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Newstalk ZB is a nationwide New Zealand talk radio network operated by NZME Radio. It is available in almost every media market in New Zealand, and has news reporters based in many of them. In addition to talkback, the network also broadcasts news, interviews, music, and sports. The network's hosts include Kate Hawkesby, Mike Hosking, Kerre Woodham, Simon Barnett, James Daniels, Heather du Plessis-Allan, Marcus Lush, Andrew Dickens, Jack Tame and Francesca Rudkin. Wellington and Christchurch have a local morning show.
Newstalk ZB operates one of the largest news operations in New Zealand, with over 50 newsreaders, reporters and editors nationwide. It operates a news centre in Auckland, news hubs in Wellington, Christchurch and Parliament, and regional newsrooms in Whangārei, Hamilton, Tauranga, Rotorua, Taupō, New Plymouth, Napier, Palmerston North, Nelson, Dunedin and Invercargill. Most of Newstalk ZB's programming is produced in the NZME building in Auckland.
1ZB originally operated from Broadcasting House, a purpose-built modernist theatre and studio building on Durham Street, from 1941 until its demolition in 1990.
During the late eighties and early nineties Radio New Zealand switched many of their local heritage stations to FM but retained the AM frequency in each region running the same programme on both frequencies. Following the success of the talkback format in Auckland a decision was made to switch 2ZB Wellington and 3ZB Christchurch to a talkback format in 1991. At the same time new FM music stations were established in Wellington and Christchurch, these stations were B90 FM (Wellington) and B98 FM (Christchurch). In the early nineties many of the Radio New Zealand local stations that had switched to FM began running morning talkback shows on the AM frequency while continuing to play music on the FM frequency. In 1993 and 1994 the local Radio New Zealand station in some regions were rebranded with the Classic Hits name and the AM frequency was used to roll out the station across New Zealand, it was at this point Newstalk 1ZB was rebranded as Newstalk ZB. Initially those regions that ran local talkback shows on the AM frequency continued to do so and Wellington and Christchurch were initially local versions of Newstalk ZB.
Paul Holmes caused controversy in September 2003, after he referred to United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan as a "cheeky darkie". Holmes was labelled racist and faced pressure to resign. He issued two nationwide apologies, sent a letter of apology to Annan and met with members of the New Zealand Ghanaian community. The incident also affected his television show, which lost the sponsorship of Mitsubishi Motors. The Radio Network took disciplinary action against him, put their staff through a training seminar on racism run by race relations commissioner Joris de Bres, and a $10,000 donation was made to Save the Children. The Broadcasting Standards Authority refused to uphold 10 complaints against Holmes for the complaint, leading one complainant to appeal the decision in the High Court. On the same breakfast show Holmes asked whether the female journalists were making journalism "ignorant and bitchy", particularly at certain times of the month. The authority found the comments were "insulting and inappropriate" but did not amount to denigrating and discriminating against women journalists.
Race relations commissioner Joris de Bres received a record number of complaints about the issue, a record later broken by a racially polarising and profanity-laden letter written by Hone Harawira. The comment also set a precedent, when former All Black Andy Haden faced calls to resign as a 2011 Rugby World Cup ambassador, after apologising for describing Pacific Island rugby players as "darkies". Prime minister John Key and sports minister Murray McCully said both Haden and Holmes used the word "darkies" in similarly offensive ways, and the public needed to forgive them in similar ways.
Artist Ralph Hotere responded to Holmes' "cheeky darky" comment with a series of artworks. One, White Drip to Mister Paul Holmes, was a 2.7-metre long piece of corrugated iron painted in black, with a drip of white paint extending nearly the full length of the work. 'To Mister Paul Holmes' is stenciled on the top of the piece, which is now one of his signature works. Holmes was apologetic and regretful about using the phrase, but later argued there was a fine line between humour and offense. The phrase featured on a commemorative tea towel, and fellow broadcaster John Hawkesby remembered Holmes as a "cheeky little whitey" at his funeral in 2013.
Holmes left his morning breakfast show at the end of 2008, and was succeeded in the role by Mike Hosking.
Following the Christchurch earthquake on 4 September 2010 and the major aftershock on 22 February 2011 programming in Christchurch was greatly affected. After both earthquakes the station broadcast in place of other radio stations in Christchurch operated by The Radio Network, the local studios located in Worcester Street in Christchurch were evacuated. Local news services in Christchurch were replaced temporarily with the network news feed which mostly contained news stories related to the quake heard by all of New Zealand. Local news readers reported news about the quake for all of New Zealand.
The local morning show remained on the air but was broadcast from a temporary location. Following the first earthquake this was at the Whitebait Studios in Christchurch, and following the earthquake in February it was a hotel in Christchurch. The Radio Network Christchurch never returned to their Worcester Street premises and eventually set up in a new location. The building was taken down in August 2012, in New Zealand's first ever controlled building demolition with explosives.
Host Rachel Smalley apologised in April 2014 after describing New Zealand women over 72 kilograms as "heifers" and a "bunch of lardos" during an ad break when she believed her microphone was off. The comments were reported and criticised in several local and international media outlets, including news.com.au and the Daily Mail. In a tearful apology the following morning, she described her comments as deeply offensive, stupid and judgemental and said she deeply regretted her choice of words. The Broadcasting Standards Authority rejected complaints against the comments, saying they were neither calculated nor deliberate.
