Media of Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka's media outlets are generally divided along linguistic and ethnic lines. State and private media operators provide services in the main languages Sinhala, Tamil, and English. The government owns two major TV stations, radio networks operated by the Sri Lanka Broadcasting Corporation (SLBC), and newspaper titles in Sinhala, Tamil and English.^[1]

After the growth of Sri Lankan economy, many satellite TV channels were introduced.

However, there are over a dozen privately owned radio stations and more than 30 privately operated television stations.^[1] They often engage in political debates.

The use of the internet is a growing force within Sri Lanka, many of the newspapers now have online editions.^[1] Because of the limited circulation for the daily and weekly newspapers, they are heavily dependent on advertising. As a result of this it is very rare to see Sri Lankan newspapers engage in investigative journalism or daring exposes of big business.

Newspapers

Important English language newspapers are the Daily Mirror, the Daily News and the Island. Sinhalese newspapers are Dinamina, Lankadeepa, Lakbima, and Divaena. Tamil newspapers are Uthayan and Virakesari.

TV stations

There are both government-owned and private TV channels. Some operate analog free-to-air channels while others operate their channels through satellite, IPTV or cable networks

Analog Terrestrial Networks

	Name	Ownership	Language(s)	Established & current status
1	Independent Television Network (ITN)	State-owned	Sinhala	April 13, 1979 [2]
2	Sri Lanka Rupavahini Corporation	State-owned	Sinhala	February 15, 1982 [3]
3	Channel One MTV	Private	English	December 14,1992 [4]
4	TNL	Private	Sinhala / English	June 21,1993[5]
5	ETV	Private	English	1995 [6]
6	Swarnavahini	Private	Sinhala	March 16,1997[7][8]
7	Sirasa TV	Private	Sinhala	June 10,1998 [9]
8	Shakthi TV	Private	Tamil	October 20, 1998
9	Channel Eye	State-owned	English	August 20, 2000
10	TV Lanka [9]	Private	Sinhala	December 05,2001
11	ART Television	Private	English	July 21,2003 [10]
12	Derana	Private	Sinhala	October 11, 2005 [11]
13	Max TV	Private	Sinhala / English / Tamil	January 17, 2007[12]
14	Nethra TV	State-owned	Tamil	January 01, 2008[13]
15	Vasantham TV	State-owned	Tamil	June 25, 2009[14]
16	Siyatha TV	Private	Sinhala	September 17, 2009[15]
17	Vettri TV	Private	Tamil	September 17, 2009[16]
18	Prime TV	State-owned	English	November 12, 2009[17]
19	NTV	State-owned	English	November 18, 2009[18]
20	DAN Tamiloli	Private	Tamil	2009[19]
21	VIS3 - CCTV News	Private	English	May 07, 2010[20]
22	Carlton Sports Network - CSN [10]	Private	Sinhala / English	March 07, 2011[21]
23	The Buddhist TV [11]	Private	Sinhala	April 08, 2011

Local TV Channels on Satellite or Cable Networks

	Name	Ownership	Language	Established
1	Young Asia Television [12]	Private	Sinhala/Tamil/English	1995[22]
2	Srilakvahini	Private	Sinhala	November 03, 2006[23]
3	Sri TV [13]	Private	Sinhala	2006
4	Dhammavahini [14]	Private	Sinhala	May, 2007[24]
5	The Buddhist [15]	Private	Sinhala	June 29, 2007[25]
6	CiTi HiTz	Private	Sinhala	December 10, 2007
7	Gospel Vision	Private	Sinhala/English	2007
8	Channel C	Private	Sinhala	March 10, 2008[26]
9	Lakroo/Info TV	State-owned	Sinhala	April 04, 2009[27]
10	Heritage TV [16]	Private	Sinhala	May 08, 2009[28]
11	DAN Tamiloli [17]	Private	Tamil	2009
12	TV Neth [18]	Private	Sinhala	2009
13	One SriLanka [19]	Private	Sinhala	2009
14	Knowledge TV	Private	Sinhala	2010
15	TV Dream Music	Private	Sinhala	2010
16	Nenasa TV	Private	Sinhala	2010
17	One Six Channel	Private	Sinhala	2011
18	Swarga TV	Private	Sinhala/Tamil/English	2011

Pay Television Networks (Sri Lankan Owned)

