Abstract
While radio broadcasting in post-colonial New Zealand has been dominated by Pakeha, Maori have challenged their dominance of the nation's airwaves in recent decades, having successfully carved out a space for themselves within the New Zealand mediascape. Nevertheless, getting more Maori music (especially songs with te reo lyrics) on radio and other forms of broadcasting media remains a challenge-especially in the New Zealand commercial broadcasting sphere. This challenge has been addressed in various ways by the two organizations mandated to promote Maori language and Maori culture via broadcasting, Te Mangai Paho (TMP) and New Zealand On Air (NZOA). This article describes and evaluates their responses to calls for more Maori music on air, and suggests further measures that could be implemented to increase the broadcasting of such music. It will also place TMP and NZOA's strategies in the context of broader New Zealand cultural-political shifts, and changes in the New Zealand broadcasting environment. The article asks whether, or to what extent, cultural protectionism is needed in New Zealand's current deregulated and diversifying broadcasting environment.