, many of whom are facing a great deal of uncertainty, so I’m conscious that this has been a pretty big distraction,” said Hutchinson.

“We have a gun saleswoman who wants to stay on and who has loads of local experience selling print, so that’s just brilliant.

“I’ll also be continuing to employ a part-time journalist to help me out with that side of things. Both of these people have lived in Taupō all their life. My wife Tracey will also be helping out with administration and classified advertising. We will contract out the layout and graphic design to an established company, printing will continue to be done at NZME’s Ellerslie press and Reach Media will continue to handle the delivery side of things.”

NZME chief executive Michael Boggs said he was pleased the paper had been saved.

“We’re thrilled the Taupō & Tūrangi Herald will continue to operate in the new year with current NZME team member Dan Hutchinson today signing an agreement to purchase the publication.

“The paper has a proud history, serving its community with the latest local news and providing advertisers with opportunities to connect with local customers. We’re so pleased it will continue and we wish Dan all the very best for the future. We’ve had interest from several potential buyers for other publications in our community network and we’ll continue those conversations in the coming days.”

NZME chief executive Michael Boggs. Photo / Michael Craig

Hutchinson has a website, www.tauponews.co.nz, “which we will dust off as soon as possible”.

“My company is Taupō News Ltd and this was established about five years ago. It has been in hibernation for the past couple of years while I was with NZME. We’ve got an IT guy coming over to test its brakes and pump up the tyres on Wednesday. The focus will be print initially but we will have a look at what works elsewhere.”

He said there might be a case for a subscriber-based website with a daily newsletter and live updates on local events, “but that will take resources we don’t have right now”.

Fourteen of NZME's community newspapers had been due to close this month, but some are likely to be saved. The Waikato Herald (which is part of the NZ Herald), The Weekend Sun and Coast & Country were not part of the closures.

He indicated a name change might be on the cards. “There are a couple of options there. It might make sense from a marketing perspective to align it more closely with our digital brand.”

At this stage, the paper would continue to publish on Thursdays.

“I’m not getting too far ahead of myself just yet. Publishing just before the weekend means more people are likely to browse the paper, there are also thousands of extra people in town enjoying our beautiful part of the world and it’s good for real estate sales, which are a big part of the business.”

Hutchinson has spent the past nine years in Taupō but always in wider regional editorial management roles.

“This is a chance for me to put all of my time and energy and everything I have learned about regional print and digital publishing, into the community I’m most passionate about.

“The community newspaper provides an important service to readers and the business community and is still a very healthy and vibrant medium in a community of Taupō‘s size, energy and demographic.

“It basically connects communities – it informs the community at large, it allows the business community to get its messages and products in front of people, and it connects the not-for-profit sector.

“The value of journalism for local democracy is also important and given that 2025 is an election year for local government, we intend to be very active in that space.”

Editor-at-Large Shayne Currie is one of New Zealand’s most experienced senior journalists and media leaders. He has held executive and senior editorial roles at NZME including Managing Editor, NZ Herald Editor and Herald on Sunday Editor and has a small shareholding in NZME.