	Name	Technology	Established
1	PEO TV (SLT Visioncom)	IPTV (ADSL and WiMAX)	September 2008[29]
2	Lanka Broadband Networks (LBN)	Analog/Digital Cable	2000
3	Dialog TV	Digital Satellite	2005[30]
4	Comet Cable(Not functioning since 2009)	Analog Microwave	1999

Sri Lankan radio channels

Before 2000, apart from the state-run radio stations, there had been only a few radio channels, operated by three private companies – the Asia Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) Radio Networks, Colombo Communication Limited, and the Maharaja Broadcasting Corporation – broadcasting in Sinhala, Tamil, and English. They included:

• Gold FM, Sun FM, Hiru FM, and Sooriyan FM: owned by the Asia Broadcasting Corporation
• E FM, Ran FM, and Shree FM: owned by Colombo Communication Limited (a subsidiary of EAP)
• Sirasa FM, Shakthi FM, Y FM and Yes FM: owned by the Maharaja Broadcasting Corporation.

The Sri Lanka Broadcasting Corporation (SLBC) operated three national services, in Sinhala, Tamil and English. Social awareness messages are often aired on issues such as drunk-driving, drugs and health concerns.

Throughout the authorities many private organizations obtained radio broadcasting licenses from the Telecommunications Regulatory Commission of Sri Lanka (TRC) and commenced operation of a number of terrestrial radio stations. By 2009, over thirty state and privately owned radio stations were in operation in Sri Lanka. The table below lists those currently active.

Radio Station	Frequency[31]	Primary Language	Status
City FM	92.2MHz	Sinhala	Active
CRI SRI LANKA	102.0MHz	Sinhala, Tamil, English and Chinese	Active
FM Derana	92.4MHz, 94.5MHz, 95.8MHz, 99.2MHz, 102.3 MHz	Sinhala	Active
FM Frey	104.0 Mhz Colombo 93.5 Mhz Minuwangoda	Sinhala,English	Testing
E FM	100.4MHz, 93.2MHz, 95.8MHz, 99.2MHz, 102.3 MHz	English	Active
Everlasting Radio	97 MHz	English	Active
Gold FM	99.9MHz, 94.7MHz, 102.7MHz, 104.2MHz	English	Active
Hiru FM	94.7MHz, 95.3MHz, 96.7MHz, 107.0MHz	Sinhala	Active
Isira FM	88.0MHz, 89.0Mhz, 93.7MHz, 93.9MHz, 97.2MHz	Sinhala	Active
Kiss FM	89.8 MHz	English	Active
Kirula FM	93.6 MHz	Sinhala	Testing
Lak FM	92.0 MHz,93.3 MHz, 100.1 MHz	Sinhala	Active
Lakhanda	97.6MHz, 87.9MHz, 88.5MHz	Sinhala	Active
Lakviru FM	91.6 MHz	Sinhala	Testing
Lite FM	89.2MHz, 98.2MHz, 92.5 MHz, 90 MHz	English	Active
Max Radio	90.6MHz	Sinhala	Active
Neth FM	93.9 MHz, 95.0 MHz, 100.4 MHz, 105.4 MHz, 105.9 MHz	Sinhala	Active
Ran FM	91.5 MHz, 95.0 MHz, 101.3 MHz, 102.2 MHz	Sinhala	Active
Rangiri Sri Lanka	91.7 MHz, 96.7 MHz, 98.1 MHz, 107.2 MHz	Sinhala	Active
Real Radio	87.8 MHz, 93.9 MHz, 106.7 MHz	English	Active
Rhythm FM (formerly Asura FM)	87.6 MHz, 95.6 MHz, 100.7 MHz	Sinhala	Active
Sath FM	103.6 MHz, 103.0 MHz, 103.6 MHz	Sinhala	testing
Seth FM	101.5 MHz	Sinhala	Active
Shakthi FM	103.8MHz, 105.1MHz, 91.2MHz, 91.5MHz	Tamil	Active
Shree FM	99MHz, 99.3MHz, 93.2MHz, 98.8MHz, 95.8MHz	Sinhala	Active
SLBC - English National Service	90.9 MHz, 95.6 MHz, 96.4 MHz, 96.4 MHz, 98.4 MHz, 99.6 MHz, 100.2 MHz	English	Active
SLBC - Sinhala National Service (Swadeshiya Sevaya)	90.3 MHz, 90.3 MHz, 97.0 MHz, 98.3 MHz, 99.6 MHz, 102.0 MHz, 107.6 MHz	Sinhala	Active
SLBC - Sinhala Commercial Service (Velanda Sevaya)	93.3FM, 106.9FM, 92.7FM	Sinhala	Active
SLBC - Tamil National Service	94.2 MHz, 98.8 MHz, 101.3 MHz, 102.0 MHz, 102.4 MHz, 103.5 MHz, 104.8 MHz	Tamil	Active
SLBC - Tamil Commercial Service (Thendral)	92.2 MHz, 92.8 MHz, 94.2 MHz, 104.5 MHz, 104.8 MHz, 105.6 MHz, 105.6 MHz, 107.9 MHz	Tamil	Active
SLBC - Vidula Children's Service	102.6 MHz	Sinhala, Tamil and English	Active
Sirasa FM	106.6MHz, 88.8MHz, 106.5MHz, 106.2MHz, 101.7MHz	Sinhala	Active
Siyatha FM	90.9MHz, , 98.6MHz	Sinhala	Active
Sooriyan FM	103.2MHz, 97.3MHz, 93MHz, 97.9MHz	Tamil	Active
Sun Fm	98.8MHz	English	Active
TNL Radio	101.7 MHz, 87.9 MHz	English	Active
The Budhhist	104.5 MHz	Sinhala,English	Active
V FM	100.4 MHz, 104.0 MHz, 107.6 MHz	Sinhala	Active
Vasantham FM	102.4 MHz	Tamil	Active
Vettri FM	99.6 MHz, 101.5 MHz, 106.1 MHz	Tamil	Active
Y FM	92.6 MHz, 101.3MHz, 91.2MHz, 99.1MHZ	English	Active
Yes FM	88.2 MHz, 88.2 MHz, 89.5 MHz, 101.0 MHz	English	Active
Youth Radio	107.9 MHz, 100.7 MHz, 104.4 MHz, 104.8 MHz	Sinhala	Active
Your Radio	88.3 MHz	English	Active

