A witness to history, a voice for the South: The Press at 165

Monday, 25 May 2026

OPINION: Today marks a milestone that belongs as much to our readers, as it does to our newsroom.

On May 25, 1861, James FitzGerald published the very first edition of The Press from a small cottage on Montreal St. Today, we stand proud as the oldest surviving newspaper in the South Island.

For 165 years, The Press has recorded the defining moments of global history: two world wars, the Great Depression, the historic reign of Queen Elizabeth II, and the global shock of 9/11.

A man reads The Press’s coverage of the Commonwealth Games in 1974.

But our deepest purpose has always been closer to home.

When the 2010 and 2011 Canterbury earthquakes struck, The Press covered the personal tragedies, the loss of lives and homes, and continued to cover the years of insurance challenges and political debates, charting the gradual rebuild of our city.

In March 2019, our reporters were the first on the scene during our city’s darkest day when a terrorist attacked two mosques, killing 51 worshippers.

In 2020, when Covid19 locked us in our homes, we set up a virtual newsroom, coordinating news coverage on twice-daily video calls. We wore masks and socially distanced so we could continue to go into our communities and tell the stories of lockdown.

Judy McKenzie waves from her living room to Paul Christensen in Hoon Hay during the Covid lockdown.

I have worked for The Press since 2003, and am honoured to be editor as it marks this significant anniversary.

The media landscape of 2026 looks vastly different from that of 1861.

Our newsroom, once focused on producing a weekly broadsheet, is now delivering stories, photos and videos throughout the day on our dedicated subscriber website. It carries the journalism of The Press, plus stories from across the South Island thanks to the Nelson Mail, Marlborough Express, The Timaru Herald and The Southland Times and also those of North Island titles, including The Post and Sunday Star Times.

Difficult economic conditions over the years, as advertising has migrated online, and then offshore, have forced us to make tough decisions from dropping the shipping news to the daily weather page.

Despite the challenges, The Press has been able to produce award-winning podcasts including the globally successful Black Hands, about the Bain family murders, and White Silence, examining the Erebus disaster.

New AI tools have allowed us to probe massive data sets, allowing investigations such as Crash Nation, examining 25 years of road crashes, and Who Owns Christchurch, which offered insights into property ownership.

The Press Power List looked at the 50 most significant figures across the Mainland in 2026.

Rolling news coupled with in-depth investigations has helped drive phenomenal growth for our website thepress.co.nz since it launched in 2023. It now has a monthly audience of nearly 400,000 visitors, including many thousands of paying subscribers.

What has not changed in 165 years is the purpose of The Press journalism: to tell the stories of life in Christchurch and beyond. While national media outlets focus increasingly on the cities of Auckland and Wellington, The Press is focused on stories about and for the people of Te Waipounamu, the South Island.

The Press also supports journalism which has an impact; fundraising campaigns such as Buy the Hill, to support the Rod Donald Trust to buy 500ha of land overlooking Lyttelton Harbour and Support the Court to help in The Court Theatre’s final fundraising push for its modern city centre venue.

It has told the stories of the victims of Christchurch’s notorious Mama Hooch rapists, and led debate over transport funding with our project Are We There Yet? and considered who wields power in the South Island.

Today, as we celebrate 165 years, we remain rooted in the journalism that matters to the South Island, powered by the support of our subscribers and advertisers.

Thank you for inviting us into your homes, your conversations, and your lives.