Russia lags behind Zimbabwe and Honduras in the Press Freedom Index
Russia took 148th place out of 180 in the World Press Freedom Index list, created by Reporters Without Borders (RSF). The list is published on the organization's website.
According to RSF, the pressure on Russian media continues to increase. In the rating, Russia was ranked lower than countries such as Ukraine (102nd), Zimbabwe (128), Venezuela (137) and Honduras (140).
The top three countries to enjoy the most freedom of the press are Norway, Sweden and Finland. The three countries with the least freedom of press are Turkmenistan, Eritrea and North Korea. In the RSF, these states have been referred to as the “infernal trio.”
Deputy Minister of Communications and Mass Media Alexey Volin commented on RSF’s rating to Kommersant, saying that the level of media freedom in Russia is "absolutely satisfactory" for the ministry. "We stopped paying attention long ago to the nonsense that this unrecognized organization writes," added Volin.
The RBG has published its World Press Freedom Index since 2002. Compilers consider the level of pluralism, the number of independent media, legislative restrictions, transparency, censorship and self-censorship. In 2016, Russia was 148th on the list, 152nd a year earlier and 148th the year before that.