''Counterspin Media'' is a

far-right Far-right politics, often termed right-wing extremism, encompasses a range of ideologies that are marked by ultraconservatism, authoritarianism, ultranationalism, and nativism. This political spectrum situates itself on the far end of the ...

anti-vaccine Anti-vaccine activism, which collectively constitutes the "anti-vax" movement, is a set of organized activities expressing opposition to vaccination, and these Social networking, collaborating networks have often sought to increase vaccine h ...

, and

conspiracy theorist A conspiracy theory is an explanation for an event or situation that asserts the existence of a conspiracy (generally by powerful sinister groups, often political in motivation), when other explanations are more probable.Additional sources: * ...

New Zealand online media platform that was founded in May 2021. ''Counterspin Media'' has opposed the New Zealand Government's response to the COVID-19 pandemic including COVID-19 vaccination policies. In early 2022, the group played a leading role in the

2022 Wellington protest The 2022 Wellington protest was an anti- mandate and anti-lockdown occupation of the grounds of Parliament House and Molesworth Street in Central Wellington during the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic. The occupation springboarded off the New Z ...

Newsroom A newsroom is the central place where journalists—reporters, editing, editors, and Television producer, producers, associate producers, news anchors, news designers, photojournalists, videojournalists, associate editor, residence editor, visu ...

journalist Marc Daalder has described ''Counterspin Media'' as "one of the largest platforms for conspiracy theories and far-right ideology in New Zealand", while

Stuff Stuff, stuffed, and stuffing may refer to: *Physical matter *General, unspecific things, or entities Arts, media, and entertainment Books *''Stuff'' (1997), a novel by Joseph Connolly *''Stuff'' (2005), a book by Jeremy Strong Fictional c ...

journalist Charlie Mitchell has described it as New Zealand's equivalent of the US website '' InfoWars''. In August 2022, ''Counterspin Media's'' founders, Kelvyn Alp and Hannah Alp, were arrested and charged by the New Zealand Police for allegedly distributing objectionable material, shortly after Alp was banned from

Instagram Instagram is an American photo sharing, photo and Short-form content, short-form video sharing social networking service owned by Meta Platforms. It allows users to upload media that can be edited with Social media camera filter, filters, be ...

for encouraging violence. They were subsequently arraigned and brought to Christchurch Central Court, during which supporters gathered outside and Alp and Spierer refused to appear in the dock. They appeared at court again that December with no visible supporters outside.

Content and coverage

''Counterspin Media'' has described itself as an "apolitical platform" promoting individual rights and freedoms. They oppose so-called globalist influences and agendas. The platform also supports the

New Federal State of China The New Federal State of China (NFSC; zh, t=新中國聯邦, s=新中国联邦) is a political movement or political lobby, lobby group created by Guo Wengui and Steve Bannon, with the stated aim of coup d'etat, overthrowing the Chinese Comm ...

. ''Counterspin'' claims to focus on stories that the

mainstream Mainstream may refer to: Film * ''Mainstream'' (film), a 2020 American film Literature * ''Mainstream'' (fanzine), a science fiction fanzine * Mainstream Publishing, a Scottish publisher * ''Mainstream'', a 1943 book by Hamilton Basso * ...

have allegedly ignored, fabricated, and misrepresented. It is listed on the

New Zealand Companies Office The New Zealand Companies Office (a service of the New Zealand Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment) is a government agency that provides Business license, business registry services in relation to Corporation, corporate entities, per ...

's website as an Internet publishing and broadcasting company based in Auckland's

Favona Favona is a mostly industry-dominated suburb of Auckland, New Zealand, and is part of the Māngere area. The suburb is in the Manukau ward, one of the thirteen administrative divisions of Auckland city, and is under governance of the Auckland ...

suburb. ''Counterspin''s hosts have included founder

Kelvyn Alp Kelvyn Glen Alp (born 27 March 1971) is a New Zealand far-right Far-right politics, often termed right-wing extremism, encompasses a range of ideologies that are marked by ultraconservatism, authoritarianism, ultranationalism, and nat ...

