Qatar ranks first in Gulf region in World Press Freedom Index

QATAR has ranked first in the Gulf, fourth in the Arab world, and 119 globally in the World Press Freedom Index issued by Reporters Without Borders (RSF) on the occasion of World Press Freedom Day, which falls on May 3 each year.

The report issued by the organisation based in the French capital, under the title “The New Age of Polarization”, has warned about the expansion in the trend of disinformation and the control of dictatorships over journalistic work.

Globally, the top five countries ranked in the following order are : Norway, Denmark, Sweden, Estonia and Finland, while the United Kingdom and the United States ranked 24th and 42nd, respectively.

The organisation pointed out that this year set a record, with 12 additional countries classified in the red box, countries in which journalists live in “very poor” conditions.

The organisation based its classification on 5 main factors: the political context of each country, the legal framework for the work of journalists, the economic context, the social and cultural context, and the safety available to journalists in their work.

In the 180 countries and territories ranked by RSF, indicators are assessed on the basis of a quantitative survey of press freedom violations and abuses against journalists and media. There is a qualitative study based on the responses of hundreds of press freedom experts (journalists, academics and human rights defenders) selected by RSF to a questionnaire with 123 questions.

The questionnaire has been updated to take better account of new challenges, including those linked to media digitalisation.