Data Analytic Strategies
This research worked within Grounded Theory, utilizing Constant Comparative Analysis
to approach the findings without an a priori scheme (Johnson & Callahan, 2013; Glaser &
Strauss, 1967). Constant comparative analysis is a well-established approach in cultural studies.
Methodological Integrity
While it’s been established that semi-structured interviews are incredibly valuable in
exploratory research, there are some challenges that arise in gauging the validity and rigor of any
qualitative research (Morse et. al, 2002). As Morse et. al assert, “without rigor, research is
worthless, becomes fiction, and loses its utility” (2002). As such, great care was taken to adhere
to verification strategies throughout this study. Within qualitative research, it is imperative that
researchers follow these strategies throughout the research process, keeping a keen eye out for
any subversions to the validity and rigor of a study. In doing so, the researcher is able to create
and maintain a “solid product” (Morse et. al, 2002; Crewell, 1997; Kvale, 1989) by essentially
identifying and rectifying errors before they are incorporated into the developing research and
consequently, subverting the analysis and conclusions of the study (Morse et. al, 2002). As Morse
et. al note, qualitative research is “iterative rather than linear” with successful qualitative
researchers working to ensure they are moving parallel between design and implementation,
ensuring “congruence among question formulation, literature, recruitment, data collection
strategies, and analysis” (2002).
Methodological Coherence. Methodological coherence essentially ensures that there is
clear congruence between the questions of the research in question and the components of the
methodology. The inherent interdependent nature of qualitative research dictates that questions
must match the method, and the method must match the data and analytic procedures (Morse et.
al, 2002).
Appropriate Sample. The sample must be appropriate—subsisting of individuals who are
clearly good representatives of the research topic at hand (Morse et. al, 2002). Doing so ensures
“efficient and effective saturation of categories, with optimal quality data and minimum dross”
(Morse et. al, 2002). Additionally, interviews must continue to be conducted until the researcher
can confidently assert that saturation and replication have been reached (Morse, 1991).
Findings
After a thorough analysis of the interviews conducted, four themes emerged from the
data. First, Lakota individuals felt that social media was in large part, a tool that they felt a
responsibility to utilize as a vessel for change. Second, participants felt a sort of struggle in
balancing social media with deeply rooted, in-person traditions, though, in large part, felt sure
that in some ways, social media could augment their culture and strengthen it. This leads to the
third finding—the ability of social media to preserve Lakota culture for posterities sake, and in
many instances, allow for greater cultural use and access among members of Lakota tribes
despite historical (and still present) marginalization. Lastly, this research affirms a theory of
supraterritorial cultural spaces put forth by Johnson & Callahan (2012). The findings in this study
indicated that Lakota individuals have created online cultural spaces to transcend the more
traditional understandings of culture as a byproduct of geographical positioning.
Media as a Vessel for Change
The first theme to emerge from the data collected was that Lakota individuals view media
(in most cases, social media) as a tool to participate in political discourse. In fact, many
respondents expressed a sense of duty to utilize their own personal social media accounts as a
voice to issues that are incredibly important, both politically and socially. Many of the
individuals interviewed expressed hesitation when they first began to post content that could be
deemed “political” in nature. One participant summarized this well.
Excerpt 1
It’s like an extension of the gift that Creator gave us. He gave us a voice and we
determine how we’re going to use that voice…we have that capable ability now
with social media to extend our voice, to extend our message to create a bigger
circle—a bigger hoop. And that’s how the following starts, maybe your post will
not get a like from someone, but they’re following you because they like what
you’re saying and it makes sense to them, but they do not yet have the courage to
get up and say “You know what, what you said absolutely made sense. I’m really
glad you said that. Can I share that?” Putting it out there is just an extension of what
Creator gave us, it’s our voice and how we use it to help other people. That’s
probably the best thing that social media has for us to offer.
Participants felt they were able to move past these hesitations because they view themselves as
stewards of the earth, and as such, feel it’s their responsibility to do everything in their power to
keep indigenous concerns at the forefront of the public conversation as much as possible, despite
how uncomfortable it may sometimes be. Several interviewees spoke to the connection they have
with the earth, noting that another reason they are devoted to being environmental activists in
their community is due to the intrinsic tie they have with land that was taken from them. One
participant elaborated a bit more on this.
Excerpt 2
We’re connected to our land. Not by law, or decree but by Creator. By choice…He
chose people to be wherever they began and taught them how to live on that land
and revere it and save it, protect it, do all of these things. We’re here for a reason
and enriching ourselves means first enriching the land and remembering the stories
that brought us here.
