Taiwan is now ranked 38th in the World Press Freedom Index. That was the word from the Reporters Without Borders report released Tuesday.
Taiwan rose to 38th from 43rd last year, coming ahead of South Korea, which ranked 43rd, and Japan, which ranked 71st. China ranked sixth from the bottom or 175 and Russia was ranked 155. Norway, Denmark and Sweden came out on top of the index.
The report assessed the state of journalism in 180 countries and territories and highlighted what it called the “disastrous effects of news and information chaos”. This refers to unregulated online information that encourages fake news and propaganda.
Taiwan was among the 40 countries listed as having a "satisfactory" media environment. Though Taiwan rose in the rankings, Cédric Alviani, head of RSF's East Asia Bureau, said the rise was actually a reflection of a new way of compiling the index rather than any improvement in Taiwan’s media landscape.
Alviani also cited problems such as political polarization and sensationalism in Taiwan’s media. Alviani also said that many young journalists leave the industry because they are underpaid and overworked in Taiwan.
It also said that division is growing in democratic societies as a result of the spread of opinion type media using the “Fox News model”. It also said that in the global arena, despotic regimes are weakening democratic societies through propaganda wars.