TVNZ has explained its reasons for pulling out of screening the awards as being economic, specifically the low ratings of the show last year. This is despite the fact that it screened late on a Sunday night and scored $114,000 of NZ On Air support.
John Drinnan, writing in The Herald, claimed, “funding for awards coverage is another example of the way that New Zealand On Air has become a taxpayer-funded cheerleader for the TV industry.”
