Press freedom has fallen to its lowest level in a quarter of a century, the NGO Reporters Without Borders (RSF) warned on Thursday when publishing its annual global ranking. The group reported a global decline in media freedom, citing factors ranging from US President Donald Trump's "systematic" attacks on the press to actions in Saudi Arabia, where a journalist was executed in 2025.
First modification: 04/30/2026 - 11:52 Last modification: 05/01/2026 - 02:42
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The NGO's annual ranking, established in 2002, uses a five-point scale to assess the level of press freedom in a country, ranging from "very serious" to "good."
This year's index reveals a global trend toward restricting press freedoms.
"For the first time in the 25-year history of the index, more than half of the world's countries now fall into the 'difficult' or 'very serious' categories for press freedom," RSF said.
The proportion of the population living in a country where the press freedom situation is "good" has plummeted, from 20% to "less than 1%," he noted.
Only seven northern European countries are rated “good,” with Norway receiving the highest rating. France is ranked 25th, with a "satisfactory" score.
“In 25 years, the average score of all the countries studied has never been so low,” the NGO stated.
The United States received a "problematic" rating and has dropped seven places to 64th, between Botswana and Panama.
The organization stated that US President Donald Trump's attacks on the press have become "systematic", leading to incidents such as the arrest and subsequent deportation of Salvadoran journalist Mario Guevara, who reported on migrant detentions in the United States.
Trump has also overseen a drastic reduction in funding for US international broadcasting.
RSF also highlighted the drastic falls in El Salvador (143rd), which has fallen 105 places since 2014 after the start of a war against the Maras criminal gangs, and Georgia (135th), which has fallen 75 places since 2020 due to an “escalation of repression.”
The steepest decline in 2026 is attributed to Niger (120th, down 37 places) due to the “deterioration of press freedom in the Sahel over several years,” amid “attacks by armed groups and (the) ruling junta,” RSF said.
Saudi Arabia (176th, 14 places less), where the columnist Turki al-Jasser was executed by the State in June – “a unique event in the world” – is located together with Russia, Iran and China at the bottom of the classification, which is closed by Eritrea (180th).
On the contrary, Syria (141st) has jumped 36 places after the fall of Bashar al-Assad's regime.
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