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What is the News?
The World Press Freedom Index 2022 has been released.
What is the World Press Freedom Index?
Released by: Reporters Without Borders(RSF).
Aim: To assess the state of journalism in 180 countries and territories.
Indicators: The index ranks countries based on five indicators: the political context, legal framework, economic context, sociocultural context and security.
Note: The index has defined press freedom as the effective possibility for journalists as individuals and as groups to select, produce and disseminate news and information. Especially in the public interest, independently from political, economic, legal and social interference and without threats to their physical and mental safety.
What are the key findings of the index?
Top Positions: Norway (1st), Denmark (2nd), Sweden (3rd), Estonia (4th) and Finland (5th) grabbed the top positions in the index while North Korea remained at the bottom of the list.
The index has found a two-fold increase in “polarization” amplified by information chaos, that is, media polarization fuelling divisions within countries as well as polarization between countries at the international level.
India: India’s ranking in the Index has fallen down to 150th position in 2022 from 142nd rank in 2021.
Reason: India’s ranking has fallen on the back of increased violence against journalists and politically partisan media which has landed press freedom in a state of “crisis” in India.
Source: The post is based on the article “India slides 8 places to 150 in 2022 Press Freedom Index” published in TOI on 4th May 2022.
