Kiwiblog

Any doubts over whether Hillary Clinton will run for President in 2016 are gone for me. She has joined Twitter, which is a first step for candidates. But her Twitter bio is what is attracting praise and attention:

Wife, mom, lawyer, women & kids advocate, FLOAR, FLOTUS, US Senator, SecState, author, dog owner, hair icon, pantsuit aficionado, glass ceiling cracker, TBD…

A but of humour at her own expense with the pantsuit reference and the TBD a clear hint to watch this space.

Her first tweet also went down well:

Thanks for the inspiration @ASmith83 & @Sllambe – I’ll take it from here… #tweetsfromhillary

They ran the very funny Tweets from Hillary – so again she is trying to show she has a sense of humour.

I can’t see her not winning the nomination, if she stands. The Republicans will need a good candidate with strong appeal to beat her.

Rachel Glucina writes at the NZ Herald:

Ex-BBC consultant Michele Romaine, on contract with TVNZ’s news and current affairs department until the end of the month, has this week installed a rigid social media policy, dubbed “The Rules”, which has some journalists and presenters claiming it’s censorship gone too far.

TVNZ stars have been put on notice: follow The Rules or suffer the consequences.

So what are they?

But The Diary has obtained a leaked copy of the document in which staff are expressly forbidden from “expressing personal opinions that could compromise NCA’s [News and Current Affairs'] objectivity and independence”.

Online observations or anecdotes by reporters must be “confined to matters of intelligent insight”.

How silly. I like tweets from journalists that reveal a bit of their personality. It humanises them.

But Twitter should only be used for “newsgathering, showcasing our news and current affairs content, and promoting TVNZ and your own professional profile”. In other words: plug, plug, plug.

Boring!

However, former head of news and current affairs Ross Dagan, who left TVNZ in March, was in favour of reporters and presenters showing more depth and personality by sharing personal opinions on Twitter and conversing with One News viewers.

He told The Diary that Seven Sharp journo Heather Du Plessis-Allan had found the right mix – strong reporting on the issues and fun, personal revelations on Twitter.

Yep, Heather rocks. Her tweets are great.

Ruth Wynn-Williams was told off after filing personal holiday snaps from Rarotonga on her private Instagram page.

The striking blonde posted holiday pics, including bathing in a bikini and drinking cocktails with her boyfriend Matt Gibb, host of TVNZ’s U Live.

Ruth was disciplined for that? How disgraceful. As an indirect shareholder in TVNZ I protest!

“The use of profanities,” say The Rules, “are not acceptable”.

How about when trying to get Winston to agree to an interview?

UPDATE: Someone has a sense of humour at the Sunday Star-Times. The official SST twitter account tweeted (since deleted):

For clarification, the @SundayStarTimes twitter account operates outside The Rules #fucktherules

Heh.

Miles Godfrey from AAP at Stuff reports:

If you’ve ever viewed Twitter as a gauge of public opinion, a weathervane marking the mood of the masses, you are very much mistaken.

That is the rather surprising finding of a new US study, which suggests the microblog zeitgeist differs markedly from mainstream public opinion.

“Twitter users are not representative of the public,” Washington DC think tank, Pew Research Center, concluded.

Experts in Australia, where Twitter comment is regularly used in media reaction to major new stories or a method of interaction for television programs, agreed with the US findings.

“While Twitter can give you a good idea of the extremes of how people feel about certain topics, when it comes to measuring opinion of the general public about major issues, it’s pretty useless,” Laura Demasi, of marketing firm IPSOS Australia, told AAP.

Pew Research’s study examined eight major US news events, including November’s presidential election, and compared views expressed on Twitter with national polling. …

The study highlighted a decision made in California’s Federal Court which ruled that laws barring same-sex marriage were unconstitutional.

Almost half of the Twitter conversations about the verdict were positive, eight per cent were negative and 46 per cent were neutral.

But wider public opinion on the decision was more mixed – with 33 per cent saying it was a positive ruling, 44 per cent negative and 15 per cent neutral.

The reason, Pew Research Center says, is that only a “narrow sliver” of the population use Twitter.

A recent study by French social media analysts Semiocast showed there were 140 million Twitter accounts in the US – more than one third of the population.

But users tend to be younger and lean more toward the political left than right, the study said.

This story is a useful reminder, with relevance in NZ.

I enjoy Twitter, and you get some great humour there. But it is not a proxy for the overall population.

