Al Jazeera Journalism Review

SRI LANKA outside
COLOMBO, SRI LANKA - An anti-government demonstrator shouts slogans at police officers ordering them to leave a seafront tent camp that became the focal point of months-long nationwide demonstrations, amid Sri Lanka's economic crisis, on August 4, 2022 [Kim Kyung-Hoon/Reuters]

‘We have to walk miles to cover the news’ - journalism in Sri Lanka

The ongoing economic crisis in Sri Lanka has been widely covered by international media. But what is life like for journalists in the country right now?

 

“Please give me a little time.” It was a common response from journalists in Sri Lanka who I approached in a bid to find out what life is like just now for journalists amid the mounting economic and political crisis in the country.

Sri Lanka has long been a popular tourist destination for rich foreigners - and is reflected as such in international media. But the bureaucratic processes that go into running a Global Southern democracy, and the hardships endured by ordinary working people including journalists there, often go overlooked.

Sri Lanka is currently more than $51 billion in debt to foreign entities, but it suspended all debt payments in April as it struggled to even procure necessities such as fuel, food and medicines. In fact, the grave financial crisis has extended into a developing sociopolitical conflict, especially with the resignation of President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and other top government officials, as well as massive protests sweeping the nation.

Citizens struggle to make ends meet due to a shortage of fuel and food. Even when stores do have essential supplies, people don’t have enough fuel to drive to them. As top officials try to flee the country in private jets, there have been reports of individuals dying while standing in long queues to get fuel as police and military try to maintain order.

The crisis in Sri Lanka reveals patterns about how events happening within seemingly small nation states in the Global South can and do affect the larger world. More importantly, it shows that solutions for such crises cannot come from affected states in isolation from the rest of the world, especially since economic crises in southern global democracies can often be traced back to larger systemic patterns of inequality, capitalist exploitation, as well as a colonial history that likely affects bureaucracy and politics in these nations today.

Journalism is a challenging craft to practice even at the best of times, which is why it becomes easy to overlook the struggles that journalists face during times of conflict and crisis. 

'Like living in the 1970s'

The journalists I contacted in Sri Lanka told me they hoped that the situation would de-escalate with time, and that they might be able to get back to me with clearer responses once that happens. Needless to say, things got worse with each passing day, and I did not hear back from many of the journalists I tried to get in touch with for interviews.

The little time, resources and energy that reporters working in Sri Lanka have left after they have fulfilled their primary duties - which have been affecting them as much as the next citizen - they choose to invest in practising their craft. 

Journalism becomes even more important when it is under threat, and perhaps, no one understands that better than journalists working in situations where journalism has become threatened.

One such journalist working in Sri Lanka that I contacted was Hasitha Wijewardhana, working at TV Derana. After my initial messages to him, Wijewardhana got back to me after about a week. He apologised for not being able to respond earlier: “I was busy with the situation. Please give me a few more days.” He never managed to get back to me.

I did manage to speak to Hasini Ekanayake, who is a journalist at Swarnavahini Media Network, about how the ongoing crisis in Sri Lanka has affected journalism in the country.

“It almost feels like living in the 1970s when everything was rationed,” she tells me. Ekanayake adds that due to the fuel shortage, there has been a lack of public transport and work schedules have had to change a great deal as a result.

Reporters have tried to limit travelling as much as they can and work as much as possible on computers, setting up virtual meetings or interviews. However, this crisis-induced inability to carry out field work has greatly affected journalistic output in the country.

Ekanayake also says that due to the fuel shortage, journalists have had to walk miles to cover news in some cases. In addition, since most journalists depend on a monthly salary, she said that the spike in inflation has made living costs unbearable for many journalists in Sri Lanka.

“Everything becomes political. Political decisions play a crucial part in day-to-day lives of people and the overall economy,” she said, adding that non-essential services have been hit the worst. Since journalism is not always considered an “essential service”, journalists face additional difficulties when trying to do their job.

“Travelling issues due to the fuel crisis, regular power cuts, and high cost of living directly affect journalism in the country,” she says.

