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Kia ora koutou
Welcome to our latest update on BSA news and recent decisions.
First, I’d like to acknowledge the challenges and tough decisions many of our broadcasters are facing into at the moment. Recent announcements have demonstrated just how hard it is for our news media in today’s changing environment.
We recognise the importance of broadcasters’ work – a strong and diverse news media is critical to a healthy democracy, contributing to transparency, social cohesion and informed debate on matters of public interest.
We’ve long called for reform of a now woefully outdated regulatory framework and will continue to support moves towards legislative change that will help level the playing field for broadcasters and put media on a more sustainable footing.
I was pleased to have the chance to present a BSA submission, alongside those of major media organisations, in support of the Fair Digital News Bargaining Bill at last month’s select committee hearing. You can see footage of my presentation hereopen_in_new.
We’ll continue to support reform in whatever ways we can and, like others across the industry, look on with hopeful anticipation that effective solutions can be put in place with the least possible delay.
New guide to children's rights and broadcasting
Among the eight broadcasting standards the BSA oversees is a standard dedicated to protecting the interests of children.
The children’s interests standard protects listeners and viewers aged under 14 from content that ‘disproportionately disturbs them, is harmful, or is likely to impair their physical, mental or social development’.
This is in line with the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, which ensures children are protected, provided for, and able to participate in society and decisions that impact them. The convention includes a specific requirement to protect children from content which could be harmful to their wellbeing.
Parents and caregivers share responsibility with broadcasters for protecting children from viewing or listening harm. To support them, we’ve worked with Save the Children to create a helpful guide to safe viewing toolsopen_in_new.
This provides plain-English information on programme classification and advisory labels, which help parents and caregivers identify content suitable for children, as well as the timebands representing children’s normally accepted viewing or listening times, when greater protections apply.
The resource also offers advice on what to do if your child does encounter harmful content, including how to complain under the children’s interests standard.
Material considered under this standard includes sexual or violent content, offensive language and dangerous, antisocial or illegal behaviour. Content where children or animals are humiliated or badly treated, or graphic descriptions of people in extreme pain or distress, are also likely to be considered.
The new guide to children’s rights and broadcasting can be seen on the BSA website hereopen_in_new, and you can see further information on the children’s interests standard hereopen_in_new.
We encourage you to take a look at the new guide and would be grateful if you could help promote this among your networks.
Ngā mihi mahana
Stacey Wood
Chief Executive
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