World Press Freedom Day 2022, themed as Journalism Under Digital Siege. History and situation of media across the globe.
Highlights:
History of the day
The situation of journalists across the globe
Journalism Under Digital Siege
World Press Freedom Day is an annual celebration of Press freedom, observed on 3 May and whose main celebration is organized by UNESCO. World Press Freedom Day is a day of support for media which are targets for the restraint, or abolition, of press freedom. It is also a day of remembrance of those journalists who lost their lives in the pursuit of a story introduced by the United Nations General Assembly in 1993.
History of the day
In December 1993, the UN General Assembly proclaimed this day following a recommendation adopted at UNESCO’s 26th General Conference in 1991. The Windhoek Declaration was adopted on this day as well. It is a statement of press freedom principles by African newspaper journalists in 1991.
This is a date to encourage, develop, and assess initiatives to promote press freedom worldwide.
The situation of Journalists across the globe
Reporters Without Borders (RSF) issued an annual report evaluating press freedom globally. This year’s report examined 180 countries. It was found that 73 countries completely block or seriously hinder journalism. Press freedom is constrained in 59 countries. In total, these represent 73% of the countries evaluated.
The world press freedom index has declined by 12% since it was first issued in 2013. “The access to information has dramatically deteriorated and news coverage is facing increasing obstacles”, reports the RSF.
Moreover, Edelman’s 2021 Trust Barometer reveals a disturbing level of public mistrust of journalists. According to respondents from 28 countries, 59% of journalists intentionally spread false information. Autocrats, criminal cartels, and extremists have now harnessed this sense of fear for their gains.
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Russia
Some 200 Russian journalists and foreign reporters left Russia after it passed a media law criminalizing “deliberately false” information. According to Amnesty International, the “Russian authorities’ crackdown on independent media is escalating at breakneck speed.
China
In RSF’s Press Freedom index, China, the “world’s biggest jailer of press freedom defenders,” now ranks 177 out of 180 countries.
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Media freedom in Hong Kong has virtually disappeared, according to Hong Kong, an advocacy group based in the United Kingdom.
Russia and China are developing “lawfare” against independent journalists and big companies in developed countries.
Mexico
The absence of the state, however, is now killing journalists in Mexico, among others.
Bangladesh
Mohiuddin Sarker Nayeem, a Bangladeshi journalist, was reportedly murdered by narco-traffickers in Bangladesh.
India
From 1992 to 2022, at least 89 journalists were killed in India. Most of them lost their lives while performing a dangerous assignment and some were murdered. A total of 7 journalists were imprisoned in 2021 for opposing or criticizing the government’s actions.
The Committee to Protect Journalists publishes an annual Global Impunity Index. According to their findings, no one has been held to account for 815 journalist murders worldwide over the past 10 years.
Journalism Under Digital Siege
This year’s World Press Freedom Day centres on Journalism Under Digital Siege.
“Journalism is the best vaccine against disinformation”, RSF Secretary-General.
The goal is to underline the role of the information in an online media environment by focusing on the following:
- The digital era’s impact on freedom of expression
- The safety of journalists
- Access to information
- Privacy
Through international press day, people understand the importance of the press and the freedom of the press. The press is the medium of direct communication between the government and the people. The fourth pillar of democracy, the press is responsible for reporting the truth which can create and mold people’s opinions all across the world. Therefore, it is important to safeguard the freedom of the media, which keeps the powers that be accountable.
