World Press Freedom at Lowest Point in 10 Years

The vast majority of the planet – some five billion people – lives in countries whose media cannot be considered "partly free" or "free."

Only one in six people lives in a country whose media can be considered free, the lowest level in a decade, according to a study released to mark World Press Freedom Day. Freedom House, a rights-monitoring group, finds in its study that intimidation and violence against journalists has grown in the past year, with drug violence in Mexico, political instability in Thailand, and a crackdown in Egypt following disputed elections in November all making life more dangerous for journalists. Governements that lean toward repression have also increased efforts to curb transmission of news via the internet, satellite, and mobile phone as those media begin to supplant the traditional sources.