New Zealand Parliament Buildings, Wellington, New Zealand.
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Editor’s Note: Here below is a list of the main issues currently under discussion in New Zealand and links to media coverage.

New Zealand Parliament Buildings, Wellington, New Zealand.

Today’s content by Dr Bryce Edwards.

TV3 sale
Tim Batt (Metro): What if THREE’s problem isn’t TVNZ but… MediaWorks?
Alex Braae (Spinoff): Why the MediaWorks crisis is bad news for journalism
Damien Venuto (Herald): Anatomy of a media disaster: How MediaWorks TV ended up on its knees (paywalled)
Mark Jennings (Newsroom): Who can save TV3 now?
Jane Bowron (Stuff): Comedy cuts aren’t funny, but Jesse Mulligan protests too much
David Farrar: One can no more save TV3 than you can save the horse & buggy
Duncan Greive (Spinoff): New Zealand media: a health check
Henry Cooke (Stuff): Saving the media will be a very hard sell for the public. Will Kris Faafoi want to?
Jack Tame (Newstalk ZB): How the digital revolution killed TV3
Heather du Plessis-Allan (Newstalk ZB): Is Three bluffing?
Lew Stoddart (RNZ): We need Three, in spite of its flaws
Paul Thompson (Stuff): Why MediaWorks’ rivals won’t be celebrating its struggle
Martyn Bradbury (Daily Blog): How Faafoi buys MediaWorks TV and saves public broadcasting
Curwen Ares Rolinson (Daily Blog): Blaming TVNZ For Mediaworks’ Woes A Case Of Ideological Shiver Looking For Spine To Shoot Up
Finn Hogan (Newshub): Broadcasting Minister Kris Faafoi isn’t ruling out a Govt purchase of Three
Collette Devlin, Tom Pullar-Strecker and Cherie Sivignon (Stuff): Government remains coy on TV Three sale, TVNZ and the media industry future
1News: Ardern acknowledges ‘uncertainty’ for MediaWorks staff after Three sale announcement
Zane Small (Newshub): David Seymour urges Government to ‘recognise the folly’ of subsidising TVNZ
Guy Williams (Stuff): There were plenty of MediaWorks bosses, but no one could fix Three
Damien Venuto (Herald): MediaWorks boss Michael Anderson angrily rejects claim TV arm will be closed by Xmas
Kim Baker Wilson (1News): MediaWorks chief executive ‘categorically’ says Three won’t be shut by Christmas
Damien Venuto (Herald): MediaWorks sells off TV network: Slim pickings for new owner warns media expert Alex Lawson
Tom Pullar-Strecker & Susan Edmunds (Stuff): Television channel three ‘a good business’ struggling in a skewed market, says MediaWorks boss
Isaac Davison (Herald): End of TV3? Up to 550 jobs hang in balance at Mediaworks as TV business goes for sale with no buyers in sight
Nikki Preston (Herald): MediaWorks sale: Three’s top TV talent could jump ship
RNZ: MediaWorks to sell TV Three: ‘Everyone is in a state of shock’
Herald: MediaWorks employees’ plead on social media for someone to buy company
Siobhan Downes (Stuff): Media expert Bill Ralston warns ‘hundreds’ of journalism jobs could go if no Three buyer found
Herald: Hilary Barry ‘sad and concerned’ at MediaWorks’ sell-off plan
Teresa Ramsey and Glenn McConnell (Stuff): Celebs react: Hilary Barry ‘incredibly sad and concerned’ about Three sale news
Herald: MediaWorks staff reeling at plan to sell off TV network, Auckland headquarters
Kerre McIvor (Herald): MediaWorks’ TV3 told me to lose weight to be the weather girl (paywalled)
Oscar Kightley (Stuff): TV3 was a special place to work, I’d be devastated to see it go
Kylie Klein-Nixon (Stuff): Three forever! These are the shows MediaWorks can’t afford to lose
Herald:The MediaWorks sale: what will happen to The Block, MAFS, Mark Richardson and Patrick Gower?
Glenn McConnell (Stuff): MediaWorks producer says Three needs to look after star staff like Patrick Gower
Duncan Greive (Spinoff): MediaWorks quits television: Three will be sold – or closed
RNZ: TV Three is up for sale, and everyone’s talking
Herald: Cash-strapped MediaWorks to sell off TV business, building
James Croot (Stuff): TV3: Nearly 30 years of entertainment

