Mark Trahant is a journalist and the founding editor of ''

Indian Country Today ''ICT'' (formerly known as ''Indian Country Today'') is a nonprofit, multimedia news platform that covers the Indigenous world, with a particular focus on American Indian, Alaska Native and First Nations communities across North America. Fo ...

'' (now ICT), an Indigenous-focused news operation.

Career

Trahant is a former Charles R. Johnson Professor of Journalism at the

University of North Dakota The University of North Dakota (UND) is a Public university, public research university in Grand Forks, North Dakota, United States. It was established by the Dakota Territory, Dakota Territorial Assembly in 1883, six years before the establishm ...

. He is a citizen of Idaho's Shoshone-Bannock Tribes, and a former president of the Native American Journalists Association. Trahant is the former editor of the editorial page for the ''

Seattle Post-Intelligencer The ''Seattle Post-Intelligencer'' (popularly known as the ''Seattle P-I'', the ''Post-Intelligencer'', or simply the ''P-I'') is an online newspaper and former print newspaper based in Seattle, Washington (state), Washington, United States. Th ...

'', where he chaired the daily editorial board, directed a staff of writers, editors and a cartoonist. He was chairman and chief executive officer at the

Maynard Institute for Journalism Education The Robert C. Maynard Institute for Journalism Education (MIJE) is an American non-profit organization that trains journalists to become investigative journalists, editors, newspaper managers, and media entrepreneurs. The organization seeks to ...

. He is a former columnist at ''

The Seattle Times ''The Seattle Times'' is an American daily newspaper based in Seattle, Washington. Founded in 1891, ''The Seattle Times'' has the largest circulation of any newspaper in the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest region. The Seattle Time ...

'' and has been publisher of the ''

Moscow-Pullman Daily News The ''Moscow-Pullman Daily News'' is a daily newspaper in the northwestern United States, serving the Moscow, Idaho, and Pullman, Washington, metropolitan area. The two cities on the Palouse are the homes of the two states' land grant universitie ...

'' in Moscow, Idaho; executive news editor of ''

The Salt Lake Tribune ''The Salt Lake Tribune'' is a newspaper published in the city of Salt Lake City, Utah. The ''Tribune'' is owned by The Salt Lake Tribune, Inc., a non-profit corporation. The newspaper's motto is "Utah's Independent Voice Since 1871." History ...

''; a reporter at the ''

Arizona Republic ''The Arizona Republic'' is an American daily newspaper published in Phoenix. Circulated throughout Arizona, it is the state's largest newspaper. Since 2000, it has been owned by the Gannett newspaper chain. History Early years The newspap ...

'' in Phoenix; and has worked at several tribal newspapers. He was an editor in residence at the

University of Idaho The University of Idaho (U of I, or UIdaho) is a public land-grant research university in Moscow, Idaho, United States. Established in 1889 and opened three years later, it was the state's sole university for 71 years, until 1963. The un ...

. Trahant was a reporter on the

PBS The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcaster and non-commercial, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly funded nonprofit organization and the most prominent provider of educat ...

series ''Frontline'' with a documentary called "The Silence," about sexual abuse by clergy in Alaska. At the 2004

UNITY Unity is the state of being as one (either literally or figuratively). It may also refer to: Buildings * Unity Building, Oregon, Illinois, US; a historic building * Unity Building (Chicago), Illinois, US; a skyscraper * Unity Buildings, Liverpoo ...

conference in Washington, D.C., he asked

George W. Bush George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician and businessman who was the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Bush family and the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he i ...

what the meaning of

tribal sovereignty The term tribe is used in many different contexts to refer to a category of human social group. The predominant worldwide use of the term in English is in the discipline of anthropology. The definition is contested, in part due to conflict ...

was in the 21st century; Bush replied, "Tribal sovereignty means that. It’s sovereign. You’re a ... you’re a ... you’ve been given sovereignty and you’re viewed as a sovereign entity."

Books

Trahant authored ''Pictures of Our Nobler Selves'', a history of American Indian contributions to journalism published by

Freedom Forum The Freedom Forum is a nonpartisan 501(c)(3) foundation dedicated to fostering First Amendment freedoms for all. The organization advances First Amendment freedoms through programs that include Today's Front Pages, the Power Shift Project, the a ...

in 1996. He contributed to a commissioned exhibit, ''The Whole Salmon,'' published by the Sun Valley Center for the Arts in 2003. He also contributed a chapter to ''Lewis and Clark Through Indian Eyes'', an anthology edited by

Alvin M. Josephy Jr. Alvin M. Josephy Jr. (May 18, 1915 – October 16, 2005) was an American historian who specialized in Indigenous peoples of the Americas, Native American issues. ''New York Times'' reviewer Herbert Mitgang called him in 1982 the "leading non-Indi ...

and published in 2006. His book ''The Last Great Battle of the Indian Wars'' was published in 2010, dealing with the federal government's

Indian termination policy Indian termination describes United States policies relating to Native Americans from the mid-1940s to the mid-1960s. It was shaped by a series of laws and practices with the intent of assimilating Native Americans into mainstream American soci ...

and the rise of Native American self-determination in the mid-20th century.

Honors and awards

Trahant, as a co-author of a series on federal Indian policy, was a finalist for the 1988

Pulitzer Prize for National Reporting This Pulitzer Prize has been awarded since 1942 for a distinguished example of reporting on national affairs in the United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily ...

. Trahant's awards and honors include Best Columnist from the Native American Journalists Association and the

Society of Professional Journalists The Society of Professional Journalists (SPJ), formerly known as Sigma Delta Chi, is the oldest organization representing journalists in the United States. It was established on April 17, 1909, at DePauw University,2009 SPJ Annual Report, lette ...

, a Ruhl Fellowship, and co-winner of the Heywood Broun Award. He was a 2009-2010 Kaiser Media Fellow. In 1995 Trahant was a visiting professional scholar at The Freedom Forum's First Amendment Center at Vanderbilt University. He serves as a Trustee of the Diversity Institute, an affiliate of the Freedom Forum, based in Washington, D.C. Trahant was a juror for the Pulitzer Prize in 2004 and 2005.

Personal life

Trahant lives in Phoenix, Arizona. He is married to Jaynie Parrish.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Trahant, Mark Living people 20th-century American male writers 21st-century American male writers 20th-century American non-fiction writers 21st-century American non-fiction writers 20th-century Native American people American editors American male journalists Bannock people Journalists from Montana Native American journalists People from Grand Forks, North Dakota University of Idaho faculty University of North Dakota faculty The Salt Lake Tribune people The Seattle Times people Year of birth missing (living people) 21st-century Native American writers Shoshone-Bannock Tribes