M illa ELECTED PRESIDENT
NORTHWEST INDIANS FORM MEDIA ASSOCIATION
By Cynthia Stowell
Telex wires may be buzzing
with Indian news as the newly-
formed Northwest Indian News
Association establishes itself in
the four-state area. Members of
the Indian media in Washing
ton, Oregon, Idaho and Montana
have made a commitment to
improve communication among
them selves and between In
dians and the non-Indian public
with their July 22 approval of a
constitution and by-laws for
“NINA.”
The nine print and broad
cast media represented at the
constitutional m eeting.at Ft.
Hall, Idaho last week became
charter members of NINA and
elected the news association’s
first board of directors. Presi
dent of the seven-member board
is Spilyay Tymoo’s editor Sid
Miller, who headed the organiza
tional committee for a year and
a half.
Mark Trahant of the 3ho-
Ban News (Ft. Hall) is the first
vice-president' and Su Harms of
Council F ires (Coeur d ’Alene,
Idaho) is the secretary-treasur
er.
Other board members are
Josie Jones (Squol Quoi, Lummi,
Washington), Andy de los An
geles (Northwest Indian News,
Seattle, Washington) and Bob
Johnson (Indian Voice, Small
Tribes of Western Washington).
A representative from Montana
has yet toT>e selected. The board
is comprised of a director from
each state* and three at-large.
The Northwest Indian News
Association will offer profes
sional support to Indian journal
ists while establishing lines of
THE FIRST BOARD of directors of the new Northwest Indian News Association: Josie Jones (Lummi
“Squol Quftl”), Vice President Mark Trahant (“Sho-Ban News” ), President Sid Miller (“Spilyay
Tymoo” ), Secretary-Treasurer Su Harms (Coeur d’Alene “Council Fires”) and Andy de los Angeles
(Seattle’s “Northwest Indian News”). The Montana member has yet to be selected.
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communication with the non-
Indian media. Described as an
“umbrella organization,” NINA
is expected to be the parent of a
news exchange service and ad
vertising cooperative as well as
provide ongoing educational and
technical assistance and encour
age young people to enter the
field of journalism.
While NINA will leave the
expression of editorial opinions
to its member editors, it will
create a code of ethics for Indian
journalists and provide unified
communication with the outside.
Plans are underway for
NINA’s first annual meeting to
be held in Spokane this October.
The business m eeting, where
many initial procedural wrinkles
will be ironed out by the mem
bership, will be accompanied by
educational workshops.
Between now and then, all
the known Indian publications
and radio stations in the four-
state area will be notified of
NINA’s existence and will be
encouraged to apply for mem-
bership. Un til outside funding
can be found, membership dues
and meeting fees will be NINA’s
only source of income.
Active, voting membership
is open to publications and other
media forms that have Indian
sponsorship and fulfill the func
tion of informing people about
Indians and Indian affairs. Non-
Indian media, organizations and
individuals will be considered
for associate membership.
The idea for an Indian,
media group was brought to life
at a journalism seminar staged
by the Advocates for Indian
Education in Spokane in Febru
ary 1977. The dem ise of the
American Indian Press Associ
ation had left a news gap that
needed filling, especially in light
of the public’s growing anti-
Indian posture.
During the next year and a
half the news association gradu
ally took shape, although ex
pected funds from the BIA never
materialized.
One component of NINA
actually developed before its
parent organization. An adver
tising pool, the brainchild of
STOWW’s Bob Johnson, is al
ready functioning, making avail
able an official rate book for
Indian newspapers and a profile
of Indian consumers. Potential
advertisers can place an order
and buy space in any of the
member publications.
The NINA “um brella” is
expected to one day include a
formal news exchange, a reality
that approaches as Indian media
identify their common interests
and gain access to means of
rapid communication, such as
Telex.
The charter members of
NINA see no lim its to their
organization and its potential
conribution to both the Indian
and non-Indian media and their
audiences. Born 150 years after
the founding of the first Indian
newspaper (The Cherokee Phoe
nix), NINA has a long tradition
of communication behind it and
the challenge of improved com
munication ahead.
For more information, call
one of the board members in
your area.
COCC BUDGET UP FOR THIRD AND LAST ELECTION
Central Oregon Community
College president Dr. Fred Boyle
is appealing to ‘ ?11 friends of
COCC throughout the tri-county
district” to aid COCC by getting
out to vote for its August 8
budget election.
“We need anyone and every
one who can help,” said Boyle,
“ because failure of this effort
could mean the beginning of a
reduction in the programs COCC
offers the district.”
“The situation COCC is in
right now is about as serious as
I’ve seen in the 11 years I’ve
been president,” Boyle com
mented.
Voters will be asked to ap
prove a $2.07 million tax levy, a
substantial portion of the $4.3
million needed to run the college
for the coming year. The bal
ance comes from student tuition
and fees as well as state funds
based on the number of students
enrolled.
The proposed levy has been
defeated twice, the first time on
March 14 by 62 votes. COCC lost
a tax base proposed at the May
13 primary election by over 1,000
-votes in a much larger voter
turnout.
The College has since cut
$80,000 from the original request
— the cuts coming mostly in the
money budgeted for the con-
struction of access roads to its
campus, funds it needed to hook
up the state-m andated city
sewer system and salaries.
Warm Springs traditionally
backs up COCC’s budget re
quests but turnout in the last
elections was not enough to af
fect the Jefferson County vote.
COCC president Boyle has
indicated that the election is
“crucial” to COCC’s operations
next fall. The college is cur
rently operating without a bud
get, running its summer session
classes on carryover funds.
Because COCC has no tax
base, it must each year gain
approval of the local portion of
its budget before it can begin
classes in tne fall.
Election day is August 8.
The teen center in
Warm
Springs will be open 8 a.m . - 8
p.m. for voting.
FROM THF TRIBAL GARAGE
The Tribal Garage will not
be responsible for any loss of
property or damage to vehicles
left for repairs without first
checking with the garage super
visor.
If you have a car that needs
work done make sure to get it to
the garage before five o’clock
p.m. for safe-keeping. This an
nouncement is for your own
protection as well as for the
garge supervisors responsibili
ties. Your cooperation will be
appreciated.
S p ilyay Tymoo
SPILYAY TYMOO STAFF
Managing Editor
Sid Miller
Assistant Editor
Sandy Rangila
Photographic Specialist/W riter
Cynthia Stowell
Reporter/Photographers
Priscilla Squiemphen
Donna Behrend
Trainee
Roger Stwyer
FOUNDED IN MARCH OF 1976
Published bi-weekly by the Confederated Tribes of the
Warm Springs Reservation of Oregon Warm Springs,
Oregon 97761. Located in the Old Administration Building.
Any written material to Spilyay Tymoo should be addressed
to:
Spilyay Tymoo
P. O. Box 735
Warm Springs, Oregon 97761
Phone 553-1644 or 553-1161, Ext. 274
Subscription Rate $6.00 per year
THE LABORS of Kah-Nee-Ta Village groundskeeper Dave Berry almost go unnoticed. He has spelled
out “KAH-NEE-TA” in red flowers boarded by white “Summer Snow”. Next year he plans to use a 30
degree slope to better feature his artwork.
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