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Performer (Interviewee)

Nirasha Piyawadani

Interviewer

Dr. You Li

Geographic Location

Sri Lanka

Biography

Nirasha Piyawadani is a freelance journalist in Sri Lanka who covers stories on human rights, peace, migrant workers, gender-based myths, social issues on sexual and reproductive, media literacy, and climate and environmental issues. During the pandemic, Nirasha was a research assistant for the ICFJ-UNESCO Global Study: Online Violence Against Women Journalists from 2020 to 2021. She has been selected as a scholar for the International Visitor Leadership Program on Edward R Murrow Program for Journalists, conducted by the United States Department of State Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs from February - March 2021. She studies Enhancing the Protection of Women Journalists and Women’s Human Rights in the Context of Shrinking Democratic Space in Asia conducted by Women (UN Women) Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific, and the Office of United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) Regional Office for South-East Asia.

Piyawadani covered the issues facing marginalized communities during the pandemic. In this interview, she reviewed what it is like to practice journalism in this region, especially the challenges facing freelance journalists and women journalists. Ethnic tensions, job insecurity, political corruption, and discrimination against minorities and women, are a few issues highlighted in this conversation.

Interview Date

6-7-2023

Subject

Sri Lanka, freelance journalist, press freedom, marginalized community, minority, inequality, gender discrimination, women journalists, misinformation/disinformation, investigative journalism, women in journalism, journalism, COVID-19, pandemic, Eastern Michigan University Archives

Publisher

Eastern Michigan University Archives

Digital Object File Type

mp3

Run Time

1:32:56

Rights

Copyright to the audio resource and its transcript, headshot, and stories is held by the content creator, author, artist, or other entity, and is provided here for educational purposes only. It may not be reproduced or distributed in any other format without written permission of the copyright owner, Eastern Michigan University Archives (lib_archives@emich.edu).

Nirasha Piyawadani, Oral History Interview, 2023

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