Speaking My Language Te Kōrero i Tōku Reo

A story of reconnection to te ao Maori from the New Zealand journalist and news presenter

Author: Mike McRoberts

Speaking My Language Te Kōrero i Tōku Reo

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Pre order release date
25th August 2025

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PRODUCT INFORMATION

Description

Well-known journalist and presenter Mike McRoberts opens up about his experiences of reconnection to te ao Māori and learning te reo, and encourages others to do the same.

For much of his life, Mike McRoberts felt burdened by not knowing his own language - te reo Māori. Growing up at a time when te reo was scarcely spoken in daily conversations, and within a mixed-race family with little connection to Māoritanga, his experience mirrored that of many other New Zealanders of his generation.

In later years, as a journalist and presenter of Newshub's six o'clock news, his confident television persona masked the anxiety he felt greeting viewers with the simple phrase, 'Kia ora, good evening'. Not being comfortable speaking his language was a source of shame - a shame that ironically kept him from starting his te reo journey sooner.

In Speaking My Language / Te Kōrero i Tōku Reo Mike shares his story of that journey to speak te reo Māori and reclaim his identity. His book is an invitation for all New Zealanders to take the first step to understand why speaking our Māori language and treasuring our culture matters.

About the Author

Mike McRoberts (Ngati Kahungunu ki te Wairoa) is one of New Zealand's most respected journalists and broadcasters, with an award-winning career spanning four decades. After anchoring Newshub's 6pm bulletin for 20 years and reporting from conflict zones and natural disasters worldwide, Mike embarked on a deeply personal journey into Te Reo Maori and Te Ao Maori - captured in his acclaimed documentary, Kia Ora, Good Evening. Mike is now Te Ao Maori Editor at the National Business Review (NBR).