Whakaata Māori Is Launched

Kua rewa a Whakaata Māori

I te ata nei, i takina ai ngā karakia, i hōkai whakamua a Māori Television ki te anamata, arā, ka whakaōkawatia tōna ingoa hou, ko Whakaata Māori.

“Ko te panoni ki a Whakaata Māori he nui atu i te panonitanga ingoa anake” te kī a Shane Taurima, Tāhuhu Rangapū o Whakaata Māori. “He tūtohu ko wai mātau, me tō mātau tuakiri ki tua.”

“Ko Whakaata Māori ka kōrero mō te whakaata, te matihiko, me ngā pae hou e puta ana hei whakaatu i te reo Māori, ngā tikanga Māori, ngā kaupapa Māori, ngā iwi Māori me ngā hapori Māori.

“Ka whakautu tonu mātau i ngā hiahia me ngā wawata o ā mātau apataki. Ko tā mātau kia matihiko te waihanga me te tuku i te tuatahi. Kei te huarahi tika mātau hei whakatutuki i ā mātau whāinga matihiko mō te tau pūtea nei (12% i runga atu i te paearu), ā, hei te marama e tū mai nei ka rewa a MĀORI+ mō te mata whakaata nui, hei pāho i a Whakaata Māori ki ētahi atu kāinga kia taea tonu ai e mātau te tautoko i te whakarauoratanga o te reo Māori mō inamata, mō anamata me Aotearoa whānui” te kōrero hoki a Taurima.

“E mōhio nei mātau kāore mātau e tū ki konei ki te kore te hunga i haere i mua i a mātau. I hua a Whakaata Māori i tētahi tūāoma roa nā ngāi Māori, nā tauiwi hoki hei tiaki i te reo me ngā tikanga Māori. Kua 18 tau nō tana whakarewanga, ko te panonitanga ingoa ka whakahōnore i tēnei whakareretanga iho me tēnei hītori.”

“Koinei te tau 50 nō te tukunga o te petihana mō Te Reo Māori ki Pāremata, e 40 tau nō te Kōhanga Reo tuatahi, e 35 tau nō Te Ture o te Reo Māori i whakamana i te reo hei reo tūturu nō te whenua me Te Taura Whiri i te Reo Māori. E whakahīhī nei mātau i tō mātau ingoa Māori.”

Ko te whakanuitanga o te atatū nei i pāho mataoratia ki te ao, ā, i kitea te tini kaiārahi Māori pēnei i Te Puhi Ariki o te Kiingitanga, te Minita Whakawhanaketanga Māori, Te Mātāwai, ngā iwi, ngā kaiārahi hapori, ngā kaiārahi pāpāho, ngā kaipāho iwi taketake , ngā kura me ngā kaimahi.

Ko te tohu o Whakaata Māori ka puta ki te whakaata, ki MĀORI+ me ngā taupānga Te Ao i te rangi nei ā haere ake nei.

Whakaata Māori is launched

This morning at a special dawn karakia, Māori Television took further steps towards the future and officially became Whakaata Māori.

“Changing to Whakaata Māori is more than just a name change,” says Shane Taurima, Tāhuhu Rangapū of Whakaata Māori. “It is a testimony to who we are and who we want to become.”

"Whakaata Māori speaks to television, digital and emerging new platforms that we use to showcase te reo Māori, tikanga Māori, kaupapa Māori, iwi Māori and hapori Māori."

“We continue to respond to the needs and wants of our audiences. We take a digital-first approach on how we create and distribute content. We are on track to achieve all of our digital goals for this financial year (currently tracking at +12% over benchmark) and next month we will launch our MĀORI+ big screen app, bringing Whakaata Māori into more homes, so we can continue to support the revitalisation of te reo Māori for now, for our future and for all of Aotearoa,” continues Taurima.

“We acknowledge that we couldn’t be here without those who stood before us. Whakaata Māori was founded through a long campaign by Māori and non-Māori to protect te reo me ngā tikanga Māori. 18 years since our inception, the name change honours this great legacy and history.”

“This year marks 50 years since the Māori language petition went to Parliament, 40 years since the first Kōhanga Reo opened and 35 years since the Māori Language Act saw te reo become an official language and the Māori Language Commission, Te Taura Whiri i te Reo Māori, was established. We are proud to embrace the mana of our Māori name."

This morning’s dawn celebration was live streamed to the world and witnessed by many prominent leaders including Te Puhi Ariki of the Kiingitanga, Minister for Māori Development, Te Mātāwai, Iwi, Community Leaders, Media Leaders, other Indigenous Broadcasters, Kura and Kaimahi.

The Whakaata Māori logo will begin to appear on television, MĀORI+ and Te Ao apps from today.

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