Interviewees agreed that media has played a central (and crucial) role in every modern
activist campaign they’ve encountered. Participants expressed that initially, they were stunned at
the rapid dissemination of information surrounding politically charged environmental issues,
noting that they now recognize that many of these movements were only able to gain the traction
they did because of social media.
Almost every participant brought up Standing Rock as a clear example of the power of
social media in an activist setting. Several interviewees expressed that it was still incredible to
think that a largely cyber-dedicated campaign could result in a gathering of more than 20,000
indigenous and non-indigenous supporters protesting the Dakota Access Oil Pipeline (DAPL). A
few participants posited that the success and engagement with the #StandingRock campaign
could be largely attributed to necessity. Often, indigenous groups and other minority populations
experience difficulty gaining any sort of traction in news media. One participant aptly noted this.
Excerpt 3
We can post all we want on Facebook about indigenous issues and civil rights. But
it only goes so far in Indian Country. Or a lot of the times it’ll reach white allies.
But across national borders? It’s an immediate black out.
This rings true even when analyzing the Standing Rock protests. News media were slow to pick
up the story, forcing individuals to rely on social media for information sharing, network and
community building, and options for providing general support for those at the site of the DAPL.
Several individuals stated that they often watched Facebook Live for information they felt they
could trust, coming right from the source. Still other interviewees remembered frequenting the
Facebook pages of individuals they knew were at the protest, desperate for any updates they
could find. One individual commented on this dependence on social media that a lack of national
coverage created.
Excerpt 4
The only time I can say I really depended on it [social media] was during Standing
Rock. I really depended on social media because it was a message and everyone
needed to know. It was like another livewire, it started this response on a whole
other level that I was never used to being a part of…it had a huge impact. I’m pretty
sure those live feeds that the youth were posting…they went everywhere.
Everywhere. And if you knew someone that was there on Facebook, you were on
their Facebook account to see what they were doing and what was happening
because we did not get the media. We did not get TV stations, they did not go down
there. The Rapid City Journal was not down there. None of the local media was
there. So in the absence of local media, social media has an opportunity, and I think
a responsibility to put the truth out there.
Several individuals theorized that perhaps, another reason there was such a slow start to
the Standing Rock campaign gaining traction was due to Facebook’s current policies. Several
expressed dismay that quite often, their posts will be removed by Facebook for violation of
community guidelines. It seems unanimous that the ways in which Facebook is implementing
these guidelines is murky at best. One participant shared a specific experience.
Excerpt 3
A lot of our people, when they post, their posts get reported, and they’ll end up in
Facebook jail…the truth hurts and the truth wants to be hidden…. It’s like social
media is good until you start telling the truth…I was trying to post a petition to the
Environmental Protection Agency on the uranium mining—how they gave water
permits [to those companies]… and apparently it was too political. They would not
allow it to get posted.
Balancing Social Media with Deep Tradition
The second theme to emerge from the data collected was the sometimes difficult
juxtaposition of deep tradition with social media, and how they balance the two. Individuals
interviewed unanimously spoke to the power of the spoken word and oral tradition—
emphasizing the importance of storytelling within their culture. One participant summarized it
aptly, stating that:
Excerpt 4:
Our history is largely an oral history… for our culture, especially our spirituality,
everything is word of mouth.
Several individuals noted that they see social media as a way to extend that already deeply rooted
tradition. There was a common trend in the data that correlated with an increased interest and
excitement in social media as a way to transmit stories of their people. One participant
commented that social media mirrors the traditions of storytelling they grew up with.
Excerpt 5:
So the written word is important, but on my dad’s side – oral historians. So, I like
the written word, I like newspapers, I like social media to a certain extent…I
appreciate those platforms because there’s an ability to provide a spoken story. And
so you can hear people talk and tell these stories.
However, there was certainly a melancholy aspect to the opinions and perspectives expressed.
Several participants noted that while social media certainly allows for storytelling, there are
aspects of their tradition that can get lost when it comes to social media. Several participants
expressed worry that social media could, in some ways, impact the sacredness of certain rituals.
It’s created a whole new area for individuals to need to navigate and has forced many
participants to think about certain traditions in ways they never really had to before.
