Closing of the Navajo Hopi Relocation Office

This is a story about the relocation several decades ago of Navajo and Hopi Native Americans from a section of Arizona so that utility companies could have access to resources. While this topic could have made for compelling radio, this particular execution is not as successful as it might have been. The reporter tells the history of this relocation by chronicling the people, corporations and legislation involved. There are too many details in this account, and it?s easy to lose track of players and events. The reporter has a pleasant voice, but her narration is edited together awkwardly; words are clipped and breaths removed, making it sound unnatural. The story also includes several actualities, and again they don?t contribute as much as they could have. Some are difficult to understand, as they were recorded on noisy phone lines. The most effective actuality is near the end, and it talks about native people?s connection to the land, and the consequences of having to leave their place of birth. Having some of this information near the top would draw in listeners, and help them appreciate the tragedy these people have suffered. This point could have been made even more effectively by gathering tape from people whose families had to be relocated instead of relying on spokespeople of the tribes. This is a chapter in America?s history that is worth recounting, albeit in a clearer and more radio-phonic way.