Internet

Tamil language radio programmes are broadcast over the Internet including the youth service "TamilsFlashFm".

Press Freedom

Press freedom is a major concern in Sri Lanka. Both sides in the war make efforts to silence inconvenient reporters. Around 15 reporters received death threats from one faction or the other in 2004^[32] The assassinated reporter Aiyathurai Nadesan, correspondent in Batticaloa for several Tamil media stated just prior to his assassination in 2005:

We are caught between a rock and a hard place. It is very difficult for us to check reports either with the security forces or the Tamil Tigers. And when a news item on local events is datelined Colombo, it puts us at risk of reprisals on the ground.

In 2005, the Tamil newspaper Thinakkural was threatened by Karuna. Copies of the newspaper were burned in the Eastern provinces.^[33] On the other hand, distribution of the Tamil weekly Thinamurasu is blocked by the LTTE because it is close to another armed group, the EPDP.^[33]

BBC World Service stopped its broadcast in Sinhalese and Tamil for fear of reprisal against its reporters.^[33]

During the Rajapaksa administration, press freedom in Sri Lanka became the "worst in any democratic country",^[34] according to the Reporters without borders index, ranking 165th among 173 countries in the index.^[35] On 21 November 2008, a twelve-member group of masked men, forcibly entered the printing press of Sunday Leader, Morning Leader and Irudina Sinhala weekly and set fire damaging printing machines and copies of newspapers printed ready for distribution. The state jammed transmission of BBC programs which contained content the government disliked.^[36] The main private TV network Sirasa was repeatedly threatened by minister Mervyn Silva, attacked by a petrol bomb on 2.1.2009 and raided by gunmen on 6.1.2009, who set on fire the main control room.^[37] This was in response to SLBC criticizing Sirasa's coverage of the capture of Kilinochchi.

According to the head of the company, Chevaan Daniel: "It's either that the citizens of Sri Lanka are able to drive around attacking institutions armed with weapons and grenades, or there is a hand behind it."^[37]

Lasantha Wikramatunga, the chief editor of the English Weekly Sunday Leader, was assassinated on the Thursday January 8, 2008 by unknown gunmen. The newspaper and its editor as well as the editor of Morning Leader have been harassed and threatened continuously during the preceding three years. All Leader publications are very critical towards the government and exponents of opposition political views.^[38] According to Reporters without Borders, the Rajapaksa administration blocks investigations into the murder of journalists.^[33]

Defence minister Gotabhaya Rajapaksa threatened to chase Chris Morris, a BBC journalists, out of the country, if he does not act responsibly.^[39]

