Truth, trust and storytelling: Kathleen Martens reflects on 35 years in journalism
Release Date: 08/21/2025
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On this edition of APTN News InFocus, host Cierra Bettens looks at the record number of Indigenous films featured at the 2025 Toronto International Film Festival, also known as TIFF. Among the eight Indigenous films premiering this year is Ni-Naadamaadiz: Red Power Rising, a documentary from Shane Belcourt and Tanya Talaga on the 1974 occupation of Anicinabe Park. Also featured is Nika and Madison, by Walpole Island First Nation director Eva Thomas, which follows two estranged friends brought back together by a police encounter. All eight films are supported by the Indigenous Screen Office’s...
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APTN News InFocus
This week on APTN News InFocus, host Cierra Bettens continues her conversation with veteran journalist and outgoing APTN web reporter Kathleen Martens. With more than 35 years in the industry, Kathleen reflects on the lessons she’s learned like what it takes to build trust with sources and adapt in a fast-changing media landscape. She also shares insights for emerging journalists navigating the profession, and what she hopes for the future of Indigenous-focused news coverage. Read more of Kathleen’s reporting at and find the Our Relatives podcast here: • • • APTN National...
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Truth, trust and storytelling: Kathleen Martens reflects on 35 years in journalism
APTN News InFocus
This week on APTN News InFocus, host Cierra Bettens sits down with veteran journalist and APTN web reporter Kathleen Martens. When Kathleen joined APTN 15 years ago as a writer and researcher, she already had two decades of newsroom experience. But as a non-Indigenous journalist working for an Indigenous news outlet, she says the role reshaped her understanding of truth, trust and storytelling. From courtrooms to bus shacks, Kathleen has interviewed thousands of people, reported on the crisis of missing and murdered Indigenous women, girls and Two-Spirit people and exposed predatory lawyers...
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This week on APTN News InFocus, host Cierra Bettens takes a closer look at the wildfires reshaping summers across the country. For the four Island Lake First Nations in northern Manitoba, 2025 has been a season of evacuations, loss and displacement. Anisininew Okimawin Grand Chief Alex McDougall joins us from Garden Hill First Nation to share how fires have uprooted communities and why leaders are calling for a national fire strategy that includes Indigenous voices at the table. With thousands forced from their homes and experts warning that climate change will only make fire seasons longer...
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This week on APTN News InFocus, host Cierra Bettens sits down with Dylan Cloud, a former APTN News intern and recent media grad, to talk about his healing journey and growth as a storyteller. Cloud, who joins us from Long Plain First Nation, shares how he went from incarceration and addiction to sobriety, reconnecting with his culture, enrolling in college and building a future for himself and his children. • • • APTN National News, our stories told our way. Visit our website for more: Hear more APTN News podcasts:
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This week on APTN News InFocus, host Cierra Bettens is joined by Mohawk activist, artist and filmmaker Ellen Gabriel. During the 1990 siege at Kanehsatà:ke, Gabriel was chosen by the People of the Longhouse to speak for the community during a 78-day standoff with the Canadian military. Thirty-five years later she continues to speak out, not only for her own people, but for others facing colonization and occupation. She now focuses part of her advocacy on Gaza, where she sees parallels in the violence, displacement and media narratives. • • • APTN National News, our stories told our way....
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APTN News InFocus
This week on APTN News InFocus, host Cierra Bettens digs into the growing push from provinces to fast-track major infrastructure projects, even if it means sidelining environmental protections and Indigenous rights. Ontario and Alberta have signed a new agreement aimed at building more pipelines and rail lines, calling on Prime Minister Mark Carney to scrap legislation they say stands in the way. APTN’s Leanne Sanders, who first reported the story, joins us to break down what’s at stake as provinces push for rapid development. While governments work to reshape the country’s...
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No invites, no updates: What happened to Carney’s promised summit?
APTN News InFocus
This week on APTN News InFocus, host Cierra Bettens revisits Bill C-5, the One Canadian Economy Act, which became law on June 26. The legislation promises to remove interprovincial trade barriers and fast-track development projects deemed to be in the national interest. But critics say that promise comes at a steep cost. Indigenous leaders across the country have raised serious concerns that Bill C-5 could sideline treaty rights and pave the way for environmentally destructive projects. While Prime Minister Mark Carney pledged to hold summits with First Nations, Inuit and Métis leaders,...
info_outlineThis week on APTN News InFocus, host Cierra Bettens sits down with veteran journalist and APTN web reporter Kathleen Martens.
When Kathleen joined APTN 15 years ago as a writer and researcher, she already had two decades of newsroom experience. But as a non-Indigenous journalist working for an Indigenous news outlet, she says the role reshaped her understanding of truth, trust and storytelling.
From courtrooms to bus shacks, Kathleen has interviewed thousands of people, reported on the crisis of missing and murdered Indigenous women, girls and Two-Spirit people and exposed predatory lawyers targeting residential school survivors. In 2023, she created Our Relatives, a podcast sharing the stories of people experiencing homelessness in Winnipeg.
As she heads into retirement, Kathleen reflects on her 35-year career and the changes she’s witnessed in the industry.
Read more of Kathleen’s reporting at http://aptnnews.ca/ and find the Our Relatives podcast here: https://aptnnews.ca/ourrelatives
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APTN National News, our stories told our way.
Visit our website for more: https://aptnnews.ca
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