For the first time in the history of the World Press Freedom Index by Reporters Without Borders (RSF), more than half of the world’s countries now fall into the “difficult” or “very serious” categories for press freedom.
Over the past 25 years, the average score of all 180 countries and territories included in the ranking has never been so low, the RSF report states.
Among neighbouring countries, Serbia is ranked the worst, placing 104th – a drop of eight places compared with the previous report – and is classified among countries where the situation is “difficult”.
The report notes that, with the exception of Kosovo (84th out of 180 in the Index, up 15 places from 2025), which recorded improvement despite remaining among the lowest-ranked countries in Europe, press freedom in the Western Balkans is generally deteriorating.
“Although Albania (83rd, down three places), Bosnia and Herzegovina (90th, down four places), and Serbia (104th, down eight places) aspire to join the European Union (EU), all three countries are hostile to journalism and vulnerable to propaganda,” RSF points out.
Moldova (31st) remains the only country in Eastern Europe classified as having “satisfactory” press freedom.
Among the other countries in the region, Slovenia ranks highest (36th) and falls into the “satisfactory” category, as does Montenegro, which is ranked 41st.
North Macedonia is in 45th place and falls into the group of countries with a “problematic” situation, as does Croatia, ranked 53rd.
Criminalisation of journalism
“Since 2001, the spread of increasingly restrictive bodies of legislation, particularly those linked to national security policies, has steadily eroded the right to information, even in democratic countries,” the report states.
Of the five indicators used to assess press freedom worldwide – evaluating the economic, legal, security, political, and social environment for journalism – the legal indicator recorded the largest decline this year, a clear sign that journalism is increasingly being criminalised globally, RSF emphasises.
In the Americas, the situation has changed significantly, with the United States dropping seven places, while several Latin American countries, such as Ecuador and Peru, have slipped further into a spiral of violence and repression.
Norway holds first place for the tenth consecutive year, while Eritrea ranks last for the third year in a row.
Post-Assad Syria recorded the greatest improvement in press freedom of any country or territory in the 2026 Index, rising 36 places in the rankings.
Countries that have good media situation
In addition to Norway, media freedom is rated as “good” in only six other countries: the Netherlands, Estonia, Denmark, Sweden, Finland, and Ireland.
“By offering a retrospective of the past 25 years, RSF is not only looking back. This non-governmental organisation is looking directly to the future, with a simple question in mind: how much longer will we tolerate the suffocation of journalism, the systematic obstruction of journalists, and the continued destruction of press freedom? Although attacks on the right to information are becoming more diverse and sophisticated, their perpetrators are increasingly visible.
Authoritarian states, complicit and ineffective political forces, predatory economic actors, and insufficiently regulated platforms are directly and overwhelmingly responsible for the global decline in press freedom. In this context, inaction is a form of complicity. Merely reaffirming principles is no longer enough.
Effective measures to protect journalists are essential and must be seen as a catalyst for change, starting with ending the criminalisation of journalism: the abuse of national security laws, SLAPP lawsuits, and the systematic obstruction of those who investigate, expose, and name names. Current protection mechanisms are not strong enough, international law is being undermined, and impunity is widespread. We need robust guarantees and meaningful sanctions. The ball is in the court of democracies and their citizens. It is up to them to stand up to those who seek to silence the press. The spread of authoritarianism is not inevitable,” said RSF editorial director Anne Bocandé.
The Index Map is becoming redder each year
Since RSF began publishing the World Press Freedom Index 25 years ago, press freedom has gradually deteriorated, the report notes.
It adds that this decline is visible on the Index map, which becomes redder each year. Journalists continue to be killed and imprisoned for their work, while tactics that undermine press freedom are evolving.
Journalism is being stifled by hostile political rhetoric towards journalists, weakened by a struggling media economy, and pressured by laws used as weapons against the press, RSF warns.
In 2002, 20 per cent of the world’s population lived in a country where the state of press freedom was classified as “good”. Twenty-five years later, less than one per cent of the global population lives in a country in this category.
In some countries, such as Iraq, Sudan, and Yemen, recurring armed conflicts are the main reason for this decline in press freedom.
Ongoing wars have had a strong impact this year, particularly in Palestine, where the government of Benjamin Netanyahu (Israel fell four places to 116th) continues to wage war.
Since October 2023, the Israeli army has killed more than 220 journalists in Gaza, including at least 70 who were killed while carrying out their work. The same applies to Sudan (down five places to 161st) and South Sudan (down nine places to 118th). Elsewhere, the state of press freedom has hardly changed, as it remains deadlocked under dictatorial regimes. This is the case in China, North Korea, and Eritrea, where journalist Dawit Isaak has been imprisoned without trial for 25 years.
(N1, 30.04.2026)
https://n1info.rs/svet/reporteri-bez-granica-indeks-slobode-medija-2026/