Four of the Nordic countries are among the top five on the World Press Freedom index of Reporters without borders. For the seventh year in a row, Norway tops the index which was published on World Press Freedom day.
However, a non-Nordic country is unusually ranked second, namely Ireland. The fifth Nordic country, Iceland, is ranked number 18 – three seats lower than last year. Iceland ranked first on the index in 2008 and second in 2010. According to RSF, the ranking is because the independence of the Icelandic media is already weakened by the market’s small size, and faces threats from the fishing industry, which is the country’s major economic sector.
The brave work of women journalists
Three imprisoned Iranian women journalists have been awarded the 2023 UNESCO/Guillermo Cano World Press Freedom Prize. The award winners, Niloofar Hamedi, Elaheh Mohammadi and Narges Mohammadi are Iranian journalists who are being detained for their courageous reporting.
All our freedom depends on press freedom
UN Secretary-General António Guterres says freedom of the press is under attack in every corner of the world. In a message on World Press Freedom Day 2 May he has expressed grave concerns over the undermining of press freedom.
„This day highlights a basic truth: all our freedom depends on press freedom,“ Mr. Guterres says. „Freedom of the press is the foundation of democracy and justice. It gives all of us the facts we need to shape opinions and speak truth to power. And as this year’s theme reminds us, press freedom represents the very lifeblood of human rights.“
According to UNESCO, journalists and media workers are directly targeted on and offline as they carry out their work. They are routinely harassed, intimidated, detained and imprisoned. At least 67 media workers were killed in 2022 — a 50 per cent increase over the previous year. Nearly three quarters of women journalists have experienced violence online, and one in four have been threatened physically.
