Tuning in to Navajo: The Role of Radio in Native Language Maintenance

This paper discusses the role of radio in maintaining indigenous language, using a case study of KTNN, a Navajo language station. The relationship between audience, language, and programming is analysed, and more effective uses of radio are suggested.

According to the article, the influence of mass media is a factor in language choice in the contemporary world. In Native American communities, English-language videos, television, and popular music have replaced storytelling and other traditional media, contributing to language shift among many Native American youth. However, the last 20 years has also brought a growing number of indigenous-language media in the United States and Canada, especially radio.

The author explains that indigenous people around the world often establish their own media "to preserve and restore an indigenous language, to improve the self-image of the minority, and to change the negative impressions of the minority that are held by members of the majority culture." In the Navajo case, communication in the native language among a widely-dispersed population was a major factor in the Nation applying for and receiving a broadcast license. KTNN's mission statement emphasises these points: "This will be the first station that will be owned by, and for the benefit of, the Navajo Nation. The programming will emphasise the Navajo culture and life-style on the reservation and will in large part be broadcast in the Navajo language."

The author mentions that audience is determined in part by programming and that as a commercial station, programming must be funded through advertising revenue. This means that what is best for the language or language maintenance is not always considered. For example, advertisers prefer to cater to those they perceive as having economic power, in this case parents and grandparents.

The question of language provides for ongoing debates, and even complaints, which has led to discussions about the possible need for a Navajo language broadcast standard. "Changes in the Navajo language as a result of broadcasting, such as the constant use of English terms, can have wide-reaching implications in language maintenance. Furthermore, announcers must alter their speech for different audiences, whether using more slang or more "traditional" terms. These factors result in a spirited dialogue between broadcasters and audience on "proper" on-air language. However, even when "proper" language is used, problems still arise." As a result of this confusion, KTNN has had numerous complaints about the quality and type of Navajo that is being spoken on air. From a language maintenance standpoint, many of the complaints are legitimate. For example, continued use of English for place names, numbers, and consumer goods will likely aid in the demise of their Navajo equivalents. However, the author says, issues relating to regional dialects are more contentious and may or may not be solved with a Broadcast Navajo standard.

The author proposed that in order to address KTNN's responsibility towards the Navajo language and to foster a younger audience, regular language instruction programming could be developed. This programming should be planned in conjunction with Navajo language instructors in schools and universities and partially utilise KTNN's existing sports and entertainment broadcasts as a vehicle of instruction (i.e., develop pamphlets with basketball and football terminology in Navajo so students can follow play-by-play). Furthermore, entertainment and music programming in the Navajo language geared towards youth could be implemented. Younger Navajo speakers should be the announcers and should be allowed to speak their own version of Navajo (with slang).

In terms of KTNN, and their responsibility towards the language, the author proposes several actions that could be taken:

• Standardise frequently-encountered terminology in news and entertainment, agreed upon by speakers from all parts of the Navajo Nation
• Require announcers to improve language skills in both Navajo and English when needed as a condition for continued employment
• Log specific, legitimate listener complaints about Broadcast Navajo and utilise them in future language planning and standardisation
• Secure grant money for this on the basis of maintaining a Native language in the modern world.

The article concludes that "in today's world, commercial radio is a necessary and viable communication outlet for the Navajo language. Commercial radio helps keep the Navajo language alive in many domains with news, sports, and public service broadcasting. It also provides positive exposure for the Navajo people and all Native Americans. However, commercial radio affects the way Navajo is spoken on the air by DJs and announcers, creating a peculiar type of Navajo defined here as "Broadcast Navajo." KTNN helps perpetuate the Navajo language "simply by keeping it out there on the air" However, it is also changing the language. Whether these language changes are being adopted by KTNN's audience would require a much deeper study. If one of KTNN's main goals is the preservation and perpetuation of the Navajo language, then two issues need to be addressed. First, it should be determined if a standard needs to be created for the use of the Navajo language in the electronic media; and second, a way must be found to attract the younger generation of Navajos to Navajo-language broadcasts."