FROM SIDELINES TO SPOTLIGHT - SUZANNE MCFADDEN
When Suzanne McFadden first stepped into a newsroom four decades ago, she never imagined one day helping change the way New Zealand views women’s sport. Now her work has not only reshaped coverage across the media landscape – it’s earned her a place as a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit.
An award-winning journalist with an instinct for storytelling and an unwavering commitment to fairness, McFadden has spent her career giving a voice to those often sidelined in traditional sports coverage. Her appointment in the latest King’s Birthday Honours is a recognition not just of her longevity in the field, but of meaningful change – breaking barriers and building platforms where others saw none.
Suzanne, 57, grew up on a farm in Wellsford, where her parents still live. At Rodney College, she found a passion for English and history, started, and captained the girls’ first XI cricket team, and won school blues in hockey. “Growing up in a place where sport and community are intertwined and having a love of writing from an early age, I only ever wanted to be a sportswriter,” she says.
After studying journalism at AUT, Suzanne’s journey began in the fast-paced world of news journalism at the Bay of Plenty Times, then the New Zealand Herald.
She was the only woman in the Herald’s sports department throughout the 1990s, covering major world sports events including two Commonwealth Games, Team New Zealand’s first America’s Cup victory in San Diego in 1995, and their successful defence in 2000, the Sydney Olympics and numerous world championships.
Her focus was connecting readers to the human side of sport – writing about the identity, struggle, resilience, and triumph of sportspeople. “I also became increasingly aware of the disparities in coverage between men’s and women’s sports – not just in column inches, but in storytelling depth and visibility,” she notes. “I made it my mission to elevate women athletes to their rightful place in the national conversation – giving readers a window into achievements too often left in the shadows.”
In 2018 she founded LockerRoom, an innovative digital platform dedicated to telling the stories of New Zealand women in sport. Launched under the banner of independent news site Newsroom, LockerRoom quickly became the go-to source for high-quality, in-depth profiles of female athletes, coaches, administrators and trailblazers. Suzanne has taken pride in bringing the same energy and integrity to Olympic campaigns or grassroots heroes.
Under her editorial guidance, LockerRoom has challenged perceptions, inspired young athletes, and influenced how other national media outlets approach their own sports coverage.
Beyond the bylines, Suzanne became a mentor to young female reporters, and brought more women’s voices to sports reporting. “We pushed for balance in editorial teams around the country, but there’s work to do in getting more women sports editors,” she says. “That’s the way enduring change will be made in sports coverage for women.”
Her work has won numerous journalism accolades – including NZ Sports Journalist of the Year in 2021. She’s also authored two sports books: Striking Gold (2016), and Honey (2024), co-authored with Honey Hireme-Smiler.
“I’m proud to have helped steer New Zealand sports journalism onto a more inclusive path,” she reflects.
Suzanne, who lives with her journalist husband Eugene Bingham in the Auckland suburb of Hobsonville Point, has interests outside sport. Her latest project is Reflections, personal podcasts and videos for families to pass on to future generations.
Being named a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit is a milestone in a remarkable career – but McFadden says her proudest achievements have been raising two sons, and now being a nana to two grandsons.