ABSTRACT
This chapter reflects the ways in which the media portray the image of the Canadian Aboriginals, how the media discourse serves to further the myths and stereotypes about the indigenous peoples in a way that constructs their biased and opinionated image amidst the mainstream news consumers. The Aboriginal peoples are not only struggling with the government for their land rights but also with the mainstream Canadian media to create their own aesthetics of representation and rectify their distorted portrayals. The Need to Consider Journalism Practice when Reforming Aboriginal Media Coverage in Canada also sheds light on mainstream journalism practice that creates a dichotomy with respect to the Aboriginal-non-Aboriginal relationship: much of the coverage of First Nations groups in Canada perpetuates representations of conflict between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal Canadians. As Harding has observed in his research on 'The Media, Aboriginal People and Common Sense', stereotyping the Aboriginals has long been a feature of Canadian media discourse.
