TRANSCRIBING SUX

Yep, transcribing sux. Because I could not complete my workplan on the sceduled day for vox pops, I had to transcribe EVERYTHING I had.
I was a good experience though and it saved my assignment from total doom. I had to put all the what ifs aside and concentrate on what I had. By doing the transcribing I knew exactly what I had and made a paper edit. In the paper edit I could clean my audio and lay it out in sequence. I also did timings. The ins and outs. This helped save time in knowing when and where the rough cuts were. I didnt have to listen to the tracks over and over again.
In the editing I was really stoked that I did the transcribing. I would definetly do it again, but TRANSCRIBING STILL SUX.
I did learn to edit with my eyes in this assignment. Dave said that you edit with your eyes to find the ebbs and peaks in speech. I have seen Neri do this with skill but it was as clear as mud to me. It wasnt till my last day of editing I started being able to do it. It was quite natural after awhile. It certainly made the experience more exciting finding where the words begin and end on the audio graphs so I could isolate a word and cut it out and then move it somewhere else if I wanted. Mean skill to learn.

VOX POPS @ KORONEIHANA

Vox pops was hard to do. As I was speaking to people I would get caught up in the korero and have to remind myself to go back to my work plan and ask the questions I had prepared.
The hardest paer was going up to people and asking them if I could ask them a few questions. Most people were really good about it. The rangatahi were hard to interview because we were so far apart in age that I wasnt relatable to them. I think they thought some fothe questions were dumb. I could tell because they would laugh at my talent every time I asked a question they thought was dumb.
I managed to get enough info for my audio assignment though. Just. I had a wee hickup while I was there and had to cancel my interviews for the afternoon. Because there was a major gliche in the work plan I was concerned that I wouldnt be able to meet the requirements of the assignment. Bummer

Koroneihana 19 August 2009

Is the Kingitanga relevant today? That is our kaupapa. I have been researching for about a week and a half. I decided to get a Tainui perspective for the my question as my research didnt give me a personal perspective and it lacked a real feeling of why this Maori kaupapa is still so strong and vibrant. Why does Tainui still go through all the effort and cost to put it on every year.
My interview was with Moko Tini. She is the media liason for Tainui.
"kotahitanga is still the message..." She also said that it was formed by all nga ma ta waka to discuss what is important to us as a people.
I could see this for myself when we attended. There were rangatahi there whose job was to manaaki tangata. They were the ringawera. The rangatahi I spoke to were truly an inspiration. They did not have a clear explanation as to why it is still relevant and important but they were hard working and knew their roles. Without even realising it they were participating in kotahitanga en masse, it was part of their whanau traditions. So thanks John Reed Lewison of Huntly College for your korero.
In conclusion Yes it is still important today for Maori people to support such a positive kaupapa and congregate as one. There are so many negative media perceptions out there, the size and sheer execution of such a large event annually is awe inspiring and made me feel proud to be a part of it again. E te whaea Te Atairangikahu moe mai e. Ki a Kingi Tuheitia, tu mai e. Ki te Kingitanga, anei to pononga.
HINZ

Politics and the Paula Bennett PR Spin

My political piece was on the Tauranga sea gardens. This is about my tipuna Hori Ngatai back in 1844 saying that the Tauranga harbour beds were his sea gardens and if the crown at the time wanted to exercise the queens chain then they had to go out past Tuhua to do so.

In my research I found it interesting that the Maori Party has an agreement with the National Party to say that they will review NOT REPEAL the Foreshore and Seabed Legislation but the Review panel has no powers only that they can make recommendations. In return the Maori Party will not talk out against the national Party.

I think Aotearoa shoul be very cautious about this agreement and take the rose coloured glasses off and think seriously about the new legislations that are being passed. If the Maori Party are being gagged then surely the Labour Party Maori MPs would speak up. But alas there are no great words of caution coming from any camp.

An example of what I am talking about is the way Paula Bennett is carrying on using Parliamentary Privilledge to release the financial details of two beneficiaries. To add salt to the wound this week she is going at people who earn over a thousand dollars per week on the benefit. Not that it is illegal but it is rather high. These are people who have over 10 kids. Go forth and Procreate I say. It alarms me that this is her focus when there are 100s of kiwis signing up every day due to the recession. Switch your focus Paula, due to the recession you are going to be the statistically worst performing Social Welfare Minister in a decade. The New Zealand Herald say she has released the beneficiary bashers who have been quiet for some time.

Next will be the Maori statistics coming up again and what do think National will do about those high stas. Legislate of course. Once the Racist radicals are released next with their outlandish comments it wil be PR mayhem.

While all of that is going on Im going to keep a look into what the new legislations are being passed that we are not media informed about.
Hine the sceptic. Watch this space!!!!!

Magazine Assignment

This was my favourite assignment so far. I think I found my groove on this one. It was great to work as a team. Even if it was only a team of two at times.

I found once the pressure was on and we needed more hands on deck I was getting a bit scratchy. I had a chat to Paige about how I was feeling and not to take any notice of how I was saying things but what I was saying. She said I didnt seem under pressure at all.

I knew I was because I was focussing on things that were out of my control and there wasnt any flowers on the way I was saying it. All part of the hype I suppose.

I was really happy with my cover but I didnt edit my own pieces to perfection because I was wrapped up in doing other things. I wanted the overall feel of the mag to be to a certain standard. I think we achived this. On a personal note I learnt that at the end of the day for assignments I need to pay attention to the detail in my own pieces before I get involved in critique others. I need to be a more disciplined self editor.

