Media organisations in South Asia are increasingly facing similar challenges, particularly online trolling, harassment and self-censorship, journalists from home and abroad said at a programme today.
Bangladesh’s Information Minister Zahir Uddin Swapon, who was present at the event, agreed with these concerns but said that the focus of media debates has now shifted from press freedom to the growing threats of misinformation and disinformation.
“Protecting common people from misinformation and disinformation is now the main challenge,” the minister said.
The remarks came at a panel discussion titled “Does South Asia’s Media Face the Same Threats in Different Forms?”, held as part of the Bengal Delta Conference 2026 at a hotel in Dhaka today.
Kanak Mani Dixit, founding editor of Nepal-based Himal Southasian, said journalists, by the nature of their profession, have to be “out there on the ground” reporting and expressing opinions.
But unlike in the print era, anger over their work now reaches them directly through social media, he said.
“There is so much trolling going on that there is a massive level of self-censorship, particularly among the opinion-makers and among the journalists,” he said. Many now either “look for which way the wind is blowing” and adjust their views accordingly or simply “go quiet”.
While countries in South Asia face their own specific problems, digital media has created similar threats across the region. “Self-censorship is happening all over,” he said, adding, “on this aspect I think we are pretty much on a level field.”
Suhashini Haider, diplomatic affairs editor of Indian newspaper The Hindu, said society must protect journalists from attacks, regardless of whether people agree with their reporting.
“Journalism has to be something that people don't like. It's not a popularity contest,” she said, urging society to “take a step back and see what's wrong” when journalists are attacked.
It is not right to attack journalists "no matter what” they may have reported or said, she added.
Journalists reporting from protests face risks from protesters, governments, police and social media users, she said.
Shafiqul Alam, editor of Daily Waadaa in Bangladesh, said that unlike in the print era, social media now forces people to declare “where they belong”.
He said while newspapers could once be shut down, media can now be controlled through ownership and financial influence.
He also said text journalism is declining as audiences increasingly consume news through video, making video the main source of revenue for media organisations.
The information minister said media organisations in South Asian countries, including India, Nepal and Bangladesh, face more or less similar threats. “There is not much difference between countries like India, Nepal and Bangladesh,” he said.
Asked whether the government would allow a foreign journalist critical of it to work in Bangladesh, he did not give a direct answer, saying journalists should not have any boundaries.
Nazmul Ahsan, executive editor of the Netra News, moderated the session.
