Kia ora koutou, and talofa lava as we celebrate Samoa Language Week.
In this Pānui, I’m pleased to share:
- updated BSA guidance on types of complaints that are unlikely to succeed
- findings from our latest broadcaster satisfaction survey
- a reminder about the translated BSA resources available in Samoan and several other languages
- my Privacy Week webinar on privacy and the media.
Updated guidance: complaints unlikely to succeed To help streamline the complaints process, we provide guidance on types of complaints that are unlikely to succeed. This seeks to save complainants, broadcasters and the BSA from using time and resources dealing with complaints that, based on past decisions, have little chance of being upheld. Since publishing our initial guide in 2021, we’ve issued updates when we see commonly arising issues broadcasters could process more efficiently by directing complainants to simple BSA guidance.
Existing categories include complaints involving personal preference and low-level language; discrimination and denigration relating to broad, non-homogenous groups; fairness when applied to public figures; and broadcasters’ use of te reo Māori.
We’ve just published a new update with changes including:
- a new section on balance requirements as they relate to brief news reports
- a section on representation of rainbow communities – noting ‘mere depiction’ of them is not inherently offensive or requiring of ‘balancing’ content from other groups
- updated listings of previous cases that illustrate each type of complaint.
The full updated guide is on our website
hereopen_in_new (translated versions will also be updated). We encourage broadcasters and potential complainants to familiarise themselves with this, and other resources such as our quick-guide videos on the standards and complaints process.
Broadcaster satisfaction survey A hallmark of the success of broadcasting standards over more than 35 years is the co-regulatory system in which we work closely with broadcasters towards freedom in broadcasting without harm.
Every two years, we survey broadcasters on how satisfied they are with our processes, services and working relationships. We also explore their views on the BSA website and the Broadcasting Code, and use the results to identify areas for improvement.
We’ve just published our 2025 broadcaster satisfaction survey. Overall findings remain positive, with improvements in several areas.
Some 79% of broadcasters rate their working relationships with the BSA as ‘good’ or ‘very good’. Over 80% positively rate general information provided by the BSA on the complaints process and broadcaster obligations.
All four respondents who had a complaint determined by the BSA in the last year rated the process as ‘good’. Three found the BSA’s decision making ‘fair’; the fourth found it ‘very fair’.
All sources of BSA information are viewed positively, with unanimous agreement the Code of Broadcasting Standards is helpful.
It was pleasing to see our efforts to produce quick-guide educational videos on standards, the complaints process and safe viewing tools have supported a lift in those sourcing information from online training resources.
Awareness and appreciation of BSA research has softened since 2023, when the rating was driven by our most-read research on offensive language.
We’ll consider broadcasters’ feedback on areas for improvement with a focus on:
- consulting broadcasters on their preferred methods of giving feedback, given low survey response rates over the last few years
- ongoing consultation with broadcasters about our research programme topics
- opportunities for further training sessions
- ongoing delivery of video training tools and other resources.
You can see the full broadcaster satisfaction survey report on the
BSA websiteopen_in_new.
Speaking your language This week marks the annual Vaiaso o le Gagana Samoa | Samoa Language Week, when the country celebrates and promotes the use of Gagana Samoa in New Zealand.
Samoan is one of our most widely spoken languages, with more than 110,000 speakers in New Zealand according to the 2023 census, up from 86,000 ten years earlier.
Samoa Language Week is one of several Pacific language weeks promoted by the Ministry for Pacific Peoples. It’s also a good time for a reminder that the BSA provides a range of translated resources in Samoan, as well as te reo Māori, Simplified Chinese, Hindi, Punjabi, and Korean.
We know there’s a great diversity of spoken and written language among broadcasters and the public and it’s important that our services are easily understood and accessed by people from different communities and backgrounds.
Multilingual BSA resources include:
If you know of people in your community or networks who would benefit from these, please don’t hesitate to share them.
Focus on privacy I was pleased to have the chance, as part of the recent Privacy Week, to present a webinar on privacy and the media. This explored how people’s right to privacy intersects with the right of media to gather, record and publish material in the public interest. While privacy gives rise to relatively few complaints compared with the likes of balance, accuracy and fairness, those we do consider are often complex and particularly sensitive for those whose privacy is alleged to have been breached. You can see a recording of the webinar
hereopen_in_new, and the presentation slides can be seen
hereopen_in_new.
Ngā mihi mahana
Stacey Wood
Chief Executive