Today the world celebrates the World Press Freedom Day, an important global day marked by the UN General Assembly in December 1993.
May 3rd acts as a reminder to governments of the need to respect their commitment to press freedom. It is also a day of reflection among media professionals about issues of press freedom and professional ethics. It is an opportunity to:
celebrate the fundamental principles of press freedom;
assess the state of press freedom throughout the world;
defend the media from attacks on their independence;
and pay tribute to journalists who have lost their lives in the line of duty.
This year the World Press Freedom Day global commemoration focuses on the profound influence of Artificial Intelligence (AI) on journalism and media under the theme: Reporting in the Brave New World – The Impact of Artificial Intelligence on Press Freedom and the Media.
AI can help support freedom of expression by making information easier to access, allowing more people to communicate across the world, and changing how information flows globally. But as the saying goes, “with great power comes great responsibility”, AI can also bring new risks. It can be used to spread false or misleading information, increase online hate speech, and support new types of censorship. Some actors use AI for mass surveillance of journalists and citizens, creating a chilling effect on freedom of expression.
Image Source: cottonbro studio@Pexels | Cropped by GBN
According to the international organization, Reporters Without Borders’ Press freedom index 2025, the Top 5 countries are Norway, Estonia, Netherlands, Sweden and Finland.
The GCC Countries are ranking a bit low in press freedom with UAE coming 164th, Saudi Arabia – 162, Kuwait – 128, Qatar – 79, and Oman at 134th.
India ranks 151st in the press freedom. With violence against journalists, highly concentrated media ownership, and political alignment, press freedom is in crisis in “the world’s largest democracy”, ruled since 2014 by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, leader of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and embodiment of the Hindu nationalist right.
UNESCO reports that at least 68 journalists and media workers have been killed in the line of duty so far in 2024. More than 60 percent of the killings took place in countries in conflict, the highest percentage in more than ten years.
Of the 42 journalist killings in countries in conflict, 18 took place in Palestine, 4 in Ukraine and Colombia, 3 each in Iraq, Lebanon, Myanmar and Sudan and 1 each in Syria, Chad, Somalia, and the Democratic Republic of Congo.
World Press Freedom Day is a day of support for media which are targets for the restraint, or abolition, of press freedom. It is also a day of remembrance for those journalists who lost their lives in the pursuit of a story.
