After five years on the air, "Native America Calling" bills itself as the nation's longest-running talk show that focuses on American Indian issues. Some 125,000 listeners tune in every week on 36 radio stations and Web simulcasts, according to the show's distributor, American Indian Radio on Satellite.

The show's goal is to expand the ancient Indian tradition of communicating as equals known as the talking circle....

"We come from a very strong oral tradition. We need to keep with that strength," said Bernadette Chato, who produces a weekly health show for Native America Calling from Anchorage, Alaska. "So many Indian traditions have been pushed aside with the tribal governments."

The Monday-through-Friday talk show has created a forum for Indians to speak out on issues that are not addressed on or off the reservations, Chato said.

"With the show, we get our concerns out and the people on the outside know what's going on," said listener JoAnn Tall, a member of the Oglala Lakota nation from Porcupine, S.D....

John GrofsVenor, a Cherokee who connects to the show almost every day from his home computer in Nespelem, Wash., said Native America Calling takes a balanced approach as it digs into issues that affect the lives of Indians.

"They talk about issues like tribal sovereignty and things that the main media does not address," the 62-year-old listener said. The mainstream media "either ignore Indian problems or else they don't want to address them."