LIRNEasia CEO Helani Galpaya was a featured speaker at the World Press Freedom Day 2025 South Asia Regional Conference, held on May 4, 2025, in Nepal. Joining the event virtually, she contributed to the opening policy dialogue – press freedom in the AI era: a regional lens wide-ranging discussion which explored how AI intersects with democratic values, legal frameworks, and freedom of expression in South Asia.
Moderated by Sabina Inderjit, Vice President, International Federation of Journalists, the panel also included speakers such as Pankaj Pachauri, Senior Journalist, India, Nalaka Gunawardene, Senior Journalist, Sri Lanka and Santosh Sigdel, Executive Director, Digital Rights Nepal.
In her remarks, Helani addressed the growing dominance of large social media platforms and search engines in the distribution of news, and the profound impact this has had on traditional media. She highlighted how these shifts have disrupted the value chain, contributing to revenue losses and threatening the long-term sustainability of media houses.
She also spoke about the erosion of public trust in the media, partly fuelled by the rapid spread of disinformation online.
The event was organised by UNESCO as part of its global effort to promote press freedom and media resilience.
Access the full conference programme here: https://linktr.ee/WPFD2025?utm_source=qr_code
