Siletz news /, November 01, 2017, Page 13, Image 13

Community Preparedness Fair • Oct. 21, 2017 • Siletz Rec Center
A young girl (above) drags a stuffed bear during the Kids Firefighter Challenge as
Brendan Lal (below) takes a break from helping out with the challenge.
Photos by Andrea Taylor
Chris Sherrod, Tribal Diabetes Program director, gets help pressing apples (above)
to make fresh apple cider. Lexi Jackson gets fingerprinted (below) with the help of
a representative from the Oregon State Police.
Oneida Nation to donate Indian Country Today network assets to NCAI
The National Congress of American
Indians (NCAI) announced in early Octo-
ber that it is assuming control of the assets
of Indian Country Today Media Network
(ICTMN), the result of a donation to the
organization by the Oneida Indian Nation.
“NCAI’s executive officers and I are
humbled by this donation from ICTMN
and the Oneida Indian Nation,” said NCAI
President Brian Cladoosby. “Their love
for Indian Country carries through their
every word and has inspired our Tribal
communities to tell their own stories.
This is an immense responsibility; NCAI
will approach this responsibility thought-
fully and deliberately with an eye towards
strengthening Indian Country’s voice.”
ICTMN recently halted operations
to evaluate its next steps in the face of
unprecedented changes in the publish-
ing industry, changes that have presented
complicated challenges for every media
organization across the country.
“ICTMN has been the flagship pub-
lication producing unique and original
reporting about Indian Country – and
the Oneida Indian Nation has played a
pivotal role in forging that legacy,” said
NCAI Executive Director Jacqueline Pata.
“After years of strong investments, we
appreciate the Oneida Nation now turning
over ICTMN’s assets to our organization
and we look forward to convening meet-
ings with key stakeholders over the next
several months to construct a blueprint
for how to best respectfully carry on
ICTMN’s mission.”
During the past four decades, ICTMN
has evolved from a local weekly print
newsletter to a national magazine and now
an online news syndicate reporting on the
ground from – and for – Indian Country
about the critical issues impacting Native
nations and peoples in the United States
and around the globe.
“When the Oneida Indian Nation
decided to purchase Indian Country
Today Media Network, we had a singular
goal in mind: we wanted to create award-
winning journalism that gives voice to
Native Americans, wherever they lived.
ICTMN clearly achieved that goal,” said
Oneida Indian Nation Representative
Ray Halbritter. “We know that when we
leave our stories to be told only by other
media outlets, those stories too often go
untold – or aren’t told accurately. ICTMN
proved that we do not have to sit idly by
while that happens. We are very happy
to be able to donate ICTMN’s assets to
NCAI – an organization whose entire mis-
sion is to advocate for Tribal sovereignty
and treaty rights and advance a common
understanding of who Native nations and
peoples are today.”
During its years of being supported
by the Oneida Indian Nation, ICTMN was
recognized for its groundbreaking jour-
nalism spotlighting the complex issues
facing Native nations and communities.
It earned several prestigious awards — 30
alone in 2017 from the Native American
Journalists Association; multiple Clarion
Awards; and individual awards and grants
to contributors from the Society of Profes-
sional Journalists, the Herb Block Prize
for cartooning, USC’s Annenberg Center
and the Playboy Foundation.
Additional information will be shared
as we move forward in the coming months
on both ICTMN and NCAI platforms.
For questions, email NCAI at ICTMN@
ncai.org.
About NCAI
Founded in 1944, the National Con-
gress of American Indians is the oldest,
largest and most representative American
Indian and Alaska Native organization in
the country.
NCAI advocates on behalf of Tribal
governments and communities, promoting
strong Tribal-federal government-to-gov-
ernment policies and promoting a better
understanding among the general public
regarding American Indian and Alaska
Native governments, people and rights.
For more information, visit ncai.org.
November 2017
•
Siletz News
•
13