Salient is the weekly students' magazine of the Victoria University of Wellington Students' Association (VUWSA) at Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand. Salient was established in 1938 and originally published in newspaper format, but is now published as a magazine. Salient's style and editorial position can change from year to year due to changes in editors. However, the magazine has generally taken a left-wing stance.
Organisation and history
Origins The student magazine of Victoria University of Wellington has been published under a number of different titles since the early twentieth century: Spike (1902–1964), Smad (1930–1937), and Salient (1938–present).
Salient was originally published in newspaper format, but is now published as a print magazine and online.
Editor The Salient editor-in-chief is an employee of VUWSA operating under a charter that grants editorial independence. The editor is appointed and employed under a fixed-term contract that covers roughly the beginning to the end of the academic year. Previous involvement with the magazine is not a prerequisite for applicants, although most have had some role at Salient prior to their editorship. At various times in Salient's history, and increasingly since 2011, the editorship has been shared between two people.
Notable past editors include former Prime Minister Geoffrey Palmer, editor of Metro magazine Simon Wilson, independent publisher Roger Steele (NZOM),NZ Order of Merit for Roger Steele https://www.nzherald.co.nz/kapiti-news/news/new-year-honours-publisher-roger-steele-becomes-officer-of-new-zealand-order-of-merit/7B4OYLIXC776HITH7LYZPZSZUY/ Queen's Counsel Hugh Rennie, independent investigative writers such as David HarcourtEveryone wants to be Fuhrer and New Zealand Listener writer Toby Manhire.
Former editors
News Salient news is predominately focused on student issues, the students' association, and the university itself. However, Salient has also reported on national and international items outside of "student" issues. For instance there was significant coverage of the Iraq invasion in 2003.
Previous news writers
Dan Moskovitz, Martha Schenk, Ryan Cleland, Otis Whinney, Ali Cook Dan Moskovitz, Fergus Goodall-Smith, Walter Hamer Zamalis and Darcy Lawrey (2025) Will Irvine and Ethan Rogacion (2024) Zoë Mills and Ethan Manera (2023) Beth Mountford and Azaria Howell (2022) Sophie Boot (2014) Chris McIntyre (2013) Stella Blake-Kelly and Hugo McKinnon (2011) Molly McCarthy (2010) Michael Oliver (2009) Seonah Choi (2008) Laura McQuillan (2007) Nicola Kean (2006) Keith Ng (2004–2005)
Salient is a member of the Aotearoa Student Press Association (ASPA), which has intermittently had a press gallery journalist in the New Zealand House of Representatives.
Design
Salient employs a full-time designer who is responsible for the look of the magazine. Because the designer is typically employed for only a one-year term, the visual aesthetic of the magazine can change significantly from year to year.
Former designers
Comics Salient has been a home to a number of comics and cartoons, and they traditionally have their place on the last page of the magazine. Past comics such as ASCII and Grant Buist's Brunswick have won critical awards, with ASCII winning an Aotearoa Student Press Association (ASPA) award in 2005.ASCIIBrunswick Previous comics have included Being Blind,Being Blind Man, ASCII (originally published in University of Waikato's Nexus magazine), Newtown Ghetto Anger,Newtown Ghetto Anger The Chronicle, The Sando, Uni Life, Super Academic Friends, The Academic Idol Comic, and G33K by Sparx.G33K Walter Hamer Zamalis served as political cartoonist from 2024 until 2025.Salient, 22(88), September 2025, p.3
Website As well as publishing in print, Salient operates a frequently updated website. In 2013, the Salient website was redeveloped, and won the award for best website at the ASPAs. Salient publishes an email newsletter called 'Sincerely Salient', including news round-ups, local events, and feature highlights.
In late 2019, Salient's archives were controversially removed from public view after a website upgrade, resulting in the creation of an independent Salient Archive' website, which restored public access to 9,879 of the hidden articles.
VideoSalient had a video production arm called 'Salient TV', the only department dedicated to video content from any student media publication in New Zealand. Salient TV videos include interviews, comedy sketches, and other miscellaneous content that focuses on student interests. Salient TV videos were primarily found on the magazine's Facebook page. Salient TV disbanded in 2019, to widespread disappointment.
Radio station
Salient FM, known as VBC until 2015, was a non-profit station which operated at Victoria University of Wellington from 2007 to 2019.Wellington City Council, Community Directory, The VBC 88.3FM It took the place of Radio Active as the university's campus-based and student-oriented radio station. It was funded by the university and VUWSA through the budget allocated for Salient, and also had advertisers and sponsors.
In October 2013, VUWSA held a referendum asking whether it should cease funding the station from 2014 after a student moved a motion requesting a referendum at VUWSA's AGM. Out of the 2,105 votes cast on the question, 61 percent favoured continuing to fund the VBC.
As of May 2014, VUWSA President Sonya Clark had been made a trustee of the defunct VBC Trust in order to wind it down, so that VUWSA could take control of the station. The Trust owed IRD about $3,000 in unpaid tax, which Clark said VUWSA intended to pay. The 2014 Salient editors expressed an interest in transforming the VBC into "Salient Radio". In 2015, the station was rebranded Salient FM.
