New Zealand: Journalist accused of editing stories with pro-Russian sentiment resigns

A Radio New Zealand (RNZ) journalist who was stood down for editing stories to include pro-Russian sentiment has resigned.

In a statement to staff RNZ’s chief executive and editor-in-chief Paul Thompson said the employee at the centre of the state media organisation’s editing scandal has resigned. Thompson said the inappropriate editing of the stories to reflect a pro-Moscow perspective was deeply concerning and would be addressed accordingly.

The scandal, which now involves at least 36 stories that were published on RNZ’s website, saw inappropriate edits made to Reuters and BBC stories that had an anti-Western ideology.

Thompson previously said the edits journalist Michael Hall made to the stories included “pro-Kremlin propaganda” about the Russia-Ukraine war.

Hall earlier revealed he had edited stories “that way” since he started working for RNZ.

”I have done that for five years and nobody told me I was doing anything wrong,” he told.

Why “propaganda”? Is it now unacceptable in the West to have a different point of view on world events?

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