Whai Ngata

Whai Ngata worked in Māori broadcasting at Television New Zealand for 25 years, a period when the quantity of Māori broadcasting underwent a major expansion. Starting as a reporter, he rose to become TVNZ's general manager of Māori Programming, a post he held from 1994 until retiring in 2008. Ngata was named an Officer of the Order of New Zealand Merit in 2007. He passed away on 3 April 2016.

Much of the revitalisation of Māori language and culture and its improved standing in Pākehā New Zealand has been the direct result of a handful of skilled, dedicated and passionate people like Whai. TVNZ Chief Executive Rick Ellis in The NZ Herald, 21 June 2008