NZ First
Richard Harman (Politik): NZ First looks forward while Winston looks back
Thomas Coughlan (Stuff): NZ First shows its woke side, but don’t think Winston Peters is going anywhere
Claire Trevett (Herald): Claire Trevett: two days, two sides of NZ First Winston Peters (paywalled)
Sam Sachdeva (Newsroom): Peters light on policy, heavy on punches as National attacks continue
Sam Sachdeva (Newsroom): Young NZ First steps up to be heard
Jo Moir (RNZ): Young New Zealand First made its presence felt at conference
Claire Trevett (Herald): Is Winston Peters’ dance with Labour a danse macabre? (paywalled)
Jo Moir (RNZ): NZ First conference: No policy announcement from Peters
Jo Moir (RNZ): How will NZ First carve out its own path to avoid election defeat?
Jo Moir (RNZ): NZ First would only work with a National that ‘goes back to what it used to be’
Boris Jancic (Herald): Winston Peters lashes out at National but doesn’t rule out working with them
1News: ‘National party with a capital n’ – Winston Peters baits National, declares NZ First is the party of the centre
Newshub: Watch: Deputy Prime Minister Winston Peters’ speech at New Zealand First party conference
Sam Sachdeva (Newsroom): NZ First revs engine on first day of party conference
Boris Jancic (Herald): Winston Peters starts election run-up with scattergun attack, MediaWorks jab
Tova O’Brien (Newshub): Winston Peters admits there’s a ‘succession plan’ for New Zealand First leadership
Tova O’Brien (Newshub): Cantankerous Winston Peters digs deep against National, MediaWorks and gun owners at NZ First conference
Thomas Coughlan (Stuff): Tracey Martin wants to run in Ōhāriu, the first of a wave of NZ First women candidates in Wellington
Tracy Watkins: SST Editorial: Poor Winston Peters? Poor us
Boris Jancic (Herald): ‘Good riddance’: Winston Peters lets loose on MediaWorks
Thomas Coughlan (Stuff): Winston Peters’ message for MediaWorks: ‘Good riddance’
RNZ: Winston Peters lashes out at media
1News: Winston Peters savages Mediaworks’ situation, saying it’s ‘good riddance’ to some staff
Katie Fitzgerald (Newshub): Winston Peters says ‘good riddance’ to Three after sale announcement
Dan Satherley and Lydia Lewis (Newshub): Drug testing company welcomes NZ First’s rethink
Thomas Coughlan (Stuff): Young NZ First gets party to change drug policy
Tova O’Brien (Newshub): New Zealand First to reconsider its policy against drug testing pills at festivals
Jo Moir (RNZ): NZ First to reconsider position on drug testing
Boris Jancic (Herald): NZ First to rethink pill testing at music festivals
1News: NZ First to reconsider stance on pill testing at festivals
Thomas Coughlan (Stuff): NZ First: Being young isn’t a crime, but teens should still do compulsory community service
Herald: Compulsory community service for teens? NZ First members say yes
Jo Moir (RNZ): NZ First conference: 90-day job trials for ex-prisoners among remits
Thomas Coughlan (Stuff): Winston Peters meets frustrated gun lobbyists at New Zealand First conference
Miriam Harris and Dan Satherley (Newshub): Gun owners pin hopes on NZ First
Jo Moir (RNZ): Gun owners force Winston Peters out of NZ First conference
Herald: NZ First greeted by gun-owning protesters at annual conference
Derek Cheng (Herald): Gun owners to dangle prospect of losing votes at NZ First conference
Andrew Gunn (Stuff): ‘… the limelight has a way of craving me’
Paul Little (Herald): Should Cabinet ministers be allowed to play with guns?

