Structure and People

We are ordinary Kiwis standing up for something we believe in. We come from all walks of life – rural, urban, young, old, left, right or somewhere in between. And we share a common belief - that public broadcasting and media are precious taonga that belong to all of us, that benefit all of us and in which we can trust.

The Better Public Media Trust (BPM) is a charitable trust with grassroots Membership, Board of Trustees and a Director who carries out day-to-day activities. The Trust is non-profit and entirely self-funded through membership subscriptions and donations.

Members

Members pay a small annual subscription. The BPM relies on its Members to choose what priorities to focus on, spread the word about 'public media' and elect Trustees.

Partner Organisations

The BPM has networks with organisations around NZ and the world. The quality of public service media is of concern to many groups including aged welfare, community groups, corporate watchdogs, human rights and civil liberties. Linked together we are stronger and more effective.

Trustees

The BPM is governed by its Board of Trustees who support the Director. The Trustees are accountable to the Members and elections are held each year at the AGM for half the positions on the Board.

People

David Jacobs - Chair

David is a content creator, producer and actor. Originally from London, he produced and directed international documentaries for the BBC and Channel Four that were broadcast in more than 100 countries. After moving to Aotearoa in 1992 he made documentaries for TVNZ and BBC World, and he founded The Outlook for Someday sustainability film project for young people, which is now known as Day One Hāpai te Haeata. In recent years he has returned to his love of scripted drama, while he continues to support young content creators as an executive producer.

Having experienced the media landscape of Aotearoa as dominated by short-term commercial imperatives and a lack of content diversity, David is hopeful of progress. He envisages public media contributing more to democracy, social cohesion and creative enterprise. He promotes cooperation in the film and media sector through his BPM role and through his own industry participation. He is a member of both SPADA and Equity, and a friend member of WIFT NZ.

David is based in Tāmaki Makaurau. He is a father of two daughters and now a grandfather. He enjoys cinema and theatre. He used to play rugby. He first heard of New Zealand when he was seven and the All Blacks toured the UK. Now he cheers loudly for both the ABs and the Black Ferns.

Dr Peter Thompson - Vice Chair

Peter Thompson is an Associate Professor in the Media and Communication programme at Te Herenga Waka/Victoria University of Wellington.

Since coming to Aotearoa/New Zealand in 1997, he has published extensively on issues relating to media policy. His work includes research into public service media and public funding issues and also issues of online content/platform regulation. Peter's other area of expertise concerns the communication processes in financial markets an monetary systems. He has undertaken commissioned research for the Ministry of Culture and Heritage, NZ On Air and the Department of Internal Affairs. He also served as chair of the working group which oversaw public submissions on the revised TVNZ Charter before its eventual repeal.

Peter is a long-standing proponent of public service media which serve the interests of audiences as citizens not merely as consumers. He was involved in the Save TVNZ7 campaign back in 2011 which then led to the foundation of what is now Better Public Media. He has authored a number of BPM's submissions to Parliament on media policy issues and is well-known as a regular media commentator. He has also managed to annoy every Minister of Broadcasting/Media since 1997 (one of whom advised him that a security detail was on standby to remove him from the Beehive if he 'got out of hand'!).

Professor Ursula Cheer - Trustee

Ursula is a Professor of Law at the University of Canterbury Faculty of Law in Christchurch, a role she has held for almost 30 years. She has also worked in private practice, and as a speech writer to the Minister of Justice and a legal advisor to the Prime Minister.

In the United Kingdom Ursula worked as a Legal Advisor to the Lord Chancellor while at the Law Commission. She specialises in media law and often provides commentary in the media about how the law applies to media. She publishes widely in the areas of defamation and privacy and aspects of media law.

Ursula lives with her partner, their two daughters, and two feisty Jack Russell/Foxy terriers. The family shares an interest in the news and the arts, and Ursula enjoys walking (with the dogs!), watching classic movies and attending live theatre.

Rohan Satyanand - Trustee

Rohan is a 20 year veteran kaimahi/ technician for screen productions. He works in a wide variety of roles and projects: including live local television, live screen for events, and from independent low-budget short films to the biggest of international blockbuster features.  He is cofounder of Toothfish, a company that supplies technical equipment and workflow solutions to the screen industry.

He has always been fascinated/freaked out by the media's power to inspire, educate and move popular sentiment and he believes that a strong, diverse and independent public media is pivotal to Aotearoa's democracy.  The erosion of our public media over the past four decades has been of significant detriment to our society, and the task to rebuild it is a crucial one.

Rohan and wife Maria live in Wellington’s eastern suburbs Te Motu Kairangi and are busy parents to two growing children.  Rohan is an avid follower of many sporting codes, a live music enthusiast, and is trying to improve his skills in the arts of surfing, portrait painting, te reo Māori, cooking and gardening.  

Steve Liddle - Trustee

Based in Napier, Steve is an independent researcher and teacher. A journalist here and in Australia for seven years, he taught humanities and social sciences for more than twenty years in New Zealand, England and more recently Palestine.  In 2014 he co-created, with other e-learning post-grads, a website for civics education. In 2015 he was SME for a still-active 10-lesson online democracy course.

Since finding that social justice ethics require educating for, Steve has for the past decade campaigned for compulsory teaching of civics for college students, civil servants and migrants. And for accessible media studies and critical thinking courses at senior high school level. In 2023, he published The War Inside, a social history focusing on the aftermath for New Zealanders of war-time imprisonment and occupation.

As well as interests in history, Steve enjoys walking, cycling and swimming in the ‘Bordeaux of the south’. And, if he thinks he has something significant to add, writing occasional articles or op-eds.

Myles Thomas – Trustee

Myles was a founder of Better Public Media Trust, back when it was called Coalition for Better Broadcasting Trust. Having managed the Save TVNZ 7 campaign which gathered 36,000 signatures and held many public meetings and protest marches around the motu, he realised that Aotearoa New Zealand's media is something that many people are passionate about. 

Myles was a producer, director and editor of television documentaries, reality programmes and online news videos for more than three decades. From 2019 to 2024 he attended university graduating with an LLB (Hons) and is working at a law firm in central Auckland.

Myles is involved in Better Public Media because he recognises the impact that dumbed-down media is having on the world. Because public media is not aimed at making money it tends to show and foster a nation's diversity, intelligence and dignity. We need more of that.