PH press freedom rank up but media still at risk
The Philippines now ranks 114th in the 2026 World Press Freedom Index, slightly higher than the previous year’s 116, even as the annual report shows the level of freedom enjoyed by media around the world to be at its lowest since 2001.
Despite the country’s higher ranking, the international nonprofit organization, Reporters sans frontières (RSF) or Reporters Without Borders, that publishes the index noted that the Philippines remains one of the most dangerous places in the world for journalists.
According to RSF, the Philippines still sits at the bottom half of the index that ranks 180 countries according to the level of freedom enjoyed by journalists and media outlets.
In fact, its average score of 46.97 this year, based on five contextual indicators used for evaluation—political (39.19), economic (34.50), legislative (49.20), social (57.05) and security (54.03)—was lower than last year’s 49.57.
At 46.97 out of the best possible score of 100, the state of press freedom in the Philippines was categorized as “difficult,” which was at the lower end of the five-point ranking scale ranging from “good,” “satisfactory,” “problematic,” to “difficult” and “very serious.
The rise in the country’s standing despite seemingly worsening conditions may be reflected by the RSF’s findings that global press freedom has reached its lowest level since 2001, when the index was first introduced.
For the first time in the history of the World Press Freedom Index, over half of the 180 countries or 52.2 percent now fall into the “difficult” or “very serious” categories for press freedom.
At the same time, the share of the world population living in a country where the press freedom situation is considered “good” has plunged from 20 percent to less than 1 percent, with only seven countries falling into this category.
Right to info threatened
“In 25 years, the average score of all 180 countries and territories surveyed in the Index has never been so low. Since 2001, the expansion of increasingly restrictive legal arsenals—particularly those linked to national security policies—has been steadily eroding the right to information, even in democratic countries,” the RSF said.
“The Index’s legal indicator has declined the most over the past year, a clear sign that journalism is increasingly criminalized worldwide,” it added.
For the Philippines, the RSF pointed out how terrorism charges known as “Red-tagging” continue to be the preferred means used by authorities to silence the press. It cited the case of Tacloban-based investigative journalist Frenchie Mae Cumpio, who now holds the record for the country’s longest-imprisoned journalist on “bogus terrorism-related grounds.”
The RSF also noted how independent media outlets are currently being targeted by authorities with fabricated charges linking them to “terrorist” activities.
The group also highlighted the worsening media landscape in the country, noting how print media continues to lose momentum, particularly dominant regional newspapers which are now struggling to survive.
It further underscored concerns about mainstream media ownership becoming increasingly tied to political power, citing close links between media-owning families and regional or national figures.
In addition, the RSF also cited how Philippine law still does not protect journalistic freedom in practice as defamation charges continue to be regularly misused to wrongly prosecute journalists, as well as laws relating to ownership and taxation.
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