Stuff (website)

Stuff is a New Zealand news media website owned by Stuff Ltd (formerly called Fairfax), and the most popular news website in New Zealand,[2] with a monthly unique audience of more than 2 million.[3]

This article is about the New Zealand news website. For the British magazine, see Stuff (magazine).

Stuff
Logo of Stuff
Screenshot of the Stuff main page masthead
Type of site
News
Available inEnglish
OwnerStuff Limited
Created byIndependent Newspapers
URLstuff.co.nz
CommercialYes
RegistrationOptional
Launched27 June 2000 (2000-06-27)[1]
Current statusOnline

Stuff was launched in 2000[4] and publishes New Zealand breaking news, weather, sport, politics, video, entertainment, business and life and style content from Stuff Ltd's newspapers, which include New Zealand's second and third-highest circulation daily newspapers, The Dominion Post and The Press, and the highest circulation weekly, Sunday Star-Times, as well as international news wire services.

Stuff has won numerous awards at the Newspaper Publishers' Association awards (currently branded as the Voyager Media Awards) including Best News Website or App in 2014[5] and 2019,[6] and Website of the Year in 2013[7] and 2018.[8]

History

The former New Zealand media company Independent Newspapers Ltd (INL), owned by News Corp Australia, launched Stuff on 27 June 2000 at a cybercafe in Auckland, after announcing its intention to go online more than a year earlier.[1][9] The development of Stuff was supported and governed by, the INL Board, Mike Robson, INL CEO, and Don Higgins, Corporate Development Manager. Mark Wierzbicki, founding Internet Business Manager, lead development and ongoing management of the Stuff site and team. Advertising agency Saatchi & Saatchi conceived the name "Stuff", and INL had to buy the domain name from a cyber squatter.[1] In its first month, the site had 120,000 unique visitors.[9] At the time, Wierzbicki described the name as a copywriter's dream, although he conceded that "it's not without risk, especially if we stuff up." The start up was built by a group of engineers from a few tech companies in Wellington led by founding CTO and engineering manager Will Everitt and project manager Bill Alp and used a software platform from News Corp Australia's news.com.au.

On 30 June 2003, INL sold its publishing assets including The Dominion Post, The Press, and the Stuff website to Fairfax Media.[10][11]

Fairfax upgraded the website in December 2006, and again on 4 March 2009, adding the ability for visitors to personalise the homepage.[12] The first mobile phone news service from Stuff began in 2003, in a partnership with Vodafone New Zealand. On 21 April 2009, Stuff launched a dedicated mobile site.[13]

On 1 February 2018, the parent company of Stuff changed its name from Fairfax New Zealand Limited to Stuff Limited.[14] In December 2018 Fairfax Media merged into Nine Entertainment Co.[15]

On 25 May 2020, Nine Entertainment sold Stuff and its holdings including the Stuff website to Stuff's CEO Sinead Boucher for NZ$1, with the transaction completed on 31 May. This marks the return of the company into New Zealand ownership.[16][17][18]

Awards and nominations
Main article: List of awards and nominations received by Stuff (website)

Stuff.co.nz has won numerous awards at the Newspaper Publishers' Association awards (currently branded as the Voyager Media Awards) including Best News Website or App in 2014 and 2019,[19][20] and Website of the Year in 2013 and 2018.[21][22]

Content and coverage

On 17 April 2013, to celebrate the passing of same-sex marriage in New Zealand, the colour of the Stuff logo was changed from black to the colours associated with the pride flag.[23]

When a 7.8 earthquake struck Kaikoura 14 November 2016, cutting the town off via road access, Stuff flew free copies of its newspapers to residents.[24]

In 2017, Stuff's first podcast Black Hands received over 3 million downloads[25] and was the number one podcast in five countries. Stuff also produced Gone Fishing with Radio New Zealand, which won podcast of the year[26] at the 2019 NZ Radio Awards.

In 2018 Stuff launched Quick! Save the Planet[27] to increase news coverage of climate change in New Zealand and in 2019 Stuff joined the Covering Climate Now[28] international initiative.