'Journalism loses its purpose'

A shortage of paper has also had a severe impact on journalism in Sri Lanka. Since March, many major newspapers have announced that they will be available online only or have suspended publication altogether.

Digital poverty affects a large number of the population. As not every citizen has access to personal devices or the internet. In this instance, changing the production of a newspaper to an online-only format will mean that many citizens will lose access to their daily consumption of news. 

If journalism does not reach the masses, it loses its purpose. And in this manner, both the digital divide and information inequality will continue to expand further until they reach alarming levels.

The other side of digitisation is the role of social media in journalism, both as a platform for production and consumption of mass media. Ekanayake emphasises that social media “has become powerful” and that while sometimes it can be beneficial, other times, it is being used to spread misinformation. 

She says that because of social media, in the future “journalism will be in the fingertip of every citizen”, which is concerning in times of crisis. When authentic, objective journalism is unable to reach the masses, social media will take its place, leading to potentially catastrophic consequences in an already shaky situation involving conflict or crisis.

From my interviews, it seems that many journalists in Sri Lanka fear the media will not be able to bounce back from the current crisis. According to Ekanayake, a great deal will depend on “how the government manages to overcome the current crisis” and whether laws regarding the spread of fake information through social media channels are enforced or not.

While journalism as an institution in many countries around the world is given the least resources, it is most adversely affected in countries that need to be extra careful about distributing their resources. This means that the availability of equipment for video and sound recording, transportation facilities, and even the salaries of working journalists are likely to take a serious hit. 

Ekanayake believes the government should be doing much more to support the work of journalists - particularly during times of crisis. Citizens “must be constantly informed” about socio-economic issues developing in the country. 

However, most journalists feel their work is taken for granted, not just by the government, but by ordinary people as well.

The fight is for survival right now, and with the ever-evolving crisis in the country, conclusions have become increasingly hard to make.

Abeer Khan is an Indian journalist and academic

 

The views expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect Al Jazeera Journalism Review’s editorial stance

 

More Articles

Suffering in silence - the Kashmiri journalists facing a mental health crisis

THE LONG READ: Al Jazeera Journalism Review has interviewed more than 20 journalists in India-controlled Kashmir who are facing exhausting, insurmountable obstacles to doing their jobs safely every single day

Adil Akhoon
Adil Amin Akhoon, Khalid Bashir Gura Published on: 29 May, 2023
How to analyse satellite imagery

When you have a story, but still need to tie up loose ends to answer where or when a particular event occurred, satellite imagery can point you in the right direction

Sara
Sara Creta Published on: 25 May, 2023
OSINT: Tracking ships, planes and weapons

Tracking ships and planes is an increasingly valuable technique in open-source investigations carried out by journalists. In part 4 of our special series, we examine how it works

Sara
Sara Creta Published on: 18 May, 2023
How social media bans have crippled journalism in India’s Punjab

The Indian government has ordered social media platforms to block hundreds of accounts of journalists and activists

Meer Faisal
Meer Faisal Published on: 16 May, 2023
Tear gas and internet blackouts - reporting on protests in Pakistan

REPORTER'S NOTEBOOK: Following the arrest of former Prime Minister Imran Khan, violence has erupted across Pakistan. For journalists, it is like reporting from the centre of a storm

Anam Hussain
Anam Hussain Published on: 14 May, 2023
Remembering Shireen; my colleague and a 'role model for professionalism'

On the eve of the first anniversary of the killing of Shireen Abu Akleh, Al Jazeera's Senior Correspondent in Palestine, her colleague commemorates the compassion, integrity and professionalism which made her the extraordinary journalist and human being that she was

Walid
Walid Omary Published on: 10 May, 2023
Planning and carrying out an open-source investigation

Part three of our special series of articles on using OSINT in journalism. This time, follow our four steps to completing an open-source investigation

Sara
Sara Creta Published on: 9 May, 2023
What is an open-source investigation?

