Romania has dropped to 55th place in the 2025 World Press Freedom Index published by Reporters Without Borders (RSF), down from 49th last year. While the country has a diverse and relatively pluralistic media landscape, the report highlights concerns over a lack of transparency regarding media financing, particularly political party funding, and market challenges that undermine the reliability of information and public trust.

The United States has also seen a decline, now ranking 57th, down two places from last year. “After a century of gradual expansion of press rights in the United States, the country is experiencing its first significant and prolonged decline in press freedom in modern history, and Donald Trump’s return to the presidency is greatly exacerbating the situation,” reads the country profile.

According to the report, the situation in Romania, as well as in the US, is "problematic."

In Romania, the media market is described as fragmented, with many TV channels and news websites struggling for financial stability. Some editorial decisions are swayed by the interests of media owners, turning news outlets into propaganda tools. 

RSF also points to political interference, particularly in the appointments of public broadcasting heads and the National Audiovisual Council, which affects media independence. Political parties can gain favorable media coverage in exchange for opaque funding, while populist politicians have adopted aggressive rhetoric toward journalists.

Moreover, in Romania, “public interest journalism has faced competition from misleading narratives and fake news from some media outlets and politicians, especially in the context of the war in Ukraine. Some population groups tend to trust this false information, which sometimes converges with Russian propaganda and fuels their distrust in the media.”

On a global scale, the state of press freedom is now classified as a “difficult situation” for the first time in the history of the index, RSF also said.

“Of the five main indicators that determine the World Press Freedom Index, the indicator measuring the financial conditions of journalism and economic pressure on the industry dragged down the world’s overall score in 2025.  The economic indicator in the 2025 RSF World Press Freedom Index is at its lowest point in history, and the global situation is now considered 'difficult',” reads the press release. 

While Europe continues to lead the regional rankings, it is becoming increasingly divided. The implementation of the European Media Freedom Act (EMFA), which could support media economics, is still pending.

Norway continues to top the ranking, remaining the only country in the world to enjoy a “good” rating across all five indicators of the index. Estonia (2nd) moved up to second place, closely followed by the Netherlands (3rd), which overtook Sweden (4th) in the world’s top three.

The complete 2025 index is available here.

irina.marica@romania-insider.com

(Photo source: Batuhan Toker/Dreamstime.com)