Alison Smith - Journalist Profile | Connect with top journalists

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Biography

Award winning (now Freelance) journalist with 25 years in the industry, previously a regional newspaper editor for NZME. Currently freelance writing and PR in Australia. Returning to New Zealand in June 2024, I am available for journalism, travel writing and PR in the Pacific, New Zealand, Australia and South East Asia, with particular skillsets and interests in surf travel writing, environment and climate reporting as well as human interest. I've worked in Hong Kong and Australia, the UK (briefly) and in daily news but it doesn't matter to me who or where you are, I can tell your story. I tell the stories of the good in people, the initiatives that are making positive change, and provide solution-based reporting whilst highlighting what's not working. I always learned that if you want to know about poverty, you interview the poorest family you can find in your community. Then you take what they tell you and you question what can be done to help. People said newspapers are dying. Community news is thriving. My regional weekly newspaper has grown from 16-20 pages to 80 pages during this pandemic, because I make it relevant to readers. It's obviously relevant to a lot more people than our 20,000 readers, because my stories get picked up nationally and internationally on a regular basis. I investigate, celebrate, and - occasionally through editorials - opinionate. Human interest, environmental, fisheries, regenerative ocean farming, agribusiness, New Zealand heritage and history (including Maori), news from within the Coromandel and Hauraki region of New Zealand, housing, real estate trends, sporting local heroes and opinion pieces are all part of my week. I work in print and online, primarily for the New Zealand Herald and Bay of Plenty Times, as these are the umbrella news teams for my publication, HC Post. I'm also a blogger of the deeper emotions that we feel as humans, and a former travel and action sports writer (surf, snow, wake). I co-published a cycle guide for eight years. Former publications: News Reporter for South China Morning Post 1996-2000. Previous women’s surfing magazine editor, freelance surf travel writer and Head of Communications for Red Bull NZ.

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New Zealand Media and Entertainment