Northland community newspaper suspends publication

photo: RNZ/Marika Habbazi

Media company Stuff will close its last community newspaper in Northland with immediate effect.

Northern Newsflows through Kaikohe in the Bay of Islands, Whangarei Leader will cease publication this week, and Far North Real Estatethe company’s weekly property move.

Kerikeri by Stuff Bay Area Chronicle Closed in March this year.

Advertisers were informed of the closure via email last Thursday.

All three weekly newspapers have been edited by Aucklanders since the company’s remaining Northland staff were laid off in 2018.

A reporter was subsequently hired to cover Northland for stuff.co.nz but the position ceased last year.

Stuff’s closure in the North comes as rival NZME is in talks to axe its daily newspaper business in Whangarei. Northern Advocate.

NZME says Cutting staff at most local newspapers That would allow it to shift resources to major centres such as Wellington and Christchurch where Stuff competes most.

The only other remaining newspaper in Northland is Kaitaia’s biweekly The Northern Eraalso owned by NZME, and the Dargaville-based weekly Athlete Lifestyle Expertis independently owned.

A Stuff spokesperson told RNZ the group had been reviewing its community and regional mastheads since the start of the year “to ensure a coherent network of titles that meets the needs of communities and local businesses”.

This led to the introduction of a new header Acquiring othersinclude wairarapa times; the merger of some community newspapers; and the closure of some newspapers, such as Whangarei Leader and Northern News.

The spokesperson said Stuff has a “significant Northland audience who choose to get their news digitally”.

Northern News Especially with a long and rich history.

The newspaper was founded in Kaikohe in 1919 by the Berry brothers and later owned and edited for many years by journalism legend Jim Eagles.

The paper was acquired by Independent News Ltd in 1985 and became a free weekly in 2002.

The newspaper was subsequently bought by Fairfax NZ (now Stuff) and closed its Kaikohe office in 2015.

It is from Bay Area Chronicle The Kerikeri office remained closed until Christmas 2018, after which Stuff sacked all remaining staff. Northern News, Bay Area Chronicle and Whangarei Leader Although the company continued to publish the three newspapers.

The final version will be released this week.