Russia dropped 9 places in the press freedom rating last year

11:24 03 May Kyiv, Ukraine

According to the Reporters Without Borders press freedom rating, the Russian Federation has dropped 9 places to 164 out of 180.. Above is Bangladesh, below - Turkey, Egypt, Iraq, Yemen.
 
The most free in terms of the degree of media expression was Norway, and the most censored was North Korea.

Full-scale war allowed the Kremlin to launch the final operation to clean up the Russian media landscape. The systematic censorship and eradication of independent Russian and then foreign media creates space for the dissemination of propaganda coordinated by pro-government media, the experts stressed.
“Since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, almost all independent media have been banned and/or declared “foreign agents” or “undesirable organizations”. All others are subject to military censorship," Reporters Without Borders wrote.
Not only the media fall under the pressure of the regime, but also ordinary Russians who have the courage to write a comment on VK: “Ukraine is a normal country.”
 
In the region, the impact of Russian aggression on freedom of speech is especially noticeable in Belarus, which is under Russian control. The country ranks 157th in the Press Freedom Index.