In 2019 Stuff Circuit's Life + Limb investigation[29] into unexploded ordnance on New Zealand Defence Force firing ranges in Afghanistan prompted Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern to order the clearing of the ranges.[30]

During the trial of Clayton Weatherston, press.co.nz, a subsidiary section on Stuff, accidentally ran the headline "Guilty of Murder" the day before the jury delivered the verdict. The article was quickly withdrawn, and Fairfax executive editor Paul Thompson said it was a mistake "we take very seriously."[31]

See also
  • Media of New Zealand

References
  1. Scherer, Karyn (28 June 2000). "Online launch for INL 'stuff'". The New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 28 September 2011.
  2. "New Zealand's Top Local News Sites - July 2018". www.nielsen.com. Retrieved 29 February 2020.
  3. "First Herald paywall audience numbers". Newsroom. 20 June 2019. Retrieved 29 February 2020.
  4. Crean 2011, p. 9.
  5. "2014 Winners". Voyager Media Awards. Retrieved 29 February 2020.
  6. "Digital Winners 2019". Voyager Media Awards. Retrieved 29 February 2020.
  7. "2013 Winners". Voyager Media Awards. Retrieved 29 February 2020.
  8. "2018 winners". Voyager Media Awards. Retrieved 29 February 2020.
  9. "A million readers get Stuff". National Business Review. 6 August 2005. Retrieved 28 September 2011.
  10. "Inl Shareholders Approve Sale To Fairfax". Scoop / INL press release. 30 June 2003. Retrieved 28 September 2011.
  11. "Fairfax snaps up NZ publisher". Australian Broadcasting Corporation. 14 April 2003. Retrieved 28 September 2011.
  12. "Stuff redesign: All the stuff you ever wanted". Scoop/Fairfax Media press release. 4 March 2009. Retrieved 28 September 2011.
  13. "Stuff Goes Mobile - Get Stuff Wherever You Go". Scoop/Fairfax Media press release. 21 April 2009. Retrieved 28 September 2011.
  14. "Stuff's journey from newspaper pioneer to website to 'portfolio' business". Stuff. 1 February 2018. Retrieved 10 May 2018.
  15. "Stuff's journey from newspaper pioneer to website to 'portfolio' business". Stuff. 1 February 2018. Archived from the original on 13 December 2018. Retrieved 14 October 2019.
  16. Pullar-Strecker, Tom (25 May 2020). "Stuff ownership to return to NZ after management buy-out". Stuff. Archived from the original on 25 May 2020. Retrieved 25 May 2020.
  17. Rutherford, Hamish (25 May 2020). "Stuff sold for $1 to CEO Sinead Boucher by Nine Entertainment". New Zealand Herald. Archived from the original on 25 May 2020. Retrieved 25 May 2020.
  18. "Stuff chief executive Sinead Boucher buys company for $1". Radio New Zealand. 25 May 2020. Archived from the original on 25 May 2020. Retrieved 25 May 2020.
  19. "Digital Winners 2019". Voyager Media Awards. Retrieved 29 February 2020.
  20. "2014 Winners". Voyager Media Awards. Retrieved 29 February 2020.
  21. "2013 Winners". Voyager Media Awards. Retrieved 29 February 2020.
  22. "2018 winners". Voyager Media Awards. Retrieved 29 February 2020.
  23. Stevens, Mark (17 April 2013). "Stuff celebrates marriage equality". Stuff.co.nz. Retrieved 17 April 2013.
  24. http://www.andsomeideas.com, &some. "Quakes can't shake Fairfax". News Works. Retrieved 29 February 2020.
  25. Director, Alison Brown | Group Account (28 November 2017). "Marketing Renaissance". Blink Public Relations and Marketing. Retrieved 29 February 2020.
  26. Friday; November 2019, 8; Zeal, 1:10 pm Press Release: Radio New; Limited. "Two wins for RNZ at international media awards | Scoop News". www.scoop.co.nz. Retrieved 29 February 2020.CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  27. "Media's worldwide push for climate change coverage". RNZ. 16 August 2019. Retrieved 29 February 2020.
  28. "Partners". Covering Climate Now. Retrieved 29 February 2020.
  29. "Blast from NZ firing range ammunition kills Afghan children". RNZ. 17 November 2019. Retrieved 29 February 2020.
  30. "Prime Minister expects Defence Force to speed up clearance of Afghanistan firing ranges". RNZ. 18 November 2019. Retrieved 29 February 2020.
  31. Porteous, Debbie (25 July 2009). "Contempt rethink needed, academic says". Otago Daily Times. Retrieved 20 November 2020.

Notes
  • Crean, Mike (2011). The Press : first with the news : an illustrated history. Auckland: Random House NZ. ISBN 1869795628.
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