Media presence at hearings policy

Introduction

The policy of the Board is that requests from the media to attend hearings of the Board may be granted subject to strict conditions. Media will typically attend a Board hearing via MS Teams.

Filming, photography and audio recording of hearings are strictly prohibited.

Definition of media

To meet the definition of ‘media’, the applicant’s media organisation must be subject to a code of ethics and the complaints procedure of the Broadcasting Standards Authority or the New Zealand Media Council.

Applications

Applications to attend a Board hearing must be made by individual journalists.

Journalists apply to attend a Board hearing by emailing media@paroleboard.govt.nz.

The Board has complete discretion over which applications are approved, and it may revoke or vary the conditions of the approval at any time.

To be considered, applications must be received at least 10 working days prior to the hearing. This is to give sufficient time to obtain the necessary consents.

Journalists will also need to have confirmed their agreement to:

  • comply with the Board’s reporting guidelines
  • share information from the hearing with any other journalists who applied to attend the hearing and agreed to the Board’s reporting guidelines but were not selected through the random selection process.

The Board has determined that the maximum number of journalists attending an online hearing is three, not from the same organisation. Where applications exceed the maximum number, the Board will use a random selection process to determine the attendees.

Consideration of applications

Media attendance at a hearing is at the discretion of the Panel Convenor. Attendance is considered for an individual journalist, not by media outlet.

In considering a journalist’s application to attend a hearing, the Panel Convenor will take into account:

  • the desirability of open justice
  • the Board’s obligations to offenders and the victims of offences
  • the requirement under the Parole Act 2002 that a hearing must be run in the manner of an inquiry, and in an atmosphere that encourages persons appearing before the Board to speak for themselves, and as freely and frankly as possible.

Attendance is subject to the journalist’s agreement to the following conditions:

  • Filming, photography and audio recording of hearings are strictly prohibited.
  • No specific identification of
    • registered victims or their location(s)
    • offender’s supporters or family members and their locations
    • offender’s proposed release address
    • Department of Corrections staff members referred to during the hearing
    • support organisations or staff working with offender
  • No reference to specific, identified health issues and/or medication being used
  • No reporting of comments made by victims that the Board share with the offender, subject to any ruling by the Panel Convener
  • Agreement to any embargoes and suppressions set by the Board or the Board’s Communications Manager, to allow for victim and offender notification before the decision goes public.

Further conditions may be added by the Panel Convenor before or after the hearing.

Feedback on an application will be sought from:

  • the offender’s Case Manager if they are in prison or their Probation Officer if they are currently on parole
  • their counsel, if the offender has one
  • any registered victims.

This feedback is then provided to the Panel Convenor to inform their decision.

Before granting an application, the Panel Convenor must be satisfied:

  1. that the offender and his or her counsel have been advised and given the opportunity to comment on the application.
  2. that the presence of media representatives at the hearing
    a) will not be disruptive to the way the hearing is conducted.
    b) will not inhibit participants from speaking “as freely and frankly as possible” and
    c) is in the public interest.

If the application is approved

If the application is approved, the Board will set such conditions as it thinks fit. The conditions may include the right to direct that any information or comments made are not to be reported on (for example, the contents of psychological and other specialist reports, proposed release addresses, and the names of supporters or victims) and details of any publishing embargoes.

Before considering any direction that information is not to be published, the Board should provide the offender or his or her counsel and the journalist with the opportunity to be heard.

If an application is approved, reporting restrictions may be imposed by the Board.

At the hearing

Journalists will attend the meeting via a MS Teams link sent a day prior.

The Honourable J M Doogue
Chairperson
New Zealand Parole Board

Policy approved and adopted 15 June 2026