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A Good Vice

Vice, one of the hippest names in world media, now operates 36 offices across the globe. Among its most recent additions is its Auckland hub, helmed by David Benge. Verve caught up with him over a coffee on K-road and talked shop, God, and fatherhood.

 

“It’s a really exciting time,” David says. “Vice is growing exponentially worldwide, and from my end, it’s great to be making Kiwi content. It’s a unique space in New Zealand, no one else seems to be specifically targeting the 18 to 34-year-olds. That age group is actually very thirsty for knowledge but no one is speaking to them in a language they can understand. People also worry that there isn’t enough content in New Zealand, but there are millions of stories. The great thing about Vice is that it brings people out of the woodwork, and we’re always open to new things.”

 

Before Vice, David, who hails from “just outside Wellington”, spent the best part of 20 years managing and promoting bands and tours, an endeavour which took him first to Melbourne, then New York. An unlikely rock ‘n’ roll lifestyle, I suggest, for someone who read religion and classical studies at Victoria University. “I grew up within a deeply Christian family,” says the 38-year-old. “My mum and dad produced New Zealand’s only Christian magazine, it was called Reality, ironically! People warned me that I shouldn’t do a religious degree because they said those that do, often lose their faith. I thought that was the best reason to do it then, to have new information and make informed decisions. Later, I was excited about getting out of New Zealand, but I wouldn’t say it’s been a particularly rock ‘n’ roll lifestyle.”

 


My mum and dad produced New Zealand’s only Christian magazine, it was called Reality.


 

And did you question your faith?

 

“Studying world religions led me to reject fundamentalism and narrow thought. To this day, if you asked if god exists I wouldn’t be able to say 100% ‘no’. I do believe Jesus’ teachings to be great guidelines for living your life, even if I don’t adhere to all of them.” Science and technology, he says, are further and forever distancing the notion of a higher being. “Maybe god is just another word for the concept of love.”

 

I ask what lessons he took from his parents.

 

“To listen. To take others’ opinions and to understand that you are not the only person in the world. You achieve more by working with others. No idea is stupid. I do think my generation is the first to talk more with their kids more on the same level. We’re well passed that whole idea of ‘a child should be seen and not heard’.”

 

What are your hopes and dreams for your daughter?

 

“I hope she has the confidence to explore the things she’s curious about. And that she remains curious. I want her to scratch those itches. I don’t want her to ever feel that there are roadblocks. I want her to know that I’m proud of her, to not ever think that she has let me down. I want her to have the ability to make educated decisions.”

 

David’s daughter, Hunter, was born in New York. She’s the first girl to bless the family — David is the oldest of three brothers, his father, too, was one of three.

 

“We were on the 12th floor of the hospital and Hunter arrived at around 8am, just as New York was waking up. The yellow taxis were all lined up on the streets outside, the city was coming alive, and this little creature was born, this tiny human being. I held out my hand and she pushed her hand up and squeezed my finger super tight.”

David and Hunter’s mother, Tanya, have since separated, so their daughter’s time is split equally between Auckland and Tauranga. With five-year-old Hunter being part-Maori, David is happy that she is being raised close to her roots, but is determined that New York remains a big part of her life. That she has options. “If one day she tells me she wants to lead a simple life growing vegetables in the countryside, so long as a she’s explored other avenues as well, then I’ll be happy,” he says. “She can go grow the best vegetables she can.”

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Words: Jamie Christian Desplaces