Indigenous media refers to the use of modern media techniques by indigenous peoples, also called Fourth World peoples, for their own political and cultural purposes. It can include film, video, music, digital art, and sound produced and created by and for indigenous people. Indigenous media helps communities in their fight against cultural extinction, economic and ecological decline, and forced displacement. The creators of indigenous media are often also the consumers, together with the neighboring communities.
Indigenous media is a significant focus of interdisciplinary study, including media and communication, ethnic studies, cultural studies, art history, geography, development studies, and political science. It is a vehicle for communication, including cultural preservation, cultural and artistic expression, political self-determination, and cultural sovereignty. Indigenous media overlaps with, and is on a spectrum with, other types of minority-produced media, and quite often they share a kinship regarding many philosophical and political motivations.
Indigenous media is weakened and threatened by antagonistic attitudes both by government agents as well as by commercial media. However, globally, indigenous communities are making incredible efforts to establish media in their own languages, in their communities, by and for their people. The increased global media movement has helped not only to increase indigenous voices, participation, and access to media but also has strengthened the use of indigenous languages in the media.
Indigenous media is an important tool for indigenous peoples to represent themselves in a variety of media, challenge misleading mainstream and official state narratives, forge international solidarity movements, and bring human rights violations to international attention.
