India has been ranked 151st among 180 countries in the ‘World Press Freedom Index-2025’ of Paris-based international NGO Reporters Without Borders (RWB). India was ranked 159th in this list last year. Eritrea is at the bottom of the index and Norway is at the first position. Bhutan, Pakistan, Turkey, Palestine, China, Russia, Afghanistan, Syria and North Korea have been placed below India. Media around the world is struggling with lack of funding
The RWB report says that the economic indicator is at its lowest level in the history of the World Press Freedom Index till date. Media around the world is struggling with funding cuts. Media is facing more financial difficulties due to the dominance of tech companies like Google, Apple, Facebook, Amazon and Microsoft on information resources. A large part of the advertisements that media outlets used to get earlier is now going to these tech platforms. The report says that in many countries the media is controlled by political leaders. In countries like Lebanon, India, Armenia and Bulgaria, media outlets survive due to conditional funding from politicians and businessmen. US ranking also falls
The report says that after Donald Trump came to power, the condition of the press in America has also declined. America is ranked 57th in the index, while its ranking was 55 last year. The condition of the press is “very serious” in those 42 countries, where more than half of the world’s population lives. In these countries, the press has almost no freedom. Doing journalism here is not free from danger. More than 200 journalists killed in Gaza war
The report ranks Palestine, which has been battling war for about 18 months, at 163rd place. The report says that the Israeli army has completely destroyed many newsrooms in Gaza. More than 200 journalists have been killed in Gaza since the fighting started in 2023. On the other hand, in countries like China and Vietnam, the media is controlled by the government or government-affiliated organizations. Those who do independent journalism have to face constant threats. On the other hand, foreign media institutions can be blacklisted at any time.