It’s one thing to take a few quotes from Twitter, but media should be careful about generalisations such as saying “The decision was heavily criticised on Twitter”.

The other area media should be careful about, is choosing whom to quote. I recall one episode of Seven Sharp where the tweep they quoted on a Christchurch issue was the local campaign chair for Labour. Of course, there was no mention of that.

Speculation is growing in Australia that Kevin Rudd will (again) challenge Julia Gillard for the Labor Party leadership in March.

The article linked to has some graphics and stats on their social media usage, which I have summarised below:

Kevin Rudd has an incredible number of followers. Around 1 in 20 Australians follow him (and a few Kiwis). But he doesn’t just broadcast – he engages all the time with people tweeting him. So does Tony Abbott it seems.

Green leader Russell Norman tweeted:

Lord Turner, chair UK Financial Services Authority, defends financing Govt spending by ltd printing money. radical!http://ow.ly/1S6b0Q

Labour strategist Trevor Mallard replied:

@RusselNorman stop thrashing dead horse and work on imaginative tools appropriate for NZ

This will go down well at The Standard! Russel then responds:

@TrevorMallard you just go back to closing schools and making housing unaffordable like you did in govt

Points to Norman I say. He follows up with:

@TrevorMallard 2002-2007 house prices doubled, current account ballooned. Greens repeatedly told Labour to act, but you did nothing

This is like the Iran-Iraq war – you don’t know which side to cheer for!

UPDATE: it continues. Mallard says:

Presume this is an intern not@RusselNorman but whoever it is needs to look to future not focus on rear vision mirror

And we also have a very tetchy Labour MP in Clare Curran:

@jordantcarter @pointoforder that’s bullshit Jordan

Maybe they are all nervous about Shearer’s reshuffle?

Fran O’Sullivan at NZ Herald writes:

Economic Development Minister Steven Joyce has taken a leaf out of Obama’s book by taking to Twitter to chew out high-tech entrepreneur Selwyn Pellett for raising hell over the Endace takeover.

Joyce’s Twitter exchange was more prosaic than the US President’s, but no less focused.

What got up Joyce’s nose was the implication that Pellett – who is a cherished Labour Party favourite – was having a bob each way on the issue du jour: whether Endace should pay back $11 million of Government R&D loans it received before it passes into 100 per cent foreign ownership, substantially enriching its founders.

Let’s say upfront that Pellett has been a thorn in the Government’s side.

I expect he will be on the Labour Party list. He is their biggest cheerleader on Twitter.

He is a spokesman for the Productive Economy Council and has kicked the Government’s shins hard over its plans to sell down its holdings in state-owned assets. So it’s no surprise that Joyce – who has been remarkably unrestrained recently – took the opportunity to have a slash back. …

The Twitter battle between Joyce and Pellett was great sport:

“So you collect taxpayer support, decide to sell shares, make lots of money & then moan about it in @nzherald #unbelievable … BTW R & D co-funding is about doing R&D in NZ, not supporting individuals. But happy 4 u 2 repay so we can fund others,” Joyce tweeted at Pellett.

Pellett tweeted back: “Mr Joyce, you should check all yr facts. Interesting a Minister would target an individual for speaking out on policy.”

It’s called hypocrisy. It is fine to target people for that.

One of the Homecrew crew seems to be a bit upset that I said the taxpayer shouldn’t fund events where they get to yell obscenities at the PM. They’re entitled to call him what they want, but I’d rather not have the taxpayer fund it.

Anyway it seems they are on Twitter, and you can see why they are a Labour Party favourite that plays at fundraisers for them. Some tweets:

• Hey David Farrar lick my balls asshole. You mad coz you ain’t at the awards you fuck face.
• @dpfdpf You’re just as ugly as I thought. Fuck you! Lose some weight fatty!
• David Farrar didn’t take 2hrs & 45mins to finish that walk he said he did. He’s actually still walking the fat cunt!
• If I see David Farrar anywhere I’m gonna roll his fat ass down the road. Someone set this up? It could be a YouTube hit.
• Anyways.. What does his fat asshole know about music? Stick to politics David, your whole face looks like a dickhead.
• David Attenborough > David ‘Fat Ass’ Farrar.
• I bet you without using a mirror, David Farrar can’t see his own dick.
• @dpfdpf Stay on the treadmill & those exotic walks you’re been taking & shut the fuck up. People will like you more.
• @dpfdpf Sorry we don’t do 9XL Listen To Homebrew t’s, otherwise I’d send your biter ass one.
• He sucks @JohnKeyPM‘s asshole every night

My reply was to encourage him to stand for the leadership of the Labour Party!

