Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Vincent O'Malley @vomalley.bsky.social · 19h

Bring back the Historical Branch.

nzhistory.govt.nz/media/photo/...

The New Zealand government has a long history of promoting and publishing historical works of all kinds, from the 50-plus volumes of Second World War history to cutting-edge digital projects in the ea...

nzhistory.govt.nz

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Vincent O'Malley @vomalley.bsky.social · 2d

"If you want a job you go where the jobs are."

Australia?

www.rnz.co.nz/news/politic...

Watch: Christopher Luxon defends cuts to benefits for youth

The prime minister says businesses are 'crying out for young people' as advocates decry the changes as a punishment.

www.rnz.co.nz

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Vincent O'Malley @vomalley.bsky.social · 3d

The Waitangi Tribunal turns 50.

buttondown.com/unsettling/a...

The Waitangi Tribunal Turns 50

Next week the Waitangi Tribunal turns 50 – or rather, it is the 50th anniversary of the passage into law of the Treaty of Waitangi Act on 10 October 1975...

buttondown.com

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Vincent O'Malley @vomalley.bsky.social · 9d

Advance copy of the new book.

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Vincent O'Malley @vomalley.bsky.social · 12d

Cowardly and embarrassing.

NZ not yet recognising Palestinian state, Foreign Minister Winston Peters announces www.rnz.co.nz/news/politic...

NZ not yet recognising Palestinian state, Foreign Minister Winston Peters announces

The government has decided against recognising Palestinian statehood, retaining its "when, not if" position.

www.rnz.co.nz

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Vincent O'Malley @vomalley.bsky.social · 12d

Lovely to see Mike the Juggler, who put smiles on the faces of so many Wellingtonians and tourists, has his own Wikipedia page. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mike_th...

Mike the Juggler - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

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Vincent O'Malley @vomalley.bsky.social · 12d

Just another 56,714 emails to go and I will join you.

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Vincent O'Malley @vomalley.bsky.social · 13d

Book launch details and how to enter the draw for a signed copy of my new book.

buttondown.com/unsettling/a...

Book Launch: The Meeting Place

As I mentioned in a recent post, a new edition of my book The Meeting Place: Māori and Pākehā Encounters, 1642-1840 will shortly be published by Bridget...

buttondown.com

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Vincent O'Malley @vomalley.bsky.social · 14d

If you are in Wellington on 14 October, a new edition of my book 'The Meeting Place' is being launched at the Royal Society Te Apārangi, with Hon. Justice Sir Joe Williams speaking. @bwbnz.bsky.social @royalsocietynz.bsky.social

www.bwb.co.nz/events/bwb-t...

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Vincent O'Malley @vomalley.bsky.social · 19d

My tribute to Dame Joan Metge and Emeritus Professor Keith Sorrenson, two scholars who made important contributions to our understanding of Aotearoa NZ culture, society and history.

buttondown.com/unsettling/a...

In Memoriam: Dame Joan Metge and Emeritus Professor Keith Sorrenson

In this post I pay tribute to two scholars who made significant contributions to our understanding of Aotearoa New Zealand culture, society and history. Dame...

buttondown.com

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Reposted by Vincent O'Malley

Dr Heather Came @heathercame.bsky.social · 28d

Exciting about being on the organising crew for the open-access, virtual Te Tiriti based futures + Antiracism 21-26th March 2026. Check out the draft programme. Registrations open later in the year.

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Vincent O'Malley @vomalley.bsky.social · Sep 6

Nice piece from John Campbell.

www.1news.co.nz/2025/09/06/j...

John Campbell: The Māori Queen speaks and it's a new, vital voice for NZ

TVNZ's Chief Correspondent reports from Tūrangawaewae where the energy of a future generation was on display.

www.1news.co.nz

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Vincent O'Malley @vomalley.bsky.social · Sep 5

Sad to hear that historian Keith Sorrenson (Ngāti Pūkenga) died recently. He played a significant role in promoting understanding of Aotearoa NZ history, including a long period of service as a member of the Waitangi Tribunal in later life.

www.auckland.ac.nz/en/news/2025...

