Welcoming Our New Editor

Dayanti Karunaratne is the new editor of The Molokai Dispatch. Photo by Léo Azambuja

 By The Molokai Dispatch Staff

The Molokai Dispatch is pleased to welcome Dayanti Karunaratne as our new editor. Dayanti brings more than two decades of journalism, editorial and community engagement experience to the position, including work with community newspapers, magazines, freelance writing and local organizations on Molokai.

Many on Molokai may already know Dayanti through her involvement with local schools, nonprofits, agriculture and community projects. Her background includes editorial leadership at Ottawa Magazine in Canada, freelance journalism and earlier experience at the Molokai Times. She combines strong journalism experience with a deep appreciation for the important role local news plays in strengthening community connections and preserving the stories of Molokai.

As The Molokai Dispatch continues its transition toward operating as a nonprofit organization, Dayanti will help lead the paper into this new chapter. We believe her commitment to community-centered journalism, collaboration and service makes her especially well-suited for this important season in the Dispatch’s history. We are excited about the future of the paper under her leadership and the opportunities ahead to further strengthen our mission of serving Molokai through responsible and accessible local journalism.

Dayanti has also expressed a strong desire to find meaningful ways to involve and encourage young people in storytelling, journalism and community engagement. We look forward to seeing how her passion for mentoring and inclusion can help inspire the next generation of voices on Molokai.

We also want to acknowledge the efforts of our longtime Dispatch team, including Sales Manager Tirzah Pactol and Graphic Designer Marissa Motas, whose dedication and service have helped sustain and strengthen the paper through many seasons of growth and change.

At the same time, we want to express our sincere gratitude to our interim editor, Léo Azambuja, for his support over the past year. Léo stepped in during an important season for the Dispatch and provided steady leadership, professionalism and commitment to the paper and our community. We are deeply thankful for the countless hours, care and dedication he has invested in helping sustain and strengthen the Dispatch during this transition period.

While Léo is stepping away from the day-to-day responsibilities of the editor’s role, we suspect this will not be the last time our readers hear from him. We fully expect that Léo’s voice, writing and love for Molokai will continue to appear in the pages of the Dispatch from time to time whenever needed, and we are grateful that he will remain part of the broader Dispatch ‘ohana.

Please join us in welcoming Dayanti and in thanking Léo for his outstanding work on behalf of Molokai and The Molokai Dispatch.