Indigenous Journalists Association (IJA) calls on news outlets to move beyond “Thanksgiving hot takes” that perpetuate stereotypes during Native American Heritage month
November. Native American Heritage Month. Thanksgiving. It’s the time of year again when requests flood inboxes of Indigenous journalists, academics, tribal government officials, activists etc. with interview requests from mainstream outlets asking Indigenous people to speak about what Thanksgiving “means” to us, or to set the record straight about the “true history” of the holiday. This type of unethical framing makes Indigenous people only seem to exist to the rest of America during these 30 days and not the other 11 months of the year.
Indigenous people are tired of these requests. IJA is tired of these requests. It’s well past time to move beyond this type of problematic “coverage.”
These stories almost never bring new information to the table or move the conversation forward. They tend to feature any “Indian with an opinion” rather than actual subject matter experts. IJA strongly discourages this type of calendar journalism, often employed by news organizations drastically out of touch with reporting on and for Indigenous communities.
We encourage non-Native outlets to scrap this annual, perfunctory Thanksgiving story and instead commit to covering Indigenous communities ethically and accurately all year long.
If you absolutely can’t resist, consider centering Wampanoag voices. Asking Indigenous people who belong to other nations to reflect on this moment in Wampanoag history perpetuates the myth that all Indigenous peoples in the United States are all the same. But also remember that Wampanoags may be receiving many requests at this time of year and may not have the bandwidth. Consider working year round to build relationships through consistent coverage with Wampanoag sources and communities.
To truly commit to covering Indigenous communities by centering our voices, newsrooms must also commit to hiring Indigenous reporters, editors and executives, and empowering them to make year round editorial decisions. In addition to helping with that, IJA as a well established resource, has guides and consultation available for further improving your newsroom’s Indigenous affairs coverage.
About the Indigenous Journalists Association
The Indigenous Journalists Association’s mission is centered on the idea that accurate and contextual reporting about Indigenous people and communities is necessary to overcome biases and stereotypes portrayed in popular and mainstream media. Expanding access to accurate news and information is essential to an informed citizenry and healthy democracy, across tribal, local, state and national levels.
For more than 40 years, Indigenous journalists across the United States and Canada have worked to support and sustain IJA. Originally formed as the Native American Press Association in 1983, the organization has grown from just a handful of reporters to a membership of nearly 900, which includes Indigenous journalists, associates, educators and partners.
