Latest news with #JonathanMilne
Scoop
18-05-2025
- Business
- Scoop
Brian Gaynor Initiative Key In Investigative Journalism Award Win
The Brian Gaynor Business Journalism Initiative congratulates Jonathan Milne, managing editor of Newsroom Pro, for his success at the 2025 Voyager Media Awards. Last year, Jonathan was the inaugural recipient of funding for investigative business journalism from BGI. The award, established to honour long-time broker, analyst and business columnist Brian Gaynor, provided financial help allowing Jonathan to research, write and produce his podcast series Powder Keg – about New Zealander Chris Ashenden and his billion-dollar supplements company AG1. On Friday night, Jonathan Milne and Powder Keg won Business Journalist of the Year and Best Original Podcast or Series, as well as being a finalist in the Best Investigation category at the News Publishers' Association-run awards. 'I'd been wanting to tell the story of Chris Ashenden and AG1 for months, but high-quality audio-visual storytelling isn't cheap and resources are tight across the media,' Jonathan says. 'I'd all but given up, then the Brian Gaynor Initiative announced its business journalism funding. 'This was like no journalism grant I'd seen before. A high-trust model gave Newsroom the freedom and flexibility to go where the story led us. As our investigations revealed a far bigger story than we'd imagined, we realised that to track down Ashenden, we'd need to go to Colombia, and then Mexico. BGI trusted us, and backed us, and dug still deeper. 'The story simply wouldn't have happened without that support.' Anna Gibbons, Brian Gaynor's wife and BGI chair, says he would have been delighted an investigative piece that without funding would not have been possible, had won at the Voyagers. 'This is tangible evidence of the success of our goal – to support important business stories being told.' BGI recently changed its funding process for investigative projects so they can now be submitted throughout the year. 'We believe this is more in keeping with the nature of journalism as it's practised. We want journalists who come across a potentially substantial investigation to be able to apply when the opportunity arises,' Anna says.
Newsroom
16-05-2025
- Business
- Newsroom
Newsroom's Jonathan Milne wins two national media awards
Senior Newsroom journalist Jonathan Milne has won two standout honours at the national Voyager Media Awards – declared business journalist of the Year and winner of best original podcast for his international investigation PowderKeg. Milne, who is managing editor of the Newsroom Pro subscriber newsletter and section, won praise from judges of both awards for his investigative and story-telling talents. Those judging best business journalist said: 'Jonathan's entry shows he can break big stories, develop and use a wide range of contacts, and write a great article. But we were particularly impressed by his podcast, Powder Keg, which saw him chasing a story – and a recalcitrant high-flying Kiwi CEO – from Invercargill to Colombia and finally a Mexican beach resort.'xxxxx Milne edits the daily Newsroom Pro newsletter 8 Things, an essential morning briefing on policy, the economy, business and politics. He has broken major stories on infrastructure, water, construction, local government, primary industries and resources. Milne accepting the award for business journalist of the year. Photo: Fox Meyer A separate panel of Voyager judges for best original podcast – one of the most significant awards in this era – said: 'Powder Keg starts with curiosity and ends with an investigation spanning continents and making global news. Jonathan Milne with Mike Wesley-Smith meticulously researched every angle of the compellingly told AG1 nutritional supplement story. His efforts uncovered local scams, led to the resignation of the CEO, revelations that it was not 'Made in NZ', and complaints to the US Food and Drug Administration. Indeed, Jonathan put his 'body on the line' by taking the product as part of the investigation. This podcast has international impact and exposes the supplement industry.' PowderKeg was co-reported/produced by Mike Wesley-Smith and edited by Dave Filoiali'i, and Megan Cumberpatch, the project overseen by Newsroom co-editor Mark Jennings. The podcast was made possible by a generous grant from the Brian Gaynor Foundation, supporting public interest business journalism. The 11-episode Powder Keg series, which launched on Newsroom's Delve podcast platform late in 2024 has had more than 410,000 downloads. You can listen to it, now open to all, here. It investigates the $1.2b supplement company AG1 and its elusive founder 'Chris the Kiwi' Ashenden, now resigned, his criminal past and business dealings. It also examines the company's use of social media influencers and the lack of scientific evidence behind the marketing of the nutritional supplement. Powder Keg was lauded by a Fortune magazine writer as 'brilliant' and 'meticulously reported'. Milne, a highly regarded former political editor and editor of the Sunday Star-Times and Cook Island News, regards the podcast as 'the best thing I've done in 28 years in journalism.' He says it's important those using the $100-a-month superstar-backed supplement are aware of its questionable science. Mike Wesley Smith and Jonathan Milne accepting the Best Original Podcast award from host Jeremy Corbett. Photo: Fox Meyer Powder Keg won from a field including finalists Juggernaut by Toby Manhire of The Spinoff and Uncut Diamond Daniella by Daniella Smith and Dane Giraud, for RNZ. The two other finalists for best business journalist were Nicholas Jones, now of Stuff, and Nikki Macdonald of Stuff. Newsroom political reporter Fox Meyer was a finalist for the up and coming journalist award, won by Bonnie Jansen of the NZ Herald. Industry awards included: Best digital platform – Newspaper of the Year – Herald on Sunday Best investigation – Darleen Tana saga, Stuff Scoop of the Year* – Darleen Tana saga, Stuff Best current affairs video (short-form) – Children of Prisoners, TVNZ, Indira Stewart The main individual awards: Reporter of the year – Anusha Bradley, RNZ News journalist – Michael Morrah, NZME Sports journalist – Dana Johannsen, RNZ Political journalist – Andrea Vance, Stuff Photographer – Iain McGregor, Stuff Feature writer – Charlie Mitchell, Stuff Columnist – Joel McManus, Spinoff Video journalist – Zoe Madden-Smith, Re-news/TVNZ One finalist for the Scoop of the Year award was withdrawn, late, by media firm NZME after legal issues with NZ Herald stories submitted about a Tipene Funerals employee convicted of interfering with human remains and obtaining by deception.
