Useful Resources for Election Time

Politics can be confusing. There are a lot of moving parts and just when you think you understand something it changes and as young adults it’s unlikely that we’ve figured out where we stand on every issue. This is okay! 

The best thing you can do for yourself, and others around you, is to find news sources that you trust and start by consuming a few pieces of information a day. That might look like a podcast on the way to work, a news article at lunchtime, and a youtube video while you make your dinner. 

We’ve done some of the research for you and found a handful of sources that we hope will kickstart your political education. For those of you that want more than what we have provided below, here is a handy set of criteria for where you source your information:

• Reliable, make sure your sources have been fact-checked and that the information they are sharing is based on fact not fiction 
• Balanced, make sure that you are listening to sources from a variety of backgrounds i.e. some sources might support a more conservative political view and some might support a more liberal view, keeping a balanced collection of sources ensures that you are getting a wider understanding of a topic 
• Accessible, find sources that give you the information in a format that you can absorb if you learn best through watching a video then find yourself some youtube channels if you’re a reader then find blogs and online newspapers 
• Coherent, ensure that your sources are speaking your language i.e. if you’re not a doctor you probably wouldn’t read a medical journal because the jargon won’t make sense, instead you would probably read an Instagram post explaining it in plain language 
• Diverse, let’s make sure those sources are coming from companies that support and empower diversity in the workplace (aka lets make sure it’s not male pale and stale) 

• The Great Political Source List (aka the GPSL) 

  • Shit You Should Care About 
  • These girls are a homegrown group from little old NZ, they’re nailing the social media game. Funny, relatable, and entertaining these girls will have you up to speed in a heartbeat. With a podcast, kick-ass instagram, and a website to  provide more in-depth stories there is a platform for everyone. 
  • Favourite feature: daily stories, everyday these girls share news headlines from around the world on their instagram stories and provide swipe up links to the articles if you want to go beyond the headlines 
  • Instagram account
  • On Spotify
    
    
  • Gone By Lunchtime 
  • A show by The Spinoff, New Zealand’s alternative news company. A panel of three led by Political Editor, Toby Manhire, discuss the state of our nation in a monthly podcast. Luckily for us they ramp it up to weekly during election season. 
  • Favourite feature: they’re not stuffy. Politics can so easily be academic and boring but these three provide comic relief to our nation’s political antics. 
    
  • Re: 
  • A news agency that isn’t afraid to talk about the hard stuff. Their content reflects the diversity of Aotearoa and their website is accessible and beautifully put together. If you’re looking for on the go content they also have an instagram with  great bitesize snippets of the news. Don’t sleep on these guys! 
  • Favourite feature: Instagram swipe throughs. The team put together a neat swipe through instagram post which is typically an infographic, I’m always surprised by how much I learn in such a short length of time. 
  • Instagram account
  
  

  
  BONUS SOURCE: Stuff You Should Know 
  

• Hosted by two American males (it’s okay I promise they’re not too stale) this is a podcast that gives you a deep dive on a new topic every week. They’ve been running for a few years now and have covered some very niche topics (Flagpole  Sitting) and some much broader topics (Augmented Reality). If you want to know a lot about a topic but don’t have the patience to read a lengthy report these guys have got you sorted. 
• Favourite feature: Short Stuff, a shortened version of their hour long podcast where they cover a topic in 15 minutes, great if you’re walking to school! 
• On Spotify
  
  

  Normalise changing your opinion, it’s okay to change your mind based on being presented with new information!