How do you decolonize newspapers and multimedia that people interact with daily?

The Dechinta Centre for Research and Learning hosted a panel of Northern media folks in Yellowknife last week to discuss where media gets it wrong and how to serve our audiences better.

Whether today or 50 years ago, stories featuring Indigenous peoples can be pigeonholed, overlooked or stereotypical in nature.

However, Indigenous peoples increasingly have the tools to tell their own stories and need mentorship and on-the-job experience to diversify newsrooms, said Deneze NakehkSA国际影视传媒檕.

He is a founding member of Dene Nahjo from Liidlii Kue First Nation and a radio and video journalist, broadcaster and educator.

NakehkSA国际影视传媒檕 acknowledged the role of Indigenous-centric organizations like CKLB Radio which broadcasts in Dene languages and has trained up several Northern Indigenous journalists, himself included.

SA国际影视传媒淩epresentation is important," he said, adding that having role models in media like former CBC journalists Snookie Catholique and former Tulita chief Paul Andrew was encouraging.

SA国际影视传媒淧eople went out of their way to encourage and support these people with their gifts.TheySA国际影视传媒檝e been capable and very good broadcasters and journalists,SA国际影视传媒� he said.

Youth mentorship is a pathway to diversifying newsrooms and shifting from stereotypical representations of Indigenous peoples like the four DSA国际影视传媒檚: drumming, dancing, drunk or dead said NakehkSA国际影视传媒檕.

Those stories, more often told by non-Indigenous reporters are limited portrayals of the spectrum of Indigenous experience and identity, he added.

Building a positive sense of identity for youth starts with mentoring youth early on, said CBC North managing editor Mervin Brass.

Broadcasters like Trails End host Lawrence Nayally take on community outreach and share how they entered the industry.

News media have to SA国际影视传媒渟tart looking in our own backyard,SA国际影视传媒� said Nayally, who credits those who took a chance on him to develop as a broadcaster.

Media is itself a colonial construct that has biases embedded within, much like Canadian law and business. But, Indigenous people can start building things made by and for themselves, said NakehkSA国际影视传媒檕.

He spoke about CanadalandSA国际影视传媒檚 Thunder Bay podcast by Ryan McMahon, which unearths the insidious social structures and rampant racism in a Northern Ontario town.

Reporters should ensure they arenSA国际影视传媒檛 using Indigenous sources in a tokenized position to further a narrative, which often in media, the environmental movement is to SA国际影视传媒渃heck a box,SA国际影视传媒� said NakehkSA国际影视传媒檕.

"Reconciliation ... if youSA国际影视传媒檙e feeling uncomfortable, if youSA国际影视传媒檙e uneasy, then youSA国际影视传媒檙e reconciling. We live in a time now of courage. Individually we all have the courage to go into those uncomfortable and challenging situations together," he said.

Paul Andrew, a CBC reporter of 30 years and former chief of Tulita told the audience that news articles often frame land claims as settlers "giving" Indigenous people the land they already have a connection with, reinforcing colonial concepts of settler ownership.

"Nobody ever talks about what Indigenous people gave up," he said. SA国际影视传媒淚t was as if the media bought the argument: SA国际影视传媒榃eSA国际影视传媒檙e doing you such a favour, giving you all of this land.SA国际影视传媒� Whereas if you ask people in the land claims groups right now, theySA国际影视传媒檙e saying SA国际影视传媒楬ow can they give us something we own already?SA国际影视传媒橲A国际影视传媒�

Stories about caribou that focus heavily on overharvesting, but are devoid of any mention of mining are problematic, said Andrew.

Literacy and access to the news in the North is also a barrier, whether someone doesnSA国际影视传媒檛 have access to a computer or the internet or English is not their first language, he said.

Made in the North education to train journalists should also be considered with decolonization in mind, he said.

SA国际影视传媒淭hose are the things we have to challenge in decolonization,SA国际影视传媒� said Andrew.

Where did the media get it wrong?

Panelist Laurie Sarkadi, editor of Edge YK pointed to limited media coverage when Indigenous children died of arsenic poisoning after drinking meltwater in 1951.

As Yellowknives Dene reportedly fell ill, government officials held back on informing the public of the dangers posed by arsenic laden meltwater and did not translate information into Weldeh or Dogrib.

Herb Mathisen for UpHere Magazine spoke about a piece the magazine published about a person planning to live exclusively off the land for a year.

Its framing erased the fact that Indigenous peoples have lived off the land since time immemorial and the piece got blowback, he said.

Diversifying a newsroom mandates changing the SA国际影视传媒渆conomic model" and support for the mentorship of Indigenous youth SA国际影视传媒� something Yellowknifer editor Michele Taylor initiated in 2017, said Northern News Services publisher Bruce Valpy.

SA国际影视传媒淣ow that ISA国际影视传媒檓 in a position to change that model, ISA国际影视传媒檓 going to do my best,SA国际影视传媒� said Valpy.