Te Reo Pāpāho: the story of Te Reo on Air

Ngā Taonga Sound & Vision's new online exhibition – Te Reo Pāpāho is the story of Te Reo on Air.

 Ngā Taonga Sound & Vision has announced the launch of Te Reo Pāpāho, an exhibition that profiles the broadcasters who have championed te reo Māori on radio.

Te Reo Pāpāho covers the early days of radio, when most recordings consisted of entertainment items, through the 1940s, when the first regular, fully te reo radio programmes, began and on to the Māori cultural renaissance of the 1970s and the push for more Māori language programmes.

Ngā Taonga Pou Ārahi, Honiana Love says: “Our first two Ngā Taonga Kōrero exhibitions focused on specific events – the opening of Tūrongo House at Tūrangawaewae Marae in 1938 (the Te Pūtaketanga o Ngā Taonga Kōrero exhibition) and the return of the Māori Battalion from World War Two in 1946 (the Te Hokinga Mai o Te Rua Tekau mā Waru exhibition).

This exhibition is more ambitious in scope – spanning a period of time from the 1920s through to the 1970s. It provides genuine insights into the barriers that these broadcasters faced as they fought to increase the use of te reo on radio. Their commitment to the language has had a powerful influence on the richness of New Zealand's culture and Ngā Taonga is proud to be shining a light on their work,” says Ms Love.

Te Reo Pāpāho is the third of four exhibitions from Ngā Taonga Kōrero, the archive of RNZ’s Māori radio programmes.

View the exhibition

Media enquiries:
To arrange interviews or obtain audio recordings for broadcast:
Jeanette Bullen, Marketing and Communications Manager, Ngā Taonga Sound & Vision
Mob: 021 2732 739 | Ph: 04 896 4833
Email: jeanettebullen@ngataonga.org.nz