Local reporters in the country continue to be threatened, as was the case with 54-year-old M.I. Rahmathulla, who was beaten in April 2009 for reporting on political corruption in the Batticaloa region of Sri Lanka's Eastern Province.^[40]

See also

• List of newspapers in Sri Lanka
• List of television networks in Sri Lanka
• List of radio networks in Sri Lanka
• Sri Lanka Broadcasting Corporation

References

1. ^ ^{a b c} "Country profile: Sri Lanka". BBC News. February 4, 2011. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/south_asia/country_profiles/1168427.stm. 
2. ^ ITN Sri Lanka, About Us
3. ^ Rupavahini, About Us
4. ^ Launched in 1992 as MTV Newsvision, renamed as MTV in 1998 Press reference, SRI LANKA Press, Media, TV, Radio, Newspapers
5. ^ Press reference, SRI LANKA Press, Media, TV, Radio, Newspapers
6. ^ Launched in 1995 as ETV 2, renamed as ETV in 1997 Press reference, SRI LANKA Press, Media, TV, Radio, Newspapers
7. ^ Launched in 1994 as ETV, renamed as Swarnavahini on March 16, 1997 Press reference, SRI LANKA Press, Media, TV, Radio, Newspapers
8. ^ Swarnavahini, About Us
9. ^ Launched in 1992 as MTV, renamed as Sirasa TV in 1998 Press reference, SRI LANKA Press, Media, TV, Radio, Newspapers
10. ^ Launched in 1996 as Dynavision, renamed as ARTv Press reference, SRI LANKA Press, Media, TV, Radio, Newspapers
11. ^ "Derana ceremonial launch today". The Daily News. 10 November 2005. http://www.dailynews.lk/2005/10/11/news19.htm. 
12. ^ TV and Radio Sri Lanka, Max TV launches today
13. ^ Launched as Rupavahini 2 and later renamed as Channel Eye
14. ^ http://tvradiosrilanka.blogspot.com/2009/06/vasantham-tv-to-launch-on-june-25th.html
15. ^ http://tvradiosrilanka.blogspot.com/2009/09/siyatha-tv-and-vettri-tv-to-launch.html
16. ^ http://tvradiosrilanka.blogspot.com/2009/09/siyatha-tv-and-vettri-tv-to-launch.html
17. ^ http://tvradiosrilanka.blogspot.com/2009/11/prime-tv-launches-and-radio-1.html
18. ^ http://tvradiosrilanka.blogspot.com/2009/11/ntv-to-launch-today.html
19. ^ http://www.dantv.tv/
20. ^ http://english.cntv.cn/program/newshour/20100508/101962.shtml
21. ^ http://csn.lk/
22. ^ About YA TV[1]
23. ^ Srilakvahini Test Transmission [2]
24. ^ Dharmavahini Launched [3]
25. ^ The Buddhist TV Launched [4]
26. ^ Channel C Launched [5]
27. ^ Lakroo Launched [6]
28. ^ Heritage TV Launched [7]
29. ^ PEO TV, [8]
30. ^ Established in 2005 as CBNSat, later renamed Dialog TV when acquired by Dialog Telekom
31. ^ Alan G. Davies. "Radio Stations in Sri Lanka". http://www.asiawaves.net/sri-lanka-radio.htm. Retrieved 2010-01-01. 
32. ^ . http://www.rsf.org/article.php3?id_article=13442
33. ^ ^{a b c d} http://www.rsf.org/article.php3?id_article=13442
34. ^ "'Drop' in S Lanka press freedom". BBC News. October 31, 2008. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/7702880.stm. 
35. ^ http://www.rsf.org/article.php3?id_article=19391
36. ^ http://www.bbc.co.uk/sinhala/news/story/2008/12/081212_rsf_bbc.shtml
37. ^ ^{a b} "Gunmen raid Sri Lanka TV station". BBC News. January 6, 2009. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/7813043.stm. 
38. ^ http://www.bbc.co.uk/sinhala/news/story/2009/01/090108_lasantha.shtml
39. ^ http://www.island.lk/2009/02/01/news1.html
40. ^ Risking Lives for Information Exchange Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting http://pulitzercenter.typepad.com/untold_stories/2009/04/sri-lanka-risking-lives-for-information-exchange.html

External links

• List of Tamil Online Radio
• Lanka Media Outlook
• lankaenews.com
• tharunaya.com
• Nethsara.com
• Sri Lankan search engine - Sri Lankan news - Explore Sri Lanka - Ceylon
• The Permanent Mission of Sri Lanka to the United Nations Office at Geneva