Salient FM had a diverse programme targeted at Victoria University of Wellington students. Genres of alternative, electronic, and hip-hop music were most commonly broadcast. The station also heavily encouraged Wellingtonian and New Zealand musical acts. The station also hosted a number of politics and current affairs focused shows, notably the Young Matt Show and Bandwagon Radio. These programmes discussed important political issues and policies, particularly those most relevant to VUW students.
In December 2019, Salient FM was shut down following a decision from the VUWSA CEO Matthew Tucker. Full reasoning behind the Salient FMs discontinuation was not made public. In response to this, an Official Investigation Act request was filed to investigate if cutting the station was unconstitutional. Salient FM's two editors Jazz Kane and Nav Nair commented "We're pretty confident that it is entirely unconstitutional".
Podcasts After the cessation of Salient FM, Salient created Salient Podcasts.
Views Due to Salients changing editorial position (each editor typically holding the position for a one-year period), views expressed in the magazine have been varying throughout history. In general, Salient has taken a left-wing approach to politics.
Maoism (1964-1981) In this period, many of the editors and contributors to Salient were members of the Wellington Marxist-Leninist Organisation (MILO), a Maoist-aligned group with substantial student membership at the time. Consequently, much of the content published in this period was politically charged and Maoist-leaning. This included a solicitation of funds towards the Viet Cong.
Te Ao Mārama (1973-1974, and 1997-present) Te Ao Mārama is an issue of Salient focused on Māori issues. Young political groups Ngā Tamatoa and the Te Reo Māori Society influenced the first publication of Te Ao Mārama in 1973 during Māori Language Week, under editor Roger Steele in 1973, in an attempt to support te reo Māori on campus. According to Max Nichol, "Steele credits the Te Reo Māori Society with the idea, and Ngā Tamatoa with putting the issue of revitalising te reo on the agenda in the first place." Unfortunately, Steele's editing successors did not continue this mahi to the same degree; "it was not until 1997 that Te Ao Mārama was enshrined in VUWSA's constitution, obliging Salient to produce a Māori language issue annually."
Te Ao Mārama is a tradition that allows a voice to Māori voices and issues within the university community. In 2022, Te Ao Mārama was published for the first time entirely in both English and te reo. This was under editor Janhavi Gosavi, and the issue was guest edited by Areta Pakinga.
Women's rights In the 1980s, Salient began to gave more space to issues of women's rights. Notably in this time, Sally Zwartz became the second women editor in 1984, the only women to edit previously being Shirley Grinlington in 1941, of who it is speculated to "perhaps [have] gained her position due to the dip in the number of male students during World War Two."
Gay and lesbian liberation Salient publishes a LGBTQ+ edition called Queerlient. It was once called Gaylient but the name was canned for unconfirmed reasons.
Notable history
1985 Defamation allegations and sexual harassment policy 1985 editor Jane Hurley faced a legal threat from the university's History Department after she had co-edited the VUWSA Student Handbook, which "provided course critiques so that students could assess for themselves which courses and programmes of study might appeal to them." The handbook noted that a professor in the department was known for "sexual harassment," causing the department to threaten a defamation suit against the editors and demand retraction. In the first issue of Salient in 1985, Hurley attempted to appease the department by writing that the claims of "sexual harassment" may have suggested a higher level of severity, and clarified the misconduct to be "milder" forms of harassment such as "unwanted comments, the innuendo, the disparagement of women simply because they are women."
Hurley's reporting was partly responsible for pushing Victoria University to enforce a sexual harassment policy in 1986, and work to give students support around the issue.
1995 Waghorn affair In 1995, there was controversy surrounding the editor Vic Waghorn, such that a Special General Meeting of VUWSA was called in June to dismiss her from the role. The motion to dismiss Waghorn at the meeting was soundly defeated 250 to 3, but it was not the end of the matter. Personal grievances and accusations she had misappropriated funds led to her being suspended in September by the VUWSA Executive. In response, Waghorn managed to change the cover of the final issue of Salient "to a cartoon depiction of cunnilingus captioned 'suck it hard'". Most of the covers were removed before release however.
The affair led to a change to the VUWSA constitution so that it would be harder to dismiss a Salient editor in the future.
2005 Fee rise leak and court injunction In September 2005, the Vice-Chancellor of Victoria University obtained a court injunction to prevent an issue of Salient from being distributed – thought to be the first time in the magazine's history this has happened. The issue of Salient contained information obtained from leaked University Council documents with details about possible university fee increases of 5 to 10 percent. The controversy made national media, with several items on the television news. The university failed to realise that information was put on to the ASPA newswire, hence the information was published in several other student magazines and on the internet. Distribution of Salient was eventually allowed, four days late after Salient and the university reached an out-of-court settlement. The documents were returned to the university, reportedly with pictures of male genitalia drawn over them.
2006 Listing of Chinese people as a species to be wary of