Traditionally speaking, Lakota culture has generally been fairly removed from new media
technology, with an emphasis on in-person, person to person communication. The digital divide
certainly plays a role in this. In 2018, new estimates from the U.S. Census Bureau found that just
over half (53%) of Indigenous peoples in the United States living on reservations or other tribal
lands have access to high-speed internet (NPR, 2018). Interestingly, the topic of infrastructure
and access to high-speed internet is not one that came up with any of the participants during the
course of this research. Though interviews via phone call were proffered up as an interview
option, a majority of interviewees opted for a Zoom-based interview set up. Even still, it’s
evident that social media usage among the Lakota is viewed as a double-edged sword—positive
in that it can allow for individual members of the culture to have increased access to cultural
artifacts, and negative in that it can oftentimes, in the eyes of those interviewed, degrade the
sacredness of a given ritual. One participant succinctly summarized this feeling of wariness and
uncertainty around the sacredness of ceremonies:
Excerpt 6:
I think nowadays it seems to have transitioned. Back when I was learning about our
ways, they used to say, only share this information with your close circle. If other
people outside that circle hear this, and they have ill will, it could have negative
consequences. So when I see people sharing very sacred information, I kind of
cringe, but you know, my grandma used to say, nothing is right or wrong. And it’s
how that person feels about it, and if it’s right for them, then so be it.
Numerous participants echoed this sentiment, with a majority of those interviewed expressing in
one way or another that they recognize that the choice to share or consume cultural artifacts via
social media as a personal one, noting that they refrain from judging anyone else’s use of social
media. However, despite the negatives, there was a general consensus that the ability to share
stories and have those stories saved is still an incredible opportunity. Not only that, but many
individuals felt that social media has allowed them to learn more about other indigenous cultures
through the oral histories shared on apps like TikTok. One respondent spoke to this phenomenon.
Excerpt 7:
With the advent of Tik Tok and those short videos and things that people put out, I
have never learned so much about indigenous culture throughout the United States,
as I do right now, in all my years of study. I’m 51. I feel like in the last year and a
half, my mind has just been blown. I have learned so much. I’m somehow on like
Alaska Native Tik Tok, which I just love because I literally do not know anything
about Native people from that area
While almost all participants recognized that their culture was, for the large part, a very
marginalized and minority perspective in terms of the larger media milieu, many expressed
excitement and hope in the ability of social media to bring their culture, and other indigenous
cultures to the forefront of conversation.
Social Media Usage to Preserve Culture
With a culture deeply rooted in oral tradition and storytelling, it’s not surprising that one
of the most agreed upon positive impacts of social media among participants was its ability to
preserve culture. Every participant interviewed articulated that they utilize social media to look at
and read about their culture online. Several participants indicated that they utilize social media to
stay in the know about cultural events. Perhaps one of the biggest trends that emerged was the
general consensus that social media provides new ways to preserve the Lakota language. Several
individuals spoke to the rapid decline in native speakers—and this is a perspective that has been
echoed by the Lakota Language Consortium (LLC). In 2016, they announced that only 2,000
first-language Lakota speakers remained—a startling decline of 66% in the last ten years (Lakota
Language Consortium, 2016). This rapid loss of first-language speakers averages out to more
than 400 speakers lost each year. In a news release, the LLC stated that according to new
findings “Ethnologue, a catalogue of world languages, will now redesignate the Lakota language
from “Threatened” to “Moribund”, with the special status of “Reawakening” – reflecting the
community’s commitment to bringing back the language into every day use” (Lakota Language
Consortium, 2016). One participant expressed frustration about this loss of language, aptly
noting that in large part, this threat to the Lakota language is due to the brutal history of
indigenous boarding schools set up in the United States in the 1800s, whose sole intent was to
forcibly assimilate Indigenous children. Brandi Morin summarizes the horrific experiences of
these Indigenous children: “Upon arrival at boarding school, the Indian children’s long hair was
cut short, their traditional clothing was burned and replaced with school uniforms, and they were
forbidden to speak their Indigenous language” (National Geographic, 2021). It’s estimated that
more than 10,000 children went to Carlisle Indian Industrial School in Pennsylvania, many of
whom were from the rosebud reservation. With more than 367 known Indian boarding schools in
the 1900s, it’s unimaginable the number of Indigenous youth subjected to years of trauma.
Several participants in this study noted that it’s no surprise that a language that was forcibly
removed from the hundreds of Lakota youth is dwindling, though it’s an unspeakable tragedy.
And yet, of the participants interviewed, every single individual was a testament to this
interest and downright devotion to learning the Lakota language. Many individuals demonstrated
a firm resolve to overcome years of intergenerational trauma brought on by the forcible removal
of their native language, sharing messages of hope about the future of the Lakota language. One
participant indicated that they see social media as a means to restore the Lakota language,
especially among Lakota youth.
Excerpt 8
I think social media is helping us to restore and revitalize our Lakota language. You
can watch videos, learn how to say the word, get the guttural sounds and that
type…I think immersion in Lakota language is needed, and social media is a great
tool to do that.
It’s interesting to note that several participants echoed this sentiment, also recognizing that in
some instances, social media may even be a better tool for learning their native language,
