Reporters Without Borders (RSF) published its 2026 World Press Freedom Index (May 2026), an annual ranking of 180 countries and territories across five indicators - economic, legal, security, political and social environments for journalism. The Index draws on 25 years of data to assess global trends in the level of freedom enjoyed by journalists and media and assign a classification ranging from ‘good’ to ‘very serious’ using a points-based system.
Human Level’s Take:
- Press freedom has reached its lowest recorded point in the RSF Index’s 25-year history. For the first time, just over half of the world’s countries and territories (52.2%) fall into the “difficult” or “very serious” categories. Less than 1% of the world’s population lives in a country where the state of press freedom was categorised as “good,” compared to 20% in 2002 — a concerning trend.
- The Americas saw one of the sharpest regional declines since 2022, driven by political pressure on the press in the US and organised crime in Latin America. Notably, Ecuador (-31 points and Peru (-14 points) recorded some of the steepest individual falls in rating following journalist murders in 2025.
- The trend of deterioration is no longer confined to authoritarian states. The Index’s legal indicator has declined the most over the past year, a clear sign that journalism is being criminalised worldwide, with democracies including Japan, the Philippines and France also seeing legal frameworks used against journalists.
- Why should companies care? When press freedom declines, it directly affects the availability of independent, reliable reporting — a key source of information for identifying human rights risks across operating contexts and throughout value chains. It also signals closing civic space, which undermines democracy, transparency and anti-corruption efforts, making the business context more unpredictable and volatile.
- The findings of the RSF Index can offer lessons for companies operating in high-risk contexts for press freedom and civic space, pointing to countries and regions where additional human rights due diligence will be needed and where some stakeholders, including human rights defenders, trade unions and civil society organisations, are likely to face heightened risks.
Some key takeaways:
- The lowest average ranking on record: The 2026 RSF Index records the lowest average press freedom score across all 180 countries and territories in the Index's history. For the first time, more than half of the world's countries (52.2%) fall into the "difficult" or "very serious" categories — a category that encompassed just 13.7% of countries in 2002. Less than 1% of the global population now lives in a country where press freedom is rated "good," down from 20% in 2002. Amongst the highest ranking countries, Norway holds the top spot for the tenth consecutive year, while Eritrea comes in last for the third year in a row. Amongst the highest ranking states are Estonia, Netherlands and Sweden, while those at the bottom of the ranking include North Korea, China and Syria.
- The Americas see one of the sharpest regional declines: The 28 countries of the Americas have collectively declined 14 points since 2022, a deterioration comparable to Eastern Europe and Central Asia and the Middle East and North Africa, the two regions historically most dangerous for journalists. The United States has fallen seven places to 64th, with the Index citing systematic press hostility and cuts to international broadcasters including Voice of America and Radio Free Europe, outlets that served as primary information sources in countries with limited independent media. In Latin America, organised crime is driving some of the steepest individual falls: Ecuador dropped 31 places to 125th, while Peru fell 14 places to 144th after multiple reported journalist murders took place in 2025. The report identifies organised crime alongside political actors as the two primary drivers of press freedom decline across the region.
- The criminalisation of journalism is spreading into democracies: Of the five indicators used to assess press freedom, the legal indicator has seen the sharpest decline this year, deteriorating in more than 60% of countries (110 out of 180). The report links this to the expanding use of national security legislation, anti-terrorism laws, strategic lawsuits against public participation (SLAPPs), and "disinformation" laws designed to restrict and criminalise journalism. This trend is documented across authoritarian regimes — Russia (172nd), Belarus (165th), Myanmar (166th) and Egypt (169th) — but the report also identifies democracies, including Japan (62nd), the Philippines (114th), and France (25th), as countries where legal frameworks are being used against journalists. The Index also notes that in more than 80% of countries analysed, protection mechanisms for journalists are considered non-existent or ineffective.
