July 08, 2013
Mātauranga Māori used in tv study
University researchers will be looking for ways other than audience ratings to assess the impact and significance of Māori Television.
Jo Smith from Victoria University and Sue Abel from Auckland University have a Marsden Fund grant for a three year study of the indigenous broadcaster.
They want to quantify how it has contributed to political and cultural revitalisation for Māori and how it has shaped notions of nationhood since it was launched almost a decade ago.
Dr Smith says indigenous broadcasting in New Zealand can’t be understood without engaging with a Māori world view.
She says they will build on the work of leading Māori and indigenous academics to develop new media studies methods that draw on mātauranga Māori.
As well as looking at the broadcaster’s history, they intend to develop case studies on the way specific programmes operate, as well as audience engagement with Māori Television.
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