What’s Next for The Circle News, and the Zeitgeist Film Festival

Transcript

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Marie Rock [ANCHOR]: You're listening to Minnesota Native News. I'm Marie Rock.
This week, we look at the future of The Circle, one of the longest-running independent Native American newspapers, and how the Duluth Zeitgeist Film Festival is highlighting Indigenous cinema this year.

First, the pause in the circulation of the newspaper, The Circle, is raising questions. Producer Travis Zimmerman talks with board member Joy Persall to learn more.

Travis Zimmerman: The Circle newspaper, based in Minneapolis, has been in production since 1980, and has a circulation of 8,000 printed papers every month and an online edition. Since February, the board of directors has decided to suspend both platforms, and many are wondering if one of the longest-running independent Native American newspapers is going out of business. Catherine Pat Whipple, the longtime chief editor,

Joy Persall: retired, stepped down in late February.

Travis Zimmerman: Joy Persall is one of four board members for The Circle.

Joy Persall: We just decided, as a board, to put everything on pause. We did a community survey, try and take a good look at what is the need, what is really feasible for us. What we're hearing is, people really appreciated having a newspaper that they could stop and pick up. There's a number of drop-off sites that people really appreciated getting it in that form, but it's also a model that is hard to sustain.

Travis Zimmerman: The decision doesn't have as much to do with finances as it does looking at printed versus online presence in an ever-increasing digital

Joy Persall: We have to have a different business model. I believe it's got to include more of the social media, online access. It feels like, in our hearts and what we hear, there's a real desire for it to continue.

Travis Zimmerman: Persall thinks that it could be an exciting time to reimagine an important part of not only the urban Native population, but what is also the main source of Native news for many American Indians statewide and across the

Joy Persall: The fortunate thing is, we have money in the bank, we have some resources. I think it could be a really interesting new chapter for The Circle.

Travis Zimmerman: If you would like to offer your services or want to help in any way, you can contact Joy at thecirclenews at gmail.com. For Minnesota Native News, this is Travis Zimmerman.

Marie Rock: Next, producer Dan Ninham speaks with Indigenous filmmakers about this year's Zeitgeist Film Festival in Duluth.

Dan Ninham: The 2026 Zeitgeist Minnesota Film Festival is taking place this week, April 22nd to 26th in Duluth. Indigenous cinema and voices will be highlighted through screenings, workshops, and an opening ceremony with an honor song performed by a local drum group.

Oogie Push: Well, I've been doing theater for over 20 years now, and so storytelling is just what I love to do.

Dan Ninham: Oogie Pus is Meskwaki from Tama, Iowa. She is a documentarian, actor, and theater maker who currently lives in Dakota Territory in the Twin Cities. Her film, Why We Dance, will be featured at the festival.

Oogie Push: Why We Dance is 76 minutes of Indigenous people who share their culture and talk about their journeys of why they dance and what it means to them. And it really has to do with our connection to the land and to our ancestors.

Dan Ninham: Indigenous storytelling is central to her art as a filmmaker.

Oogie Push: The thing that really helped us tell the story was our traditional music.

Dan Ninham: The representation of Indigenous film at the festival attracted Navajo playwright, screenwriter, and filmmaker Rihanna Yazzie, who sits on this year's Narrative Features jury.

Rhiana Yazzie: I did have my film at this festival a few years ago, and I got an email from the folks over at Zeitgeist asking me if I would be on the jury.

Dan Ninham: Rihanna has been running St. Paul's New Native Theater for the past 16 years.

Rhiana Yazzie: I started off as a playwright, and I just fell in love with the art of writing plays, writing stories.

Dan Ninham: Learn more about all screenings at the Zeitgeist Minnesota Film Festival. For Minnesota Native News, I'm Dan Ninham.

Marie Rock: That's all for this week's episode. Join us next time for more voices and stories that inform, uplift and shape our communities right here on Minnesota Native News.

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Minnesota Native News is produced by AMPERS: Diverse Radio for Minnesota's Communities. Made possible by funding from the Minnesota Arts and Cultural Heritage Fund and the citizens of Minnesota.