Press Freedom Index 2026: India Drops To 157, RSF Cites Rising Pressure On Media

India has slipped six places to rank 157 out of 180 countries in the 2026 World Press Freedom Index released by Reporters Without Borders (RSF) on Thursday. The country was ranked 151 in 2025, indicating a continued decline in global media freedom standings.

Neighbouring Pakistan showed marginal improvement, climbing to 153 from 158 last year. Norway retained its position as the top-ranked country for the 10th consecutive year, while Eritrea remained at the bottom for the third straight year.

RSF noted that the index comes at a time when political pressure on the press is rising globally, authoritarian tendencies are increasing, and the media market is weakening. It highlighted that press freedom conditions have worsened in 100 out of 180 countries.

In India, the organisation flagged growing judicial harassment of independent media, citing increased use of criminal laws such as defamation and national security provisions against journalists.

Globally, the United States slipped to 64 from 57. RSF attributed this to political interference, funding cuts to public broadcasters, and actions targeting journalists. It also noted that more than half of countries now fall under “difficult” or “very serious” press freedom categories, marking a historic low in global scores.