If you think in terms of time, it won’t be long; less than two months before it all begins.  If you think of it in terms of impact, it will be immense; literally changing the visual and cultural representation of Native America in the eyes of the world. Really.

What Native American Television (NATV) will do, or shall I say DO, is empower the millions of First Americans to define, create and broadcast who they are in their own words, own images. A ground-breaking educational program training journalists, policy advocates, and multimedia producers from tribal communities and urban centers alike; a self-governed television network, not a subsidiary of a media conglomerate, not a niche channel with an ethnic-specific audience.

Beginning in January ‘08, the network’s Washington Semester Program  will educate Native American students in digital production, web development, journalism, environmental policy and government relations. The objective, explains NATV Executive Director Randolph Flood, is to have these students return to their respective communities to begin developing an autonomous Native media voice.

“NATV is presenting, for the first time, a unique, unified voice from Native America,” says Flood. “And that can’t be done, quite frankly, if NATV is ‘owned’ by anybody. That’s why it has been established as a non-profit. Any possible hope of Indian Country having its own media voice would be dashed if a large for-profit media conglomerate bought NATV. It is has to be the product of Native Americans.”

And it is. The governing board is comprised entirely of Native educators, business people, tribal officials and other respected leaders. So too will the folks who’ll produce, direct, and write the programs and news content that will air on the website and upcoming network. It isn’t a question of arbitrary racial quotas; it’s about authenticity. The Washington Semester Program, which recruits students from throughout the U.S. to train in metropolitan D.C., is a cornerstone of this effort.

The enthusiasm is palpable, with tribal nations pledging to underwrite the network with in-kind and financial support. As a non-profit, the network’s on-going strength is dependent on the major players stepping up to the challenge—simply put, without the leadership and financial wherewithal of Native America, the independence so central to NATV’s mission would be at risk.

“Corporations, or entrepreneurs, or anybody who wants to give money or support the efforts of NATV, that’s fine. It has to be true, however, to its identity. That’s the only sure way that Native Americans will get their point across from their own perspective,” Flood says. 

Tara J. Ryan, NATV’s Public Affairs Officer and Entertainment Industry Liaison, concurs, adding that the value in having an authentic Native media presence resonates far beyond Indian country. “There’s a huge interest in what Native American performers, writers and musicians are doing. NATV isn’t simply preaching to the choir. We have a very large audience; the whole world, frankly, when you consider that 90 percent of the market for Native entertainment is non-Native.”

It’s that simple and that immense and it won’t be long. Less than two months before it all begins. The impact of having a multimedia organization and educational facility of, for and by Indigenous Americans is that close. The rest, as they say, is up to us.

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For more information, please visit:
www.myspace.com/natvonline

To make a tax-deductible contribution to NATV