the Spinoff

The Spinoff began as a TV blog sponsored by the streaming platform Lightbox: it has expanded to a multi-platform news site that also publishes current affairs newsletters, podcasts and online video series. 'Spinoff Members', offering a range of benefits to subscribers, was launched in 2019.{{Cite web|last=Greive|first=Duncan|date=16 February 2021|title=A user's guide to The Spinoff |url=https://thespinoff.co.nz/media/16-02-2021/a-users-guide-to-the-spinoff |access-date=22 April 2022|website=The Spinoff }} The Spinoff and the New Zealand Herald started sharing journalism and content in July 2020.{{Cite web|title=NZ Herald and The Spinoff launch new content sharing deal|url=https://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/nz-herald-and-the-spinoff-launch-new-content-sharing-deal/FDWWCMHWBA6MAZIKUGW4FGECF4/ |access-date=6 March 2021|website=The New Zealand Herald |language=en-NZ}}

"Our business model is partnership and sponsorship and we make it clear when our content is funded in that way. When our journalists are not writing for a partner, they are writing whatever they want. We give them implicit license because they know what makes good content and we know what our audience is interested in", Greive told business journalist Tash McGill.{{Cite journal |title=Reflecting the new mosaic |url= https://flintandsteelmag.com/article/reflecting-the-new-mosaic/ |volume=5 |access-date=6 March 2021|website=Flint & Steel |language=en}}

During the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020–21, The Spinoff began working with the World Health Organization (WHO), after a WHO communications officer saw their series of widely shared COVID-19 public health illustrations. These were part of a series of pieces explaining COVID-19, in a collaboration between cartoonist Toby Morris and the microbiologist Dr Siouxsie Wiles. The Spinoff released the pair's COVID illustrations and animations to Wikimedia Commons, where they have been picked up by public health services around the world. The illustrations have been published in te reo Māori and English by The Spinoff.{{Cite web|title=A Bumper selection: The Toby Morris and Siouxsie Wiles Covid-19 box set|url=https://www.nzdoctor.co.nz/node/13234|access-date=6 March 2021|website=New Zealand Doctor|language=en}}{{Cite news|last=Edmunds|first=Susan|date=21 June 2020|title=How a Kiwi media company became the World Health Organisation's latest Covid-19 weapon|work=Stuff |url=https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/121881009/how-a-kiwi-media-company-became-the-world-health-organisations-latest-covid19-weapon}}

In 2019, The Spinoff received funding from Creative New Zealand to commission articles on contemporary New Zealand art and artists.{{cite web|title=Arts Grants Round 1 2019|url=https://www.creativenz.govt.nz/results-of-our-work/who-got-funded/funding-rounds/arts-grants-round-1-2019|access-date=25 October 2019|website=Creative New Zealand}} The art section is edited by New Zealand critics Mark Amery and Megan Dunn.{{cite web|last1=Dunn|first1=Megan|date=3 July 2019|title=Introducing The Spinoff Art|url=https://thespinoff.co.nz/art/03-07-2019/introducing-the-spinoff-art/|access-date=25 October 2019|website=The Spinoff }}

In November 2024, the publication proposed cutting four staff roles as part of cost-cutting moves.{{Cite web |date=28 March 2025 |title='Grim': The Spinoff cuts roles amid new wave of media industry job losses |url=https://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/media-insider/media-insider-the-spinoff-website-cuts-roles-amid-new-wave-of-media-industry-job-losses/WG37OWBD2BDG3G2S7X3ZDYE4HU/ |access-date=28 March 2025 |website=The New Zealand Herald |language=en-NZ}}

In December 2024, The Spinoff reported that media company Stuff's owner Sinead Boucher was planning to restructure her company into two separate businesses: the online-oriented Stuff Digital Limited (which would consist of the social media platform Neighbourly, ThreeNews and its podcasts) and Masthead Publishing (which would consist of its newspaper brands including The Post, The Press

and the Waikato Times).{{cite news |last1=Greive |first1=Duncan |title=Stuff ‘consciously uncouples’ into two separate digital and print businesses |url=https://thespinoff.co.nz/media/11-12-2024/stuff-consciously-uncouples-into-two-separate-digital-and-print-businesses |access-date=10 April 2025 |work=The Spinoff |date=11 December 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250402182932/https://thespinoff.co.nz/media/11-12-2024/stuff-consciously-uncouples-into-two-separate-digital-and-print-businesses |archive-date=2 April 2025}} In late March 2025, The New Zealand Herald reported that Stuff had threatened legal action against The Spinoff for covering the restructuring.{{cite news |last1=Currie |first1=Shayne |title=Media Insider: The Spinoff v Stuff – a scoop and then a defamation threat in story stoush; TVNZ’s emphatic legal victory to protect sources; Newsroom’s plea for donations |url=https://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/media-insider/media-insider-the-spinoff-v-stuff-a-scoop-and-then-a-defamation-threat-in-stoush-tvnzs-emphatic-legal-victory-to-protect-sources-newsrooms-plea-for-donations/HJQVKWSTTBHQXH5LM5GHPANSHU/ |access-date=10 April 2025 |work=The New Zealand Herald |date=28 March 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250402182920/https://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/media-insider/media-insider-the-spinoff-v-stuff-a-scoop-and-then-a-defamation-threat-in-stoush-tvnzs-emphatic-legal-victory-to-protect-sources-newsrooms-plea-for-donations/HJQVKWSTTBHQXH5LM5GHPANSHU/ |archive-date=2 April 2025|url-status=live}}

Some of the New Zealand journalists, staff writers, authors, political figures, academics, scientists and illustrators whose work has appeared in The Spinoff:

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• Duncan Greive
• Toby Manhire
• Toby Morris
• Dr Siouxsie Wiles
• Madeleine Chapman
• Steve Braunias
• Finlay Macdonald
• Charlotte Grimshaw
• Ashleigh Young
• Anjum Rahman

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• Michelle Langstone
• Ranginui Walker
• Kim Workman
• Debbie Ngarewa-Packer
• Metiria Turei
• Briar Grace-Smith
• Chris Tse
• Dr Shaun Hendy
• Samuel Te Kani
• Claire Mabey
• Holly Walker

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The Spinoff TV was a television show that covered current affairs, pop culture, and media. It was created as a collaboration between The Spinoff and MediaWorks{{Cite news |url=https://thespinoff.co.nz/media/12-12-2017/holy-heck-the-spinoff-tv-is-coming-to-three-in-2018/ |title=Holy heck: The Spinoff TV is coming to Three in 2018! |date=12 December 2017 |work=The Spinoff |access-date=10 July 2019}} and hosted by Alex Casey and Leonie Hayden. It aired on Three, premiering on 22 June 2018.{{Cite news |url=https://thespinoff.co.nz/media/06-06-2018/huge-and-true-the-spinoff-tv-is-coming-to-three-on-june-22/ |title=Huge and true: The Spinoff TV is coming to Three on June 22 |newspaper=The Spinoff |date=6 June 2018 |access-date=10 July 2019}} The final episode aired on 5 October 2018.{{Cite web |url=https://www.threenow.co.nz/shows/the-spinoff-tv/S1668-531 |title=The Spinoff TV |website=www.threenow.co.nz |access-date=10 July 2019}} Its first season had 16 episodes. It was not renewed for a second season.

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Category:News magazines published in New Zealand

Category:Internet properties established in 2014

Category:2014 establishments in New Zealand

Category:New Zealand news websites

Category:New Zealand entertainment websites