Dr Viranjana Herath of the Media Law Forum pointed out that, rather than relying on mere macro solutions to overcome the challenges faced by the current media sector and journalists, micro solutions should be tested through various collectives of journalists.
He stated this while delivering a guest lecture at the general assembly of the ‘Journalists for Rights’ organisation, held on 14 May 2026 at the Sandhara Social Enterprise Hall in Colombo.
Speaking under the theme ‘Current challenges faced by journalists’, Dr Herath drew serious attention to the closure of print media institutions and the failure to remunerate journalists properly. He pointed out that a situation has currently arisen where payments are delayed even for editorial board members working on service contracts. He recalled that although regional and freelance journalists face practical issues when approaching labour courts, there are also instances where legal action has been taken and compensation successfully obtained.
He emphasised that solutions to this crisis should be sought not individually, but as a collective effort. He pointed out that media organisations must take joint steps for this purpose, and highlighted the necessity of establishing a broad dialogue on this matter with organisations such as the Editors’ Guild and the Broadcasters’ Guild.
He explained with examples that media institutions in other countries are utilising new methodologies such as ‘online subscriptions’ to face this financial and existential challenge, and that the revenue of certain newspapers has increased recently through this. However, he stated that there are certain limitations when adapting international experiences to Sri Lanka, and that a unique responsibility falls upon the management of media institutions in this regard.
He also informed the assembly about how countries like Switzerland attempted to sustain traditional media by introducing a ‘media tax’ as a solution to the crisis in the media sector, but noted the social opposition it faced and the referendum that had to be held as a result. Pointing out that the potential success of macro solutions is therefore questionable, he re-emphasised the importance of journalists uniting to experiment with start-up enterprise-level solutions.
It was stated here that the ‘Media Law Forum’, a collective of lawyers and journalists working in relation to the media sector across the island, is constantly dedicated to providing necessary legal aid and advice regarding the legal issues faced by journalists, as well as during content creation. Furthermore, Dr Viranjana Herath mentioned that the Media Law Forum provides continuous support for educating journalists about new laws, advocacy, and research activities.