b'
Part of the trouble with Winston Peters and his media obsession is that very few are more obsessed with the media than the media themselves.
\\nThe media tend to take themselves far too seriously, so Winston has played right into their hands.
\\nWhat they should be doing, of course, is seeing him for what he is - a bored, old troublemaker who found 6% of the bewildered and angry to stick him back in power.
\\nHe is not there for the betterment of the country. His behaviour so far, and it is only days in, shows you all you need to know about his modus operandi.
\\nHe is not a team player. He is self absorbed.
\\nFor all he does that gives you hope he might be on the mend, he then goes and does what he has this week so far, which is to hijack events, turn attention on himself and generally remind you he is not a serious operator and therefore doesn\'t deserve to be treated like one.
\\nOnce again, let me state very clearly that his claim that the public broadcasting fund was a bribe is simply not true.
\\nI have been in this game for over 40 years. I have seen how Governments operate around media. I have seen how media operate around Governments.
\\nThis is where it gets a bit sticky. Although he is wrong on the fund, because it did not buy favour, what it did do in my view was encourage those who didn\'t actually need a lot of encouragement to put material out, that if you were of a certain disposition you could easily see it as being favourable to the people who gave you the money.
\\nIf you read them, the criteria are innocuous, with the exception of the first bit. It talks of a commitment to Te Tiriti and to Te Reo M\\u0101ori.
\\nThat is an issue. It troubled me and it smacked of an agenda.
\\nBut it doesn\'t mean you write positive stories about the Government.
\\nLabour\'s entire time in office was obsessive when it came to the Treaty and the language so, as a result, you can argue using the Peters\' logic that a lot of people were bribed.
\\nAll those who adhered to any of the pro-M\\u0101ori edicts could be said to have been bribed. Or were they simply on board because it suited their way of thinking? That is not bribery.
\\nThe media, as I have said many times, at least in part badly let themselves down in terms of impartiality. At times, for some, it got embarrassing.
\\nBut they did that by themselves. They didn\'t need a fund to salivate the way they did.
\\nAnd that\'s the bit Peters misses.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
'