From written questions:

Hon David Cunliffe to the Minister for Economic Development(01 Aug 2012): Has the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment deleted any tweets from members of the public which reference the Ministry’s official Twitter page; if so, why?

Hon Steven Joyce (Minister for Economic Development) replied: I am advised that the Ministry has no ability to delete ‘tweets’ of members of the public, their Twitter accounts, or their Facebook pages. I am unaware of any legislation proposed by the Government which would give the Ministry this power. Should the Member wish to pursue this possibility, I suggest he does so by way of a Member’s Bill.

After Maggie Barry suggested during the paid parental debate that Labour MPs without children aren’t that well qualified to talk on the issue of paid parental leave, Twitter had a hash tag of #maggiebarrystandingorders. Pete George has some of the better ones:

• Happy birthday @jacindaardern! Although it’s not MY birthday so I really shouldn’t comment…
• only Maggie Barry may cite #maggiebarrystandingorders in the house
• You can only talk about asset sales if you have three TradeMe stars or more.
• Maggie Barry seems quite happy to talk about euthanasia. Maybe it’s a cry for help
• Only MPs named Sarah can talk about CERA
• MPs wanting to talk about taser will have to have been tased.
• Maggie, I have 2 children so can talk about Paid Parental Leave twice as much.
• No more references to Willie Apiata by MPs who haven’t rescued comrades under enemy fire
• We can’t talk about #maggiebarrystandingorders because we’re not Maggie Barry
• MPs wanting to talk about taser will have to have been tased.
• You can’t make decisions about New Zealand unless you’ve never left the country.
• No-one in National or ACT can talk about public transport
• Under #maggiebarrystandingorders only Peter Dunne can speak on planking.
• @DavidClarkNZ must be on the minimum wage to put forward a minimum wage bill
• Louisa Wall must get married wage to put forward a marriage bill

All quite funny. I would point out though that I am a regular public transport user, unlike a certain former Green MP who didn’t even have a snapper card despite decades of going on about the importance of public transport in Wellington!

Stuff reports:

Comedian Stephen Fry has attended a court hearing to support a British man appealing his conviction over a tweet saying he would blow a snowed-in airport “sky high”.

Paul Chambers, 27, from Doncaster, was convicted in May 2010 of sending a “menacing electronic communication” for a tweet that said: “Crap! Robin Hood airport is closed. You’ve got a week and a bit to get your **** together, otherwise I’m blowing the airport sky high!!”

Chambers has attracted the support of several British comedians and he was accompanied by Fry and stand-up comic Al Murray to his High Court appeal on Wednesday.

Fry said the outcome of the case would be “very important” for freedom of speech, the BBC reported.

I agree that it is. We all understand you do not joke about bombs at airports. But joking about them on Twitter is rather different.

“God I hope common sense and natural justice prevail,” he later tweeted.

Chambers was fined NZ$1962 for his tweet, which he wrote when a snowstorm closed the airport and stopped him from flying to Northern Ireland to visit a woman he’d just met.

The Guardian reported the tweet was seen a week later by an off-duty airport worker who passed it on to authorities.

This is the astonishing thing. If the tweet had been seen at the time and taken seriously, I could understand why they might proceed. But they saw it a week later. Massive over-reaction.

The Guardian said Mr Cooper said if jokes were tested in courts, poet John Betjeman may have thought twice about writing “Come, friendly bombs, and fall on Slough”, adding “and Shakespeare when he said ‘kill all the lawyers’.”

The Lord Judge replied: “That was a good joke in 1600 and it is still a good joke now.”

Sounds like the Judge has a sense of humour, and may let sanity prevail.

Clare Curran at Red Alert is focusing on the issues that really matter to New Zealanders – how some of John Key’s followers on Twitters may be “ghosts”.

Labour’s theory is that the PM may have been “buying” followers!

Yes I can just see the Cabinet meeting. Let’s not talk about the economy, or government debt, or the Christchurch earthquake. Instead they are no doubt discussing how to increase the number of followers John Key has on Twitter. Presumably 1% of the asset sales proceeds go towards purchasing these ghost followers!

Next I await the expose on Red Alert that John Key is not in fact personally friends with all his Facebook friends!

UPDATE: It gets better. Clare has done a second post on the issue, demanding an answer into the question:

how did John Key acquire nearly 30,000 bogus  followers?

I hope Labour pursue this vital issue in the House next week. I urge them to devote all their oral questions to this issue. They should not rest until they get a Royal Commission of Inquiry established into this pressing issue.

I’ve compiled a table of Internet and social media contact details for the 121 New Zealand Members of Parliament. This list is intended as a public resource. MPs are welcome, and indeed encouraged, to let me know of any corrections or change, via e-mail.

The table is a permanent page on Kiwiblog.

In terms of the data:

• The e-mail addresses come from the official parliamentary contact list.
• The websites come from searching on Google, and my 2011 candidates list.
• The twitter details come from the @nzparliament twitter list of MPs. Incidentially the @nzparliament account has me blocked for some reason, which is strange. So does Charles Chauvel, but I presume that is because he sulked over something I wrote.
• The Facebook details come from searching on Facebook. Sometimes there has been more than one page to choose from. Happy to change pages linked to upon request

I’ve compiled below a table of Internet and social media contact details for the 121 New Zealand Members of Parliament. This list is intended as a public resource. MPs are welcome, and indeed encouraged, to let me know of any corrections or change, via e-mail.

• The e-mail addresses come from the official parliamentary contact list.
• The websites come from searching on Google, and my 2011 candidates list.
• The twitter details come from the @nzparliament twitter list of MPs. Incidentially the @nzparliament account has me blocked for some reason, which is strange. So does Charles Chauvel, but I presume that is because he sulked over something I wrote.
• The Facebook details come from searching on Facebook. Sometimes there has been more than one page to choose from. Happy to change pages linked to upon request

On Twitter and Facebook I did an informal survey asking people how they will vote in Part B of the Referendum. I did not ask about Part A. The results were:

The difference between the Facebook responses and the Twitter responses are interesting. Twitter people went massively for STV while Facebook went massively for SM. Very few people went for FPP or PV. Almost all those who chose FPP said they were doing so tactically as they were MMP supporters, and see FPP as the system least likely to win in 2014 if there is a second referendum.

Some tentative conclusions I draw.

1. Those on Twitter and Facebook (well those who follow me anyway) are far more politically astute than the general population, as FPP is by far the most popular option with the public who only know FPP and MMP, but very few picked it in this survey.
2. If one assumes that those who punted for SM tend to be more right leaning, it suggests that people on Twitter are more left-leaning. This reinforces my general impression over a couple of years.
3. I think those who are of a different political persuasion to each other are generally more willing to engage on Twitter, than on Facebook. You tend to see someone’s Facebook page as “their property” so don’t challenge them as much, while Twitter is seen as basically neutral ground and one gets far more challenging of views.
4. Most MMP supporters will vote for STV and most MMP opponents will vote for SM, at least amongst the politically aware. This is based on my general knowledge of those who responded. I didn’t ask about Part A as I didn’t want it to turn into a debate on MMP. I may do a later informal survey on Part A.

I’m still amazed that to the best of my knowledge there are no TV debates scheduled on the referendum. Sure there has been the odd segment on Breakfast TV or Close Up where proponents have exchanged views. But I think the referendum deserves the same scrutiny as the election. There should be a 60 to 90 minute debate or debates. I’d do it like a leader’s debates. Have a couple of proponents for keep MMP and change MMP and a panel of journalists questioning them. Pretty much like Radio NZ did it, but you know on TV where you reach massively more viewers.

Trevor Mallard has got all excited. he has blogged a tweet from @NZNational stating (falsely) that the mock town hall meeting in National’s opening address was a real one.

The only problem with Trevor’s “gotcha” expose is that @NZNational is a fake account, probably run by one of his activists.

Now I’ll give Trevor the benefit of the doubt, and assume he didn’t know it was a fake account, rather than the alternative which is he was deliberately setting out to deceive.

But so Trevor doesn’t make himself look foolish in future, here’s some things to look at, to work out a fake account.

1. Check their full description on their homepage.
2. Look at some of their recent tweets. Do they look like the tweets you would expect from that person or organisation
3. Check out how many followers they have. As this one had only 91 followers, pretty obvious it is a fake.

It’s not that hard to work out real and fake accounts. The only time I had difficulty was working out the difference between the parody Catherine Delahunty account and the real one.

UPDATE: I have had it pointed out to me that Mallard in fact knew the account was not rea as he had been told multiple times on Twitterl, so it was a deliberate attempt to deceive. Nice to know Labour’s campaign manager continues high normal high ethical standards. It’s a silly strategy because it means the public and journalists will distrust stuff on Red Alert.

Heh. Hat Tip: Toby Manhire at The Listener

The Daily Telegraph reports:

The number of MPs tweeting – sending messages of 140 characters or fewer – has more than doubled from 111 in January last year to 275 today, and is expected to go on rising as more politicians sign up.

Michael Field at Stuff reports:

Horotiu, the taniwha potentially blocking the tracks of Auckland’s multi-billion dollar rail dream, is the latest celebrity to open a Twitter account.

The taniwha has also gone global, with London’s Daily Telegraph headlining: “‘Swamp monster’ threatens Auckland railway project”.

Drawing on a Stuff story, the Telegraph quotes Glenn Wilcox, a member of the Auckland City Council’s Maori Statutory Board, demanding protection for Horotiu.

“As kaitiaki, or guardians, they protect people, but they also get up and bite you if they do not like what you are doing,” Mr Wilcox said.

On Twitter the debate has sparked two new accounts – TaniwhaHorotiu and HorotiuTaniwha.

The first carries an early complaint that taniwha do not make an international list of mythical creatures.

The two twitter accounts have even been chatting to each other Some of the tweets have been:

• @TaniwhaHorotiu Yur a dirty faker, I’m the real Taniwha, go find your own drain bro
• @LIVENewsDesk What about hate crimes against taniwha? Lots of haters out there dissing Horotiu
• @AKcitymission Can i join youse fellas?…i’m about to be made homeless by Len Brown
• Steven Joyce has been bad mouthing my bros the Fiscal Taniwha http://bit.ly/jZcjWG

Steven Joyce’s quote was superb:

Transport Minister Steven Joyce said the project appeared to be plagued by taniwha.

“It does not massively surprise me,” he said. “Treasury found a few fiscal taniwhas as well, so it doesn’t surprise me that another one has turned up.”

I think the term “fiscal taniwha” should be adopted by Treasury for use in all future business case evaluations.

Kate Chapman at Stuff reports:

Social media will play a big part in the election campaign this year, but MPs and their supporters are being warned not to send messages using Twitter on election day. …

The commission would be making use of social media to promote the election, but would also be monitoring it to ensure people were following the law.

Electioneering on election day is an offence under the Electoral Act, with fines of up to $20,000.

“Tweeting, like any form of communication with the public where you are seeking to influence, is a breach of the act [if done on election day],” Mr Peden said.

Action would be taken against people caught sending tweets aimed at influencing voters on election day.

It is no surprise that the same rules apply to Twitter, as to any other medium.  The rules are in s127 of the Electoral Act, specifically s217(1)(g)(i) and (iv).

at any time on polling day before the close of the poll exhibits in or in view of any public place, or publishes, or distributes, or broadcasts
(i) any statement advising or intended or likely to influence any elector as to the candidate or party for whom the elector should or should not vote; or
(iv) any party name, emblem, slogan, or logo; or

So even mentioning the name of a party on Twitter on election day could be a breach. I doubt action would be taken unless it was in the context of the election.

Of course not everyone on Twitter uses their real name, or has contact details, so any enforcement action could prove problematic.

Started by the fake Paul Holmes twitter account, no less.

http://twitter.com/#search?q=%23surnamegenitalia

• Frodo’s Baggins
• Alan’s bollard.
• John’s Key
• Elizabeth’s Windsor
• Phil’s goff
• Mel’s gibson
• Charlotte’s dawson
• Ann’s coulter
• Cameron’s slater
• Russell’s brand
• Vladimir’s Putin
• Simon’s power
• Halle’s berry
• Nelly’s furtado
• Farrah’s fawcett
• Nicole’s whippy
• Paul’s henry
• Pippa’s wetzell

More are coming at at the rate of several a minute. Oh I do love Twitter.

TV3 have done a great job with their expose of a top defence official’s fake CV. The claims made on there should have been simple to verify, and it is disturbing that this was not done.

I think the government should consider appointing an independent person to inquire into how this happened.

