Messenger, Inquisitor and Newsgatherer? Press Gallery Journalists on Their Role(s) at COVID-19 Briefings in Aotearoa New Zealand

Press Gallery journalists in Aotearoa New Zealand experienced a high level of scrutiny during the March - May 2020 nationwide lockdown. This can be largely attributed to their public role in the COVID-19 daily press briefings that featured the Prime Minister and other government officials speaking to the public and answering questions from Press Gallery journalists. The daily briefings were livestreamed directly to New Zealanders via television, radio and online media, with some journalists receiving heavy criticism by the public for asking 'aggressive' or 'irresponsible' questions. This paper explores the Press Gallery's perception of their journalistic role during the March-May 2020 daily briefings. Drawing upon semi-structured interviews with fourteen Press Gallery journalists, I find they perceived their journalistic roles at the daily briefings to be: 1) holding government decisions to account; 2) disseminating public information and educating audiences on public health issues and measures; 3) producing news or undertaking newsgathering practices. I discuss how the Press Gallery's perceived role(s) placed them in tension with audiences and complicates existing scholarly understanding of journalistic roles.