 |
| Standing Rock photo by photographer Rob Wilson |
By Brenda Norrell, Censored News, November 13, 2026
Indigenous People told Rolling Stone magazine today that their reporter is violating ethics and ignoring tribal law as he seeks sensitive medical information of Lakota and others who were present at Standing Rock during the resistance to Dakota Access Pipeline.
Native people, in a letter to Rolling Stone, said Rolling Stone's reporter, Sandy Tolan, should cease and desist from continuing his medical survey.
Tolan was warned not to proceed with distributing the survey for medical information during a gathering at Standing Rock in October. Tolan ignored the warning and continued.
The medical survey's questions put Water Protectors safety and freedom at risk by asking them specifically which protests they were at, which includes the dog attack on Water Protectors, Blackwater Bridge action, and Treaty Camp stand.
There are currently cases before the courts in North Dakota and the Netherlands. There are also individual cases of critical injuries inflicted by law enforcement before the courts in the United States.
The letter to Rolling Stone begins:
Tolan's survey asks sensitive questions about sexual ability and reproduction. Even though this part is optional, it is alarming.
Tolan has placed the survey online.
Tolan is researching a connection between ill health of Water Protectors and possible toxic aerial spraying or chemical poisoning of Water Protectors ten years ago, in 2016 and 2017 at Standing Rock.
In the letter to Rolling Stone today, Native people point out that free, prior and informed consent, as stated in the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, is required before proceeding with research.
Native people told Rolling Stone that online communications are never totally secure. It is not possible to guarantee that the information will remain confidential.
Further, in regards to ethics in journalism, it is highly irregular for a news reporter to circulate a written survey for medical information to a vulnerable population, especially on tribal land and without the tribe's permission.
Besides being a news reporter, Tolan is a university professor and book author.
In the letter to Rolling Stone, Native people question who wrote the survey, where the information will be stored and if their medical information will be used for profit in books and the publication of university research.
Native people said in comments online that they regret now giving their medical information in this survey. They say they were misled and believed attorneys initiated the survey.
Copyright Censored News.
