Whanganui Chronicle
  • Whanganui Chronicle home
  • Latest news
  • Sport
  • Business
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Property
  • Death notices
  • Classifieds

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • On The Up
  • Sport
  • Business
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Residential property listings
  • Rural
    • All Rural
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology

Locations

  • Taranaki
  • National Park
  • Whakapapa
  • Ohakune
  • Raetihi
  • Taihape
  • Marton
  • Feilding
  • Palmerston North

Media

  • Video
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-Editions
  • Photo sales
  • Classifieds

Weather

  • New Plymouth
  • Whanganui
  • Palmertson North
  • Levin

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / Whanganui Chronicle

Editorial: Good Lorde, what a dilemma

Mark Dawson
Editor·Whanganui Chronicle·
28 Dec, 2017 04:00 AM2 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save
    Share this article
Lorde: I don't want to go to Tel Aviv

Lorde: I don't want to go to Tel Aviv

She may have the looks, the celebrity status, the burgeoning bank balance and the musical world at her feet, but you have to feel sorry for Lorde.

And no, I don't mean because this year's sophomore album Melodrama — despite retaining her lyrical potency — has been over-produced and over-sophisticated to the point where that distinct individual charm, which made her such a cool deal in the first place, has been airbrushed to extinction.

The dilemma of the 21-year-old singer from Takapuna is that she is caught in a game of political ping-pong between the Jews and the Arabs (or the Israelis and the Palestinians, if you prefer).

Her management organised a tour which included a gig in Tel Aviv (which may or may not be the capital of Israel). It's what you do if you are planning world domination through rhythm and melody.

A solid campaign on behalf of the oppressed Palestinians convinced her that it was not the right thing to do and this week she cancelled the show, prompting an equally sturdy campaign of condemnation from the pro-Israeli faction.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Both these cabals are agile and well-organised in their propaganda efforts and seized on the opportunity for some profile via a rising musical star enjoying almost worldwide fame.

Lorde will get over it and move on, no doubt, but this week has raised the interesting question of just where can you put on a concert without smudging your ethical credentials.

Can you put on a show in China with its human rights abuses? What about a gig in America where white policemen regularly shoot unarmed black people? And New Zealand where a Maori minority form the bulk of the prison population?

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

It is certainly hard to find a place that is untainted if you look closely enough for the specks of moral transgression.

And what should guide the musician? Their art? Their fans? Their conscience? Lorde knows ...

Save
    Share this article

Latest from Whanganui Chronicle

Whanganui Chronicle

Turnout lagging in Whanganui's general ward and district’s new Māori ward.

22 Sep 09:08 PM
Whanganui Chronicle

How the 1995 Ruapehu eruptions reshaped NZ's disaster response

22 Sep 07:40 PM
Whanganui Chronicle

Whanganui win North Island Heartland Series

22 Sep 05:00 PM

Sponsored

Poor sight leaving kids vulnerable

22 Sep 01:23 AM
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from Whanganui Chronicle

Turnout lagging in Whanganui's general ward and district’s new Māori ward.
Whanganui Chronicle

Turnout lagging in Whanganui's general ward and district’s new Māori ward.

Whanganui District Council candidates are concerned about low voting paper returns.

22 Sep 09:08 PM
How the 1995 Ruapehu eruptions reshaped NZ's disaster response
Whanganui Chronicle

How the 1995 Ruapehu eruptions reshaped NZ's disaster response

22 Sep 07:40 PM
Whanganui win North Island Heartland Series
Whanganui Chronicle

Whanganui win North Island Heartland Series

22 Sep 05:00 PM


Poor sight leaving kids vulnerable
Sponsored

Poor sight leaving kids vulnerable

22 Sep 01:23 AM
NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • Whanganui Chronicle e-edition
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Subscribe to the Whanganui Chronicle
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • NZME Events
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP