RadioNZ on DigitalNZ

18 March 2014: DigitalNZ makes Radio New Zealand catalogue more accessible

Radio New Zealand’s vast catalogue of over 150,000 interviews and news items is now more accessible thanks to a new partnership with the National Library of New Zealand’s DigitalNZ service.

DigitalNZ head Andy Neale says Radio New Zealand is the search and data service’s 150th content partner.

“This is a huge milestone. It means people can link Radio New Zealand broadcasts with related material from TV, social media, and our libraries and archives. It means New Zealand’s rich history can be shared and used in ways we can’t even imagine right now.”

Richard Hulse, Radio New Zealand Head of New Media says, “This partnership with DigitalNZ is exciting because more people will be able to discover Radio NZ audio, and use this to build and share collections that are relevant to them.”

Mr Neale says the addition is a fitting way to celebrate DigitalNZ’s sixth birthday.

“Over the last six years we have been building up a vast dataset of over 26 million items that describe our nation’s story in a completely new way. This data can be used to create new ways of interacting and experiencing our history.

”For example the new content from Radio New Zealand mixed with our link to the new Network for Learning portal for schools, means school children will have an additional channel to Radio New Zealand material.”

He says New Zealand was one of the first countries in the world to establish a nationwide search infrastructure for its digital material, and DigitalNZ is an international leader.

“We were established because it was recognised that the digital revolution had changed the way people research, learn and access information. Our website is a place where all New Zealanders can access meaningful material, connect with their past, find knowledge and be inspired.”

Mr Neale says one of the strengths of DigitalNZ’s work is the way it improves access to New Zealand material that you are unlikely to find in the front page of a Google search result.

“Our content and data is being used in new and creative ways, and to power software applications at NZ universities, schools, and cultural institutions.”

Contacts

Thomasin Sleigh (DigitalNZ): 04 474 3996

Sandra Bennett (Department of Internal Affairs): 04 495 6024 or 027 839 1606