A Right to Media? Lorie M. Graham - Columbia Law School

2010] A RIGHT TO MEDIA? 461
This can be further illustrated by considering General
Recommendation 21 of the Committee on the Elimination of Racial
Discrimination (CERD) on the right to self-determination, which
states in part that governments should be aware of the rights of
persons belonging to ethnic, religious, and linguistic groups,
particularly their rights to lead lives of dignity, to preserve their
culture and identity, to share equitably in the fruits of national
growth, and to participate “in the government of the country of which
they are members.” 123 Since robust, accessible media is capable of
nurturing culture and identity, and facilitating involvement in the
development issues of a country, supporting indigenous forms of and
access to media is one way that states can satisfy their obligation to
respect the rights of indigenous peoples.
There are many other examples of linkages between media
and the self-determining rights of indigenous peoples. One primary
area of concern is land and resources. Indigenous peoples’ connection
to and control of ancestral lands and resources is an aspect of selfdetermination
impacted by media rights. These rights intersect with
two other well established norms, prior informed consent and
consultation. The right of prior and informed consent is particularly
important for indigenous peoples given their history of being
deprived of their “lands, territories, and resources” without “their
free and informed consent.” 124 According to CERD, “no decisions
directly relating to [indigenous peoples’] rights and interests . . .
[should be] taken without their informed consent.” 125 In furtherance
of this aim, CERD recently recommended to the United States that it
consult and cooperate in good faith with the indigenous peoples
concerned before adopting and implementing any activity in areas of
spiritual and cultural significance to Native Americans. 126
More broadly, the 1992 Rio Declaration on Environment and
Development’s Principle 10 speaks to the well recognized standard of
prior informed consent, acknowledging that the resolution of
123. Comm. on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, Report of the
Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, annex VIII, para. 10,
U.N. Doc. A/51/18 (Sept. 30, 1996).
124. Comm. on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, General
Recommendation on the Rights of Indigenous People, annex V, para. 5, U.N. Doc.
A/52/18 (Aug. 26, 1997).
125. Id. at dec. 2(54), para. 9.
126. Comm. on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, Concluding
Observations of the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, para.
29, U.N. Doc. CERD/C/USA/CO/6 (Mar. 5, 2008).