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Summarised by Centrist
A new podcast appearance by broadcaster Paddy Gower, in which he expressed regret about the 2021 “Vaxathon” campaign, has reignited criticism of how parts of New Zealand’s media handled the COVID era.
Writing on Chris Lynch Media, journalist Chris Lynch argues Gower’s reflection amounts to a partial confession that arrives long after public trust in mainstream media began to erode.
During the pandemic, Lynch says many journalists were “profoundly out of step with the public mood”, dismissing concerns about mandates and government authority rather than treating them as legitimate debate.
“There was nothing wrong with reporting the government restrictions of the time,” Lynch writes, referring to lockdowns, mandates and other pandemic measures. “But too often, sections of the media did not simply report the government’s decisions. They amplified them, defended them, and in some cases actively promoted them.”
The Vaxathon broadcast, which encouraged vaccination through a televised campaign featuring celebrities and media personalities, has since become a symbol for critics who believe journalism crossed into advocacy.
Gower has said he “sort of regretted the Vaxathon television spectacle”, but also acknowledged he would “probably do it all over again”, a contradiction Lynch says “speaks volumes”.
In the interview, Gower also apologised to New Zealanders who questioned the vaccine or mandates and felt mistreated during the pandemic, saying: “I’m still pro-vaccine, but we got it wrong. We were too harsh on them and that included me… my journalistic ethics and some of the basic rules went out the window. I’m allowed to regret that. And I do. And I’m sorry to those people.”
Lynch argues the issue went beyond a single broadcast moment. The deeper problem, he writes, was a media culture that “mistook advocacy for journalism” and often dismissed dissenting views.
For many New Zealanders who questioned mandates or vaccine requirements, he says those concerns were “routinely dismissed, ridiculed, or ignored”.
