About Newstalk ZB Affiliates Unit
Newstalk ZB News Affiliates Unit is the most popular independent radio and text news service in the country. The latest survey figures show that more than a million people are regular listeners to our radio bulletins, and hundreds of thousands more click on to our Internet news services. It is also one of the most experienced news services, having been providing radio news bulletins since the early 1990s. The unit began as Independent Radio News, providing radio news bulletins to Independent stations, adding Internet news to its portfolio in 1996. Today, the unit has achieved a 'behind-the-scenes' reputation as being the best; as far as listeners and Internet users are concerned, they just know that their favourite websites and radio stations are providing them with the news as it happens, when they need it.

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Afternoon news presenter Jennifer Bainbridge at work

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Afternoon editor Jacqui Stanford

The Affiliates Unit has been at the forefront of new technology throughout its existence. Among other things, it was:
  • The first to use satellite technology to distribute the news
  • The first to use digital audio technology in a radio news environment
  • The first to integrate its newsroom system to provide Internet and audio material live to Internet clients
  • The first to switch from analogue audio tape in the field to compact, high quality digital minidisc systems
The Affiliates Unit is staffed by some of the most experienced journalists in the country, with more than a century of broadcasting experience between them. It is part of the main Newstalk ZB Newsroom, with a network of correspondents and journalists around the country and right around the world, plus a dedicated parliamentary unit in Wellington.

The unit is client-focused as it is not sidetracked into having to produce bulletins for its own radio station; its one aim is to provide the best possible news service for its clients.

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The Affiliates team

Barry Soper wins Radio Award
Political editor Barry Soper wins Journalist of the Year at the Radio Awards

There's no doubt that the output of the Affiliates Unit is of the very highest quality. Its coverage of the America's Cup in 2000 won the New Zealand Radio Award for best team coverage of a news story (the runner up that year was our coverage of the Millennium night around the world). Individual journalists are also regular recipients of awards. Newstalk ZB is linked with some of the best known international news organisations including Reuters, AAP, CNN, the BBC, and Sky News. If you want to find out more about how you can join the hottest team in real time news, click on one of the links above.