In the second part of our special series on using open-source intelligence in journalism, we look at what constitutes and open-source investigation

Sara
Sara Creta Published on: 4 May, 2023
How misinformation in the media wreaked havoc on an Indian village

When journalists - and social media ‘influencers’ claiming to be journalists - aimed for sensationalism and did not check their facts about the outbreak of the HIV virus in an Indian village, the results were devastating

Saurabh Sharma
Saurabh Sharma Published on: 1 May, 2023
Using open-source intelligence in journalism

Where once journalists relied on sources for information - also known as ‘human intelligence’ (HUMINT) - they now increasingly rely on ‘open-source’ intelligence (OSINT) gathered from the internet, satellite imagery, corporate databases and much, much more

Phil
Phil Rees Published on: 12 Apr, 2023
Why is life so dangerous for Pakistani journalists?

Pakistani journalists face huge danger in the course of carrying out their work. Why is so little being done to address this?

Anam Hussain
Anam Hussain Published on: 6 Apr, 2023
Investigating the assassination of my own father

As a journalist, reporting on the murder of my father meant answering questions about my own position as an objective observer

Diana Lopez
Diana Lopez Zuleta Published on: 3 Apr, 2023
‘I have disturbing dreams’ - the reporters suffering mental trauma on the job

Remaining objective while bearing witness to atrocities and suffering abuse from authorities is taking its toll on the mental health of journalists in India

Saurabh Sharma
Saurabh Sharma Published on: 20 Mar, 2023
Understanding data journalism

Data journalism is about much more than just sorting through facts and figures. In the first part of our series, we look at what constitutes data-based storytelling

Mohammed Haddad
Mohammed Haddad Published on: 16 Mar, 2023
Why are journalists being prevented from reporting on the earthquakes? 

Media workers have played a vital role in ensuring help arrives for earthquake victims in Turkey, but many claim they are being prevented from doing their jobs

Aidan
Aidan White Published on: 5 Mar, 2023
Field notes from an earthquake - reporting on human misery

REPORTER'S NOTEBOOK: Where do you draw the line when covering human suffering? When does reporting on a devastating earthquake cross over from objective journalism to tasteless voyeurism?

Ilya
Ilya U Topper Published on: 20 Feb, 2023
‘I reported the truth - and was taken to jail’ - the journalists in prison in India

Indian journalist Siddique Kappan has been released after more than two years in prison just for doing his job. We talked to him and others who have been arrested or imprisoned

Saurabh Sharma
Saurabh Sharma Published on: 15 Feb, 2023
‘Leading the voiceless’ - how low-caste Indian journalists are crowdfunding their own newsrooms

Dalit representation in Indian media organisations is very low. Some journalists from the lowest Hindu caste are finding innovative ways to start up their own news platforms

Saurabh Sharma
Saurabh Sharma Published on: 13 Feb, 2023
Investigative journalism: Handling data and gathering evidence

Data is only one part of the investigative story. In Part 5 of our series on investigative journalism, we look at different methods of gathering evidence

Malak Khalil Published on: 9 Feb, 2023
Investigative journalism: Going undercover 

Covert operations for a journalistic investigation should be undertaken as a last resort only. In Part 4 of our series on investigative journalism, we explore the best ways to go undercover

Malak Khalil Published on: 2 Feb, 2023
‘They called us agents of imperialism’ - remembering the bombing of Zimbabwe’s Daily News

Twenty-two years after the bombing of a newspaper printing plant in January 2001, the perpetrators are still at large - and a state-sanctioned assault on a free press continues

Derick M
Derick Matsengarwodzi Published on: 30 Jan, 2023
Investigative journalism: How to develop and manage your sources

Your sources are the backbone of any investigation. In Part 3 of our series on investigative journalism, we look at how to find, foster and manage them

Malak Khalil Published on: 26 Jan, 2023
Investigative journalism: Hypothesis-based investigations

What is a hypothesis-based investigation, how do you come up with one and how do you investigate and prove it? Part 2 of our series on investigative journalism

Malak Khalil Published on: 19 Jan, 2023
Investigative journalism: What should you investigate?

In the first of our series on investigative journalism, we look at how journalists decide what to investigate

Malak Khalil Published on: 12 Jan, 2023