In a time where the world is filled with bad news, people need to be able to read positive news. Additionally, young people are given a pretty bad rap in the media - local news outlet Happy Bay News aims to change both of these things.

Happy Bay News was an idea that sparked during some youth photography workshops around lockdown, and has grown significantly from the initial team of 3 writing articles, to a multi-media platform spanning across the world of print news, digital news and even a podcast, with much more to come in the future including gatherings with Hawke’s Bay’s rangatahi.

Our newest venture, Happy Waves Podcast, is recorded and broadcast weekly on Radio Hawke’s Bay before it becomes available on Spotify later in the week. Our group of local high school students focus on celebrating Hawke’s Bay’s rangatahi and good things that are happening in our community. We chat to local change makers and young people, initiating important conversations about issues that directly affect our youth. Having recently joined the small, close-knit team, I immediately noticed the great dynamic between each person involved with HBN, and particularly the dynamic among those in the broadcast team. We are always keen to get guests in to chat about what’s happening in our local community, particularly among youth, so don’t be afraid to reach out to us if you have something you want to chat to us about!

On that note, we want to spread our happy news far and wide and get even more rangatahi involved. If you like what you hear, are aged between 14-18, and live in Hawke’s Bay, reach out! Our Instagram is @happybaynewshb and our website is www.happybaynews.co.nz. We would love to have you join our team, whether that be through print media and our e-news, Happy Waves, or even through photography and videography.
If you’re passionate about media and our community, you’ll fit right in.