NUKU'ALOFA (Matangi Tonga/Radio Australia / Pacific Media Watch): The Tongan government plans to launch a new weekly newspaper next month.
Paula Ma'u, the Secretary for Information and Communications, said the establishment of a new government newspaper was in line with its commitment to a Freedom of Information policy for Tonga.
The new weekly newspaper will provide information from ministries and departments.
“But we intend to have a section for sports but our overall aim is that this would be a newspaper publishing news from government,” he said.
The name of the newspaper and whether it would be published in Tongan or English has not been confirmed.
The government's former weekly newspaper, the Tonga Chronicle, was outsourced to private management in March, 2009 but had ceased publication since mid-2011.
Ma’u confirmed that the Tonga Chronicle and its assets formerly managed by the Taimi Media Network Ltd had been returned to the government, as the management contract that was signed between Taimi Media Network Ltd. and the government had ended on March 20 this year.
“The assets returned to government include the old Tonga Chronicle office in Nuku'alofa, which we will use for our newspaper, to be staffed by a newly selected team.
And whether the newspaper will still be called Tonga Chronicle or by another name is yet to be confirmed,” he said.
The government newspaper when launched, will become Tonga's fifth weekly newspaper, in addition to the Taimi 'o Tonga, the Talaki, the Kele'a, and the Ita.
New government weekly newspaper in Tonga - April 27
MELBOURNE (Radio Australia/Pacific Media Watch): The government of Tonga says it is launching a new weekly newspaper at the end of this month.
Set to feature mostly government news, it brings the total number of weekly papers in Tonga to five. But is that too many to survive in the struggling Tongan economy?
Presenter: Geraldine Coutts
Speaker: Dr Sione Fatanitavake Vikilani, education officer, Legislative Assembly of Tonga
VIKILANI: Having too many newspapers and the smaller market that we have here in Tonga is not financially viable because newspapers in my opinion provide the alternative news to people. Maybe that's why many people are keeping some of the newspapers alive despite the low market here in Tonga.
COUTTS: Well how much do you think there is room for this sixth paper that will feature mostly government news?
VIKILANI: Well the latest newspaper as you mentioned, the Tonga newspaper will be subsidised by government, which they will have the upper hand on with the other private newspapers. And the staff they will be paid by the government and also I assume the newspaper in the first six months as I was told will be paid for by the government before it returns to being a public enterprise. But I think having this Tonga newspaper will be more like a government mouthpiece than actually providing news for the public. As you know the Prime Minister's office they have their own website some of the government department website, and I was told by someone from the information ministry that all the news will be directed at the newspaper. So this will be their main outlet for the government news.
COUTTS: But don't the newspapers in existence already run the press releases and the government news?
VIKILANI: Yes they do but as I was told when I asked this official who wishes not to be named that there maybe be some news that the government might want to beef up and correct some of the facts that are being made out there are wrong. So one of the purposes of this newspaper is to provide the facts. In some of the newspapers they say that they provide rumours and speculation, which they wish to correct hopefully when they ... the newspaper, is what they say.
COUTTS: Is this the primary source, newspapers, that Tongans get their news or is it like other countries now, they're moving away from newspapers to the social media; Facebook and also Twitter, but also radio and television, not to much newspapers, is that the case also in Tonga?
VIKILANI: I believe it's different here in Tonga. The cost of having a computer here and the internet connection in order to get into the social media, such as Facebook, Twitter and all the other news organisations which are available on the net, it's very expensive here in Tonga. And because of the geographical location of the islands which are scattered throughout the Tongan group, I believe newspapers provide the special alternative news. Despite Radio Tonga covers all of the islands, newspapers provide news that might not be on the radio. So I believe that's one of the contributing factors to some of the newspapers managing to just break even at the moment.
COUTTS: Can all six now with this new government paper, can all six survive in Tonga?
VIKILANI: I believe, I don't think that the whole of the six will survive. Mind you there are also church newspapers; the Lutheran Church, the Catholic Church they provide their own newspapers, but monthly. But the small sized market I believe it is through the internet, which is owned by Matangi Tonga Online, that's where they should be moving towards now with the small market that we have here in Tonga.
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