Open Up

3 minute read
Simon Shuster; Roya Wolverson; Andra Ford

CHINA

Microblogging Pushes the Envelope

China’s state-controlled news outlets, which compete fiercely for stories and revenue, are starting to push back in a small way against government censorship as private sites like Sina Weibo air stories of foul play by the Communist Party. Private news outlets like Caixin, the Economist of China, are growing, as is foreign ad investment. Economics remains easier to cover without restriction than politics.

BRAZIL

Free-Press Laws Take Hold

President Dilma Rousseff vowed to crack down on censorship following allegations about press freedom that circulated during her election campaign in 2010. After entering office, she signed a landmark freedom-of-information law, which takes effect this month. Legal changes and a bubbling pay-TV market–which is expected to triple in size over 10 years–should help foreign and domestic outlets crack Brazil’s cabal of family-owned media firms. Plus, broadband access shot up 19% last year.

RUSSIA

Protesters Fuel Private Markets

Russia’s three state-dominated news networks control 90% of the $4.5 billion TV-ad market, and they air fawning coverage of Russia’s strongman leader Vladimir Putin, who became President again on May 7. But as the nation’s economy grows, more young urbanites are turning to the Internet and pay TV for uncensored news. Broadband access increased 37% last year. In December 2011, during the “snowy revolution,” many disgruntled Russians watched the protests on indie upstart station TV Rain, now Russia’s most popular independent cable-news outlet.

EGYPT

New Media Rush Post–Arab Spring

At least 16 independent news channels have emerged since uprisings led to the ouster of President Hosni Mubarak last year. Broadband access in Egypt rose 27% in 2011, helping bolster regional satellite channels like al-Jazeera and Egyptian channels like ONTV and Dream TV. Egypt’s new government still subsidizes state media, resulting in self-censorship, but there is less pressure on advertisers that want to put ads on indie outlets. Private media have room to run: only 4% of households with a television subscribe to pay TV.

Press vs. Power

The Arab Spring eased the grip of governments on journalists and information in countries like Egypt, Libya and Tunisia. But elsewhere, authorities frightened of citizens’ growing access to online news, pay TV and social media have clamped down on those providing such services. In countries like Bahrain and Syria, reporters have recently been arrested and detained. China, Russia and Iran also seek to intimidate journalists through censorship, detaining dissenters and shutting down media outlets. Last year 67 journalists were killed worldwide, up 18% from the previous year.

GETTING FREER?

Higher scores indicate less press freedom

[The following text appears within a chart. Please see hardcopy or PDF for actual chart.]

Brazil 43 44

China 84 85

Egypt 60 57

India 33 37

Russia 81 80

Turkey 51 55

South Africa 32 34

2010 score

2012 score

SOURCES: FREEDOM HOUSE; BROADBAND FORUM; POINT TOPIC; SNL KAGAN

34%

Percentage of countries considered to have a free press in 2012; 37% were considered to have a partly free press

More Must-Reads from TIME

Contact us at letters@time.com