10th Annual World Press Freedom Index 2012 - Reporters Without Borders

The United States has been downgraded. We now tie with Argentina, Romania and Latvia at “satisfactory” levels of freedom. The reason for the plummet? The many arrests of journalists covering Occupy Wall Street protests.

1 Finland -10,00 =
- Norway -10,00 =
3 Estonia -9,00 ⇑
- Netherlands -9,00 ⇓
5 Austria -8,00 ⇑
6 Iceland -7,00 ⇓
- Luxembourg -7,00 ⇑
8 Switzerland -6,20 ⇓
9 Cape Verde -6,00 ⇑⇑
10 Canada -5,67 ⇑⇑
- Denmark -5,67 ⇑
12 Sweden -5,50 ⇓⇓
13 New Zealand -5,33 ⇓
14 Czech Republic -5,00 ⇑
15 Ireland -4,00 ⇓
16 Cyprus -3,00 ⇑
- Jamaica -3,00 ⇑⇑
- Germany -3,00 ⇑
19 Costa Rica -2,25 ⇑⇑
20 Belgium -2,00 ⇓
- Namibia -2,00 ⇑
22 Japan -1,00 ⇓⇓
- Surinam -1,00 ⇑⇑
24 Poland -0,67 ⇑
25 Mali 0,00 ⇑
- OECS 0,00 ⇑⇑
- Slovakia 0,00 ⇑⇑
28 United Kingdom 2,00 ⇓
29 Niger 2,50 ⇑⇑
30 Australia 4,00 ⇓⇓
- Lithuania 4,00 ⇓⇓
32 Uruguay 4,25 ⇑
33 Portugal 5,33 ⇑
34 Tanzania 6,00 ⇑
35 Papua New Guinea 9,00 ⇑
36 Slovenia 9,14 ⇑⇑
37 El Salvador 9,30 ⇑⇑
38 France 9,50 ⇑
39 Spain 9,75 =
40 Hungary 10,00 ⇓⇓
41 Ghana 11,00 ⇓⇓
42 South Africa 12,00 ⇓
- Botswana 12,00 ⇑⇑
44 South Korea 12,67 ⇓
45 Comoros 13,00 ⇑⇑
- Taiwan 13,00 ⇑
47 United States of America 14,00 ⇓⇓
- Argentina 14,00 ⇓⇓
- Romania 14,00 ⇑
50 Latvia 15,00 ⇓⇓
- Trinidad and Tobago 15,00 ⇓⇓
52 Haiti 15,67 ⇑
53 Moldova 16,00 ⇑⇑
54 Hong-Kong 17,00 ⇓⇓
- Mauricio 17,00 ⇑⇑
- Samoa 17,00 ⇑⇑
57 United States of America (extra-territorial) 19,00 ⇑⇑
58 Malta 19,50 ⇓⇓
- Bosnia and Herzegovina 19,50 ⇑
- Guyana 19,50 ⇓⇓
61 Italy 19,67 ⇓⇓
62 Central African Republic 20,00 ⇑
63 Lesotho 21,00 ⇑⇑
- Sierra Leone 21,00 ⇑⇑
- Tonga 21,00 ⇑⇑
66 Mozambique 21,50 ⇑⇑
67 Mauritania 22,20 ⇑⇑
68 Croatia 23,33 ⇓⇓
- Burkina Faso 23,33 ⇓
70 Bhutan 24,00 ⇓
- Greece 24,00 =
72 Nicaragua 24,33 ⇑⇑
73 Maldives 25,00 ⇓⇓
- Seychelles 25,00 ⇓
75 Guinea-Bissau 26,00 ⇓
- Senegal 26,00 ⇑⇑
77 Armenia 27,00 ⇑⇑
78 Kuwait 28,00 ⇑
79 Togo 28,50 ⇓⇓
80 Serbia 29,00 ⇓⇓
- Bulgaria 29,00 ⇓⇓
- Chile 29,00 ⇓
- Paraguay 29,00 ⇓⇓
84 Kenya 29,50 ⇓⇓
- Madagascar 29,50 ⇑⇑
86 Guinea 30,00 ⇑⇑
- Kosovo 30,00 ⇑
- Timor-Leste 30,00 ⇑
- Zambia 30,00 ⇓
90 Congo 30,38 ⇑⇑
91 Benin 31,00 ⇓⇓
92 Israel (Israeli territory) 31,25 ⇓
93 Lebanon 31,50 ⇓⇓
94 Macedonia 31,67 ⇓⇓
95 Dominican Republic 33,25 ⇑
96 Albania 34,44 ⇓⇓
97 Cameroon 35,00 ⇑⇑
- Guatemala 35,00 ⇓⇓
99 Brazil 35,33 ⇓⇓
100 Mongolia 35,75 ⇓⇓
101 Gabon 36,50 ⇑
102 Cyprus (North) 37,00 ⇓⇓
103 Chad 37,67 ⇑
104 Ecuador 38,00 ⇓
- Georgia 38,00 ⇓
106 Nepal 38,75 ⇑⇑
107 Montenegro 39,00 ⇓
108 Bolivia 40,00 ⇓
- Kyrgyzstan 40,00 ⇑⇑
110 Liberia 40,50 ⇓⇓
111 South Sudan 41,25 nc
112 United Arab Emirates 45,00 ⇓⇓
113 Panama 45,67 ⇓⇓
114 Qatar 46,00 ⇑
115 Peru 51,25 ⇓
116 Ukraine 54,00 ⇑⇑
117 Cambodia 55,00 ⇑⇑
- Fiji 55,00 ⇑⇑
- Oman 55,00 ⇑
- Venezuela 55,00 ⇑⇑
- Zimbabwe 55,00 ⇑
122 Algeria 56,00 ⇑⇑
- Tajikistan 56,00 ⇑⇑
- Malaysia 56,00 ⇓
125 Brunei 56,20 ⇑⇑
126 Nigeria 56,40 ⇑⇑
127 Ethiopia 56,60 ⇑⇑
128 Jordan 56,80 ⇓
129 Bangladesh 57,00 ⇓
130 Burundi 57,75 ⇓⇓
131 India 58,00 ⇓
132 Angola 58,43 ⇓⇓
133 Israel (extra-territorial) 59,00 ⇓
134 Tunisia 60,25 ⇑⇑
135 Singapore 61,00 ⇑
- Honduras 61,00 ⇑
137 Thailand 61,50 ⇑⇑
138 Morocco 63,29 ⇓
139 Uganda 64,00 ⇓⇓
140 Philippines 64,50 ⇑⇑
141 Gambia 65,50 ⇓⇓
142 Russia 66,00 ⇓
143 Colombia 66,50 ⇑
144 Swaziland 67,00 ⇑⇑
145 Democratic Republic of Congo 67,67 ⇑
146 Indonesia 68,00 ⇓⇓
- Malawi 68,00 ⇓⇓
148 Turkey 70,00 ⇓⇓
149 Mexico 72,67 ⇓⇓
150 Afghanistan 74,00 ⇓
151 Pakistan 75,00 =
152 Iraq 75,36 ⇓⇓
153 Palestinian Territories 76,00 ⇓
154 Kazakhstan 77,50 ⇑
- Libya 77,50 ⇑
156 Rwanda 81,00 ⇑⇑
157 Uzbekistan 83,00 ⇑
158 Saudi Arabia 83,25 ⇓
159 Côte d’Ivoire 83,50 ⇓⇓
- Djibouti 83,50 ⇓⇓
161 Equatorial Guinea 86,00 ⇑
162 Azerbaijan 87,25 ⇓⇓
163 Sri Lanka 87,50 ⇓
164 Somalia 88,33 ⇓
165 Laos 89,00 ⇑
166 Egypt 97,50 ⇓⇓
167 Cuba 98,83 ⇓
168 Belarus 99,00 ⇓⇓
169 Burma 100,00 ⇑
170 Sudan 100,75 ⇑
171 Yemen 101,00 ⇓
172 Vietnam 114,00 ⇓
173 Bahrain 125,00 ⇓⇓
174 China 136,00 ⇓
175 Iran 136,60 =
176 Syria 138,00 ⇓
177 Turkmenistan 140,67 ⇓
178 North Korea 141,00 ⇓
179 Eritrea 142,00 ⇓

