Minister Michael Wood has lashed out at NZME's talkback station's use of an inorganic collection day photo as the main image on a story about a new Kainga Ora development being built in New Plymouth.
Newstalk ZB host Heather du Plessis-Allan shared a piece on-air and online about the new development, titled 'I don't think they are being judgemental. I think they're being realistic'.
In du Plessis-Allan's piece, she said locals "have very good reason to oppose it and should continue to oppose it and should definitely insist that it's not in my backyard".
"Anyone who supports a Kainga Ora/Housing NZ development in their neighbourhood at the moment is being foolish and naive as long as Kainga Ora/Housing NZ continues to run its no evictions policy," she added.
But it was the image attached to the article that Wood had an issue with, as it showed a street of state housing with piles of rubbish on the front lawn. The photo was actually from Getty and depicted an inorganic collection day in Mt Roskill in 2011.
"I recognise this image. It's a street I know well in the middle of Mt Roskill," Wood tweeted.
"Proud, decent people who now have an image of inorganic collection day being used to create an impression that they are lazy, messy, and anti-social.
"Of course genuinely bad behaviour needs to be managed by the landlord, but this sort of inaccurate scare-mongering is just about stirring nasty class politics and clicks. We'll keep building the houses our families need."
An NZME spokesperson said the file image has been changed to the current housing development.
"We don't have anything further to add relating to Minister Wood's tweet."
