About

When I was a young journalist working in radio newsrooms, I was often pitching stories to editors who’d say ‘You don’t get it. Good news is not news’. I snuck my good news stories to air when the editor was away. I disagree with the orthodox journalism belief that good news is not news. We live in a world overflowing with bad news, so The Pineapple is positive journalism with an unashamed focus on positive stories. Some call this public interest journalism or constructive journalism.

Queensland has always been treated as a journalistic backwater by the Sydney and Melbourne centric media, although Queensland journalists punch above their weight. So The Pineapple is a Queensland website, the journalism and writing has a Queensland flavour, and all the writing is by Queenslanders, about Queensland or a national or international issue affecting Queensland. Some no longer live in Queensland, but our writers, photographers and artists are from here, or started or spent significant parts of their careers in Queensland. Even a tenuous link to Queensland will do!

Sometimes we will say the things you are not supposed to say.

The Pineapple is independent and owned by me, Vivienne Wynter. We are a micro publication and Rupert has no influence here. The Pineapple aims to challenge the orthodox. The writing is positive, left of centre and proudly progressive. The Pineapple is a startup, it is not for profit and all content is free to read on this site (intellectual property rights apply so please do not re-use our content without permission). The goal is to provide a platform for Queensland stories. Although mainstream journalism is in a downward spiral, The Pineapple operates on the principle that quality journalism is still an essential pillar of democracy, informing citizens so you vote on the basis of knowledge, rather than ignorance and hate. We believe there’s a different and better way to do journalism, with a constructive intention.

While I have worked as a journalist and taught journalism for decades and understand the importance of impartiality, corroboration, scepticism, deep research and balance, the journalism and writing here mostly has a positive, constructive emphasis. There are no equal time rules and we won’t be giving a platform to extremely conservative, right wing, bigoted views or flaky, woo-woo, over-zealous left wing views in the name of balance. There will be less emphasis on conflict and more emphasis on connection, more focus on solutions as well as problems.

I like to think the vibe of The Pineapple is like a café where you come in and notice people talking, debating, discussing, eating, drinking, dancing and connecting in a way that’s curious, hopeful, intelligent, respectful, progressive and fun.

Comment threads are not respectful forums for debate, so there is no comment functions at The Pineapple. The articles will take a gimlet eyed look at what’s going on, but never attack people, movements, organisations or institutions for the sake of it. While a story might point to something or someone and say ‘You suck!’ it will also explore how that something or someone might not suck, or at least not suck quite so hard. Mostly, The Pineapple is about how to live better and more powerfully, respond to common problems and share information and wisdom that’s new and world-improving.

As we all know, the world badly needs improving.

Why “The Pineapple”? Firstly pineapples are icons of Queensland. They are also juicy and nutritious, with a sometimes sharp flavour. They can be a bit spiky. “The rough end of the pineapple” is something we cop a lot in Queensland but there are also sweet spots!

Contributions and comments are welcome. You can send comments and pitches to vwynter@bigpond.com. Read the Editorial Charter

You can read About the Association here and Governance Charter here