Meanwhile Twitter has had fun, with the #defenceforcejobinterview tag providing:

• I raced against Usain Bolt in the 2008 Beijing Olympics; finished in the top 6, but he got all of the attention
• I convinced Tolkien to become a writer
• You’ve never seen one of course,but my face is in fact on the Medals at the olympics in recognition my successes
• Well, I get a bit upset when people call it “divine” intervention. But hey, that’s life

• Hairy Maclary was actually Lynley’s ‘special’ name for me in bed
• Well I made up sign language! Helen Keller just happened to be there at the time!
• So I said to Winston C, “Why not attack them on the beaches?
• It was gonna be Oceans 3, but I said, Why not ask George, Brad, Matt, if they have any mates they wanna bring…

• I was there when Māui fished up the North Island… I was the one who suggested he use his granny’s jawbone hook!

• If you look at the footage of the ’87 RWC victory, I’m the guy in the red jacket behind David Kirk.
• Richard actually based Rocky Horror on a Hamilton Boy’s College after ball party we had
• “It was just an offhand remark, but I said what if you made it TWO all beef patties, Special sauce…. “
• I did some PR consulting work for Shakespeare a few years back. Before then, they spelled bard with a small b.

• I told him, that jarjarbinks character was gunna ruin the movie, but would he listen ?

• Well love, as there’s still cancer I’ll admit that I’ve got at least one weakness

Bill Bennett has a list of NZ media on Twitter. Very useful.

Also Brenda Wallace has a list of MPs on Twitter.

The headline:

Twittering public servants waste work of four

Public servants spend at least 8482 hours a year on Twitter, a Dominion Post investigation suggests – the equivalent of a year’s work for four full-time staff.

Later in the article we find:

Of those departments allowing Twitter access, most reported monthly use of five to 10 minutes per staffer.

So an average of 15 to 30 seconds a day. Jesus Christ – how does this qualify to be a story. I wish media would report news more rather than invent it.

The Times reports:

The general election campaign claimed its first scalp today when Labour sacked one of its candidates in Scotland who posted dozens of offensive comments on his Twitter page.

The spectacular “Twitter suicide” overshadowed Labour’s formal campaign launch in Scotland and left Gordon Brown fuming.

Stuart MacLennan, 24, a rising star of the Scottish Labour Party who was standing in the Moray constituency, shut down his account on the microblogging site early this morning after The Scottish Sun reported that he had branded the elderly “coffin-dodgers”.

He had also labelled the Commons Speaker John Bercow a “t**”, David Cameron a “t***” and Nick Clegg, the Liberal Democrat leader, “a b******”.

Oh dear “coffin dodgers” is not going to get in over 60 vote for Labour.

Nor was his ire limited to the political world. The Sun reported that Mr MacLennan called the X Factor judge Louis Walsh a “c***”, referred to Jedward as “odious little s***s” and wrote: “I f****** hate Paolo Nutini”.

Well he has a point, with those descriptions, but best not to think out loud when you are planning to stand for Parliament.

As I blogged in July, I attended a Civil Defence briefing earlier this year on how their Tsunami warning system works, so I figure it is worth reviewing what went well, and not so well.

Timeliness – a big tick for this one. The advisory was released well before the potential tsunami was due to hit NZ.

Media – NZ Herald and Stuff websites carried the info, as did Breakfast TV. Seemed to do well keeping media informed.

Website – Not so good here. The main Civil Defence website did say an advisory had been issued, but nowhere on the site could you actually get the full details of it. The media do not always get things absolutely correct, and people should be able to go to authoritative sources.

Radio – people were told to listen to their radios for any local evacuation instructions. I think at some stage this strategy may have to be revisited. With ipods, more and more people do not have or listen to the radio. To get through to younger people especially, the Internet and text messaging is going to be more relevant.

Twitter – Twitter was great as a way to alert people, and that is where I first heard about it. I suggested to Civil Defence that they should look at having an official Twitter account as it would have been good for people to be able to retweet an official advisory rather than second hand reports.

E-mail – I received the warning threat by e-mail at 8.06 am. That was 90 minutes before the first wave was due, so pretty good. Only complaint is the e-mail address they came from was cdevent@datasquirt.co.nz and that doesn’t look too official. Would be better for it to come from a govt.nz address.

Overall pretty good effort I though, as in by 0945when the first wave might hit, I would have thought most of the country was aware of the advisory.