Te Karere first went to air during
Māori Language Week, with a two minute bulletin celebrating the week in 1982. The original presenters and producers were
Derek Fox and
Whai Ngata. The following year,
Te Karere got a regular slot of four minutes. There was some criticism in the early days of the show, when Fox recalled, at the time of its 25th anniversary, that a group of kids from
Tokomaru Bay were dissatisfied at it because it cut the end of
Doctor Who episodes. On 1 February 2009, to mark its 25th anniversary,
Te Karere expanded to 30 minutes and began airing live for the first time, airing at 4pm. In 2009 alone, the show attracted 10% of the available audience, corresponding to approximately 90,000 viewers. Its competitor
Te Kāea, which aired in a prime time slot, only attracted 0.3%, which made it impossible to gather accurate numbers. Shane Taurima was behind all of the changes in 2009, in order to make the show more accessible to viewers. Live subtitles were added on 31 July 2011, after requests from non-Māori viewers. On 24 October 2025, the state Māori media funding agency
Te Māngai Pāho reduced
Te Karere funding allocation for its 2026 season from NZ$2.7 million to NZ$1 million, amounting to a 64% budget cut. == Identity ==