IJA calls for United Keetoowah Band officials to relinquish publishing controls back to Giduwa Cherokee News staff

The Indigenous Journalist Association condemns the United Keetoowah Band’s (UKB) officials for targeting and censoring the Giduwa Cherokee News and asks United Keetoowah Band members to support an independent press free of government influence and censorship.

On Thursday March 20, 2025 during Sunshine Week, United Keetoowah Band Media Director Troy Littledeer was retaliated against by tribal officials who forced the censor of a clearly identified opinion editorial piece entitled, “The Federal Governments Trust Responsibility to Native American Tribes.” 

Officials at UKB demanded the opinion piece published on Feb. 25 be taken down on Feb. 27. Then in retaliation, officials demanded the logins to the social channels and websites utilized by UKB Media without opportunity for discussion or giving reason for their demands. Tribal officials also took over editorial review of the Giduwa Cherokee Newspaper. 

This demand of login allowing the government to control all the information published by Giduwa Cherokee News and UKB Media was carried out in secrecy without public discourse. Littledeer had been in good faith negotiations with the UKB government where he requested an editorial board composed of band members be formed to prevent government overreach of news coverage. 

This disciplinary action taken against Littledeer has produced a chilling effect that compromises the rights of United Keetoowah Bands members. It is a violation of the Keetoowah members own constitution, the Indian Civil Rights Acts, and the ethics supported by the Society of Professional Journalists and the Indigenous Journalists Association. 

A recent survey of Indigenous Journalist Association membership identified two of the biggest threats to tribal media were a lack of financial resources and editorial control. Tribal journalists reported that their nation’s economies impacted their tribal media’s ability to be financially independent and that government officials and political interests often determined media content.

Indigenous journalism plays a critical role in supporting tribal sovereignty and self-determination. From holding the powerful accountable to disseminating stories of cultural significance, a free and independent Indigenous press supports the goals of tribal nations by providing an open public forum for community voices. 

The United Keetoowah Band official’s actions undermine this role and demean this sacred responsibility. Like many tribes, the United Keetoowah Band is bound by a common history catalogued by stories – stories of joy, pain, happiness, and ultimately triumph.

These stories are still being told today through UKB Journalists– the new historians of the United Keetoowah members’ journey that hold the responsibility of passing on a complete history to the next generation. The UKBs actions sever its ties to its past and future by failing to recognize the importance of those stories and the journalists telling them.

IJA recommends that the United Keetoowah Band officials relinquish their control of publishing, restore the authority of the UKB Media department to tell stories, and establish an editorial board made of neutral citizens who do not hold government positions, and finally adopt policy that would support a press free and independent from government control. 

For centuries, colonial policies have destroyed Indigenous stories. We have been fighting to restore them for generations. We urge members of the United Keetoowah Band to contact their district representatives and demand that Giduwa Cherokee News be allowed to remain independent.

To express support for free press, please feel free to contact the United Keetoowah Band officials here: https://www.ukb-nsn.gov/tribalofficials.