Russia dropped to 155th place (between Azerbaijan and Afghanistan) in the press freedom rating
Against the backdrop of hostilities in Ukraine, Russia dropped from 150th to 155th in the Reporters Without Borders press freedom rankings. In total, there are 180 states in the ranking.
Russia was included in the list of 28 countries with a very difficult state of the free press. When choosing a place in the country, the NPO learns from the threat of persecution of Russian publications and journalists on the list of foreign agents and in connection with a new article about fakes about the Russian army, and also blocked the sending of Western social networks and independent media.
Russia’s closest neighbors in the ranking are Belarus (153rd), Azerbaijan (154th), Afghanistan (156th), Free Flight (157th), Kuwait (158th) and Venezuela (159th). The last three places are taken by Iran, Eritrea and North Korea, the first three are taken by Norway, Denmark and Sweden.
According to Reporters Without Borders, since the beginning of the “military operation” in Russia, as a result of the shelling of the tragedy, at least five journalists and media victims. The Russian army in the occupied territories “purposefully targeted news and suppression sources to force the international media to unite,” the NGO said in a statement (PDF).
“In the Russian government itself, total control over communications, introducing large-scale military censorship, blocking the media and persecuting recalcitrant journalists, forcing them to emigrate on a scale,” it says.