, a

activist who advocated armed resistance against the New Zealand Government during the 2000s, and former

Green Party A green party is a formally organized political party based on the principles of green politics, such as environmentalism and social justice. Green party platforms typically embrace Social democracy, social democratic economic policies and fo ...

activist Hannah Spierer. The two hosted the platform's twice weekly streams. Notable guests have included the New Zealand Doctors Speak Out With Science (NZDSOS), former

TVNZ Television New Zealand (, "Te Reo Tātaki" meaning "The Leading Voice"), more commonly referred to as TVNZ, is a New Zealand state-owned media company and Crown entity. The company operates a television network, streaming service, and news se ...

broadcaster Liz Gunn, and lawyer Sue Grey. While ''Counterspin Media'' has been banned from most mainstream social media platforms, it maintains a strong following on its blog and on apps popular with conspiracy theorists. According to

journalist Glenn McConnell, ''Counterspin'' is one of the most influential alternative media outlets. Their content has disputed the existence of the

SARS-CoV-2 Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS‑CoV‑2) is a strain of coronavirus that causes COVID-19, the respiratory illness responsible for the COVID-19 pandemic. The virus previously had the Novel coronavirus, provisional nam ...

virus, accused the Government of controlling the mainstream media, and opposed

COVID-19 vaccines A COVID19 vaccine is a vaccine intended to provide acquired immunity against severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), the virus that causes coronavirus disease 2019 ( COVID19). Knowledge about the structure and func ...

on the grounds of alleged genocide and adverse reactions.

History

''Counterspin Media'' was established by far-right activist Kelvyn Alp as an Internet publishing and broadcasting company in May 2021. During its launch, the platform was hosted by

GTV Media Group GTV Media Group, Inc. is a media company formed in April 2020 by Steve Bannon and Guo Wengui. The company operates GTV, a Chinese media platform. Background Prior to forming GTV, Steve Bannon served as an executive of Breitbart News and an ad ...

, an online television channel founded by former

Counselor to the President Counselor to the President is a title used by high-ranking political advisors to the president of the United States and senior members of the White House Office. The current officeholders are Alina Habba and Peter Navarro. The position should no ...

Steve Bannon Stephen Kevin Bannon (born November 27, 1953) is an American media executive, political strategist, and former investment banker. He served as the White House's chief strategist for the first seven months of president Donald Trump's first ...

COVID-19 pandemic and Wellington protest

In September 2021, ''Counterspin Media'' promoted the activities of the Agricultural Action Group (AAG), which is led by former Advance New Zealand candidates Robert Wilson, Fred Roberts and Heather Meri Pennycook. The AAG has advocated

climate change denial Climate change denial (also global warming denial) is a form of science denial characterized by rejecting, refusing to acknowledge, disputing, or fighting the scientific consensus on climate change. Those promoting denial commonly use rhetor ...

and conspiracy theories relating to

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. In January 2020, the disease spread worldwide, resulting in the COVID-19 pandemic. The symptoms of COVID‑19 can vary but often include fever ...

, vaccination, and the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...

Agenda 21 Agenda 21 is a non-binding action plan of the United Nations with regard to sustainable development. It is a product of the Earth Summit (UN Conference on Environment and Development) held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, in 1992. It is an action ag ...

. In early November 2021, ''Counterspin Media'' correspondent Shane Chafin disrupted a press conference by

New Zealand Prime Minister The prime minister of New Zealand () is the head of government of New Zealand. The prime minister, Christopher Luxon, leader of the New Zealand National Party, took office on 27 November 2023. The prime minister (informally abbreviated to ...

Jacinda Ardern Dame Jacinda Kate Laurell Ardern ( ; born 26 July 1980) is a New Zealand politician and activist who was the 40th prime minister of New Zealand and Leader of the New Zealand Labour Party, leader of the Labour Party from 2017 to 2023. She was ...

in the

Northland Region Northland (), officially the Northland Region, is the northernmost of New Zealand's 16 regions of New Zealand, local government regions. New Zealanders sometimes refer to it as the Winterless North because of its mild climate all throughout t ...

, questioning the effectiveness of COVID-19 vaccines and accusing Ardern of lying to the public about the death of a vaccinated individual. In response, Ardern suspended the press conference. ''Counterspin'' also participated in a large anti-vaccine mandate protest and occupation outside the

New Zealand Parliament The New Zealand Parliament () is the unicameral legislature of New Zealand, consisting of the Monarchy of New Zealand, Sovereign and the New Zealand House of Representatives. The King is usually represented by his Governor-General of New Zeal ...

in February and early March 2022. While other protest groups including

Brian Tamaki Brian Raymond Tamaki (born 2 February 1958) is a New Zealand Christian fundamentalist religious leader, and politician. He is the leader of Destiny Church, a Pentecostal Christian organisation which advocates strict adherence to fundamentalis ...

's The Freedoms & Rights Coalition (TFRC) wanted to focus on the repeal of vaccine mandates, COVID-19-related legislation and the reinstatement of anti-vaccination doctors, ''Counterspin'' viewed the protest as the start of war and called for the arrest of politicians advocating

COVID-19 vaccination A COVID19 vaccine is a vaccine intended to provide acquired immunity against severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), the virus that causes coronavirus disease 2019 ( COVID19). Knowledge about the structure and func ...

