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Bruce Jesson (1944-1999) grew up in Christchurch and earned a law degree at Canterbury University, but was never admitted to the Bar because he refused to swear allegiance to the British queen.
He never trained as a journalist but wrote and edited some of the most original, important and challenging journalism in New Zealand in The Republican, which he published on a hand-to-mouth basis from 1974 to 1995, as a columnist for Metro magazine, and in a series of books including The Fletcher Challenge: Wealth and Power in New Zealand (1980), Behind the Mirror Glass: The Growth of Wealth and Power in New Zealand in the Eighties (1987) and Only Their Purpose is Mad: The Money Men Take Over New Zealand (1999). Some of his collected writings were published posthumously in To Build a Nation, edited by Professor Andrew Sharp, in 2005.
He was elected to the Auckland Regional Council as an Alliance candidate in 1991 and chaired the Auckland Regional Services Trust from 1992 to 1995, keeping key assets such as the Auckland port in public ownership in the face of massive pressure by the National Government of the time to privatise them.
The Bruce Jesson Foundation was incorporated in 2001 “to promote activities designed to generate critical, informed, analytical and creative contributions to political debate in New Zealand and about New Zealand”. Its first chair was former Prime Minister David Lange.
It holds an annual lecture at Auckland University on current issues in the media and society, and since 2004 it has given an annual award to advance-fund “a work of critical, informed, analytical and creative journalism or writing which will contribute to public debate in New Zealand on an important issue or issues”.
Previous awards have gone to: Nicky Hager (2004); Tina McIvor (2004); Jon Stephenson (2005); Amie Richardson (2006); Peter Malcouronne (2007); Keith Mexsom (2008); Dr Chris Harris (2010); Max Rashbrooke (2011 and 2014); Rebecca Macfie (2012); Alister Barry (2013); Errol Wright and Abi King-Jones (2015); Catriona MacLennan (2015); Aaron Smale (2018); and Denise Piper and Jason Dorday (2021).
Since 2009 the Foundation has also offered an annual award of up to $1500 for published work by a student journalist.
The Bruce Jesson Foundation acknowledges the support from a gift by the Grace Memorial Trust in memory of Diana Unwin.
Further details: www.brucejesson.com
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