Over the past year, journalists and independent media outlets around the globe have faced heightened repression, according to the latest World Press Freedom Index released by Reporters Without Borders (RSF). The report, which evaluates 180 countries, indicates a global decline in press freedom, particularly in the context of numerous upcoming democratic elections.
Anne Bocandé, RSF’s editorial director, pointed out a worrying trend: decreasing governmental support for press freedom, coupled with increased political pressure on the media. The RSF’s report also highlights that over 100 Palestinian journalists have been killed in Gaza since October 2023, with at least 22 deaths directly related to their reporting duties.
The Maghreb and Middle East regions have experienced the most severe restrictions, with governments there trying to suppress media through violence, arrests, and strict laws, according to RSF. This is compounded by a culture of impunity for crimes against journalists. In the Gaza Strip, journalists protesting their targeting by the Israeli army carried banners proclaiming ‘the press is free and cannot be silenced.’
Journalists also face lethal threats in Sudan amidst ongoing violence and civil strife, while Syrian media workers have suffered threats of expulsion from neighboring countries like Jordan, Turkey, and Lebanon. RSF’s report names Israel, Saudi Arabia, Syria, and Iran as the top jailers of journalists globally.
In Latin America, political repression of the press is escalating. Argentina’s new president, Javier Milei, has openly attacked the free press and shut down the country’s largest news agency. Similar political assaults on media freedom are ongoing in Peru and El Salvador. The United States has also seen a notable increase in attacks on journalists by political figures, including calls for their imprisonment.
Sub-Saharan Africa’s election-related violence against journalists is troubling, with attacks in Nigeria and Madagascar, and Burkina Faso’s suspension of numerous foreign news organizations. Russia’s crackdown on independent journalism has led to a significant drop in its press freedom ranking, with over 1,500 journalists fleeing the country since the 2022 Ukraine invasion.
Belarus remains near the bottom of the RSF index due to ongoing persecution of journalists under the guise of fighting “extremism.” A report from the Civil Liberties Union for Europe last week warned that press freedom in Europe is nearing a breaking point, as governments are failing to safeguard the press freedom.
The RSF report also expresses concern over the tightening grip of dictatorial regimes in the Asia-Pacific region, with severe crackdowns in Afghanistan by the Taliban, and all-out media persecution in North Korea and China. Both Vietnam and Myanmar have also seen a decline in media freedom rankings due to their extensive imprisonment of journalists.
The increasing use of artificial intelligence in spreading political disinformation, including the use of deepfakes during elections, was highlighted as particularly disturbing by the RSF. Furthermore, a separate report by UNESCO notes that reporting on environmental issues has become increasingly perilous, with 44 journalists killed over the past 15 years while covering such stories.
