Johnny Blades (Attended 1986-1992)
Published November 2022
While social norms can be a good basis upon which we form our decisions, often magic is found in the unexplored and the unconventional.
We recently met with Johnny Blades, a writer, journalist and Scots Collegian, who shared generously, alongside his wife Siri, about his adventures in journalism.
Johnny says he has no great inspirational story to offer from his time at the school, but he’s grateful for the experience and the friendships made. Sport played a big role when he was at the school, and he enjoyed being part of the cricket 1st XI. A trip by his geography class around Malaysia is mentioned as a highlight, piquing his interest in other cultures. Increasingly his focus turned to books and music.
After obtaining a BA (Hons) in English Literature from Victoria University, Johnny went into journalism; he started writing about people who live with disability for Wellington’s fabled City Voice newspaper, and from there did forays in general news, sports and arts in papers and magazines before a stint at TVNZ in its digital arm. He then found an area where he could take a deep dive when he joined Radio New Zealand International (which later morphed into RNZ Pacific) to cover the Pacific Islands region.
Learning about the Pacific and its great cultures has been a true calling for Johnny. Widely traveled in the islands, including to some of its most remote and troubled parts, he has produced many audio programmes and written extensively about the region. Through his coverage of Melanesia, especially Papua New Guinea, he has forged a body of work that includes writing for the Diplomat, the Guardian, AFP, Pacific Journalism Review, Monocle, the Lowy Institute and the Interpreter, as well as radio work with the BBC.
Johnny has helped shine a light on a region that for a long time has been a blindspot for international media, and he remains one of the few foreign journalists to ever get into West Papua, the Indonesian-ruled half of New Guinea (PNG being the other half) plagued by conflict for decades.
Working in Melanesia has frequently taken him outside his comfort zone, something he credits for fostering a broader perspective on things.
“I’ve always found it remarkable how well Pacific people cope with adversity. How they remain so warm and open to others despite daunting challenges. The way they value human relationships and connections with nature, the land and sea, has something to do with it. There’s much that Pacific ways of life can teach us.”
Presently Johnny works as a journalist covering Parliament, but continues to write about the Pacific. Looking back at his school days, he explains that it seemed like many people were gravitating towards the corporate world, however he grew wary of the pressure to “fit in”, and found that what felt best was taking a path less traveled.
Seeing Johnny’s courage to explore and document the more unknown parts of the Pacific, we see the importance of staying curious and open to learning new things. “Follow your dreams and don’t be afraid to look into areas that are unconventional,” he says, adding that it’s better to find your own path than one which others set for you, and to take your time doing so, as things will happen in due course.
It would be remiss not to mention Johnny’s late mother, Pat Blades, who was the first female president of the Scots College Parents Association and a member of the College Board of Governors, then the first female trustee of the Scots Foundation. Pat was an integral member of Scots; committed towards the values of the college and provided many years of service.
For Johnny, the most important job is being a father to his two daughters, Nina and Anna. Of parenting, he says there’s no guidebook, you just muddle your way through but do your best. “There’s a lot to be thankful for.”
Words: Vaishalee Bhana
Scots College 1990 5A
Back row: M Smith, S G Hooper, H G B Bevan, M L M Jones, S Seagar, K R Larkin, J Gauldie
Middle row: A M Erwin, D A King, D J Gregg, C I Morrison, R Seddon, P G Beckett, R P Reed, K Wong
Front row: P D Salter, A R Sew Hoy, G J Fisher, J G Blades, P B K Chang, S D Rupasinghe, M R Naran