Deputy Prime Minister David Seymour has accused mainstream media of glaring inconsistency in the way it covers stories, weighed in on a Greens candidate accused of using abusive language about police and political figures, and acknowledged that youth crime remains a serious problem for some Christchurch business owners despite government claims of progress.

Speaking to Chris Lynch Media this morning, Seymour was asked about revelations that Stuff had threatened legal action over independent writer Annie O’Brien’s reporting on the ongoing Maiki Sherman drama, while at the same time publishing a story that relied on her work.

The ACT leader said the wider issue was not what was said or not said in the original incident, but the way the media picks and chooses how it operates.

“If you want aggressive journalism, that’s fine. If you want polite journalism, that’s fine. It just has to be consistent across different stories and different subjects,” Seymour said.

He recalled previously pleading with journalists not to cover a particular candidate they were attacking, because of the effect it was having on the candidate’s children.

“They didn’t seem to think that was much of a reason.”

Asked whether part of the backlash against Sherman was because she was viewed as more of an activist than a reporter, Seymour said “I’ve probably met Ani O’Brien half a dozen times in the last 10 years, she certainly seems to attract a lot of venom for whatever reason. Maybe because some of the positions she’s taken aren’t the trendy ones.”

Seymour said much of the public anger came down to a feeling that ordinary New Zealanders would never get away with the kind of behaviour the media [Sherman] has been accused of.

“If I did this in my workplace, I would get completely hauled before the HR people. I would end up potentially losing my job. I’d get warnings. That’s the standard that applies to most people.”

“You can be in favour of free speech and loose language and all the rest, but most people fear the kind of consequences they would face if they behaved this way in their workplace.”

“What most people want more than anything is just to be treated fairly and with dignity and with equality to others. When you see somebody else getting a different treatment, that’s what gets people’s backs up.”

Why it matters before an election

Asked whether the saga was simply Wellington beltway noise, Seymour said the public should care because of what is at stake at the ballot box.

“We’re about to have an election and people need to be able to make informed choices. There has to be accountability for the people who have huge power to shape how people see that choice that defines the direction of the country.”

He said it was the reason he had started filming all of his own interviews with media.

“They wield huge power to shape people’s opinions, and that can lead to changes in electoral outcomes that change the direction of this country. But where’s their accountability? What this episode has shown is that unless someone busts them with a Substack account, there’s none.”

Seymour also expressed frustration that more substantive news was being pushed aside by ongoing media navel gazing, pointing to ACT MP Nicole McKee’s anti money laundering legislation finally clearing Parliament.

“That’s not going to change the world, but it’s a pretty big difference for a lot of people. Lawyers, accountants, real estate agents who have to wade through all this red tape and stupid rules.”

“Unfortunately, one of the aspects of this is that they’ve now made a story that is about themselves as much as some of the other things that I think people would like to talk about.”

Greens leadership under fire

Seymour also took aim at the Green Party leadership over its response to a candidate accused of using violent and abusive language about police, political figures and the late American activist Charlie Kirk.

He said the candidate’s behaviour was “pretty distasteful” but the more concerning part was the reaction from Greens co leader Marama Davidson.

“They could have said, that’s not the Green kaupapa. We’re here for peaceful democracy and debate of the policy issues. That’s what they could have said.”

“But I was on an interview live with Marama Davidson yesterday and instead she said, well, he’s a well known activist and he gets cut through and he’s fighting racism and his community’s been suppressed.”

“As if to say, if you are aggrieved then the means justify the ends. That’s a concept that does not belong in the politics of a democratic country like New Zealand.”

Seymour said democratic societies depended on people exercising restraint, even with views they strongly disagreed with.

“Sometimes you have to show restraint and say, look, I disagree with what you say but I’ll defend your right to say it, and I’m going to try and persuade people that my way of doing things and my policies are better, rather than abusing them.”

“Once you say, well, if I decide my cause is mighty enough then I can do whatever I like, that’s a road to political violence and a breakdown of our democracy.”

Reminded of past comments by Greens figures, including Tania Waikato’s caption that read “it’s going to be hard not to punch you and Winston Peters,” Seymour said the trend was alarming.

“You look at opinion polling around the world, and ask particularly younger voters, do you think violence is justified to achieve political change. The numbers who think that are creeping up, and I think it’s a really worrying trend.”

“I would call on people who have been put in a parliamentary office, with a pretty good salary and a position of leadership, to actually say no, no matter how angry you are about the policies. What’s important is to preserve a democracy where we work through our problems by debating the issues, not the person.”

“We go to the ballot box, we have a peaceful transition of power, and we find a way for five million people to share a country with peace and prosperity. That’s got to be the goal, but right now the Green Party leadership are not saying that, and I think that’s really irresponsible of them.”

Christchurch youth offenders

Seymour was also pressed on hyper local concerns, including the case of seven repeat youth offenders openly filming themselves breaking into a Christchurch restaurant, seemingly without fear of consequences.

He acknowledged that for the victims, government statistics meant little.

“Two things are true here and they appear to contradict each other, but they actually fit together. Yes, youth crime is down. Ram raids in particular are down 85 percent since we’ve been in government. But that’s not zero. There are still 15 percent that are occurring.”

“If you are one of the people who’s a victim of that minority that are still offending, then it’s just as real to you as if there were a hundred or a thousand offences happening elsewhere in the country.”

Seymour said he hoped the offenders would face tougher treatment than they would have under previous governments, and praised Children’s Minister Karen Chhour for her work overhauling Oranga Tamariki facilities.

“Karen has been the first minister to visit all 72 facilities. A lot of people don’t care. Karen gets out there and actually visits them, and she’s toughened them up.”

“Sometimes if these kids try and get on the roof, they find that she’s actually strengthened the facilities. And if they think they’re going to get free KFC to come down, they’ve got another thing coming.”

“We’ve made a lot of change. We’ve had a lot of success. But we acknowledge that it’s not finished. One crime like this is one too many, and my apologies go out to those people that have been victims.”