Freedom of Press Index 2024: in the EU Denmark Leads, Greece Ranks Last
The organization "Reporters Without Borders" has released its annual Freedom of Press Index for 2024, covering 180 countries worldwide. According to this study, the best situation regarding press freedom in the European Union is in Denmark, while Greece ranks the lowest.
Denmark leads in the EU with a score of 89.6 points. Globally, it holds the second position, trailing only another European country—Norway, which is not part of the EU but is a NATO member, scoring 95.18 points according to the Press Freedom Index.
Overall, all countries where press freedom is in good shape are located in Europe, predominantly within the European Union. Among non-European countries, Canada (14th place with 81.7 points), New Zealand (18th place with 80.13 points), and East Timor (20th place with 78.92 points) are in the top twenty of the ranking.
The worst situation regarding press freedom in the European Union is observed in Hungary, Malta, and Greece. They rank 67th, 73rd, and 88th globally, with scores of 62.98, 60.96, and 57.15 points, respectively.
Ukraine occupies the 61st position globally, improving its ranking by 18 places in a year.
Conditions for journalistic work are deteriorating in authoritarian and totalitarian countries due to the spread of misinformation and media censorship. This notably affects countries like Russia (162nd place with 29.86 points) and Belarus (167th place with 26.8 points). Negative trends are also seen in Georgia, a candidate for EU membership, which dropped 26 positions to 103rd place (53.05 points) in a year.
The worst situations regarding press freedom are observed in Afghanistan, Syria, and Eritrea, which occupy the bottom positions in the global ranking.
Recall that The Gaze reported a protest action against the reform of the public broadcaster RTVS in Bratislava, the capital of Slovakia, on May 2nd. Participants believe this reform will increase state control over the media. Over 4,000 people took part in the demonstration. This came after the coalition government of Prime Minister Robert Fico approved the public broadcasting reform on April 24th, expected to be passed by parliament in June. The reform includes dissolving RTVS and establishing a new organization in its place.