RNZ News
28-04-2025
- Politics
- RNZ News
Chatham Islands hopes for a more independent future
Regional Development Minister Shane Jones arrives at the Chatham Islands' Tuuta Airport, for his regional infrastructure summit. 'Boosting resilience is critical,' he says. 'I hope to hear some ambitious plans from the islanders.' Photo: Jonathan Milne/Newsroom Photo: Jonathan Milne/Newsroom For generations, New Zealand's remotest community existed without outside help. Now the 600-odd residents of the Chatham Islands can't live and thrive here without a lot of public money. Millions of dollars is needed for a long-awaited new ship to freight goods on and off the islands, replacing the old Southern Tiare. Residents also want a fairer share of the fishing quota in the waters surrounding the Chathams, better wharf facilities and cheaper electricity. They want to build their economy and create opportunities for their children who live on the island and bring back those who have left. Local fisherman Tom "Chubb" Lanauze recalls dozens of pupils attended the local schools until fishing quotas were introduced in the 1990s. "There was a huge family base here, like for instance, Kaingaroa School there were 60 kids. Te One school, there was a huge population," he says. "Once the quota management system got introduced families moved." Gone with the families was a lot of industry and money, he says. The fiercely independent islanders don't want handouts, Newsroom Pro managing editor Jonathan Milne says, but it is difficult to keep a remote community going in the 21st century. "This is not some kind of benefit basket-case economy. But times have changed and what we require, what civilisation requires now, the extent of the infrastructure that's required - ports and airports and stuff - that's not something that they can sustain on their own as a community, that's not something they can pay for on their own." Milne joined the air force Hercules on a brief visit to the Chathams earlier this month. The delegation was led by regional development minister Shane Jones, complete with a brass band and a container full of kumara, with Jones joking that he hoped that he would leave with it filled with local seafood. Also on board were government officials, other journalists and business leaders who see the potential for government money to be spent on infrastructure. Milne says there are opportunities in roading and ports construction, water and power. Soon-to-be-finished wind turbines will bring down the cost of power on the island but prices will still be double the amount mainlanders pay. "So there's an opportunity to save money further on electricity," Milne says. Lanauze says that the community wants fairer access to fishing quotas in the waters surrounding the Chathams and better wharf facilities. "It gives us more revenue coming back through the island, more incentive for the young ones to come home," he said in an interview with Milne. It is not clear whether the Chathams community could be in line for more money from the quota or be given greater access to the surrounding fishing grounds, says Milne. "Shane Jones says the government's actually kept back a little stash of quota for use in settlement of litigation and whatnot which comes along occasionally. "So he's looking into whether that quota could be used to help develop the Chatham Islands. He seems a bit equivocal though when you talk to him about whether he would actually hand over that quota to the Chathams to fish themselves or whether he would provide them the revenues from that quota." Despite its unique circumstances, the country's remotest community shares more than one common problem with our largest city. Like Auckland, the Chathams has a housing crisis but on a much smaller scale, because the council cannot afford to build the infrastructure required. But it is working with the big city in at least one area - water. Under this government's Local Water Done Well scheme to address infrastructure challenges, the Chathams council leaders met up with their counterparts at Auckland Council. "Auckland Council agreed to at least support them with advice in the first instance on setting up their new water and wastewater utility," says Milne. That agreement could one day extend to the Chathams taking a stake in Watercare. "I think that's quite wonderful. You've got the biggest and smallest councils teaming up, trying to work out how they can help each other." Check out how to listen to and follow The Detail here . You can also stay up-to-date by liking us on Facebook or following us on Twitter . Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
