Developing the questions

Months after the Asian tsunami, a new report provides damning evidence of Sri Lanka's inefficient media in the aftermath of the disaster.

Transparency International in Sri Lanka has concluded: "the voiceless were not given a platform to express themselves at all. The main function of the majority media texts analysed was to conceal the fact that the state of public opinion at any given time is made up of a system of forces, of tensions, and the serious inadequacy of the Sri Lankan way of journalism toward representing the state of public opinion."

Furthermore, the difficulties in developing a rigorous media in a developing country are discussed. During my visit to the beautiful country in March this year, I discovered, as the report states, a media "very Colombo-centred and politicised." As the growth of the internet penetrates further throughout the country, we can hopefully expect more localised and targeted journalism.