. Following a power struggle, ''Counterspin'' took control of the anti-vaccine occupation from the TFRC. Adopting a more confrontational stance, they urged protesters to resist Police attempts to evict them in early February 2022 and advocated storming Parliament to arrest MPs. ''Counterspin Media'' also used their platform to broadcast live-footage of the protest for 12 hours and shared their content through their

Telegram Telegraphy is the long-distance transmission of messages where the sender uses symbolic codes, known to the recipient, rather than a physical exchange of an object bearing the message. Thus flag semaphore is a method of telegraphy, whereas pi ...

account. On 15 August 2022, Counterspin Media hosts Alp and Spierer featured in

's ''Circuit'' documentary ''Fire and Fury'', which examined various anti-vaccination and far right figures and groups involved in the 2022 Wellington protest. The documentary's producers including journalist Paula Penfold did not interview Alp and Spierer but instead used their videos, social media posts, and media coverage relating to their activities. In response, broadcaster

Sean Plunket Oliver Sean Plunket (known professionally as Sean Plunket) is a New Zealand broadcast journalist. Plunket has worked for several New Zealand broadcast media companies and stations including Radio Windy, Independent Radio News (New Zealand), Ind ...

hosted Alp on his online radio station ''The Platform'' to share his side of the story in response to the documentary.

Let's Not Forget campaign

In early June 2022, ''Counterspin'' organised a national tour called "Let's Not Forget" which toured at least 21 towns and cities including

Dunedin Dunedin ( ; ) is the second-most populous city in the South Island of New Zealand (after Christchurch), and the principal city of the Otago region. Its name comes from ("fort of Edin"), the Scottish Gaelic name for Edinburgh, the capital of S ...

. During the tour, the group hosted talks promoting COVID-19 conspiracy theories, the

Great Replacement The Great Replacement (), also known as replacement theory or great replacement theory, is a debunked white nationalist far-right conspiracy theoryPT71. espoused by French author Renaud Camus. The original theory states that, with the complicit ...

, and the "common law" movement. The

University of Otago The University of Otago () is a public university, public research university, research collegiate university based in Dunedin, Otago, New Zealand. Founded in 1869, Otago is New Zealand's oldest university and one of the oldest universities in ...

's student magazine ''

Critic Te Ārohi ''Critic Te Ārohi'' is the official magazine of the Otago University Students' Association (OUSA) of the University of Otago. It is freely available around both the University's campus and selected sites in Dunedin city weekly during term time ...

'' reported that two Dunedin venues including the

South Dunedin South Dunedin is a major inner city suburb of the New Zealand city of Dunedin. It is located, as its name suggests, to the south of the city centre, on part of a large plain known simply as "The Flat". The suburb is a mix of industrial, retai ...

Community Hall and First Church of Otago had declined the use of their premises to Counterspin speakers. Counterspin subsequently hosted at Henley Community Centre, which lay 32 km outside of South Dunedin.

2022 local body elections

In June 2022, ''Counterspin Media'' filmed an event in

Bluff Bluff or The Bluff may refer to: Places Australia * Bluff, Queensland, Australia, a town * The Bluff, Queensland (Ipswich), a rural locality in the city of Ipswich * The Bluff, Queensland (Toowoomba Region), a rural locality * Bluff River (New ...

featuring

Voices for Freedom TJB 2021 Limited, trading as Voices for Freedom (VFF), is an anti-vaccine advocacy group in New Zealand that formed in December 2020 to oppose the New Zealand Government's COVID-19 mitigation policies and vaccination rollout. The organisation ...

activists Jaspreet Boparai and Gill Booth, who ran as candidates for the

Southland District Council Southland District Council () is the territorial authority for the Southland District of New Zealand. The council is led by the mayor of Southland, who is currently . There are also 12 ward councillors. Composition Councillors * Mayor: * Ma ...

and the Teviot Valley Community Board during the

2022 New Zealand local elections The 2022 New Zealand local elections () were Local elections in New Zealand, triennial elections held in New Zealand from 16 September until noon 8 October via postal vote. Election schedule Key dates relating to the local elections were as ...

Kellie-Jay Keen-Minshull's New Zealand tour

Members of ''Counterspin Media'' attended controversial

anti-transgender Transphobia consists of negative attitudes, feelings, or actions towards transgender or transsexual people, or transness in general. Transphobia can include fear, aversion, hatred, violence or anger towards people who do not conform to social ...

activist

Kellie-Jay Keen-Minshull Kellie-Jay Nyishie Keen-Minshull ( Keen; born June 1974), also known as Posie Parker, is a British anti-transgender and gender-critical activist. She is the leader of the political party Party of Women. She describes herself as a woman's ...

