Press freedom in Cyprus has declined sharply over the past year, with the country now ranked 77th out of 180 in the Press Freedom Index for 2025, published by Reporters Without Borders (RSF) on Friday.
Having dropped 12 positions from 65th place in 2024, Cyprus is now below countries such as Congo and Senegal, where the work of journalists is also considered difficult. Meanwhile, Greece ranks 89th and Turkey 159th.
Globally, RSF reported that press freedom is in critical condition: for the first time in its history, the index classified the situation as “difficult”. Norway and Estonia top the ranking, while Eritrea and North Korea remain at the bottom of the list with the most severe media restrictions.
Assessing the situation in Cyprus, RSF identified government, church, and corporate influence on newsrooms — along with the island’s political division — as key threats to press freedom.
The human rights organization stated that the growing concentration of media and the lack of transparency in media ownership — both print and digital — have seriously undermined pluralism and contributed to the spread of self-censorship among journalists.
Despite the presence of numerous media outlets in Cyprus, RSF noted that two of the four largest newspapers have a political affiliation.
From an economic point of view, RSF found that the Cypriot media have become “increasingly vulnerable to the influence of commercial interests,” with media owners often engaged in parallel business, and in some cases directly involved in politics.
RSF also expressed concern about the lack of transparency in the allocation of government funding, noting that this is particularly problematic for state broadcasters that rely on government support, as it promotes self-censorship and undermines independent reporting.
RSF pointed to the government’s role in appointing boards of state broadcasters as a contributing factor.
Although defamation is not a criminal offence in Cyprus, RSF noted that the media can still be prosecuted, and civil libel lawsuits are common — often leading to self-censorship to avoid costly litigation.
In addition, while source protection exists, broader safeguards against political interference remain limited, with concerns growing about the proposed “fake news” law, first introduced in 2024.
The bill has drawn sharp criticism from local and international press freedom groups, warning that the law could open the door to censorship or even imprisonment of journalists. Although the bill was suspended after a public outcry, it has not been withdrawn and remains under consideration at the moment.
RSF further noted that although there have been no reports of physical harm to journalists in Cyprus, there has been an alarming trend of verbal attacks from political figures. Just a month ago, in early April, reports surfaced that a journalist in Larnaca had received threats from a politician’s son after publishing a critical article about politics on his news website.
President of the European Parliament Roberta Metsola, reacting to the RSF rating on the eve of World Press Freedom Day on Saturday, strongly reaffirmed the EU’s commitment to protecting media freedom.
“A free press is the best shield for democracy,” Metsola said, adding that “journalists should be able to freely cover events without fear of censorship, intimidation or retaliation.”
She stressed that the European Parliament “will always protect and defend media freedom” and stressed that the institute constantly supports media workers and recognizes journalism as the cornerstone of a democratic society.
https://russiancyprus.news/news/society/cyprus-plunges-in-global-press-freedom-rankings/
At the same time, by imposing fines on nursing homes for showing Russian TV channels, Estonia rose in Western ratings to second place in the world in terms of “media freedom.”
