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To decolonize media, inform yourself

The media has a lot to answer for.
For a very long time, this country’s goal was to eliminate Indigenous people.
To accomplish this, the federal government tried to, "Ignore Aboriginal rights; terminate the treaties; and, through a process of assimilation, cause Aboriginal peoples to cease to exist as distinct legal, social, cultural, religious and racial entities in Canada," states the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s final report.
For the most part, the media was right there the whole time, cheering, abetting and justifying this policy of assimilation.
It did so by trumpeting stories that were filled with negative colonial images and stereotypes of Indigenous peoples. These stories portrayed Indigenous people as inferior to European Canadians in almost every imaginable way.
But times are changing and today – especially here in the North – Indigenous people have a voice in the media.
The CBC broadcasts in a number of Indigenous languages. In Yellowknife there’s CKLB Radio and there was the now defunct Native Press, which was launched in 1971 as a newspaper for the Indigenous people of the Northwest Territories.
We here at Northern News Services publish a number of stories in Inuktitut, our tireless reporters cover a number of Indigenous issues and we’ve had many Indigenous writers over the years from the irrepressible Cece Hodgson-McCauley, who was a regular – and sometimes controversial – voice in our newspapers for well over 30 years, to Roy Erasmus and Antoine Mountain, who continue writing today.
In other parts of the country, the media might not provide in-depth coverage of Indigenous stories.
In fact, a 2013 report by Journalists for Human Rights found that only 0.28 per cent of all news stories produced in Ontario from 2010 to 2013 were related to Indigenous issues.
But here in the North, Indigenous people make up the majority of residents. They wield considerable cultural and economic clout and they are far from an afterthought in the media.
But let’s not get ahead of ourselves, there’s still a long way to go.
The Dechinta Centre for Research and Learning hosted a panel of Northern media representatives in Yellowknife on Nov. 22 to discuss where the media gets it wrong.
During the discussion, Deneze Nakehk’o, a founding member of Dene Nahjo from Liidlii Kue First Nation and a radio and video journalist, broadcaster and educator, said that Northern media organizations are guilty of reinforcing stereotypical representations of Indigenous people, referring to what he called the four D’s: drumming, dancing, drunk or dead.
Admittedly, News/North is guilty of that too.
But we are also committed to telling your stories. This company was founded in the North to serve Northerners and Indigenous people in the North are our readers.
If there’s a goose hunt in Tuktoyaktuk, we want to know about it. If there’s a schooling issue in Sambaa K’e, please drop us a line.
If there’s a paucity of political candidates in Pehdzeh Ki, give us a call.
We want to cover all those stories and we want to know if we’re doing it right – or wrong.
At the Nov. 22 discussion in Yellowknife, there was much talk about education, which is the way forward for decolonizing the media.
Reporters should inform themselves on the history of this country. They might also want to read up on the Journalists for Human Rights Style Guide for Reporting on Indigenous People.
If Indigenous people want to try and forge a career in the media, there should be opportunities for them to get the proper education and training, if not through traditional academic programs then through on-the-job training and apprenticeships. News/North hosted a mentorship earlier this year and we’re happy to do more.
If you are an aspiring Indigenous news hound, you’re welcome to apply for a position with the Northern News Services, but beware.
We do not pay government wages, the hours are long and the tight deadlines make for sleep deprived, caffeine-fueled, stress-inducing work marathons.
But perhaps that's a small price to pay for getting to tell people's stories.