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New UNESCO report gives deep understanding of the enormous pressures heaped upon journalists today
The newly released UNESCO World Trends in Freedom of Expression and Media Development: Global Report 2021/2022 analyses the state of media freedom, pluralism, independence, and safety of journalists over the past five years.
The Report sounds the alarm on the worrying decline of press freedom levels around the world. It combines original analysis and secondary data to show that 85 percent of the world’s population experienced a decline in press freedom in their country over the past five years.
Conflict, the spread of mis- and disinformation, and new laws that claim to counter ‘fake news’ are leading factors in that decline. Yet, as recent crises show, it is during such times that a free and independent press is most vital and hence must be protected.
The Report provides background to the enormous pressures heaped upon journalists today. The stresses include:
- Incessant attacks on their safety and security, especially in countries in conflict or with severe criminality problems and weak rule of law.
- Coercive curbs on professional independence, disproportionate legal penalities and the criminalization of journalism.
- Even journalists’ jobs are at stake, putting a question mark over the future supply of news in many places.
The Report also examines the impact of COVID-19 on already struggling news media environments, ranging from new restrictions on press freedom to collapsing business models.
Key highlights:
- Journalists are under attack: From 2016 to the end of 2021, UNESCO recorded the killings of 455 journalists, who either died for their work or while on the job. At the same time, imprisonment of journalists has reached record highs. Journalists covering protests are routinely harassed.
- New legal measures undermine, instead of bolster, press freedom: Since 2016, 44 countries have adopted or amended laws and regulations which threaten freedom of expression and press freedom online.
- Business model at breaking point: Growing numbers of media outlets have been forced to cut down on staff or close their doors permanently. Just two companies, Google and Meta, now receive approximately half of all global digital advertising spending.
Independent journalism is in peril, faced with increasing crackdowns on press freedom, ongoing threats against the safety of journalists, and the erosion of business models.
In order to effectively respond to these urgent challenges, we must first understand them. The World Trends in Freedom of Expression and Media Development Report and the data and analysis it presents help move towards that understanding.
The Report responds to a resolution at UNESCO’s 2011 . It is financed out of contributions from the ten donor countries who support UNESCO’s and produced through partnerships with leading research actors internationally.
