The 2016 World Press Freedom Index (WPFI) was released yesterday by Reporters Without Borders. The annual report began in 2002 and measures the degree of press freedom in 180 countries throughout the globe. The report also analyzes “Most of the movement in the World Press Freedom Index unveiled by Reporters Without Borders is indicative of a climate of fear and tension combined with increasing control over newsrooms by governments and private-sector interests.”
The post-Soviet sphere has consistently performed poorly in the area of press freedom due to the strong authoritarian tendencies in the region. The WPFI cites a lack of pluralism and media autonomy as major impediments to freedom of press in the region. According to the WPFI, ⅔ of post-Soviet states have scored 150 or lower of the 180 countries surveyed. However, Georgia, Armenia, and Moldova are the leaders of press freedom in the region with scores of 64, 74, and 76 respectively with Armenia climbing an impressive 4 spots since last year –a sharp contrast to neighboring Azerbaijan which scored 163, down one point from last year and placing itself in the worst ranks for press freedom. At 151 Turkey has also seen a decline in press freedom as an anxious Erdogan has been cracking down on liberty across the board.
Freedom rankings are derived from both quantitative and qualitative analyses. Qualitative data comes from a survey of experts in each country. The questionnaire evaluates the following factors related to freedom of press: pluralism, media independence, media environment and self-censorship, legislative environment, transparency, infrastructure, and abuses. Quantitatively, the WPFI takes into account the number of abuse incidents involving journalists. Reporters Without Borders synthesize this information to determine a country’s level of press freedom and global ranking.
