Explore how representation in media can reinforce or challenge commonly held assumptions about Native Americans in this video from The Bigger Picture. Host Vincent Brown challenges a common assumption about a photo of ethnographer Frances Densmore and Piegan Blackfeet tribal leader Mountain Chief: that Densmore is recording a “dying culture.” Brown visits the Library of Congress to hear an original recording of Mountain Chief and travels to Montana to discuss the vitality of Blackfeet culture today with artist and teacher Jesse DesRosier.

Using this resource, students will dive into United States history and media literacy concepts as they consider why representation in media matters and how Native Americans in the past and today use media to preserve their culture and empower themselves.