126 years of Golden Bay news
For 126 years, Golden Bay’s news and its history has been colourful without any help from cyan and magenta inks.
In 1883, as the area’s settlement progressed, TJ Metcalfe recognised its need for a forum for information and expression.
Said the Hawera and Normanby Star (1883): “Mr. Metcalf, who has been known to fame in the newspaper world as editor of the Lyell Argus, has started The Golden Bay Argus, published at Collingwood, in Nelson Province. Mr. Metcalfe announces that he has come among the settlers to earn an honorable livelihood.” How honourable it ultimately was we don’t know, but The Argus circulated until 1911, in its later years under the direction of George “Buster” Allan.
Its competition, established in 1889 by George Girling-Butcher, was known as The Takaka News, but in 1899, it was acquired by Samuel Fittall, Captain-in-command of the Takaka Mounted Rifles, who re-named it The Golden Bay News. The four-page paper was published every Thursday.The Golden Bay Times later arose, incorporating The Argus and the Golden Bay Museum holds editions dated as late as 1964.
Other minor circulars, like the Tarakohe Portland News, circulated for periods but ,through the century, The Colonist and The Nelson Evening Mail (later The Nelson Mail) consistently covered the Bay’s major events, through the work of Golden Bay-based reporters like Bob Papps and, later, Brandon Sparrow.
In the 1970s, a resurrection of demand for truly local content prompted the launch of The Golden Bay Community News, a monthly sheaf of stapled A4 pages produced by an editorial committee that included over the years longstanding residents such as Sara Macready, Rita Virtama, Jane Greatrex, June Borley, Graham Polglase, Cornelius and Jose Baas and Derry Kingston.
“It operated entirely by contributors and advertisers dropping stuff and money in a box outside The Wholemeal, and the committee just put it all together,” said Derry. It featured covers designed by local artists and ran for 20 years, but effective advertising was limited by its monthly publication.
On 2 April 1993, Derry printed the first copy of The GB Weekly. “It arose from the need for weekly advertising,” Derry said. “It was only ever intended to complement the Community News, and was inspired by the local newsletters the Eye-Flyer, by Elizabeth Dransfield I think, the Paradise Scene, by Mike Bryant, and the Buy Local campaign. The very first sheets had about two adverts on them, and an explanation of what we were about: a local information service produced in the Bay, by the Bay, and for the Bay.” By its third edition, page one displayed public notices, page two the classifieds, page three shopping and page four employment.
It didn’t take long for the GBW to become a part of Golden Bay culture, said Derry’s successor as manager and editor, Maria Koch. By its third birthday, the qualified doctor, environmental degree-holder and mother of twins had turned it into a small business that supported a number of part-time workers. Minor articles were beginning to appear and Letters to the Editor had become established. At this time the move to computerisation gained speed in rural newsland, and hand-drawn advertising steadily gave way to clip art, six options of Arial font, greyscale and default settings.
Production of The Community News eventually ended, and the nineties saw a period of media expansion and competition in the Bay; by 1996 The Guardian and The Motueka/Golden Bay News (both Motueka-based) and the Takaka Print News , which became The Golden Bay Gazette,were all vying for the advertising dollar, in the process driving the competition to raise quality and service. The latter two only had a brief run between 1996 and 1998. Their demise left the GBW as the only absolutely local news provider.
By 1999, the GBW had assumed the character that we know and recognise, with its Algerian-font title, bar headings and extended news articles. The 25 June 1999 edition, 10 years ago this week, included stories on the Wearable Arts entrants, including 13-year-old Claire Prebble (now a world-class designer), spat-catching hearings, and Warwick Briggs’ long walk from Farewell Spit to Mt Aspiring. Letter contributors expressed concerns about mining on Mt Burnett, substandard gravel roading and the shortage of dentists. Hannah Kaye (8B, GBHS), in a letter of thanks, said the GBW was “doing a great job”.
Over 16 years, a Who’s Who of resourceful and colourful reporters from a variety of backgrounds brought different strengths and perspectives to the team: sociologist, archaeologist and brass band enthusiast Charles Sedgwick, now lecturing at Victoria University; Jane Bellerby, now writing for magazines such as NZ Gardener; author Gerard Hindmarsh; arts worker, musician and Dr Who fan Carl McRae; Charlotte Squire, now editor of the internet’s Happyzine; Environmental Masters degree-holder Ina Holst; Dilyse Roberts, Peter Foster and more.
Maria Koch ran The GBW for 10 years, rebuilding a true “news” paper here, setting a professional standard that drew praise from far afield. Maria, presently in Europe, never entrusted accuracy to spellchecks and, unlike some bosses of small regional papers, consistently employed staff for quality control. In 1998, she invited this writer to relieve for proof-reader and reporter Jacqui Lawless. That association became permanent and evolved into my writer/reviewer and subeditor’s position today, with proofing backup provided by Sue Mitchison.
In 1999 teachers Marg Braggins and Neil Wilson moved north from Geraldine, where Marg had founded a monthly community paper. Both took up positions at the high school: Neil in the English department, and Marg as a graphics teacher, but she also joined the GBW, working on setting and layout. In 2002 Maria Koch, wanting a change of pace, sold the business to Marg, and its HQ moved to Pohara. Neil quit full-time teaching in 2004 and now spends his days on the phone chasing council quotes, interviewing notable characters, and fetching cuppas for typist Mary Ann Tait.
The evolution has continued. The development of the GBW website last year means that GBW readers can go online anywhere in the world and keep up with the Bay’s events. Now, as we put the latest edition together, the photos and some of the ads will go to print in full colour for the first time.
“It’s a community paper,” said Marg, “and the community is changing, becoming more cosmopolitan, more progressive, and technology is changing. It’s a natural process that a paper changes with its community.”
Derry’s reflections this week echo some comments we’ve heard from others.
“The most important thing for me was that the GBW was entirely local, and in that respect I’m not entirely happy with the recent change to move the printing out of the Bay.
“But the original business plan was that it would operate on a financial basis right from the start, and that as it became possible, other things such as news would evolve. And that’s happened. Now it has a lovely balance.
“I’m absolutely thrilled with how it’s developed—it’s exceeded all my expectations.”
Maria Polglase
