“Press freedom is under attack around the world,” warns the UN

Murders, kidnappings, imprisonment, tougher laws, violence, autocratic governments, and the shadow of Artificial Intelligence are among the growing threats against journalism.

The world commemorates World Press Freedom Day on May 3 with an unprecedented number: 31 countries are in a “very serious” situation, highlights the World Press Freedom Index 2023. The lowest ranking in the report, down from 21 who ranked that position just two years ago.

Conditions for practicing journalism are adverse in seven out of 10 countries. In addition, in 42 nations the situation is “difficult” and in 55 it is “problematic,” says the study carried out by Reporters Without Borders (RSF).

Although for decades journalism has been under the shadow of risks in different territories, the current figures frame the worsening and extension of threats at a global level.

Cuba and Honduras, with the worst positions to practice journalism

The map on the freedom to inform and be informed is stained red. The last position of the index that evaluates 180 countries is occupied by North Korea, but among the last 15 positions there are also two Latin American nations: Cuba and Honduras.

“There is more red on the map this year than ever before, as authoritarian leaders grow ever bolder in their attempts to silence the press (…) The international community must wake up to reality and act decisively together and speed to reverse this dangerous trend,” said RSF secretary general Christophe Deloire, quoted by the British newspaper ‘The Guardian’.

Also in the last positions are Tajikistan, India and Turkey, which went from “problematic” to “difficult” category. One of the biggest setbacks is India, which fell 11 places to 161st.

The power, which used to be seen as progressive in the region, has undergone radical changes after most of the media remained in the hands of “oligarchs” close to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, denounces RSF.

Episodes of violence against Indian journalists and the media in favor of political formations are part of the “crisis” situation.

One of the events that caused the greatest stir was the raid on the ‘BBC’ headquarters in New Delhilast February, just after the British channel published the documentary ‘India: The Modi Question’, which investigated Modi’s role in clashes between Hindus and Muslims in the state of Gujarat, in 2002.

Southeast Asia and the Middle East remain among the world’s most dangerous regions for journalists, according to the RSF index. But America no longer has any countries in the “good” category, and the United States fell three places, to 45th place, after the murder of two reporters impacted its rating.

Europe, with greater freedom of the press but with significant setbacks

On the positive side of the report, the nations with the greatest freedom to inform and be informed are found on the European continent.

Norway leads the list for the seventh consecutive year, followed by Ireland and in third place is Denmark. However, the Nordic countries, which for years have been seen as an example of press freedom, are currently also showing setbacks.

Finlandin fifth place, has become the center of criticism after two journalists were convicted for allegedly revealing state secrets.

SwedenFourthly, it has also been embroiled in controversy after it passed a law last November that makes it difficult to keep sources confidential.

The Old Continent is not exempt from violations of press freedom, among which the actions of Russiawhich has tightened laws against freedom of the press and expression since it launched the war against Ukraine in February 2022.

Since then, the Kremlin has banned all independent media, both domestic and foreign. And among the most serious cases is that of American reporter Evan Gershkovich, who worked for ‘The Wall Street Journal’ and was arrested on espionage charges that he and the Joe Biden government reject.

“The fight for the freedom of the press, the fight for the release of Evan is a fight for the freedom of all,” said the editor of the ‘Wall Street Journal’, Almar Latour, at the UN meeting.

Only three out of 10 nations are in the “satisfactory” category in the RSF index, and the UN highlights that 85% of the world’s population lives in countries where press freedom has been reduced in the last five years.

“All our freedom depends on the freedom of the press”

In the midst of this panorama, the UN Secretary General, António Guterres, warned that threats against press freedom extend throughout the planet.

“All our freedom depends on the freedom of the press (…) But in all corners of the world, the freedom of the press is under attack,” he said at a conference held at the UN headquarters in New York, on the eve of the commemoration.

Highlighting the difficulties journalists face globally, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (Unesco) awarded its 2023 World Press Freedom Prize to Iranian journalists elaheh mohammadi and Niloufar Hamediwho helped expose the death in police custody of Mahsa Amini, and human rights activist Narges Mohammadi.

Artificial intelligence adds to threats against press freedom

Reporters Without Borders also highlights that some technological advances are increasing the risk of disinformation by allowing governments and political actors to distort reality and disseminate false content, now more than ever.

Artificial intelligence (AI) is “wreaking more havoc in the world of media (…) digesting content and releasing it in synthesis form that flouts the principles of rigor and reliability,” says the World Press Freedom Index.

The report underlines that the risks are not only in written content, but also in visual content, remembering that high-definition images that appear to show real people can be generated in a matter of seconds.

“We are witnessing worrying trends, but the big question is whether these trends are a setback or a sign of a world going backwards,” said Guilherme Canela, world leader on freedom of expression at UNESCO.

For his part, the editor of the ‘New York Times’, Arthur Gregg Sulzberger noted that “the Internet has also unleashed the onslaught of misinformation, propaganda, pundits, and clickbait that now overwhelms our information ecosystem, accelerating the decline in social trust.”

With AFP and local media