Freedom of the press declined significantly in almost every region of the world in 2009, a recent study reveals.
Freedom House published last week the report Freedom of the Press 2010: A Global Survey of Media Independence.The study reveals that press freedom declined for eight years in a row, and only one third of the world’s 196 countries and territories has free media.
It added that the Internet is the new battlegrounds for government control, starting with China.
In Africa, the study reveals declines in the level of press freedom with only five countries scoring the rating “free press”: Mali, Ghana, Mauritius, Cape Verde and Sao Tome and Principe.
The report added that there are slight improvements of press freedom in Zimbabwe, Kenya, Sudan and Mauritania.
Freedom House is an international nongovernmental organization that researches and monitors democratic freedoms around the world.