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What the picker changes
  • Top topics digest — the cards score the selected period against the prior 4 weeks.
  • 12-week heatmap & outlet matrix — show the 12 weeks ending at the selected week (they slide back with the picker, they aren’t a fixed snapshot).
  • Per-topic volume / alias drift — same 12-week trailing window, anchored on the selected period.
  • Coverage gap quadrant — scores the selected period against the 12 weeks before it (not including it).
  • Anomaly cards — only show alerts the detector fired during the selected period. Quiet weeks legitimately show none.
What stays as-is
  • Outlet orientation strip / lean colours — context-only, drawn from the last 12 weeks of activity regardless.
  • Co-occurrence graph — recent-activity anchored, not picker-driven.
  • Source & topic profiles — all-time data for the topic; the picker doesn’t affect them.
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Press topic

Local Government Backstop Process

8 articles · 6 aliases in press · peaked week of 2 Aug 2026 · first seen 5 May 2026

The local government backstop process is a government policy that requires councils to submit their own amalgamation or reform plans within a set timeframe or else have a plan imposed on them.

The stories behind this signal

across press, releases & commentary · links open at the source
Commentary #regional: Western Bay Rejects ‘Head Start’ Reform Plan but Remains in Regional Council Shake-Up Waatea News · 6 AugRead ↗ News Wellington councils advance ‘Head Start’ reform plans despite split over mega-merger NZ Herald · 6 AugRead ↗ News Hamilton City Council votes against submitting Head Start proposal RNZ · 6 AugRead ↗

Sample framings

Up to 12 framings across outlets and orientations — each a short phrase the extractor generated to characterise the piece's editorial angle (not a quote). Filter by lean to see how each bloc is spinning the story; click through to read the original.

rnz Centre

government-enforced reform mechanism for non-participating councils

Hamilton City Council votes against submitting Head Start proposal
6 Aug
odt Centre

government-led amalgamation looms

Ashburton a 'piggy in the middle' of local government reforms - councillor
28 May
+6 more framings Create a free account to see them all →

Coverage by outlet lean Methodology →

Stacked weekly counts; colour by editorial lean. Stuff and The Spinoff lean centre-left, NZ Herald centre-right, others centre.

Alias drift

How press outlets have named this topic, week by week.

Free account Create a free account to watch this topic — get alerted when framing shifts, when an MP adopts new language, or when discourse and press diverge. Create a free account Log in

Recent headlines

Most recent 8 articles linking to this topic.

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