WITBN

By BARRY RUSS

At 12.51 p.m. on Monday, February 22, the southern New Zealand city of Christchurch, population 348,000, was devastated by an earthquake measuring 6.3 on the Richter scale.  Damage and devastation was widespread; 181 people lost their lives.

Here at Māori Television, we wanted to do something tangible to help – with many homes destroyed and services disrupted, it was clear that rebuilding Christchurch was going to be a long, painful and very costly process in a country already reeling from the recession. 

But how best to help?  We were already supporting the local television station in Christchurch, Canterbury Television (CTV), by giving it broadcast space on our frequency after its building completely collapsed, claiming 116 lives. Our early idea to tag an all-night fundraiser onto the back of our popular Friday night talent show Homai Te Pakipaki (“Give us a round of applause”) foundered because we just couldn’t make it work. There’s no point running a fundraiser if production costs undermine it.

And then opportunity came along in the form of two well-connected locals, she a well-known PR practitioner with extensive links to the current government, and he a television host and nightclub owner. They wanted to put on a 12-hour telethon to raise money for the government’s global Christchurch Earthquake Appeal, reflecting the 24-hour telethons so popular on New Zealand’s state broadcaster in the 1970s and ‘80s.

Rise Up Christchurch—Te Kotahitanga (Unity) would be a 9 a.m.-9 p.m. live show filled with entertainment; our influential organisers would rope in high-profile people, find money to organise and produce a family-friendly event and make use of social networks to build public support. They had a production company ready to go, but needed a host broadcaster to partner with.  

For us it was a no-brainer. Although our mission is the preservation and promotion of Māori language, we are consciously a broadcaster for all New Zealanders. The organizers received NZ$500,000 from one of New Zealand’s largest companies towards production and administration costs. Māori Television donated staff time and resources.

The amount, however, was not enough – and we all wanted every single cent to go to the earthquake fund. Thankfully, Te Māngai Pāho, the Māori broadcasting funding agency, and Te Puni Kōkiri, Ministry of Māori Affairs, were supportive, and each committed NZ$100,000 towards broadcast costs.

On the three-month anniversary of the quake, Rise Up Christchurch – Te Kotahitanga went live to air and streamed globally on the web from our studio in central Auckland, with live crosses to two areas in Christchurch, one in Wellington and two different sites in Auckland. We aired stories of heroism and hardship from Christchurch as well as pre-recorded stories of fundraising events overseas. We also ran video messages from famous but far-flung Kiwis such as True Blood actress Anna Paquin; crews had been sent to Los Angeles and London to reach expat Kiwis and provide them with the ability to show they cared no matter where they lived.   

The event’s on-air hosts included four of our own presenters along with a number of faces who host programs we commission. In addition, there were presenters from the state-owned Television New Zealand and MediaWorks, the owner of TV3. US-based Kiwi former supermodel Rachel Hunter flew home to take part. We had All Black Dan Carter, the Prime Minister and politicians from across the board, musicians and entertainers, and a cast of ordinary but extraordinary Kiwis, Māori and Pākehā, all doing their bit to help Christchurch. 

Viewers donated by phone, text, or web. Online auctions sites sold off items such as Gucci shoes given by singer and walking work of art Lady Gaga (they went for NZ$4,300) and a guitar donated and signed by American singer-songwriter Katy Perry (NZ$5,000). The event was a great success—raising NZ$2.56 million to help the people of Christchurch rebuild their lives and their city.

Looking back, there were a few hairy moments for the team directly involved in the overall production of the broadcast. But then, what live-to-air broadcast doesn’t remind you, in no uncertain terms, that you’re alive? Instead of faces or tales, what I remember most from Rise Up was the sense of challenge in mounting the broadcast and the cooperation behind and in front of the camera; this generosity of spirit really was kotahitanga (unity) in action.   

And once again Māori Television was taking a role as a truly national public broadcaster. When we committed to being a broadcast partner Rise Up organisers were still in discussion with Television New Zealand, TV3, and another private station, Prime. None of them committed to broadcasting the telethon. We weren’t entirely surprised; mainstream television in New Zealand has become ruthlessly commercial in recent years and coverage of what you might call nation-building events has suffered.

For six years now, our 18-hour broadcasts on ANZAC Day, Australasia’s commemoration of war dead, have become popular across the entire country, and Rise Up was no different. It turned out to be Māori Television’s most-watched single show ever, reaching 887,400 people aged five and up in a country of 4 million; it was the country’s second highest-rating daytime program.

The statistics also showed that a lot of families were watching Rise Up together; that a lot of new viewers coming to Māori Television for the first time. Yes, we’re proud of that, and we’re going to keep building on it. But what we‘re most proud of is the tangible difference our partnership has helped make in a devastated city.

For more information about the Rise Up Christchurch, visit: riseup.org.nz, or www.maoritelevision.com.

ENDS

Barry Russ began his television career in research before quickly moving into a senior manager role. An all-rounder with a comprehensive understanding of television production, equipment and transmission, Russ’s work roles have included TV3 Studio Controller during start-up, and TV3 Operations Manager with full responsibility for equipment, the day-to-day transmission of the channel, and 70 staff.

Russ took a break from television to work in the travel industry, returning to television with his role at Māori Television as the General Manager Operations. Russ was also Māori Television’s Network Executive for Rise Up Christchurch – Te Kotahitanga.