Associated Newspapers of Ceylon Limited (ANCL), locally known as Lake House, is a publishing house with a portfolio of over 20 print titles, the most important of which are the dailies Daily News, Dinamina and Thinakaran and the weeklies Sunday Observer, Silumina and Vaaramanjari.
Media assets
Publishing: Daily News, Dinamina, Thinakaran, Sunday Observer, Silumina, Vaaramanjari, Arogya, Sarasawiya, Budusarana, Manchu, Subasetha, Tharunie, Sithmina, Mihithuru, Vanna Vaanavil, Resa, Mihira, Denamuth, Athuru Mithuru, Wesak Kalapaya
State Media Matrix Typology: Captured Public/State-Managed (CaPu)
Ownership and governance
ANCL became the property of the government in 1973 when it was nationalized by law. Today, the majority of ANCL (almost 88% of all shares) is controlled by the government. The remainder is jointly owned by companies and individuals. In most cases, the chairman of the company is a person who used to work for the government.
Source of funding and budget
ANCL is largely funded by commercial revenues. The company had revenues of LKR 3bn (US$ 20m) in 2018, according to data from local experts. In 2020, the company reported a loss of LKR 217m, about LKR 1.7m more than the previous year, according to an audit report.
Editorial independence
Through the management of the company, which is majority owned by the government, the state exercises full control over the ANCL’s editorial coverage, according to local experts and journalists interviewed for this report.
No national statute or independent evaluation or oversight mechanism was identified to validate the ANCL’s editorial independence.
September 2024