Richard Harman: veteran political reporter and producer...

Richard Harman is a seasoned journalist and television producer who began his career in newspapers, before joining state television in the 1970s. As a political reporter on Eyewitness and later Eyewitness News, he covered the 1984 general election, as well as the Springbok Tour and the Rainbow Warrior bombing. In 1999 Harman set up production company Front Page, which launched current affairs shows Agenda and The Nation. 

In this ScreenTalk, Harman talks about:

• Starting out with the news service for the ‘upstart’ TV2 
• Working with the who’s who of current affairs on Eyewitness
• Being nervous interviewing formidable ex PM Robert Muldoon
• Introducing daily political coverage on Eyewitness News
• The palpable difference between politicians during the 1984 General Election
• Covering a fascinating time in politics with Frontline special Five Days in July
• Being surprised by the ordinary in the documentary When the Landlord Comes to Call
• The challenge of filming the documentary The Boy from Island Bay
• How Agenda legitimised TV political discussion on weekend mornings
• The blessing and curse of making The Nation
• Having worked through the best and worst times in television current affairs

This video was first uploaded on 3 November 2014, and is available under this Creative Commons licence. This licence is limited to use of ScreenTalk interview footage only and does not apply to any video content and photographs from films, television, music videos, web series and commercials used in the interview.

Interview, Camera and Editing – Andrew Whiteside