Tribal Television
Viewing Native People in Sitcoms
Dustin Tahmahkera
Publisher: University of North Carolina Press
Imprint: The University of North Carolina Press
Published: 10/2014
Pages: 262
Subject: Social Science, Language Arts and Disciplines
| University of North Carolina
Print ISBN: 9.78E+12
eBook ISBN: 9781469618692
DESCRIPTION
Native Americans have been a constant fixture on television, from
the dawn of broadcasting, when the iconic Indian head test pattern
was frequently used during station sign-ons and sign-offs, to the
present. In this first comprehensive history of indigenous people
in television sitcoms, Dustin Tahmahkera examines the way Native
people have been represented in the genre. Analyzing dozens of
television comedies from the United States and Canada, Tahmahkera
questions assumptions that Native representations on TV are
inherently stereotypical and escapist. From The Andy Griffith
Show and F-Troop to The Brady Bunch, King of
the Hill, and the Native-produced sitcom, Mixed
Blessings, Tahmahkera argues that sitcoms not only represent
Native people as objects of humor but also provide a forum for
social and political commentary on indigenous-settler relations and
competing visions of America.
Considering indigenous people as actors, producers, and viewers of
sitcoms as well as subjects of comedic portrayals, Tribal
Television underscores the complexity of Indian
representations, showing that sitcoms are critical contributors to
the formation of contemporary indigenous identities and
relationships between Native and non-Native people.