Veteran broadcaster and Ho-Chunk Nation member to lead publication’s next chapter
MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. — The Circle News, one of the longest-running independent Native American newspapers in the United States, has named Robert Pilot as its new Chief Editor, the organization announced in April 2026. Pilot, a St. Paul resident and enrolled member of the Ho-Chunk Nation, brings more than a decade of experience in Native American media to the role.
The appointment comes as The Circle embarks on a significant transition. The board of directors suspended both the print and online editions in February 2026 to conduct a community needs assessment and explore a new quarterly publication and digitally focused publishing model. The board has affirmed its financial commitment to the organization and characterized the pause as strategic rather than existential.
Pilot is best known as the founder and host of Native Roots Radio, a program he launched on AM 950 in January 2017 alongside his wife, Wendy Pilot. Now in its tenth season, Native Roots Radio has expanded to community radio stations across Minnesota and joined the Civic Media Network in Wisconsin. The program now airs on 30 progressive stations across the country.
Before founding Native Roots Radio, Pilot taught video and media production at Harding High School in Saint Paul for more than 20 years, and started the first all-Native student homeroom in the city, a program that continues today.
The show has built relationships with elected officials, health organizations, and community groups across Minnesota and neighboring states, featuring regular contributors including Minnesota State Senator Mary Kunesh, Minnesota State Representative Heather Keeler, and the president of the Native American Community Clinic, among others.
Pilot also served as a legislator for the Ho-Chunk Nation, completing a four-year term as an elected official before transitioning back to full-time media work.
The transition at The Circle also marks the end of a long era of editorial leadership. Catherine Pat Whipple, who served multiple stints as managing editor and most recently guided the publication through more than a decade of community journalism, retired and stepped down in late February 2026. Whipple’s tenure at The Circle helped the publication earn recognition including Best Native American Monthly from the Native American Journalists Association and Best Community Newspaper from City Pages. In prior years, Whipple described the newspaper’s mission as providing Native voices speaking to and about one of the nation’s largest urban Native communities.
The Circle board expressed deep appreciation for Whipple’s decades of service and commitment to independent Native journalism.
The board, which consists of four members, has said it is responding to community feedback indicating strong appreciation for the newspaper while also acknowledging that the monthly print model is difficult to sustain. The organization plans to rebuild around a quarterly print publication, with future goals of returning to monthly distribution and expanding the digital experience, all while preserving The Circle’s 45-year legacy and editorial independence. The planning of a digital preservation project is also underway, with the goal of archiving every issue of The Circle News for future generations.
The Circle was founded in 1980 as an in-house publication of the Minneapolis American Indian Center and grew into a community newspaper with a print circulation of 8,000 copies per month, distributed to all Minnesota tribes and more than 200 free pickup sites in the metro area. It became an independent 501(c)(3) nonprofit in 1995.
