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Featured Comment & Analysis stories
KiwiSaver shake-up's risks could outweigh the rewards
Analysis - The government has proposed changes to make it easier to invest in private assets. But does that come with dangers?
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Bad Bunny has a lot to say (about more than Kendall Jenner)
2 Feb 2025Opinion - Latin superstar Bad Bunny's new album is a love letter to Puerto Rico - not what you'd expect from a gargantuan pop release.
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What exactly is Elon Musk doing with the US government?
2 Feb 2025Analysis- Americans don't know the full extent of what Elon Musk is doing as he embeds alongside US President Donald Trump at the top of the federal government.
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Treaty bill's promise of 'equal rights' ignores democracy's blind spots
31 Jan 2025This rhetorical and ideological vagueness obscures a pivotal point: there is no such thing as a singular form of democracy, writes Annabel Ahuriri-Driscoll.
Comment & Analysis headlines with summaries.
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If the govt wants science to have an economic impact, it has to fund it
30 Jan 2025Opinion - Success will depend on how they are implemented and, most of all, on the sector receiving sufficient funding.
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Analysis: NZ will struggle as 'digital oligarchy' grows
29 Jan 2025Companies like Meta, Google and Microsoft now operate beyond the control of most governments.
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How personalities and misunderstandings can drive foreign aid
Opinion - We are seeing power plays from the US, but it is surprising from New Zealand, writes Sione Tekiteki.
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Why Kiwis are squeamish about privatisation
Analysis - State asset sales have been a political dividing line for decades now, and it seems voters are again being asked to decide which side they're on. Audio
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Australian crowds show their boorish side at tennis open
25 Jan 2025Analysis - It's local supporters at the Australian Open who have been the worst behaved, with actions like booing Novak Djokovic after his shock injury retirement, says tennis writer Dave Worlsey.
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We should be careful what Luxon wishes for on growth
Analysis - There needs to be recognition of the significant risks associated with focusing on mining and tourism, Glenn Banks and Regina Scheyvens write.
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Rocks from space: Who gets to keep them?
22 Jan 2025Every day, about 48.5 tonnes of space rock hurtle towards Earth.
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Why is Trump threatening to take over the Panama Canal?
29 Jan 2025The US president claims Panama has broken a pledge it made when the United States transferred the canal in 1999.
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Explainer: What are tariffs?
28 Jan 2025It's President Donald Trump's favourite word. But how exactly do tariffs work? Audio
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Week one of Trump 2.0 told us a lot about what's likely to come
26 Jan 2025Analysis - Trump began his presidency with shock and awe. And yet when you scratch a little deeper there was a familiar gap between the rhetoric and the reality, Barbara Miller writes.
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How Trump's threats against 'free-riding' allies could backfire
22 Jan 2025Analysis - With Trump, US allies might be excused for asking themselves: "With friends like this, who needs enemies?"
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Protecting children, helping parents: NZ social workers speak about the challenges of their jobs
18 Jan 2025Analysis - Research looking at the experiences of social and family workers themselves found participants expressed discomfort in knowing about the harm to children yet feeling helpless.
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Trouble brewing in Samoa: Fiame's leadership hangs in the balance
Analysis - With just over a year left in her tenure as Prime Minister of Samoa, Fiame Naomi Mata'afa faces a political upheaval threatening a peaceful end to her term.
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A film with no dialogue is one of the best this year
17 Jan 2025Review - Flow is an animation that is destined to be a classic, one that audiences will return to year on year, writes Dan Slevin.
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Review: Golden Globe winner Emilia Pérez is 'fundamentally misguided'
16 Jan 2025Emilia Pérez is the most divisive of all the big awards contenders this year. Critics either love it or hate it, Dan Slevin writes.
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Britain wants to get close to Trump. Will Elon Musk stand in the way?
6 Jan 2025Analysis - It was not the start to 2025 that Keir Starmer wanted or expected, as Elon Musk engulfed his government in a very public fight.
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12 things about the 2025 Australian Open
27 Jan 2025Analysis - From big personalities to those derogatory Djokovic comments, there was plenty to chew on at this year's Grand Slam in Melbourne, Dave Worsley writes.
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Something old, new, borrowed and blue in PM's growth plan
24 Jan 2025Analysis - At first glance Christopher Luxon's plan to inject growth in the economy is a hark back to pre-Covid days and the last National government.
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Elon Musk is causing trouble in Europe. What’s in it for him?
24 Jan 2025Analysis - The world's richest man appears to have a new goal: upend Europe, one government at a time, Rob Picheta writes.
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Murdoch's outlets rarely apologise - Prince Harry's case was different
23 Jan 2025Analysis: Rupert Murdoch's media empire just did something incredibly unusual: It said sorry.
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NZ’s climate policies are no longer enough to keep warming at 1.5°C – here’s what needs to happen
Analysis - This doesn't mean it's too late to rein in further warming, but the ambition required rises with each delay in action.
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PM's top-heavy reshuffle piles on portfolios to trusted MPs
20 Jan 2025Analysis - The prime minister has taken a close hard look at the varying skills of his ministers, resulting in a portfolio allocation imbalance following Sunday's reshuffle, Jo Moir writes.
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Trump's comeback will begin with a blast of executive power
21 Jan 2025Analysis - Donald Trump will flex one of the most intense demonstrations of presidential power, seeking to change America's course by sundown.
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Rise of 'kidfluencers' raises legal & ethical questions
24 Dec 2024Comment - The rise of child social media influencers raises questions about the blurred lines between play and labour, independence and control, privacy, profit and online success. Video
Top News stories
- 'It doesn't prevent politicians from making laws': David Seymour on Regulatory Standards Bill
- Towns deserted after Desert Road closure: Is a confusing electronic sign to blame?
- Central Wellington polytech campus Te Kāhui Auaha may close
- Growing tension between New Plymouth mayor and MSD boss over rough sleepers revealed
- Canterbury swimming pool uses artificial intelligence to reduce drowning risks
