Inside The World: Meet Omar Rajarathnam

Omar Rajarathnam, as Executive Director and Co-Founder of Factum, has built his career at the intersection of journalism, diplomacy, and media sustainability across Asia and the Asia-Pacific. Originally from Sri Lanka, he brings the perspective of both a former reporter and a tireless advocate for stronger financial models to support independent journalism. In this conversation, he reflects on his connection to Report for the World, the values that drive his work, and his commitment to ensuring that media professionals can pursue rigorous, community-rooted storytelling with the dignity and support they deserve.

Can you tell us a bit about your background—where you’re from and what brought you into journalism in the first place?

Omar Rajarathnam: I am the Executive Director and Co-Founder of Factum, an Asia and Asia-Pacific focused policy implementer on Diplomacy, Techplomacy and Media. I am from Sri Lanka and have always thought journalism was a dream job. When I did get in eventually, I was struck by little money it paid for the work and sleepless nights it entails. That’s when I became focused on fundraising for media. To date, I think if Journalists are not paid a salary of dignified living, we won’t avoid its eventual collapse.

What inspired you to join Report for the World, and what does our mission mean to you personally?

My affiliation to RFW is via Factum which is RFW’s Asia implementing partner. I feel inherently close to RFW’s mission because it too believes and works towards supporting 50% salaries for various media roles for three years in partner outlets. In this case this triage between RFW, Factum and myself to sustain pay scales for media professional for the important work they do, is an alignment I feel very lucky to be part of.

What specific skills or networks are you bringing to RFW, and how do you intend to leverage them to support under-covered reporting?

I think my biggest skill when it comes to RFW work will be my ability to identify realistic and accurate storytelling when covering challenging topics. I also think my skill to identify and foster and customizes media viability best practices for the various regions can be useful in helping RFW partner media outlets to make gradual progress towards sustainability.

Which of RFW’s core values—like community engagement, sustainability, or local storytelling—resonates most with you, and why?

I would go with sustainability and local storytelling. I think the world is tired of parachute journalism and parachute expertise. The solution is already here within RFW which encourages local story telling and making available a flexible service model that partner outlets can use on a needs-basis.

How do you envision your role evolving here, both in terms of your own growth and in advancing the program’s impact?

This role’s growth is dependent on how much incumbents and RFW listen to its partners and responds to needs on ground. The impact can is two-fold in the short-mid and long term. How well are citizens consuming and engaging with the reporting and how well is the media outlets equipping themselves to become sustainable as RFW’s exit strategy comes into action. This is why it is important for the reporting, revenue generation and editorials roles that RFW supports to speak truth not only externally, but also internally with RFW on what it genuinely needs and how much it can co-invest in the future of its own sustainability.

What excites you most about working in journalism today, especially within the context of underserved communities or global challenges?

The resilience that journalism teaches us everyday is what keeps me close to the profession. I am aware that I am no where close to the excellence many journalists bring to their work, but I am extremely proud that I negotiate relentlessly to sustain their work and offload to the extent possible their burden of having to worry about financial support for their truth to be told boldly, and amplified widely.

Can you share a powerful or memorable moment from your journalism career so far—something that reminds you why you do this work?

There is a tough memory for me and a pleasant one. The tough one was covering the post-2019 Easter bombings in Sri Lanka, during my stint at Reuters. The bombings and the ultra-nationalist narratives that led to ethnic violence was too much to grapple with but I did feel that I could focus fully on the reporting because international news agencies were able to pay and support coverage in hostile environments without restrictions. This is also what I want for local entities and journalists. An eco-system to cover stories no matter how hostile the environment is without having to worry about finances.

Looking ahead, what kinds of stories or issues—such as climate, corruption, education, or human rights—are you most eager to help bring to light through RFW?

I want to remain open-minded and be led by what areas partners want to cover. I will however continue to be interested in stories that reinforces media stature as the fourth estate in democracy but it is important to allow reporters and media outlets to decide which stories can help them get there and provided support as per their editorial posture.

How do you think our regional partners (like AIJC, Factum, ARIJ, etc.) can amplify RFW’s mission, and what role will you play in that collaboration?

Local partners bring ground-level nuance and unmatched access to various communities. In addition, I think the likes of Factum can bring their administrative prowess, grant-making and receiving experience to the table so RFW can focus on the broader survival strategies. Factum, ARIJ and AIJC can also bring in younger voices to the important work RFW does. This is crucial for sanity checks and future-proofing our collective efforts.

What message would you like to share with our community and supporters about why grassroots journalism through Report for the World matters—and how they can stay engaged?

It matters because RFWs model is a unique intervention that traditional donors have ignored for years. If journalists do not have economic and food security, we cannot expect unconditional excellence from them. I therefore invite our partners to reach out to us and talk to us about their needs for sustainability. We are all ears and depending on budget levels, jump into action.

Omar on linkedin

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