Operation Burnham inquiry
Thomas Manch (Stuff): Defence chief says it ‘appears’ three-year-old Fatima killed in SAS-led raid
Boris Jancic (Herald): Burnham bombshell: 3-year-old girl appears to have died, NZDF chief admits
No Right Turn: Bullshitting the Minister
David Fisher (Herald): Opinion: Oversight of our military needed as Wayne Mapp bumbles into the carnage of the Operation Burnham inquiry (paywalled)
1News:‘I didn’t take any action’ – Former Defence Minister under scrutiny as Operation Burnham inquiry wraps up
RNZ: Ex-Minister knew of Operation Burnham report but didn’t pass information on
Newshub: Operation Burnham: Former Defence Minister says it was his decision to keep possible civilian deaths secret

Government
Luke Malpass (Stuff): Ending broken promises now key for Government
Heather du Plessis-Allan (Herald): Jacindamania II is not on the cards (paywalled)
Brent Edwards (NBR): Jacinda Ardern faces her toughest year yet (paywalled)
Dan Satherley (Newshub): ‘Learn to count’: Labour MP Willie Jackson fires shot at media over poll reporting
Steve Braunias (Newsroom): Floating in a liberal bubble about Jacinda
Michelle Duff (Stuff): Can Jacinda Ardern’s star dust weather domestic storms?
Michelle Duff (Stuff): What Jacinda and Clarke teach us about gender roles

Week in politics
Claire Trevett (Herald): Beehive Diaries: PM Jacinda Ardern’s brain fade, National’s ad backdown (paywalled)
Peter Wilson (RNZ): Week in politics: Drop in polls bad news for Labour
Brent Edwards (NBR): Political jostling begins ahead of next year’s election (paywalled)
Steve Braunias (Herald): The Secret Diary of All Blacks v Ireland (paywalled)

Parliament
Martyn Bradbury (Daily Blog): 12 months till the NZ election – what does the political landscape look like?
Derek Cheng (Herald): Simon Bridges bows to Speaker’s ruling and pulls National’s videos
Henry Cooke (Stuff): National back down on Parliament TV ads
RNZ: National agrees to take down parliamentary TV videos
Newshub: National leader Simon Bridges agrees to remove videos using Parliament TV footage
Phil Smith (RNZ): The House: Taking shots at MPs: the rules for filming the House
Warwick Rasmussen (Stuff): Winston Peters breaks into top 10 list of longest-serving MPs in New Zealand’s history
Mike Houlahan (ODT): Members’ worthwhile Bills left to languish
Morgan Godfery (E-Tangata): ‘They travel with shadows’

National Party
Dita De Boni (NBR): Deodorant king turned airline boss turned MP-in-waiting (paywalled)
Rod Oram (Newsroom): National has its own climate crisis
Fiona Connor (Newshub): National MP Mark Mitchell opens up about the toll of mental health on the frontline and within family

Police
Mark Hanna (RNZ): More cops with guns means more people shot by police
Tim McKinnel (RNZ): Do we need armed police in special vehicles patrolling communities?
Rob Rattenbury (Whanganui Chronicle): I was shot at twice, it’s time we armed our police officers
Mike Hosking (Newstalk ZB): It’s a sad reality but Kiwi cops need to be armed
John Weeks (Stuff): Police to trial new armed unit after terror attack, ongoing meth and organised crime risk
Anna Whyte (1News): Specialist police trial criticised as treating areas ‘like a warzone’
RNZ: Armed police in special vehicles to patrol parts of the country
Reuters: New Zealand police to start armed patrols after Christchurch massacre
Ben Strang (RNZ): Police bullying claims: AOS member ‘feared’ for his safety during training

Local government – Wellington region
Amber-Leigh Woolf and Tom Hunt (Dominion Post): Foster tests new councillors’ appetite for ‘asset recycling’ Wellington Airport shares
Tom Hunt (Dominion Post): Justin Lester says recount in Wellington in mayoralty race ‘likely’
Felix Desmarais, Katarina Williams and Amber-Leigh Woolf (Dominion Post): 62 vote defeat has ousted Wellington mayor Justin Lester considering a recount
Melissa Nightingale (Herald): Wellington Mayor Andy Foster wins by just 62 votes
James Fyfe (Newshub): Justin Lester hints there could be a recount in Wellington City mayoralty race
Newshub: Wellington’s Mayor-elect Andy Foster doesn’t want a recount
RNZ: Wellington mayoralty: Andy Foster’s winning margin reduced in final count
Julie Iles (NBR): New mayor ‘suspicious’ of Let’s Get Wellington Moving business case (paywalled)
Tom Hunt (Dominion Post): Bring back sleeper train to Auckland, says councillor Thomas Nash
Mandy Te (Dominion Post): First week on the job: How are Wellington City Council’s youngest councillors doing?
Harry Lock (RNZ): Leaked email skewed election results, says outgoing Porirua mayor
Tema Hemi (Māori TV): Mike Tana calls for formal investigation into council elections

