Current Topics in Museum Studies:
Issues in Native American Representation
Larry J. Zimmerman
IUPUI Department of Anthropology

60 Minutes Kennewick Segment

Video Guide

Running Time  appprox. 12 Minutes, CBS Television, Broadcast on 60 Minutes October 25, 1998  A skeletal skull and a "fleshed" head of Kennewick, both reproductions.
 
Summary:
 
The 1996 discovery of an ancient skeleton along the Columbia River has proved to be a long-running court case over possession of the remains and the ability of scientists to study them. The Umatilla and others claimed the remains under the 1990 Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act. The age of the remains, from more than 9,000 years ago, and physical characteristics suggesting deep Caucasoid origins intrigued a number of scientists who took legal action to stop the repatriation. Leslie Stahl reported on the controversy in this 1998 segment from 60 Minutes. Her piece angered many Indians and scholars who contended that it was very biased and reflected many stereotypes about Indians, many of them very old.

Armand Minthorn is a Umatilla man who appeared in the segment. He responds to the way the segment was edited in  Kennewick Man issue damages relationships. For more detail on the entire case, see the Kennewick Man Virtual Interpretive Center from the Tri-City Herald. FOr a wide range of opinions, see also Skull Wars (2001) by David Hurst Thomas; Ancient Encounters (2001), by James Chatters (who was the first scientist to see the remains); The Riddle of the Bones (2000), by journalist Roger Downey; and No Bone Unturned (2003) by Jeff Benedict. See also a Seattle Weekly special issue on Kennewick

Questions:

1. What are the core legal issues in the case of the Ancient One/Kennewick Man?
2. What are the primary beliefs expressed about the issue by Armand Minthorn? How does the editing make him appear?
3. What are the beliefs of the scientists? How does the editing make them appear?
4. Do you see any particular biases?
5. Does Leslie Stahl use stereotypes of Indians? If so, what are they?
6. Does the piece echo old stereotypes about Indians as some have maintained?
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