Auckland Auckland ( ; ) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. It has an urban population of about It is located in the greater Auckland Region, the area governed by Auckland Council, which includes outlying rural areas and ...

speaking event on 25 March 2023, which was disrupted by rainbow counter-demonstrators. Following the Auckland event, Spierer confronted

co-leader

Marama Davidson Marama Mere-Ana Davidson (née Paratene; born 29 December 1973) is a New Zealand politician who entered the New Zealand Parliament in 2015 as a list MP (member of Parliament) representing the Green Party of Aotearoa New Zealand, of which she be ...

, who had attended the event to support counter-demonstrators. During the altercation, Davidson stated that "I am a prevention violence minister, and I know who causes violence in the world. It is white cis men, that is white cis men who cause violence in the world". Davidson's remarks attracted significant domestic media attention as well as criticism from

ACT Party ACT New Zealand (; ), also known as the ACT Party or simply ACT, is a right-wing, classical liberal, right-libertarian, and conservative political party in New Zealand. It is currently led by David Seymour, and is in coalition with the Nationa ...

leader

David Seymour David Breen Seymour (born 24 June 1983) is a New Zealand politician who has served as the 21st deputy prime minister of New Zealand since 2025 and as the 1st minister for regulation since 2023. A member of the ACT Party, he has served as its ...

National Party National Party or Nationalist Party may refer to: Active parties * National Party of Australia, commonly known as ''The Nationals'' * Bangladesh: ** Bangladesh Nationalist Party ** Jatiya Party (Ershad) a.k.a. ''National Party (Ershad)'' * Californ ...

leader

Christopher Luxon Christopher Mark Luxon (; born 19 July 1970) is a New Zealand politician and former business executive who has served as the 42nd prime minister of New Zealand since 2023 and as leader of the National Party since 2021. He previously served ...

, and

New Zealand First New Zealand First (), commonly abbreviated to NZ First or NZF, is a political party in New Zealand, founded and led by Winston Peters, who has served three times as Deputy Prime Minister of New Zealand, deputy prime minister. The party has form ...

leader

Winston Peters Winston Raymond Peters (born 11 April 1945) is a New Zealand politician. He has led the political party New Zealand First since he founded it in 1993, and since November 2023 has served as the 25th Minister of Foreign Affairs (New Zealand), ...

. Davidson had made the comment after she had been hit by a passing motorcyclist who was part of a support group from Pastor

's Destiny Church.

Legal problems

In late August 2022, ''Counterspin'' founder Alp and co-host Spierer were arrested in

Christchurch Christchurch (; ) is the largest city in the South Island and the List of cities in New Zealand, second-largest city by urban area population in New Zealand. Christchurch has an urban population of , and a metropolitan population of over hal ...

on charges of distributing an objectionable publication, and for failing to allow Police to search their computer. The pair had allegedly distributed footage of the 2019

Christchurch mosque shootings Two consecutive mass shootings took place in Christchurch, New Zealand, on 15 March 2019. They were committed by a single perpetrator during Friday prayer, first at the Al Noor Mosque in Riccarton, at 1:40p.m. and almost immediately afterwards ...

. Alp and Spierer were subsequently bailed and ordered to appear at the Christchurch District Court on 30 August. During the hearing on 31 August, the pair refused to enter the dock and instead read prepared statements from the lawyer's bench. After ignoring Judge Large's repeated instructions to stand in the dock, Alp and Spierer were forcibly removed by security personnel and remanded on bail for three weeks. 60 protesters supporting Counterspin Media and a smaller group of counter-demonstrators demonstrated outside the Christchurch District Court. The pair subsequently reappeared at the Christchurch District Court in December 2022. Separately, in October 2024, the Tauranga District Court found

Richard Sivell Richard Trevor Sivell is a New Zealand conspiracy theorist and "sovereign citizen" who was convicted of threatening to kill then-Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern in 2021 and 2022. He spent 20 months evading police before his 2024 trial and also fail ...

guilty of threatening to kill

, who was Prime Minister when Sivell's incriminating comments were published on Counterspin's social media channels in 2020 and 2021. Audio recordings from Counterspin were used as evidence in the trial. Researchers from

The Disinformation Project The Disinformation Project was a research group studying the effects of disinformation in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic in New Zealand. The research group was established in 2020 to combat disinformation during the COVID-19 pandemic but ...

believed that Sivell had fallen out with Kelvyn Alp in 2023.

Notes and references

External links

* {{COVID-19 pandemic in New Zealand 2021 establishments in New Zealand Anti-gender movement Climate change denial Conspiracist websites Far-right politics in New Zealand Internet properties established in 2021 Mass media companies of New Zealand New Zealand news websites New Zealand political websites