O Week at MIT with Smashproof 13 July 2009

Today Dave gave us an assignment to go and take piks of Smashproof. Was a mean as concert with free sausages and drinks. Man I miss my camera. The course one just wouldnt perform for me. Paige lent me hers and I ended up getting some good shots.
I told the organiser I was a Maori Media student and he got me a security pass to go up onto the Staff Deck. Thats how I got the overhead shots.

I am getting better at getting myself into the right place at the right time. This shot of the crew went onto the student mag wit my name on it and Maori Media Student. Yeaaaah! Its free publicity for the course and Im gonna stick the story in my port folio for c.v stuff.

AAAARGH! RADIO AND VIDEO ASSIGNMENTS, immigration and the democracy

My assignments are overdue at this stage but I have got an extension till the first Tuesday back. Tip of the day. If your not gonna make the deadlines make your lecturer aware, they are great as long as they know. So the last part of my holiday was spent catching up. I was more refreshed and focussed now. I got them in and that was a YAY moment .

My video was about this German family that are sending their kid t Puna Reo to learn Maori. They just had a new pepi and named him Aroha for his third name. I was interested to see why they included a Maori name in their German Whakapapa? And why the wanted their kids to learn Maori?

The Dad said that he has no television because he did not want to contaminate thier own rich German culture by american westernised programming. Also so that Jim could become Tri lingual. He also said that he felt that Maori was the stronger culture and that Pakeha New Zealand culture is so young and undeveloped that they made the move to New Zealand so they could be a part of that New Development.

I was concerned that we were being viewed internationally as a place to grow your own culture. It kind of made me think that our democratic process is going to be our demise if we dont get a realistic hold on the immigration of other cultures to Aotearoa whose goal is to grow their own culture here.

Also the lack of recognition by our Government about our rights and our mana in this land as Maori. Pakeha are such a transient bunch that the face of pakeha is changing rapidly. Thank goodness for the treaty is all I can say. just look at Hellen Clark the first Duly Elected Wahine Prime Minister of New Zealand, lost the election and bailed over to New York. In 50 years time it might be an immigrant culture running the country because they have the most votes. Matt McCarten said people tend to vote for people like themselves. Shane Jones said that Maori need to Pro create to get the numbers up.

Food for thought!

Hararei and the Recession YAY End of June - July

Wahoo! Holidays. First stop home to Tauranga Moana. Awesome to catch up with the whanau. We went up to the urupa and the cuzzies had a bit of a waiata. We all had a big tangi cause now that we are adults we have realised that the whanau that are passing away are no longer just tupapaku that come onto the marae and it is someone elses pain, it is our pain now. Our cuzzies, our aunties, our uncles, our pepi and tamariki.

We have a kaupapa now that when we go home after being away for a while we meet at the urupa and have our own little service. We get our rangatahi to come up and they take the karakia, bring their guitars, and sing our waiata. My babies know that we stop at the urupa and that the others are not far away.

Its really quite a beautiful thing and I am truly blessed.

After that we went to Rotorua and stayed in the motels. The ngawha (spas) were awesome. So of course we rang da cuzzies to come on over and bring their biki nis. Sure enough they came and we had the best party ever. They brought their guitars and their waiata and away we went. One lady had a bit of a moo at us and the cuzzies just laughed and said ring the noise control to take away their big singing voices. I just told them that if they sayed past a certain time they had to pay. They went home. LOL

After that Rangitukia here I come. We went to Hinepare and caught up with the whanau having a wananga. Bit a karioke at the local rugby club and kapa haka in the kitchen at Hinepare. We had heaps of korero about the recession.

My take on the recession is that I reckon my Mother in Law has got it sussed. The basics is all you need. She is on the farm growing kai and she never wastes a thing. I reckon the rest of us will be buggered if this recession gets worse and I m off to the farm with my kids to be a farmer if they will have me. Ill need a bit of training though.

Leadership and Change June 2009

I lost my mojo big time this month so thus hardly no blogging going on. I was lucky to get anywhere with my assignments. We been having a bit of an overhaul on the course and I was not really feeling it for a while. I had to take responsibility and make a change or get over it and get my work done. Me and the girls decided we wanted to be responsible for our own destiny and change our working environment. None of us were feeling motivated to work. We were about to loose our tauira pai Rangimaria to fame and fortune. The process was really good and professional, but in saying that it was difficult. At the end of the day though it worked out really well for the team as a whole. I thought about my training and Maori Leadership and these are my thoughts.

We are all Maori leaders in one way. It is easy to lead when things are going well, to me the test of a true leader is one who can come forth when things are difficult and assert themselves, in the hope that change will become the instrument for growth, and the reward is the ability to negotiate the landscape to produce the best possible outcomes.

So thank you my leaders for giving me the courage to be an instument for change, for the understanding in knowing that the kaupapa is bigger than the individual, and for the wisdom I have experienced in taking the journey.

Nga mihi

25 May Supercity Hikoi

Today I had to catch a bus to the Hikoi. I focussed on taking piks the most. This is my favourite shot from up on a deck in the middle of Queen St. It was raining hard out but the committment from our people was huge. The vibe was amazing. It was like being at the Foreshore and Seabed Hikoi in a way. The mobilising of our people makes me proud to be part of it.

This is my favourite shot. I like the way the Tino flow from the air into his kakahu.

Here are the conspiracy theorists at large. Too much girls.

We did on the spot interviews for our assignments. I interviewed Matt McCarten, Willie Jackson, and I met a koroua at the bus stop he had fantastic korero.

It was none other than Selwyn Muru, OG Maori broadcaster. He said we need to get into the offices of power and take up those decision making positions ourselves. The importance of brodcasting and Media is huge and he struggled so much in the early days to pave the way for students like us and we need to take it seriously. He also said that no one will hand it to us on a plate and we need to work hard and do it ourselves. We have to fight.