UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -- A College of Communications faculty member will serve as moderator for discussion around a free public screening of “Reel Injun: On the Trail of the Hollywood Injun” at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 9, in Deans Hall of The Penn Stater Conference Center Hotel.
John Sanchez, an associate professor in the Department of Journalism, teaches news media ethics, and American Indians and the media.
“Reel Injun” traces the evolution of cinema’s depiction of American Indians beginning in the silent film era. It includes clips from hundreds of classic and Hollywood movies, as well as interviews with activists, historians, film critics and filmmakers.
American Indian identity in the 21st century, specifically at the intersection of American Indian cultures and the American news media, is Sanchez’s area of interest and research. He has published articles in Communication Quarterly, Communications Studies, The Howard Journal of Communications, Journal of American Indian Culture and Research, and Teacher Education Quarterly, among other publications.
Sanchez was named one of the leading scholars in the field of intercultural studies by The Communication Institute for Online Scholarship. He is also a Freedom Forum Teaching Fellow and a Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication/Association of Schools of Journalism and Mass Communication Freedom Forum Journalism Leadership in Diversity Fellow. He serves on the executive boards of the Committee on Institutional Cooperation American Indian Studies Consortium and the American Native Press Archives, and as a consultant to the Board of Directors of the American Indian Policy and Media Initiative.
During his tenure at American University in Washington, D.C., Sanchez served as the academic director of the American Indian Leadership Program and taught American Indian leadership and politics. Under his leadership, President Bill Clinton’s panel on race initiatives recognized this program as one of the five top programs in the country. He continues to work in Washington, D.C., as a consultant to Indian Country in education, diversity and mass communications initiatives.
Sanchez is a past recipient of Penn State’s Communications Alumni Society Excellence in Teaching Award and was named a Distinguished Professor in the Schreyer Honors College at Penn State. Sanchez recently published “American Indians and the Mass Media” -- the first book of its kind addressing American Indians and the Media.
The event is sponsored by the Outreach and Online Education Diversity Council.