AEJMC Resolution Two 2024
October 18, 2024
Supporting Indigenous Scholars and Indigenous-Owned Media
Whereas, the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication (AEJMC) has diversity and inclusion and ethics as two of its core areas of professional freedom and responsibility; and
Whereas, when it comes to professional freedom and responsibility of Indigenous scholars and scholarship, one must balance the right to engage in research on Indigenous issues with the responsibility to do so in an ethical and respectful way, especially if he or she is not a member of the Indigenous community; and
Whereas, in recent years, there have been instances within AEJMC when researchers have sought to engage with Indigenous topics and issues without necessarily ensuring that Native voices are prominent in such efforts as programming, research, or teaching; and
Whereas, the Indigenous Journalists Association (IJA), formerly the Native American Journalists Association, recently celebrated its 40th anniversary; and
Whereas, in the United States, less than one half of one percent of newsroom employees identify as Indigenous and the majority of journalism and mass communication faculties still have no Indigenous faculty members; and
Whereas, IJA President Christine Trudeau, Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation, recently called for at the 23rd session of the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues to encourage states to legally recognize Indigenous-owned media;
Now, therefore, be it resolved, that the members of AEJMC go on record supporting a more intentional effort to make AEJMC a better space for Indigenous scholars to feel welcome and know their perspective, time, and expertise will be respected and heard; and
Be it further resolved that AEJMC join the call for legal recognition of Indigenous-owned media and increased recruitment of Indigenous scholars as instructors in journalism and mass communication programs; and
Be it further resolved that in consultation with the Elected Standing Committee on Professional Freedom and Responsibility, that Indigenous scholars be front and center in conceiving, planning, and executing at least one program element on the topic of ethics and responsibility in Indigenous scholarship and the state of Indigenous-owned media in at least the next two AEJMC annual conferences in 2025 and 2026; and
Finally, be it resolved, that all AEJMC divisions, interest groups, and commissions be strongly encouraged to seek out Indigenous scholars to serve as leaders in their units.
CONTACT:
Samantha Higgins, AEJMC Communications Director, 803-798-0271
Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication (AEJMC)
The Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication (AEJMC) is a nonprofit scholarly organization with more than 2,000 members in about 40 countries who teach and research journalism, public relations, advertising, digital media, film, and media literacy. Founded in 1912, AEJMC is the oldest and largest alliance of communication educators and administrators at the college level. AEJMC’s mission is to promote the highest possible standards for journalism and mass communication education, to encourage the broadest possible range of communication research, to promote the implementation of a multicultural society in the classroom and curriculum, and to defend and maintain freedom of communication in an effort to achieve better professional practice, a better-informed public, and wider human understanding.
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