Malta Reaches Lowest Point Ever Recorded In World Press Freedom Index
Malta has officially reached the lowest point ever recorded in the Reporters Without Borders World Press Freedom Index for 2023.
The international report, which measures the level of press freedom in each country, was published earlier today marking World Press Freedom Day.
Last year, Malta had moved up three places on the press freedom index at 78, however, this year it has marked an all-time low, placing at 84, making it the second to last EU country.
This means that the press freedom environment in Malta is still being classified as “problematic”.
“In Malta, journalists have to cope with a highly polarised environment under the strong influence of political parties. In 2021, a public inquiry into the assassination of journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia was concluded, listing a comprehensive set of reforms the government has been reluctant to implement,” the report reads.
Malta is now situated between Chile and Guinea, with countries like Norway, Ireland, Denmark, Sweden, and Finland at the very top of the index, respectively.
The media landscape in Malta plummeted in press freedom rankings from 45th place in 2013 to 77th in 2019 following the Labour Party’s win in 2013 and Daphne Caruana Galizia’s assassination in 2017.
The score further decreased in 2020 and remained unchanged until Malta moved from 81st to 78th last year.
The World Press Freedom Index is an annual report published by Reporters Without Borders, seeking to evaluate the level of media freedom in a total of 180 countries worldwide.
What do you make of these numbers?
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