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Vincent O'Malley @vomalley.bsky.social · Sep 1

There's quite a lot here that resonates with the anti-research attitude of our government, including the cuts to blue skies Marsden Fund research.

www.nytimes.com/2025/08/31/s...

Historians See Autocratic Playbook in Trump’s Attacks on Science

www.nytimes.com

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Vincent O'Malley @vomalley.bsky.social · Aug 29

Here's a little story from VUW on receiving a distinguished alumni award.

www.wgtn.ac.nz/news/2025/08...

The Storyteller—Vincent O’Malley’s mission to illuminate Aotearoa’s past | News | Te Herenga Waka—Victoria University of Wellington

2025 Distinguished Alumni Award winner Dr Vincent O’Malley’s passion for history began in an Ōtautahi Christchurch classroom where, ironically, Aotearoa New Zealand was missing from the syllabus.

www.wgtn.ac.nz

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Vincent O'Malley @vomalley.bsky.social · Aug 28

An interview I did with Te Upoko o te Ika radio yesterday.

xn--wharekrero-v3b.nz/p.OMg

https://wharekōrero.nz/p.OMg

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Vincent O'Malley @vomalley.bsky.social · Aug 23

"There aren’t separate words for famine and starvation in Irish: an gorta covers both. To the English-speakers shaping colonial policy, it was important to have one word implying intent and another evading it."

www.lrb.co.uk/blog/2025/au...

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Vincent O'Malley @vomalley.bsky.social · Aug 17

Real countries need to keep learning about their history – James Belich

www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/real-coun...

Real countries need to keep learning about their history – James Belich

OPINION: Marsden Fund cuts saved $14 million, endangering history projects.

www.nzherald.co.nz

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Vincent O'Malley @vomalley.bsky.social · Aug 16

Interesting question. In Monty Soutar's novels he draws on real events but often changes personal and place names, lightly coded, I think he describes it as. That might be one way of approaching it.

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Vincent O'Malley @vomalley.bsky.social · Aug 15

If you put $6.7 million extra into the Public Lending Right over four years it would be something like a 70% increase in payments for authors. That is how pathetic our current funding regime is.

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Vincent O'Malley @vomalley.bsky.social · Aug 15

Just imagining for a moment what $671 million literally spent on nothing could do for...I don't know...arts, culture and heritage. Or even a tenth of that, or 1 per cent of it actually.

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Vincent O'Malley @vomalley.bsky.social · Aug 15

Pleased to say a new edition of my 2012 book 'The Meeting Place: Māori and Pākehā Encounters, 1642-1840' will be published in October after being out of print for awhile.

buttondown.com/unsettling/a...

The Meeting Place: Māori and Pākehā Encounters, 1642-1840 – New Edition

I’m pleased to say that later this year Bridget Williams Books will be publishing a new edition of The Meeting Place: Māori and Pākehā Encounters, 1642-1840,...

buttondown.com

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Vincent O'Malley @vomalley.bsky.social · Aug 14

I should learn how to do the Wordpress integration thing. Would like to customise my page but not confident with HTML/CSS stuff.

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Vincent O'Malley @vomalley.bsky.social · Aug 14

For anyone looking to join the exodus from Substack, I'm on Buttondown. It has a simple pricing structure and is easy to use without too much technical knowledge, focusing more on the newsletters rather than website. But I've never had a Substack so can't compare them

buttondown.com/refer/unsett...

Buttondown

Buttondown is the last email platform you'll migrate to. We're focused on your success, not on bleeding you dry.

buttondown.com

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Vincent O'Malley @vomalley.bsky.social · Aug 10

Our history is on life support. Don't pull the plug. newsroom.co.nz/2025/08/10/o...

Our history is on life support. Don't pull the plug.

Opinion from Victoria University: How can we make sense of the past – and the present – while the world is so volatile if knowledge of our history is destroyed?

newsroom.co.nz

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