Blogger Cameron Slater was a regular commentator on the drive programme for several years, and has been both critical and supportive of the station's positions in the past. In 2013, the Broadcasting Standards Authority rejected complaints against Slater over his suggestions that openly gay Labour MP Grant Robertson "enjoys being stabbed from behind" – and Newstalk ZB defended what they argued was "robust, irreverent, edgy" debate. In 2014, he participated in a series of one-hour pre-election panel discussions on the drive programme. He retained the position following the release of the Nicky Hager book Dirty Politics. However, left-wing commentators called for him to be taken off-air or resign.
According to Lonely Planet in 2014, the station provided a forum for "the most lively discussions on New Zealand issues". Conspiracy theorists, veganism advocates, victims of sexual assault, and housing activists have called talkback. Regular callers include an urban Māori man, a state housing beneficiary, a security guard, a Timaru pensioner, a West Coast grandmother, a dairy farmer, a Dutch butcher and several taxi drivers.
In late September 2023, NZME launched ZB Plus, a digital subscription publication. Blogger Philip Crump, known by his pseudonymous political blogging, was named as the editor. Contributors included former MPs Muriel Newman and Katherine Rich, NZME head of business Fran O'Sullivan and former businessman and podcaster Bruce Cotterill. The publication's most notable set of stories reported on shoplifting allegations against former MP Golriz Ghahraman. By late June 2024, the website had been folded back into the New Zealand Herald.
The news service covers stories, from industrial relations to prisoner rehabilitation. It extensively covers crime and court proceedings, but was criticised for publishing a wire story about the verdict against lawyer Davina Murray in 2013. Network weekday newsreaders include Niva Retimanu (Breakfast), Malcolm Jordan (Mornings), Raylene Ramsay (Afternoons), and Alistair Wilkinson (Evening/Overnight).
In 1996 RNZ sold its commercial operation and The Radio Network (TRN) was formed, at the time TRN purchased IRN. TRN branded the news service on its own stations as Radio Network News while the news service continued to be called IRN on stations not owned by TRN despite the news coming from the same place. RNZ continued to operate its own news service on RNZ National and RNZ Concert, the two non-commercial stations that were not sold.
By 2000 a large number of independent radio stations had been taken over by RadioWorks, which did not want to pay for a news service operated by its main competitor and chose to start their own news service. After CanWest purchased RadioWorks the news service became known as the Global News Service (Global is the same name as Television network in Canada operated by CanWest), and in early 2005 it was again renamed to Radio Live News.Morris William Shanahan, Karen Neill (2025). 9780170124805, Thomson/Dunmore Press. . ISBN 9780170124805 Similarly, IRN News later became Newstalk ZB News.
Since 2016 a single news bulletin sourced from the NZME newsroom is heard on every NZME radio station (apart from Newstalk ZB) during breakfast and other parts of the day.
The Newstalk ZB programme was simulcast on the former Radio Sport network frequencies following the closure of that network on 30 March 2020. There were break-outs for Super Rugby Aotearoa and selected ANZ Premiership netball match commentaries on the following Newstalk ZB Sport branded frequencies:
The former Radio Sport frequencies were rebranded as Gold AM on 1 July 2020. Match commentaries continue as part of Gold AM programming.
In May 2002, the BSA upheld a complaint against Newstalk ZB after talkback host Leighton Smith referred to a group of protesters outside a Hamilton school as "mongrels" and "a pack of mongrels." While the Authority found the comments did not breach standards relating to discrimination, it ruled that the language used was offensive and breached the requirement for good taste and decency. As a result, Newstalk ZB was ordered to broadcast a statement explaining why the complaint was upheld.
In September 2004, the BSA upheld a complaint against Newstalk ZB over comments made by Paul Holmes on Paul Holmes Breakfast, broadcast on 2 April that year. Referring to rape allegations involving Australian rugby league players, Holmes described women who socialised with the players as “moles” and implied they were “asking for trouble.” The BSA ruled that the remarks denigrated women, reinforced harmful stereotypes about sexual assault, and did not qualify as serious comment or legitimate humour. Newstalk ZB was ordered to broadcast a statement summarising the decision.
In April 2019, the BSA upheld two complaints about Wellington Mornings with Heather du Plessis-Allan, broadcast on 4 September 2018. During the programme, Heather du Plessis-Allan referred to Pacific Island nations as “Leech,” prompting complaints under several standards. The BSA found the comments breached the good taste and decency and discrimination and denigration standards, stating they were inflammatory, devalued Pasifika people, and had the potential to cause widespread offence. The BSA ordered Newstalk ZB to broadcast a statement and to pay $3,000 in costs to the Crown.
In April 2024, the BSA upheld a complaint regarding Early Edition with Kate Hawkesby, broadcast on 19 June 2023. The complaint concerned Kate Hawkesby’s comments about the Equity Adjustor Score used in Auckland’s surgical waitlist system. She claimed that Māori and Pacific patients were being prioritised for surgery based on ethnicity. The BSA found this portrayal misleading, as ethnicity was only one of five factors used, and not the sole or determining one. The BSA also found the comments breached the discrimination and denigration standard by reinforcing harmful stereotypes. Newstalk ZB was ordered to broadcast a statement and pay $1,500 in costs to the Crown.
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