Local government
Newshub: The Hui: Meet the new Māori you elected to council this year
ODT Editorial: Councils are not there yet
Jono Galuszka (Manawatū Standard): Unsuccessful candidate says ‘root and branch’ change needed
Nicholas Boyack (Stuff): ‘Unreliable’ postal service a turn-off to voters, say election companies
Laura O’Connell Rapira (Spinoff): Postal voting is a flimsy antique. The future is social voting
—————
Steve Kilgallon (Stuff): Why is Auckland Council so eager to sell prime waterfront real estate to a millionaire developer?
Todd Niall (Stuff): Auckland’s new-look council: there’s a lot at stake
Nick Truebridge (Stuff): Auckland Council could get greater oversight of AT, other CCOs as review promised by Christmas
Todd Niall (Stuff): Auckland mayor Phil Goff’s top advisor David Wood has gone
Bernard Orsman (Herald): Mike Lee’s career in local politics over: final results confirm Pippa Coom has won his seat
James Baker (Stuff): Auckland’s youngest councillor takes path less travelled
Todd Niall (Stuff): Auckland Council development agency CEO Roger Macdonald on unexplained leave
Heta Gardiner (Māori TV): Exclusive interview: whose name was drawn from the box?
Māori TV: Whakatāne election tie to be decided by hat draw
Charlotte Jones (RNZ): Random chance may determine fate of Whakatane councillors
Richard Swainson (Waikato Times): Some in and some out, the Tron election shakes it all about
Shilo Kino (Herald): Local Focus: Race Relations Commissioner supports local Māori push for councillor Andrew Hollis to resign over comments
Gavin Ogden (Herald): Local Focus: From McDonald’s to Rotorua Council with advice from the PM, Fisher’s big day
Anusha Bradley (RNZ): Review into monitoring staff Facebook use to be released to Council on Monday
Marty Sharpe (Stuff): Napier Council was wrong to have declined owners’ application to investigate structural integrity of building
Catherine Groenestein (Stuff): New councillor wins seat on New Plymouth Disrict Council by a three-vote margin
Skara Bohny (Nelson Mail): Nelson mayor wins international fellowship for women leaders
RNZ: New council CEO welcomes chance ‘to reshape a city’
Bruce Munro (ODT): The top job

Terrorism bill, Mark Taylor
Anna Whyte (1News): Terrorism bill could undermine human rights, warns Amnesty International
Dan Satherley and Miriam Harris (Newshub): Arrest warrant for ‘bumbling Jihadi’ proves new terror law not needed – Greens
Stuff: Warrant that would stop the man called the Kiwi jihadi at the border
Martyn Bradbury (Daily Blog): Green Party picks odd ditch to die in

Education
Lizzie Marvelly (Herald): Turn the tables – Use technology to take care of our uni students (paywalled)
Aaron Leaman (Waikato Times): Waikato University student calls for more oversight of halls of residence
David Farrar: Massey confirms it is an enemy of free speech
1News: Lincoln University commits to largest array of solar panels at any NZ university
Simon Collins (Herald): Physical contact rules that led to bans on teachers hugging children may be relaxed
John Gerritsen (RNZ): Donation dilemma for mid-decile schools

Industrial relations, workplace safety
Hamish Rutherford (Herald): Labour’s ‘absolutely fundamental’ promise to unions seems to have been parked (paywalled)
Brent Edwards (NBR): Government wants legislation on fair pay agreements to be enduring (paywalled)
Brent Edwards (NBR): Government to consult again on fair pay agreements (paywalled)
Anne Gibson (Herald): ‘We will fight you for ever and ever’: SkyCity AGM met by unionists with a message
Kaitlin Ruddock (1News): 100 warnings issued to Kiwi benchtop makers working with potentially deadly silica dust

Justice, corrections
1News: Pressure to reinstate prisoner voting rights grows as 1 NEWS poll reveals over 50 per cent public backing
George Block (Stuff): Drones ‘significant threat’ to NZ prisons, but no Corrections policy despite warnings
1News: New Chief District Court Judge takes oath at Whale Rider location
Te Kuru o te Marama Dewes (Māori TV): Whāngārā Marae welcomes home the Chief District Court Judge

