The Ministry of Culture and Heritage is a Soviet-sounding name for a Ministry, with proposals for 'modern media legislation' to match

"[T]he Ministry of Culture and Heritage ... is a rather Soviet sounding name for a Ministry ... [with] a policy culture that is quite distinctly interventionist. Its proposals for [so-called]'modern media legislation' ... reflects the lobbying of vested interests in the uneconomic media industry to try to compete with the media the public actually prefer. ...
    "Today people largely obtain news and entertainment online ... on multiple devices. If news happens, it is reported through news websites and through social media. Moreover, entertainment largely comes from overseas ...
    "[T]he barriers to publishing are [now] very low indeed. ... Protectionists, legacy media and politicians with a bent for influencing the public don’t like it that much. ...
    

"Media and Communications Minister Paul Goldsmith has decided to release a discussion document with five proposals to 'save local media.' It reflects a very shallow approach to public policy ... 'New Zealand’s media and content production sectors are facing an uphill battle to remain viable' [says the minister] 'Seeing and hearing our stories and voices has cultural and societal benefits' [he claims]... I’d suggest the uphill battle is simply due to the public not responding to what they produce. ...
    "We all have stories. ... 90% or so of the population with computers, tablets or mobile phones [tell them every day]. Tens, hundreds and in some cases thousands read or listen to them. What are the 'cultural and economic benefits' of ignoring this in favour of what is essentially a protectionist industry wanting other people’s money taken from them by force, to prop them up because the public isn’t willing to pay for their content voluntarily?
   

"... [Goldsmith's] proposal says everything about how out of touch the Ministry is. It is ....

"...to force manufacturers of smart TVs (not tablets or laptops or phones) to carry apps of traditional NZ broadcasters. ...
"... to force streaming platforms and TV broadcasters to waste their own money on what the Ministry falsely calls 'investment' into the local content the Ministry approves of. ...
"... to expand the scope of the increasingly irrelevant Broadcasting Standards Authority (a better proposal would be to scrap it) to 'ensuring positive system-level outcomes,' whatever that means. ...

"Most of these proposals ... demonstrate an ongoing philosophical belief in the role of a interventionist state in forcing others to pay for the production of content that the Ministry thinks is good for people. ...
    "What should be done instead? Stop trying to save something that people don’t want. ...
    "The Broadcasting Standards Authority should be wound down ... NZ On Air should be wound down as well. ... The Film Commission similarly so. Privatise TVNZ. ...

"You have until 23 March to submit on [the Ministry's] proposal"s, go right ahead."

~ Liberty Scott from his post 'Forget Goldsmith's media proposals'