Last weekend New Zealand was subjected to the somewhat bizarre spectacle of a twenty three hour long corporate sponsored variety show. TV3’s Big Nite In telethon raised $2 million for the KidsCan charity which provides school shoes, raincoats and lunches to impoverished school children. While no one can berate the many individuals and community groups who donated money, or the performers who gave their time and talents to appear on the show, the change from our regular programming seemed like a hollow gesture from a TV station who’s evening news typically features a mix of sports, entertainment news and sensationalist crime reporting, while shunning any investigative journalism examining the social and economic policies that have left so many children dependent on charity.

When asked by the TV Guide what it tells us about New Zealand society that money has to be raised for children who are stuck in poverty, TV3 newsreader Mike McRoberts responded that

It tells me two things really. First that poverty does exist in our country and whatever the reason is for poverty, children are suffering.The other big thing The Big Night In tells me is that in New Zealand we still have a society that cares.

While the telethon may have brought more attention to child poverty than a dozen human interest stories on the plight of the poor would have, the media are not asking politicians the hard questions about the economic and social policies that have led to one in four children living in poverty.