Health
RNZ: Thousands of cancer patients missing out on life-saving radiation therapy
Nicole Bremner (1News): Medical professionals concerned their ethical rights may be eroded by health reforms
Emma Russell (Herald): Waikato mum suffering chronic pain told she can either pay $7500 for a scan or go on the waiting list (paywalled)
Brittany Keogh (Stuff): NZ’s high child obesity rate caused by poverty, media and poor education – experts
Pauline Norris and Va’a O Tautai (ODT): Racism leads to poor health
Cate Broughton (RNZ): Genter says surgical mesh injuries down
ODT: New Dunedin hospital build definitely going ahead, bar calamity
Georgia May Gilbertson (Stuff): What New Zealand’s first cancer wellness centre could be like
Naomi Arnold (Stuff): National portrait: Annette Milligan, public health campaigner
Gawen Carr (Spinoff): A view from the sharp end of New Zealand’s suicide problem
Dave Macpherson (Daily Blog): Government’s $100M rebuild of acute mental health facility the last part of the answer, not the first
1News: Better mental health services needed over new facilities, parents of suicide victim Nicky Stevens say
Astrid Austin (Hawkes Bay Today): ‘Really angry’: Six Hawke’s Bay DHB psychologists quit in two-year period (paywalled)
Sophie Trigger (Stuff): Coroners reports can plunge families back into grief long after loss

Measles
Zane Small (Newshub): Julie Anne Genter confirms ‘independent review’ of measles outbreak response
RNZ: Free measles vaccination for babies over six months
RNZ: Other parts of the Pacific increase measles precautions
Jenny Meyer (RNZ): Samoa’s health ministry urges NZ to control measles outbreak
RNZ: Research institute’s name used to spread false information on measles
Bevan Hurley (Stuff): The disgraced anti-vaxx doctor, the supermodel and the measles epidemic

Primary industries
Rachael Kelly (Southland Times): Stricter winter grazing rules hinted at in Government taskforce’s first report
Brent Edwards (NBR): O’Connor ‘outraged’ by farm lobby and Nats’ ‘scaremongering’ on water (paywalled)
Maja Burry (RNZ): M bovis risk sees lambs and goats dominate school pet days again
Maja Burry (RNZ): Chicken virus can be eradicated, MPI says
Herald Editorial: The (perhaps unwittingly) chilling effects of vegan protests (paywalled)

Housing
Laine Moger (Stuff): What it’s really like to be homeless aged 13 in Auckland
James Hollings (Stuff): Book review: Rottenomics lifts the lid on leaky buildings
Ben Leahy (Herald): Grey Lynn homes make three times more money in one year than average city workers (paywalled)
Brenda Harwood (ODT): Accessible rentals prove hard to find
Tracey Roxburgh (ODT): More innovation needed to build houses ‘smarter and cheaper’
Rob Stock (Stuff): Fletcher’s giant home factory not first, not biggest

Transport
Thomas Coughlan (Stuff): No guarantees for light rail after 2020 election
Rahul Bhattarai (Stuff): NZTA turns myth buster in battle to cut speed limits
Claire Dale (Herald): E-scooters are not compatible with age-friendly cities (paywalled)

Banks
Kirsty Johnston (Herald): David who? Disgraced ANZ bank boss David Hisco back in the lap of luxury (paywalled)
Kevin List (Evening Report): State of Play: What’s Happening to Kiwibank and How Many Branches Are Closing?
Gareth Vaughan (Interest): Tackling the too big to fail problem
Nikki Mandow (Newsroom): Of chocolate biscuits and conflicted bank directors

KiwiSaver
Tamsyn Parker (Herald): Building confidence: KiwiSaver – NZ’s growing pool of wealth (paywalled)
Richard Meadows (Stuff): The broken promise of KiwiSaver

Economy
Liam Dann (Herald): Government should ignore calls for panic spending (paywalled)
David Hargreaves (Interest): Time for a little economic magic
Damien Grant (Stuff): When the wheels fall off our boy-racer economy we will not have monetary policy to soften the landing
John Roughan (Herald): Reserve Bank must cop some responsibility for low business confidence (paywalled)

