Press freedom index: Philippines falls 2 notches to 134th

MANILA, Philippines — The Philippines remains a “difficult country” for journalists as it dropped two spots in the annual press freedom index released by media watchdog Reporters Without Borders (Reporters Sans Frontières/RSF).

Released yesterday in time for World Press Freedom Day, the World Press Freedom Index 2024 showed the Philippines dropping from 132nd out of 180 countries in 2023 to 134th this year.

Philippines obtained a score of 43.36 out of 100, down from last year’s 46.21.

The decrease in the country’s overall score was due to the decline in four out of five indicators: political (from 43.96 to 36.14), economic (from 40.20 to 37.11), legislative (from 52.20 to 47.48) and social (from 57.39 to 51.64). Its score in terms of security improved from 37.30 to 44.44.

Like in previous years, the country’s press freedom situation was classified as “difficult” or those with scores between 40 to 55. Other classifications include “good” (above 85), “satisfactory” (70 to 85), “problematic” (55 to 70) and “very serious” (below 40).

“The Philippine media are extremely dynamic despite the government’s targeted attacks and constant harassment of journalists and media outlets regarded as overly critical, especially since 2016, when Rodrigo Duterte became president,” read the report.

“Since Ferdinand ‘Bongbong’ Marcos Jr. – the son of former dictator and historic press freedom predator, Ferdinand Marcos Sr. – became president in June 2022, there seem to have been fewer and less violent attacks of this kind, but they are still worrisome. Harassment by means of threats and ‘red-tagging’ persists, while defamation and cyber-defamation are still punishable by prison sentences,” it added.

The RSF report noted that some journalists critical of authorities are facing trumped-up charges, citing the case of alternative media editor Frenchie Mae Cumpio, who has been detained since 2020 on charges of illegal possession of firearms and explosives.

On the part of mainstream media, RSF said ownership “has recently reached even greater levels of concentration,” citing ABS-CBN’s venture agreement with Prime Media and the entry of the Villar group in the broadcast industry.

“The