World Press Freedom Day 2023

Freedom of the press increses in Ukraine despite her being attacked by muscovy.

Spoiler: It is getting worse. Traditionally, governments have fought press freedom by physical violence, incarcerations, intimidations, crude propagande. They have become more innovative. Disinformation methods have become more advanced. Fake content and “alternative facts” are occupying larger shares of the information on the different platforms. As Reporters without Borders put it.

The 2023 Index spotlights the rapid effects that the digital ecosystem’s fake content industry has had on press freedom. In 118 countries (two-thirds of the 180 countries evaluated by the Index), most of the Index questionnaire’s respondents reported that political actors in their countries were often or systematically involved in massive disinformation or propaganda campaigns. The difference is being blurred between true and false, real and artificial, facts and artifices, jeopardising the right to information. The unprecedented ability to tamper with content is being used to undermine those who embody quality journalism and weaken journalism itself.

For a few years now, I have posted on this day. Here’s last year’s post.

My posts have showing how autocracies try to shut the media. In Belarus, in muscovy, in China and other dictatorships. My posts have also shown the relationships between freedom of the media and corruption, and other nefarious policies which mostly autocracies implement. As pointed out in this post.

Autocratic countries disseminate false information to influence their own and foreign citizens than democratic countries. Countries which disseminate false information, also restrict of suppress freedom of speech and freedom of the media. China, Russia, Syria, and Venezuela are among the ten countries that abuse the Internet and social media in this way.

I’m not going to post a lot of graphs this year. The old relationships are still valid and it’s the same countries that oppress the media and launch massive disinformation and propaganda campaigns.

Higher freedom in Ukraine despite the war.

I may have sounded gloomy above. But there are improvements in some countries. And there are improvements in Ukraine despite muscovy’s war against her. muscovite troops have annihilated all free media in the occupied territories and murdered and arrested Ukrainan journalists. But, in the free parts of Ukraine, media is more free than before the war.

Ukraine rose from 106th to 79th place despite muscovy’s full-scale war against her. From Reporters without Borders’ page on Ukraine

The war launched by Russia on 24 February 2022 threatens the survival of the Ukrainian media. In this “information war”, Ukraine stands at the front line of resistance against the expansion of the Kremlin’s propaganda system.

Press Freedom in Ukraine will be even freer in the future.

Ukraine is aspiring to become a member of the EU. Therefore, more laws guaranteeing freedom of information will be passed by the Verkhovna Rada. Also, other reforms will reinforce this process. Competition laws that will make it difficult for oligarchs to seize big parts of the media landscape will be passed, and some anti-oligarch laws have already been passed.

muscovy is a media black hole.

From Reporters without Borders’ page on muscovy

Since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, almost all independent media have been banned, blocked and/or declared “foreign agents” or “undesirable organisations”. All others are subject to military censorship.