KEY POINTS:
Slashing news and current affairs jobs at TVNZ will destroy a reputation the broadcaster has built up over 30 years, former head of news Bill Ralston said today.
Ralston, who resigned in February after a tumultuous reign, slammed the broadcaster's new cost cutting measures and said those running
the company didn't understand news and current affairs.
"We are watching here the destruction of something we have taken for granted for 20 or 30-years -- that's a good quality public broadcaster who gives you a news and current affairs service that you can believe and trust," Ralston told Radio New Zealand.
He said no one at the top echelon of the company understood news or current affairs: "They come from a sales background or a marketing background, they don't understand concepts such as editorial independence."
TVNZ's Auckland newsroom and its Sunday programme are the biggest losers in the broadcaster's plan to axe almost 60 jobs.
A TVNZ source told the Herald that confirmation of the redundancies had stunned people.
"There were reporters crying. It's incredibly unsettling. It's a very stressful place to be," the source said.
The news was broken in meetings yesterday afternoon.
Seven Auckland news reporters will go, and the Sunday programme will close its Wellington office with the loss of five jobs.
Close Up and Fair Go are likely to lose staff and reporters will be lost from Sydney, Queenstown, Wanganui and Rotorua.
The Herald understands Mark Crysell and Jackie Maher are the likely casualties from Sunday, and Hannah Wallace will leave Fair Go.
Wanganui reporter John Newton will go and Katie Baylis is likely to leave the Sydney bureau.
The axe is also thought to be hovering over some experienced journalists, including Fair Go's Ewart Barnsley, Sunday's Damien Comerford and 20/20's Mike Valentine.
Last night, two unions representing some of the journalists described the losses as a "shortsighted move that poses a major threat to New Zealand journalism".
Up to 160 of TVNZ's staff of 1000 are expected to be made redundant in a bid to save $30 million.
TVNZ spokeswoman Megan Richards said the 60 redundancies were only a proposal, and there would be a two-week consultation period "before we begin to address individuals".
Many people would have the opportunity to apply for jobs in other areas, she said.
Many of the jobs to go will be from behind the camera.
Ten camera operators will lose their jobs, and each programme's producer, executive producer and associate producer will be replaced with one editor.
Engineering, Printing and Manufacturing Union national secretary Andrew Little said the redundancies meant "more news is going to have to be covered by fewer people, which can only lead to a reduction in quality".
The Public Service Association, which also has members at TVNZ, described it as a "panic-induced measure that will come back to haunt TVNZ".
Last month, TVNZ announced a 15.5 per cent drop in net profit for the six months to last December.
In a memo to staff in February, chief executive Rick Ellis said 140 to 160 jobs would be cut.
The associate professor of journalism at Auckland University of Technology, Wayne Hope, said TVNZ was "stuck between a rock and a hard place".
It was supposed to be a state broadcaster, but 80 per cent of its revenue came from advertising, he said.
It also paid a hefty dividend to the Government - the only publicly owned broadcaster in the world that made such payments.
"The Government broadcasting policy is in tatters," Professor Hope said.
"TVNZ cannot compete with CanWest [owner of TV3] under these conditions."
The redundancies would force a greater emphasis on spot news, which was cheap to cover, and mean less investigative and background news.
Television NZ received more bad news yesterday from viewing figures for March, which show TV3 making significant audience gains in news and current affairs.
In the core area of viewers aged between 18 and 49, 3News increased its audience share from 33.2 per cent in March last year to 38.2 per cent this year.
One News share fell from 36.1 per cent to 28.1 per cent.
Close Up's audience share fell from 22.4 per cent to 20.8 per cent and Tonight went from 24.5 per cent to 19.1 per cent.
Job losses
* Auckland journalists reduced from 13 to 6.
* Sunday programme's Wellington office shut, with five jobs lost.
* Close Up loses two journalists.
* Three roles being axed from Fair Go.
* Camera teams lose 10 jobs.
* Breakfast loses weather and sports presenter and one reporter.
* Two reporters in Sydney reduced to one.
* Positions in Queenstown, Wanganui and Rotorua cut.
* Two positions lost from ASB Business
- with NZPA