The Representation of Sri Lankan State University Academics in Print Media.

Abstract

Undergraduates’ protests and violence within the state university system were frequently reported in the Sri Lankan print media. Yet, university academics recently gained the attention of the Sri Lankan press due to a trade union action they initiated on 9th March 2023 and their withdrawal from Advanced Level paper marking. With the understanding that the media’s representation of a group becomes the immediate portrayal of the general public’s view, this paper aimed to conduct a qualitative analysis of Sri Lankan state university academics as depicted in four selected newspapers from the Sinhala print media, based on ownership and publication date. Lankadeepa (daily) and Irida Lankadeepa (Sunday) are published by a privately owned publication company, while Dinamina (daily) and Silumina (Sunday) are published by a state-administered association. Thematic analysis was used for data analysis, focusing on qualitative analysis of the items. The research question, “How are university academics represented in the Sinhala print media?” was addressed in this study. Thirty-one items were reported during the period, and the number of items reported by the state-owned newspapers (19) was higher than the privately owned newspapers (12). According to the findings, most of the newspapers labelled the academics as a group attempting to prey on society, similar to terrorists who victimise students and the general public. The media recurrently reminded the academics of their responsibilities to the nation. The reference to the leftist movement was another persistent theme in the newspapers. Overall, the Sinhala print portrayed a negative view of the state university academics, and the media interpreted the academics as a destructive group of individuals in perpetual protest, sacrificing the future of the youth and children in the country, which hindered the development and the future of Sri Lanka.