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.
As a result of this it is very rare to see Sri Lankan newspapers engage in investigative journalism or daring exposés of big business.
[3] 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.
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.
"[7] Lasantha Wickrematunge, the chief editor of the English Weekly Sunday Leader and Sri Lanka's most influential journalist, was assassinated on the Thursday January 8, 2009 by unknown gunmen.
[3] Defence minister Gotabhaya Rajapaksa threatened to chase Chris Morris, a BBC journalists, out of the country, if he does not act responsibly.
Rahmathulla, who was beaten in April 2009 for reporting on political corruption in the Batticaloa region of Sri Lanka's Eastern Province.
[12] Subsequently, the Maharaja Television Network (MTV) was launched in collaboration with Singapore Telecommunications Limited (SingTel).
Though "Rekawa" was acclaimed by local and international critics, the film failed to find an audience in the country and was a box office failure.
Films continued to follow formulaic storylines borrowed from India up through the early 60s despite such efforts as Sandesaya and Kurulu Bedda.
Artists such as Tissa Abeysekara, Dr. D.B.Nihalsingha, Prasanna Vithanage and Vimukthi Jayasundara have attempted to breathe new life into the industry.
In recent years, films have begun to tackle gritty subjects such as family relationships, abortion and results of the conflict between the military and Tamil Tiger rebels in the north.