up or down indicates a change in Status since the last survey.
| Country |
Legal Environment (0-30) |
Political Environment (0-40) |
Economic Environment (0-30) |
Total Score
(0-100) |
Status |
| Angola |
18 |
23 |
21 |
62 |
Not Free |
| Benin |
11 |
12 |
10 |
33 |
Partly Free |
| Botswana |
11 |
17 |
11 |
39 |
Partly Free |
| Burkina Faso |
13 |
15 |
13 |
41 |
Partly Free |
| Burundi |
21 |
30 |
22 |
73 |
Not Free |
| Cameroon |
21 |
24 |
21 |
66 |
Not Free |
| Cape Verde |
6 |
10 |
12 |
28 |
Free |
| Central African Rep. |
19 |
23 |
19 |
61 |
Not Free |
| Chad |
24 |
32 |
21 |
77 |
Not Free |
| Comoros |
14 |
21 |
15 |
50 |
Partly Free |
| Congo-Brazzaville |
16 |
21 |
17 |
54 |
Partly Free |
| Congo-Kinshasa |
25 |
32 |
24 |
81 |
Not Free |
| Côte d'Ivoire |
21 |
26 |
19 |
66 |
Not Free |
| Djibouti |
24 |
26 |
23 |
73 |
Not Free |
| Equatorial Guinea |
27 |
36 |
27 |
90 |
Not Free |
| Eritrea |
30 |
40 |
24 |
94 |
Not Free |
| Ethiopia |
27 |
33 |
18 |
78 |
Not Free |
| Gabon |
24 |
25 |
22 |
71 |
Not Free |
| The Gambia |
26 |
35 |
20 |
81 |
Not Free |
| Ghana |
8 |
9 |
9 |
26 |
Free |
| Guinea |
24 |
30 |
17 |
71 |
Not Free |
| Guinea-Bissau |
15 |
24 |
15 |
54 |
Partly Free |
| Kenya |
21 |
19 |
17 |
57 |
Partly Free |
| Lesotho |
14 |
19 |
15 |
48 |
Partly Free |
| Liberia |
17 |
23 |
21 |
61 |
Not Free |
| Madagascar |
17 |
29 |
15 |
61 |
Not Free |
| Malawi |
17 |
21 |
18 |
56 |
Partly Free |
| Mali |
9 |
8 |
8 |
25 |
Free |
| Mauritania |
18 |
21 |
17 |
56 |
Partly Free |
| Mauritius |
6 |
8 |
13 |
27 |
Free |
| Mozambique |
12 |
16 |
14 |
42 |
Partly Free |
| Namibia |
9 |
13 |
12 |
34 |
Partly Free |
| Niger |
25 |
26 |
17 |
68 |
Not Free |
| Nigeria |
15 |
22 |
17 |
54 |
Partly Free |
| Rwanda |
26 |
33 |
24 |
83 |
Not Free |
| São Tomé & Príncipe |
4 |
10 |
14 |
28 |
Free |
| Senegal |
20 |
22 |
15 |
57 |
Partly Free |
| Seychelles |
19 |
20 |
19 |
58 |
Partly Free |
| Sierra Leone |
15 |
23 |
17 |
55 |
Partly Free |
| Somalia |
27 |
35 |
22 |
84 |
Not Free |
| South Africa |
9 |
13 |
10 |
32 |
Partly Free |
| Sudan |
26 |
28 |
22 |
76 |
Not Free |
| Swaziland |
24 |
27 |
25 |
76 |
Not Free |
| Tanzania |
17 |
18 |
15 |
50 |
Partly Free |
| Togo |
24 |
28 |
22 |
74 |
Not Free |
| Uganda |
20 |
20 |
14 |
54 |
Partly Free |
| Zambia |
19 |
25 |
20 |
64 |
Not Free |
| Zimbabwe |
27 |
30 |
27 |
84 |
Not Free |
The Legal Environment encompasses both an examination of the laws and regulations that could influence
media content as well as the government's inclination to use these laws and legal institutions in order to restrict the media’s
ability to operate. Issues assessed include the positive impact of legal and constitutional guarantees for freedom of expression;
the potentially negative aspects of security legislation, the penal code and other criminal statutes; penalties for libel
and defamation; the existence of and ability to use Freedom of Information legislation; the independence of the judiciary
and of official media regulatory bodies; registration requirements for both media outlets and journalists; and the ability
of journalists’ groups to operate freely.
Under the category
of Political Environment, the survey evaluates the degree of political control over the content of news media. Issues
examined in this category include the editorial independence of both the state-owned and privately-owned media; access to
information and sources; official censorship and self-censorship; the vibrancy of the media; the ability of both foreign and
local reporters to cover the news freely and without harassment; and the intimidation of journalists by the state or
other actors, including arbitrary detention and imprisonment, violent assaults, and other threats.
Economic Environment:
This includes the structure of media ownership; transparency and concentration of ownership; the costs of establishing media
as well as of production and distribution; the selective withholding of advertising or subsidies by the state or other actors;
the impact of corruption and bribery on content; and the extent to which the economic situation in a country impacts the development
of the media.
Total Score and Status:
A country's total score is based on the total of the three categories: a score of 0-30 places the country in the "Free" press
group, 31-60 in "Partly Free," and 61-100 in the "Not Free" press
group.
Status Changes
Madagascar's status declined from Partly Free
to Not Free to reflect a serious deterioration in the political environment for the media in 2009, both before and after the
overthrow of the government in March. Both main parties routinely ignored constitutional protections for media freedom while
in power, using harassment, intimidation, and censorship to restrict media operations. As a result, news coverage became extremely
partisan and polarized, while diversity of views receded.
Namibia declined from Free to Partly Free to
reflect the government's increased negative rhetoric toward the press and biased coverage in favor of the ruling party surrounding
the November 2009 elections.
South Africa declined from Free to Partly Free
to reflect the threat posed by top government officials' hostile rhetoric toward the media, as well as official encroachments
on the editorial independence of the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC), which dominates the national broadcast
landscape. An additional factor behind the decline was the passage of the Film and Publications Act, which legitimizes some
forms of pre-publication censorship and creates a legal distinction between government-recognized publications and other outlets.
up or down indicates a change in Status since the last survey.
