Newsable: Tova O’Brien on the day TodayFM came crashing down

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Award-winning broadcaster Tova O’Brien is one of the country’s most high profile journalists – becoming a household name during Covid-19 lockdowns, when her dogged questioning in the now infamous 1pm press conferences was about as close as we all got to any form of sports.

She’s interviewed the president of Ukraine, her takedown of Jami-Lee Ross post election 2020 gained her global attention, she was a political editor, but then her world stopped when her breakfast radio show was canned after Mediaworks shut down Today FM – a moment that was captured live, on air.

Now, her next role has finally been revealed – Stuff Chief Political Correspondent.

O’Brien joins Newsable this morning and speaks candidly about that final day at Today FM, as well as her take on the current political state of play.

Below is an edited transcript of the interview, which you can listen to in full here.

I’m pretty sure your quote “they f….. us” will be one of the finalists for Quote of the Year – what was going through your mind at that moment:

I don’t really think anything was going through my mind – I think what I said was testament to the fact that it was just a very visceral reaction to the absolute shock and devastation we were all feeling that day.

There wasn’t really time to think or to process emotion or anything. It was just the ultimate expression of raw emotion.

READ MORE:
* MediaWorks’ board breaks silence over Today FM closure, takes swipe over final broadcast
* ‘Savage’ Tova O’Brien interview of Jami-Lee Ross gains international audience
* ‘Political muckraker’ Tova O’Brien: ‘Take a step back before you have a go’

So, tell us about this new job!

It’s terribly exciting. The job title is Chief Political Correspondent, which I hope will encapsulate a few of the various different roles which I’m going to be doing – and we’re building it, as well! So we’re already working on a couple of really exciting projects, which we’ll be able to tell you more about soon.

Coming into this election, what is your read on the battlefield – the political battlefield as of right now?

Yeah, it’s shifting, isn’t it? I think this week, for example, and probably for the last two years there’s been a really strong focus on law and order and on justice issues. But the economy, I think, is probably the thing that most New Zealanders are also deeply concerned about, and that’s where the election is really going to be won and lost.

Tova also speaks with Newsable about what’s been keeping her busy over the last few months, and shares more political analysis. Listen to the full interview here.

Newsable is Stuff’s daily news podcast, wrapping up what’s worth talking about in a short package every weekday morning. You can find new episodes and more detail on our stories here or in our newsletter. Make sure to like and follow us wherever you get your podcasts and across Instagram and TikTok.