A
free press always has a positive influence on the economy and on governance,
according to findings in a UNESCO report. It expands participation in political
decision making beyond a small inner circle, holds government accountable, and
makes their actions transparent.
It
was a horrible year in 2014 for freedom of information with deterioration
of press freedom worldwide, and 2015 is shaping up to
be worse.
The
2015 World Press Freedom Index, produced by Reporters Without Borders,
ranked the performance of 180 countries according media independence, respect
for the safety and freedom of journalists, pluralism, and the legislative,
institutional and infrastructural environment in which the media operate.
Influences
such as censorship, armed conflict, surveillance and national security
were taken into account.
Here
are some of the findings by Reporters Without Borders:
–
More countries are using prohibitions on blasphemy and sacrilege to censor
political criticism.
–
2014 saw increased violence against news providers covering protests.
–
Governments most often cite security as the grounds for trampling on
fundamental freedoms and gagging the media.
–
Many governments and non-state players used control and manipulation of media
coverage as a weapon of war in 2014.
–
Journalists faced violent threats from non-state groups in 2014. The world’s
most repressive countries found ways to reinforce and improve methods
of censorship and repression.
Finland has
ranked No. 1 on the index out of 180 countries for five years in a row,
followed by Norway and Denmark. At the other end of the scale, Turkmenistan,
North Korea and Eritrea performed worst.
France
ranked No. 38 (moving up one place), while the U. S. ranked 49th (down three
places). Russia went down four places to No. 152. China, at
176th place, went down one place. Japan ranked 61st (down two places), Brazil
ranked 99th (up 12 places), and Iran, at 173rd place,
remained unchanged.
In
the Americas, the U.S. is down three places and continues
to decline. Contributing to this decline in 2014 was the Obama
administration’s war on information in Wikileaks, and New
York Times journalist James Risen coming under government pressure to reveal
his sources, according to Reporters Without Borders
Wars,
violence during demonstrations, economic crises, the growing threat from
non-state operatives — all resulted in media freedom declining on all five
continents.
The
indicators compiled by Reporters Without Borders are incontestable show
two thirds of the 180 countries surveyed for the 2015 World Press Freedom Index
performed worse in 2014 than in 2013. The annual global indicator, which
measures the overall level of violations of freedom of information in 180
countries year by year, rose to 3,719, an 8 percent increase over 2014 and
almost 10 percent compared with 2013, according to the report.
The
following are the 12 African countries that score highest for freedom of
press. They appear with their ranking out of the list of 180 countries,
and with their score.
According
to the index, the score alongside each country reflects the level
intimidation experienced by journalists, media representatives and those
focused on information exchange. With an overall score of 7.52, Finland ranked
highest for freedom of press. With an overall score of 84.86, Eritrea
ranked lowest for press freedom.
No. 17. Namibia – Score: 12.5
Namibia had sub-Saharan Africa’s highest ranking, according to Reporters Without Border. In its index, the organization said, “Although media offences have yet to be decriminalized, the constitution guarantees media freedom and there is a significant degree of pluralism, with five daily newspaper, five weeklies, 12 monthlies, more than 20 commercial or community radio stations and three TV stations for a population of just 2 million. Although the state-owned media are not very critical, their editorial policies are not subject to any political interference.”
No.
22. Ghana – Score: 15.5
No. 36. Cape Verde – Score: 20.69
No.
39. South Africa – Score: 22.06
No. 42. Botswana – Score: 22.91
No.
46. Burkina Faso – Score: 23.79
No.
47. Niger – Score: 23.85
No.
50. Comoros – Score: 24.52
No. 59. Malawi – Score: 26.41
No.
64. Madagascar – Score: 27.43
No.
68. Mauritius – Score: 27.69
No.
71. Senegal – Score: 27.77
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