http://en.rsf.org/press-freedom-i...,1043.html

We fall that low on the list because of a few reporters getting arrested at OWS protestes?
Come on now...

Onlu "satisfactory" levels of freedom in our press?
That's a farking joke.

Quote from OhNoItsDEVO : We fall that low on the list because of a few reporters getting arrested at OWS protestes? Come on now...

OP says "many." Where did you get "a few"?

Quote from 124nic8 : OP says "many." Where did you get "a few"?

Well if the OP says it...

What's the backstory on reporters arrests at these protests.
I don't know much of anything about that.
Perhaps these reporters deserved to be arrested?
Perhaps they were causing problems?

Of course, if they were simply there reporting, they never should have been arrested.
But I need more facts.

It's ridiculous that we got downgraded for this. These reporters weren't being targeted by a government regime, or being silenced. They were being mistreated by heavy handed cops. It's not like the laws of the country were restricting them in any way.

I still think we are 47 way to high....

How many other countries can brag about the gov't violating its own Constitution, assassinating its own people, and committing murder based on resource grab...

These reporter are grading the USA too liberally...

Our press is marginally more free than Haiti, yet almost 40% of Haiti can't read...

Quote from bridgeburner : It's ridiculous that we got downgraded for this. These reporters weren't being targeted by a government regime, or being silenced. They were being mistreated by heavy handed cops. It's not like the laws of the country were restricting them in any way.

That's true. Systemic suppression of views outside the corporate (ie $$$$) mainstream doesn't seem to be measured on their simplistic scale.

Quote from Danman114 : Our press is marginally more free than Haiti, yet almost 40% of Haiti can't read...

It's like a conservative paradise down there without dem gubmint schools.

I thought this was going to be about things like Brandon Raub being "disappeared" for posting stuff on Facebook.

Quote from bridgeburner : It's ridiculous that we got downgraded for this. These reporters weren't being targeted by a government regime, or being silenced. They were being mistreated by heavy handed cops. It's not like the laws of the country were restricting them in any way.

This is correct.
Reporters with out boarders is a joke.

Quote from Ryu-bom : I still think we are 47 way to high.... How many other countries can brag about the gov't violating its own Constitution, assassinating its own people, and committing murder based on resource grab... These reporter are grading the USA too liberally...

And what does any of that have to do with freedom of the press?

We live in a country were those atrocities you mention, can be reported freely.

Quote from agent00f : It's like a conservative paradise down there without dem gubmint schools.

Oh you got him good!