Press freedom in the United States has suffered an “alarming deterioration” under Donald Trump’s presidency, with a recent report suggesting things have hit an all-time low.
The U.S. was ranked 57th in Reporters Without Borders‘ (RSF) annual press freedom index, putting it on par with countries such as Gambia and Uruguay.
In their report, the RSF warns of an “authoritarian shift” in the U.S. government’s rhetoric against journalists, citing Trump’s “daily attacks” on the media, attempts to deliberately defund outlets critical of his agenda and increased concentration of media ownership.
Recent months have seen the White House escalate tensions with major news organizations—the president is currently suing CBS for $20 billion after accusing them of defamation, and was narrowly thwarted in his attempts to shutter state-backed broadcasters like Voice of America and Radio Free Europe.
An executive order signed by Trump on Thursday night also called for the immediate defunding of public broadcasters NPR and PBS, after Trump accused them of “receiving millions from taxpayers to spread radical, woke propaganda disguised as ‘news.’”
Furthermore, the RSF report highlights a downturn in local journalism, which it says have transformed vast swathes of the country into “news deserts.”
“Local journalism is bearing the brunt of the economic downturn: over 60 per cent of journalists and media experts surveyed by RSF in Arizona, Florida, Nevada and Pennsylvania agree that it is ‘difficult to earn a living wage as a journalist,’ and 75 per cent believe that ‘the average media outlet struggles for economic viability,’” the reports states.
The slashing of the USAID budget has also had a devastating impact on independent journalism around the world, and has resulted in an estimated 400 million citizens worldwide deprived of access to reliable information. Ukraine, and other parts of eastern Europe, have been particularly affected by the cuts.
Tech giants such as Google, Apple, Facebook, Amazon and Microsoft have also been criticized over spreading disinformation, with RSF claiming the $247.3 billion in advertising revenue generated by tech companies is sucking funding out of local journalism.
Globally, the U.S. now ranks 57th in the world for press freedom, falling 13 places in the space of just two years. Whereas the state of American media was previously considered “satisfactory,” it has now been downgraded to “problematic.”
“Press freedom is no longer a given in the United States,” the Committee to Protect Journalists noted earlier this week in a report on Trump’s first 100 days, and urged reporters to unite against the “rising tide of threats.”
Globally, the economic indicator for press freedom has hit its worst level, with 160 of 180 nations facing severe financial instability. Conflicts in Gaza and Haiti have devastated media economies, while the report warns that over half the world’s population now lives in countries where journalism is extremely dangerous, with China, Uganda, and Ethiopia considered to be among the most oppressive.
