Undercurrents Ep. #13: How do you manufacture a political movement?

Watch the latest episode of Undercurrents on the incredible backstory to Nicky Hager’s new book Dirty Work, the fallout from its publication, and what it reveals about the changing machinery of political influence in New Zealand.

Since its publication last month, Nicky Hager’s latest book, Dirty Work: The Taxpayers' Union and New Zealand's Hard Right, has generated no shortage of controversy.

But with much of the debate focusing on individual revelations in the book – and the competing claims and denials that have followed – the most important parts of the story risk being lost.

Dirty Work is the third in a trilogy that began with The Hollow Men and Dirty Politics – and together the three books provide an extraordinary insight into the methods used by lobbyists and political operators to influence public debate and democratic politics.

So what does Hager’s latest investigation tell us about how political influence works today? How do a relatively small number of well-resourced organisations create the appearance of a political movement? And what is on the line for the future of democracy?

In this episode of Undercurrents, Ollie Neas talks with investigative journalist Nicky Hager about the remarkable story behind Dirty Work, how the political methods he has documented over three decades have evolved, and the growing role of organisations operating outside traditional party politics.

They discuss astroturf campaigns, political donations, the manufacture of outrage, the Taxpayers’ Union’s campaign against Three Waters – and what can be done to make democratic politics more transparent and accountable.

Watch the full conversation below and subscribe to Public Interest for more discussions making sense of politics and power in Aotearoa.

This episode was edited by Jeremy Leveridge. Research by Micah Geiringer.