Ronald Amosa against Radio New Zealand
Case Number: 3846
Council Meeting: 16 March 2026
Decision: Not Upheld
Publication: Radio NZ
Principle:
Accuracy, Fairness and Balance
Comment and Fact
Headlines and Captions
Discrimination and Diversity
Ruling Categories:
Accuracy
Balance, Lack Of
Comment and Fact
Discrimination
Headlines and Captions
Unfair Coverage
Overview
1. Radio New Zealand (RNZ) published an article on their website in the World/News section from news agency AFP on 23 January 2026 titled US touts “New Gaza” filled with luxury real estate.
2. Ronald Amosa complains that it breaches Media Council Principles (1) Accuracy, Fairness and Balance, (4) Comment and Fact (6) Headlines and Captions and (7) Diversity and Discrimination.
The Article
3. The article is about US officials presenting their vision for a "New Gaza" that would turn “the shattered Palestinian territory into a glitzy resort of skyscrapers by the sea, saying the transformation could emerge in three years. “ It quotes American president Donald Trump in his typical style and Jared Kushner - called his son-in-law but with no official title, as having enlisted an Israeli real estate developer Yakir Gabay. Ali Shaath, Gaza's recently appointed administrator under Trump's "Board of Peace" is also quoted.
4. The article gives some context to the war in Gaza including “The war in Gaza, sparked by Hamas's October 2023 attack on Israel, left much of the Palestinian territory damaged or destroyed and forced most of its residents to flee their homes. A US-brokered ceasefire took effect last October, reducing the level of bombing and fighting, but for most Gazans, the humanitarian disaster has endured three months on. “
The Complaint
5. Mr Amosa complains the article fails to meet the standard of fair, balanced and adequately textualised reporting on a highly contested international issue. He says balance over time cannot be achieved when the article functions as a standalone explainer. The omissions limit the readers’ ability to assess what was reported.
6. In particular, Mr Amosa says the article does not give an idea of the scale of displacement in Gaza, unresolved land issues, implications under international law or any meaningful perspectives from Palestine officials, legal experts, humanitarian agencies or independent analysis.
7. Mr Amosa says although presented as straight news, the article reproduces political advocacy without distinguishing between factual reporting and promotional or ideological claims.
8. He complains that the headline is about the luxury aspect without referencing the humanitarian angle and that it marginalises the voices and agency of the population.
9. Mr Amosa requests that the Media Council review the story for contextual accuracy, clarify how RNZ distinguishes between reporting political claims and consider further publication with greater context to address the omissions.
The Response
10. RNZ responded on 30 January, that RNZ has published a great many articles on the Gaza conflict.
11. “Specifically on this issue, we provided our readers with a clear sense of the devastation in Gaza City with this story on 12 October, 2025: Palestinians return to devastated Gaza City as truce holds | RNZ News and more recently, we explained the context of the conflict and its next stages on 29 January: The sticking points as phase two of the Gaza ceasefire arrives | RNZ News.
12. The response says : “In terms of Comment and Fact, the article clearly attributes any comments to the person who made them. The Headline accurately portrays a key element of the story. And in terms of Discrimination and Diversity, we have adhered to the Councils standard”.
13. “We do not believe this article contravenes our editorial standards, and we do endeavour to provide the Palestinian people with a voice”.
14. RNZ noted they have a “strict policy of not editing copy provided to us by our international partners”.
The Discussion
15. The Media Council notes it has received many other complaints about articles published in regards to the Gaza War. As it has said in the past, this is a long and complex story which has been reported extensively, and it is impractical to expect every report to cover all the context and background. It is a topic that for many, like Mr Amosa, a matter of great significance and does need careful consideration.
16. RNZ, like most New Zealand media organisations, relies on international news agencies for most of its foreign news coverage having no one on the ground in the conflict. Reporting on war is a difficult prospect from the vantage point of New Zealand and taking stories from reputable news agencies is a standard and acceptable practice.
17. Media organisations have to be able to rely on coverage from international news agencies. Without that, from a New Zealand perspective, there would be little to no independent coverage of some international stories without stories from news agencies.
Principle (1) Accuracy, Fairness and Balance
18. In the article all quotes are attributed, no one is criticised and no allegations levelled, no reputations are damaged and some background context is included.
19. The article is subtly written - the headline uses the word ‘touts” something commonly associated with a hint of doubt or lack of strength. It also includes a roundabout way of referring to Jared Kushner as “his (Trump’s) son-in-law Jared Kushner who has no official title but is one of Trump’s envoys for the Gaza ceasefire.”
20. In a fast-moving news story, not every story can be an explainer. A news organisation has to be able to decide the news value of each story. There have been countless stories on the War in Gaza and there will be more. Other stories have other perspectives. There is no lack of balance over time here.
21. This is not a standalone explainer; it is a straight news story about a speech.
22. The complaint under Principle (1) is not upheld.
Principle (4) Comment and Fact
23. Principle (4) says “A clear distinction should be drawn between factual information and comment or opinion. An article that is essentially comment or opinion should be clearly presented as such.”
24. The article is not presented as Comment. It is a straight news story on a development in a long running issue. The Council considers Principle (4) does not apply.
25. The complaint under Principle (4) is not upheld.
Principle (6) Headlines and Captions
26. Mr Amosa said the headline which includes the words “luxury real estate” did not adequately signal the surrounding humanitarian, political and legal realities.
27. However, the headline is not inaccurate. It uses the word ‘touts’ as a nod to the fact that this is America’s concept rather than the complicated realities of the situation. Headlines should accurately and fairly convey the substance or a key element of the report they are designed to cover. The headline here does just that.
28. The complaint under Principle (6) is not upheld.
Principle (7) Discrimination and Diversity
29. Mr Amosa complains that the article marginalises the voices and agency of the population most affected.
30. There is no undue emphasis on any particular persons in the story. While victims of the war are mentioned there is no personal response. Nevertheless, the article does not denigrate, over emphasise or target any race, minority group, religion, sexual orientation, age, colour or physical or mental disability.
31. The complaint under Principle (7) is not upheld.
Decision: The complaint is not upheld
Council members considering the complaint were Hon Raynor Asher (Chair), Hank Schouten, Bernadette Courtney, Tim Watkin, Guy MacGibbon,
Scott Inglis, Deborah Morris, Ben France-Hudson, Jo Cribb, Judi Jones, Marie Shroff, Alison Thom
Tim Watkin declared a conflict to interest and did not vote.