Statizoid

Press freedom in India

India: Press freedom was 1 in 2016. ▼ Falling

Latest (2016)
1
Change on year
unchanged
World rank
61st
of 194 countries
All-time high
2
in 1988
All-time low
1
in 1979
Years of data
36
1979–2016

Press freedom in India, 1979–2016

00.511.521979199720161979: 11980: 11982: 11983: 11984: 11985: 11986: 11987: 11988: 21990: 21991: 21992: 21993: 11994: 11995: 11996: 11997: 11998: 11999: 12000: 12001: 12002: 12003: 12004: 12005: 12006: 12007: 12008: 12009: 12010: 12011: 12012: 12013: 12014: 12015: 12016: 1

Source: Freedom House (2017) – processed by Our World in Data.

Analysis

In 2016, press freedom in India stood at 1. That is the lowest value across all 36 years on record.

That represents a change of unchanged over ten years.

Over the whole period, press freedom in India peaked at 2 in 1988 and was at its lowest, 1, in 1979.

India ranks 61st of 194 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.

The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 36 years of available data.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1970s 1 1 1 1
1980s 1.12 1 2 8
1990s 1.3 1 2 10
2000s 1 1 1 10
2010s 1 1 1 7

Countries ranked near India

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See the full ranking of 194 places →

More social development data for India

All data for India →

Frequently asked questions

What is press freedom in India?
Press freedom in India was 1 in 2016, according to Freedom House (2017) – processed by Our World in Data.
What is the highest press freedom recorded in India?
The highest recorded value was 2 in 1988.
What is the lowest press freedom recorded in India?
The lowest recorded value was 1 in 1979.
How does India rank for press freedom?
India ranks 61st out of 194 countries with data for 2016.
Is press freedom rising or falling in India?
Over the last ten years it is unchanged. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this India data come from?
The figures come from Freedom House (2017) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Press freedom. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 36 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).

About this data

Indicator
Press freedom
Source
Freedom House (2017) – processed by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
194 places, 6,417 data points, 1979–2016
Last refreshed

Based on the classification and data by Freedom House. It captures the legal, political, and economic environment of the press.