Wijeya Newspapers

{{Short description|Sri Lankan media company}}

{{Infobox company

| name = Wijeya Newspapers Ltd

| logo = Wijeya Newspapers logo.jpg

| type = Private

| industry = Mass media

| foundation = {{Start date and age|1979}}

| founder = Ranjit Wijewardene

| location_city = Colombo

| location_country = Sri Lanka

| area_served = Sri Lanka

| key_people = Ranjit Wijewardene (Chairman)

Sujan Wijewardene (Deputy Chairman)

| homepage = {{URL|wijeyanewspapers.lk}}

}}

Wijeya Newspapers Limited (WNL) is a Sri Lankan media company which publishes a number of national newspapers and magazines. Formerly known as Wijeya Publications Limited, WNL was founded in 1979 by Ranjith Wijewardene, son of media mogul D. R. Wijewardena.{{cite web|title=Wijeya Newspapers|url=http://www.wijeyanewspapers.lk/|publisher=Wijeya Newspapers}}{{cite book|title=Asian Communication Handbook 2008|year=2008|publisher=Asian Media Information and Communication Centre, Wee Kim Wee School of Communication and Information, Nanyang Technological University|location=Singapore|isbn=9789814136105|pages=448–449|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Wo9YWvrWFcIC|editor1-last=Banerjee|editor1-first=Indrajit|editor2-last=Logan|editor2-first=Stephen}} Ranjith Wijewardene had been chairman of Associated Newspapers of Ceylon Limited before it was taken over by the government in July 1973.{{cite news|title=News|url=http://archives.dailynews.lk/2003/06/16/new50.html|newspaper=Daily News (Sri Lanka)|date=16 June 2003}}

Ranjith Wijewardene bought the trade names and library of the Times of Ceylon Limited (TOCL) group after it closed down in January 1985. He subsequently started various newspapers using the names of former TOCL publications: Irida Lankadeepa (1986), Sunday Times (1987), Lankadeepa (1991) and Midweek Mirror (1995).{{cite journal|last1=Ubayasiri|first1=Kasun|last2=Brady|first2=Linda|title=One Temple, One Bomb, and Three Lines of Political Narrative|journal=ejournlist.com.au|year=2003|volume=3|issue=2|page=5|publisher=Central Queensland University}} The Midweek Mirror became the Daily Mirror in 1999. Other newspapers, magazines and web sites owned by WNL include Ada, Bilindu, Daily FT, GO: Guys Only, Hi!! Magazine, LW (Lanka Woman), Mirror Sports, Pariganaka, Sirikatha, Tamil Mirror, Tharunaya, Vijey and Wijeya.