China
Harrison Christian (Stuff): Labour MP Raymond Huo says his party is falling behind on dealings with China
Jenée Tibshraeny (Interest): ANZ, the National Party and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade confirm no involvement with John Key’s meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping

Environment
Kevin Hague (Herald): Freshwater reforms clearly show a better world is possible (paywalled)
Amber-Leigh Woolf (Stuff): Extreme weather linked to greater public trust in science, survey shows
1News: Plummeting numbers puts pause on swimming with Bay of Islands dolphins
Tracey Roxburgh (ODT): ‘Thumbs Up’ signatures climb

Sports broadcasting
Debrin Foxcroft (Stuff): Rugby World Cup: Spark Sport adamant technology is working on its end, despite customer complaints
Colin Peacock (RNZ): Mediawatch: Rugby TV deal creates claims of conflicts
Adrian Seconi (ODT): Making cricket less accessible no way to inspire next generation

Tuia 250
Philip Matthews (Stuff): Tuia 250: monuments, memories and men of action
Herald: Land of the Long White Cloud: Pākehā New Zealanders reflect on their colonial past and future. Episode 1- Cook’s Legacy
Ellen O/Dwyer-Cunliffe (Stuff): Tuia 250 in Mercury Bay: A step ashore and between two worlds
Christine Rovoi (RNZ): Tupaia’s descendants shed new light on Cook’s navigator

Defence
Kate Nicol-Williams (1News): Kiwi Vietnam veterans urged to re-apply for government support
Lana Andelane (Newshub): New gender-neutral guidelines will allow male Navy personnel to wear makeup, false eyelashes

Gay conversion therapy
Brittany Keogh (Stuff): Why the Government is unlikely to ban LGBT ‘conversion therapy’ anytime soon
1News: ‘More work needs to be done’ before gay conversion therapy banned in NZ, report says
Katie Fitzgerald (Newshub): Select committee fails to recommend conversion therapy ban

HART
ODT: Hart showed ‘the power of protest’
Trevor Richards (Newsroom): Turning ugly into transformational

Other
Nita Blake-Persen (RNZ): A poverty ‘crisis’: New figures show demand for food, housing
Phil Pennington (RNZ): Structural engineering review finds system-wide problems and ‘basic mistakes’
Mihingarangi Forbes (Newshub): The Hui: Australia’s treatment of deportees ‘racist’, deportees say
Nikki Macdonald (Stuff): Who should Te Papa choose to lead the national museum?
RNZ: The Detail: Construction sector more confident than surveys reveal
1News: Ngapuhi’s new leader wants investigation into tribe’s finances after Sonny Tau’s resignation
Nicholas Pointon (RNZ): ‘High cost’ parent visa could deter skilled migrants
Max Towle (RNZ): Horse racing shake-up: Selling tracks and outsourcing the TAB
Nathan Smith (NBR): ‘Spiral of silence’ has created a ‘dangerous’ RBNZ governor, think tank says (paywalled)
MIchael Reddell: The Deputy Governor goes to Sydney
Morgan Godfery: Ihumātao: the government problem that won’t go away
Tom Dillane (Herald): Government looking to ‘refocus’ public service to unbuilt South Auckland hub in Manukau
RNZ: Niueans mark 45 years of self-rule
Dubby Henry (Herald): Te Atatū self-defence death: How much force can you use to protect your property?
Martyn van Beynen (Stuff): Keeping New Zealand’s problems in perspective
Dan Satherley (Newshub): Hannah Tamaki shares fake image of Shane Jones shooting a Muslim woman
Dan Satherley (Newshub): Hannah Tamaki’s Vision NZ sets sights on NZ First voters
RNZ: Fatal voyage: accused people smuggler extradited from NZ
Miriam Harris (Newshub): What the Governor-General is up to in Asia this week
Aimee Shaw (Herald): Trade war fears diminish, exporters upbeat about year ahead: report (paywalled)
Alice Webb-Liddall (Spinoff): Around the world in five cannabis markets
Rachel Moore and Damian George (Stuff): Surf life saving clubs face uncertain future on New Zealand’s eroding coastlines
Rob Stock (Stuff): NZ Rugby plans to climb ‘Champions for Change’ league for women decision-makers

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