Established in 2002, Tasmanian Times (TT) is Tasmania’s oldest independent news and media platform. It publishes news, stories, and solutions-based journalism grounded in facts and evidence about the island of lutruwita/Tasmania, Australia. It is compiled with love by and for those interested in the wonders and life on the islands of Tasmania.
In January 2026, we started building a professional governance structure at TT. This is the first step in taking TT to the next level. The Tasmanian media landscape has changed subtly over the last 10 years, and we aim to enhance the niche TT already dominates. Historically, TT has been viewed as a centre-left platform. We realised the structure and focus of TT going forward must be very much in the centre and balanced to enable us to engage with a much wider audience. We will retain our roots, but we need to rebuild trust in media and being truly centred and balanced will be a big step in allowing us to achieve that.
We are also in the process of becoming a profit-for-purpose entity. What does that mean? We start with a standard Pty Ltd company and change its constitution. We simply remove the ‘shareholder primacy’ clause and add a ‘purpose primacy’ clause. This means the directors are legally bound to pursue our purpose, rather than enrich shareholders. Our purpose is simply For the benefit of all Tasmanians. This means all Tasmanians become a stakeholder in Tasmanian Times without doing anything or taking any risk.
If you wish to have input in how TT evolves, consider becoming a Patron. Doing so will give you access to the Inner Circle and help guide our path forward. It won’t give you veto rights, but you’ll be in the loop rather than simply being a consumer of our content. You can also become a Patron, without being part of the Inner Circle if you prefer.
We have also created a new innovation to monetise indie media. Success means a very competitive and well resourced platform in the Tasmanian media landscape. More on that later in 2026.
Our ultimate goal is to rebuild TT into the community voice it once was, while ensuring our content always remains free.
Our Media
From 16 June 2026, all our content, news, stories and new initiatives will also be delivered directly to you through our free newsletter so please sign up to keep in the loop. We will also be updating our branding, our website and building a mobile app.
There are multiple ways you can support us so check our out Sustain page for details.
If you would like to contribute via a Submission we would love to hear from you.
If being a Volunteer at TT is more how you would like to support independent media in Tasmania, then please reach out.
If you would like to become part of a growing group of people that understand the importance of independent media, consider becoming a Patron which means you’ll be invited to become a member of our Inner Circle. The benefits of doing so will grow as we do (more on this later).
Our Values
Independent free media is a cornerstone of democracy, and we’ll become a stronger voice on the principles of democracy going forward.
You can find more detail on changes and our values at TT in our Management Announcement, as well as our Statement of Principles and Governance Update pages. We’ll update the Code of Conduct (but it’s pretty good anyway), and we have a new Privacy Policy.
Tasmanian Times acknowledges we live, work and play on lutruwita/Tasmania. We also acknowledge the Palawa people as the traditional owners and custodians of lutruwita, who maintain a deep, spiritual connection to this land and who have not ceded their sovereignty or territory. We pay our deepest respects to Elders past, present and emerging. We acknowledge the vital importance of reconciliation and hope to act as allies in providing a voice to Tasmanian Aboriginal people.
We also acknowledge the effort, contribution, and hardship in some cases of those that have come to these shores over the last 200-odd years. The cultures are many, and our values are built on respect to all in the first instance.
Tasmanian Times could not have come into being and grown without the extraordinary goodwill from its donors, contributors, and readership. Thank you!
Onwards and upwards…
A Basic History of Tasmanian Times
Rod Holden (2026 – ) doesn’t have a journalist pedigree like his predecessors but he once had a software program built that pulled all the data from the ASX to feed a subscription newsletter in the finance industry from 2000 to 2003. Creative problem solving and having a stoic crack is his game. He’s a late bloomer with a passion for true sustainability, indie media business models, democracy and what that means for Tasmania and his family.
Alan Whykes (2019 – 2026) started writing for his school newspaper in high school and has been published on and off ever since. Ranging from 7 years as the Australian correspondent for Indonesia’s second-largest national daily to managing a television station in the Cocos (Keeling) Islands, he has broad experience across many types of media. He also describes himself as a poet, bandicoot lover, gardener, vegan chef, Gaelic footballer and sustainability advocate.
Founder Lindsay Tuffin (2002 – 2019) was a journalist for more than five decades, working throughout Australia and in the UK, from roles as a parliamentary reporter to editor. He was passionate about the search for truth and justice, ideas, running and conversation … always with wine and food. He founded Tasmanian Times in 2002 and passed away in 2024. Some anecdotes on his life
West wrote this in his History of Tasmania (1852):
“The newspapers of this hemisphere were long mere vehicles of government intelligence, or expressions of the views and feelings of the ruling powers. Malice or humour, in the early days, expressed itself in what were called Pipes—a ditty, either taught by repetition or circulated on scraps of paper: the offences of official men were thus hitched into rhyme. Thus, the fear of satire checked the haughtiness of power.”
Amen to that.
