To support and bolster the visibility of Native Americans in mainstream media, the Los Angeles Press Club has established a new National A&E Journalism award. Dubbed the Native Americans in the Arts and Entertainment Award, and funded by author, scholar and professor Angela Aleiss, it will be given to a story that highlights the unique issues affecting Native Americans in the arts and entertainment industry. It includes a $500 prize.
The representation of Native American journalists in mainstream media is sorely lacking. While tribal-owned media outlets provide important voices and perspectives, accurate reporting about Indigenous people and communities is often missing. When the media does include Native people, they frequently are portrayed as frozen in the remote past, or as people plagued with addiction, poverty and lack of a formal education. This overlooks the fact that Native Americans make up approximately 2.9% of the United States population and are richly diverse with 574 tribes.
The award is open to any journalist at any media outlet across the country.
Native Americans in the Arts and Entertainment 2025 Winners
First Place: Nic Cha Kim, Angela Boisvert, Tamara Gould, Ben Boyd, PBS SoCal, “PST ART: Fusing Art & Science: Future Imaginaries: Indigenous Art, Fashion, Technology(opens in new tab)”
Judges’ comment: This report beautifully showcases how the past is still influencing Native American artists of the future. We watched native culture collide with new technology, seeing how it is creating a new world for young artists. This is a visually interesting, informative and even slightly edgy look at Indigenous excellence.
Second Place: Martha Ross, Bay Area News Group, “Dugan Aguilar, California’s Famed
Native American Photographer, Found the Beauty in His People”
Third Place: Sarah Clothier, American Film Institute, “The Daughter of Dawn”