National Congress of American Indians
When discussing interest groups, it is important to take a look at Native American interest groups. Often when speaking on the behalf of minorities in the United States, the Native American population is overlooked due to their reduces numbers, but that does not make their voice any less. This is why it is vital that they have interest groups in place so that they have an organized front to be represented in government affairs as well as advocacy and education specific for their people.
The National Congress of American Indians, or the NCAI, is the oldest and largest interest group for Native Americans and Alaskan Indigenous groups. It was founded in 1944, and it is a non-profit organization that advocates for the betterment of tribes and their future of the next generation of tribe memebers.
The NCAI invest in a wide range of policies that they tackle to achieve their goal; they are involved in inter-tribal affairs as well as state and federal ones. They divide their policies into 5 groups: Community & Culture, Economic Development & Commerce, Education Health & Human Services, Land & Natural Resources, and Tribal Governance. The issues they tackle continually evolve depending on the needs of the tribes. Some issues are age old, such as fighting for proper representation, but other are more specific such as inter-tribal relations or affairs. This group involves itself in the diverse issues that the Native American community faces.
Since their founding in 1944, this group has been highly active in Native American affairs. Today, they have taken to a social media platform to raise their voice and create traction for their cause. This is progressive for Native American interest groups because there are several that do not have any form of social media; they only provide information and current events through their website. While many of the other interest groups lack in social media representation, NCAI has a social media platform on all the major applications.
According to a study conducted by the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, despite the common misconception, Native Americans commonly get their news and information through online sources primarily through their phones followed by a laptop or desktop.
So based on the current demographic's mode of communication and information gathering, it is only logical for the NCAI to post the news, content, events, and other information on these social media platforms where the intended group will have quick and easy access to it. It's also a wise move in the sense that this is how other demographic groups get their information. So with the purpose of bringing awareness and representation to the Native American population, it is logical to have the content posted on the most popular platforms.
"Through a literature review, four interviews with Native leaders and a survey with 132 Native news audience members, it is evident that Native Americans are using primarily Facebook and a secondarily online, and mobile devices to get information about Indian Country... For native to gain access to news about their people, the news must be shared on Facebook and/or other social media. It must be mobile friendly as well." Link
Which makes sense why out of all the media platforms the NCAI has, their Facebook page has the most followers. This along with all their other social media (Instagram and Twitter) they are fairly active posting on average a daily basis. As any media analysis would know, the more active you are, the better because that brings in more activity and coverage on your page. The content is generally the same with few discrepancies, but this fact helps with consistency. It also aids in reaching all age groups and social media users with all parties involved receiving the same information. This is especially important for their events and movements among tribes.
While their Facebook does well in terms of having the most followers, it appears their Twitter is the most popular. While the overall likes, comments, and shares are fairly low for their Instagram and Facebook in comparison with the number of followers they have, this is not the same case with their Twitter. The most recent Tweet, Feather's Story, has 204 retweets and 267 likes which is the highest number on any of the platforms.
The narrative this little girl provides of the importance of all communities needing to come together to heal the Earth and ourselves is powerful. It is no wonder that so many people have been moved and shared the video.
Their Instagram appears to be the most unpopular with the least amount of followers and likes. However, I still feel this is a strategic move on the group's part because the younger generations are more inclined to use Instagram. Engaging the younger generation in political events and ideals is essential for education. It is also important because this group provides a wide range of education content that is crucial to the community such as how to register to vote.
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Among all of their platforms, I personally found their Youtube to be the most educational and useful. It is filled with all kinds of videos from promotional to informative. Many of their videos are touching like Feather's story was. They help to shed light on real issues the community faces, and how their is still much to do to repair the damages they faced through recent history. It shows in a visual format how active this group is, and what issues the Native American community is facing today.
The NCAI's involvement and savvy use of media makes them an ideal interest group for the Native American community. Their large organization and influence makes them crucial for representation in political affairs on local and federal matters.
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