| Type | Sunday newspaper |
|---|---|
| Format | Tabloid |
| Owner | Stuff Ltd |
| Editor | Tracy Watkins |
| Founded | March 1994; 31 years ago (1994-03) |
| Headquarters | Auckland, New Zealand |
| Circulation | 77,000 (as of 2017)[1] |
| Website | www |
TheSunday Star-Times is a New Zealand newspaper published each weekend inAuckland. It covers both national and international news, and is a member of theNew Zealand Press Association and Newspaper Publishers Association of New Zealand. It is owned by media businessStuff Ltd, formerly the New Zealand branch ofAustralian media companyFairfax Media.
In 2019, the newspaper won the title of New Zealand Newspaper of the Year.[2]
TheSunday Star-Times was first published in March 1994 after the merger ofThe Dominion Sunday Times andThe SundayStar. TheDominion Sunday Times started in 1965 and was renamed toSunday Times (1976–1981),New Zealand Times (1981–1986), New Zealand Sunday Times (1986–1987), then reverted to its original (1987–1992), before it was known as theSunday Times (1992–1994).[3]
Jenny Wheeler was the editor for six and a half years.[4] The paper was edited by Cate Brett from 2003 until 2008 when she took up a post at theNew Zealand Law Commission. She was replaced by AustralianMitchell Murphy who, in 2010, was promoted to the role of publisher for Fairfax Sundays and in 2012 to executive director of publishing.[5] In May 2010 David Kemeys was appointed editor, reporting directly to Murphy.
Jonathan Milne was editor of the Sunday Star Times from 2014 to June 2019.[6]
The paper has a focus on providing an entertaining Sunday read with a mixture of news, features and celebrity gossip.
Regular contributors for theSunday Star-Times includeRosemary McLeod,Michael Laws, and Finlay MacDonald.Steve Braunias was a regular columnist for the Sunday magazine part of the newspaper, but was sacked in early 2011 for exchanging abusive emails with a Gisborne police prosecutor named Claire Stewart.[7] On 21 October 2018, the paper changed format frombroadsheet totabloid, following Stuff's conversion of its nine daily newspapers in April that year.[needs update]
In 2004 the paper published a front-page story claiming that theNew Zealand Security Intelligence Service was spying on members of the newly formedMāori Party. The article was co-authored byNicky Hager. A government inquiry led by the Inspector-General of Intelligence and Security later rejected these claims in April 2005, and the paper had to publish a front page apology to its readers when a government investigation found the claims to be unsubstantiated.[citation needed]
| Year | Award | Result |
|---|---|---|
| 2019 | Voyager Media Awards: Newspaper of the Year | Winner[2] |
| Voyager Media Awards: Weekly Newspaper of the Year | Winner[2] | |
| Voyager Media Awards: Best Newspaper Front Page | Winner[2] |