Media Conspiracy of Silence

Marie from Waikanae

Reposted, since it seems to have been buried at the bottom of the pile of posts. Funny that, it was only up for a few hours, not days....


If one read the local papers recently, one could be forgiven for thinking that all was sweetness and light in Kapiti. Not so. There is a whole bunch of people pretty angry about the way in which their recycling center has been closed. Will the local papers carry the story? Hell no. Despite being sent press releases following a very successful public meeting and a big response on Neighbourly, along with many letters to Council written by individuals, not a word has been written. So much for balanced reporting. Obviously the local papers are too afraid to print anything that might criticize the Council. It just underscores what a bunch of bullies they are. Wasn't it the Fascists who shut down the press? Meanwhile, individual senior Councillors have had no problem contacting key members of the group individually and accusing them of various misdemeanors. More bullying in my opinion. It smacks of trying to pick people off.
Fortunately for us, both kcnews.co.nz and waikanaewatch.org gave us comprehensive online coverage of the meeting and resolutions passed.

We did get one veiled reference to our actions in the Mayor's column in Kapiti News this week. In it, the mayor stated we had turned the issue into a political football. Well......lemme tell ya, your worship, you were right there at the kick-off and you couldn't wait to kick the recycling center into touch. That and moving the goalposts with a series of dodgy votes made for a pretty intriguing scenario. You can’t blame us for wanting to know the real story. We don't appear to have any investigative journalism in the district. In the column, the Mayor talks about being out on Kapiti Island, releasing Kokako. Nice for the Mayor to have a break on Kapiti island away from the wee pressing problem of a $5 million shortfall in the gateway project. He is, of course, more than welcome to give that the boot.