Vietnam Among Countries at Bottom RSF 2023 Press Freedom Index

Vietnam’s press freedom is considered in “very serious condition” as the country ranks 178 out of 180 measured countries in the World Press Freedom Index. Vietnam fell four places from its 174th position in 2022. The index was released by the press freedom advocacy group Reporters Without Borders (RSF) on May 3, which marked the 30th anniversary of World Press Freedom Day. Vietnam’s ranking this year is only above that of China and North Korea.

According to RSF, the development of the fake content industry and disinformation and the increased aggressiveness of authoritarian countries have wreaked havoc and weakened the quality of journalism and press freedom worldwide. The weaponization of propaganda utilized by the Kremlin to justify its invasion of Ukraine has contributed to this downward trend. Meanwhile, RSF notes that the Asia-Pacific region has some of the world’s worst jailers of journalists.