# What is "government censorship" of journalists? Methods, examples and outcomes

The methods governments use to restrict journalists, from prior restraint and licensing to shutdowns and prosecutions, with dated examples by country.

Published 2026-09-23. Last reviewed 2026-09-22. 12 sources.

Governments restrict journalists in several documented ways: they review or block articles before publication, license and close outlets, withdraw credentials and access, prosecute reporters and their sources, watch their communications, cut their funding, expel foreign correspondents, shut down the internet, and detain or harm reporters ([tactics](https://thewaronnews.com/tactics)). Press freedom organizations such as the Committee to Protect Journalists call many of these actions "censorship," while the governments involved usually cite national security, public order or false information as the reason ([CPJ](https://cpj.org/about/faq/)). This page is for readers, researchers and journalists who need the specific method behind the broad label "government censorship," because the record shows a courtroom or a policy response differs by tactic, not just by the fact that a government restricted the press.

## What is "government censorship" of journalists?

The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), a non-profit organization in New York that documents cases of journalists imprisoned or killed, uses the category "Censored" for journalists or outlets "officially suppressed or banned; editions confiscated; news outlets closed" ([CPJ FAQ](https://cpj.org/about/faq/)). CPJ counts separate categories, among them "Imprisoned," "Expelled," "Threatened" and "Harassed," and "Legal Action," which it defines as "credentials denied or suspended; fined; sentenced to prison; visas denied or canceled; restrictive legislation; libel suit intended to inhibit coverage" ([CPJ FAQ](https://cpj.org/about/faq/)).

Reporters Without Borders (RSF), a press freedom organization based in Paris, measures instead whether journalists "are free to work without censorship or judicial sanctions" as one part of its legal indicator ([RSF methodology](https://rsf.org/en/methodology-used-compiling-world-press-freedom-index-2026)). RSF's mandate is "in the spirit of Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights," the 1948 United Nations declaration of human rights ([RSF](https://rsf.org/en/who-are-we)).

The record uses thirteen named tactics rather than a single word, so that each action can be described by what was done ([tactics](https://thewaronnews.com/tactics)). The sections below follow that list, with dated examples from many countries and the outcome of each.

## Can a government stop the press from publishing?

Some governments can, under their own laws, and some courts have limited the power. In the United States, the Supreme Court held in 1931, in Near v. Minnesota, that a state law used to shut a Minneapolis weekly was a restraint on publication in advance that the Constitution did not allow ([record](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/1931-us-near-v-minnesota-gag-law)). In 1971, in the Pentagon Papers case, it wrote that "any system of prior restraints of expression comes to this Court bearing a heavy presumption against its constitutional validity" ([Justia](https://supreme.justia.com/cases/federal/us/403/713/)).

Other countries have used advance review as ordinary law. In Israel, the government kept a British-era Press Ordinance in 1948 that gave a military press reviewer power to block publication on security grounds. In India, on June 26, 1975, Prime Minister Indira Gandhi's government required every newspaper to obtain government clearance before publishing, during a national state of emergency that lasted until March 21, 1977.

## What are some examples of government restrictions on journalists?

### Prior restraint: review before publication

[Prior restraint](https://thewaronnews.com/glossary/prior-restraint) is an order or rule that stops something from being published before it appears ([tactic](https://thewaronnews.com/tactics/prior_restraint)). In Soviet Russia, the government led by Vladimir Lenin created Glavlit in 1922, a central office that reviewed manuscripts, newspapers and plays before release; by 1930 all printing needed its approval. In the United States, on December 19, 1941, President Franklin Roosevelt created the Office of Censorship, whose press code was voluntary. In Türkiye, the broadcasting regulator RTÜK fined three television channels in February 2023 after they aired criticism of the government's earthquake response ([record](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2023-turkiye-rtuk-fines-earthquake-coverage)).

### Licensing and closure of outlets

Governments that license newspapers or broadcasters can refuse, suspend or cancel the licence ([tactic](https://thewaronnews.com/tactics/outlet_licensing)). In Venezuela, the government let Radio Caracas Television's broadcast concession expire on May 27, 2007, and described the non-renewal as "natural and inexorable" ([record](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2007-venezuela-rctv-license-not-renewed)). In Hungary, the Media Council ended Klubradio's terrestrial licence in February 2021, saying its application was "incorrect, incomplete and contradictory" ([record](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2021-hungary-klubradio-loses-broadcast-license)). In Myanmar, the military revoked five media outlets' licences on March 8, 2021, weeks after seizing power ([record](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2021-myanmar-junta-revokes-media-licenses)). In China's Hong Kong, Apple Daily printed its final edition in June 2021 after the authorities froze its parent company's assets under the National Security Law ([record](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2021-hong-kong-apple-daily-forced-closure)).

### Credential control: who counts as a journalist

Credential control means deciding who may work as a reporter through passes, accreditation or licences ([tactic](https://thewaronnews.com/tactics/credential_control)). Germany's Editors Law of October 4, 1933, under Chancellor Adolf Hitler's government, required journalists to register with a state press chamber and barred Jewish journalists from the profession ([record](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/1933-germany-editors-law)). Zimbabwe's Access to Information and Protection of Privacy Act of 2002 required every journalist and media company to hold a government licence ([record](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2002-zimbabwe-aippa-media-licensing)). In the United States, the Department of Defense issued press credential rules on September 19, 2025, which most news organizations refused to sign; the Defense Department said the rules were "an important step in preventing leaks" ([record](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2025-pentagon-issues-new-press-credentialing-rules)).

### Access bans: keeping reporters out of places

An access ban bars reporters from briefings, buildings, pools or trips ([tactic](https://thewaronnews.com/tactics/access_ban)). On September 18, 2026, Donald Trump, the president of the United States, announced that CNN, MS NOW and Politico would be banned from the White House, his office and residence, describing their coverage as "FICTION and LIES" ([NPR](https://www.npr.org/2026/09/19/nx-s1-5974854/trump-cnn-msnow-politico-ban); [record](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2026-white-house-bans-cnn-msnow-politico)). RSF described restrictions on journalists' physical presence at White House press conferences and other events, the State Department and the Pentagon, writing that one way "to alienate the press is by limiting their physical presence in key government spaces" ([RSF](https://rsf.org/en/usa-8-ways-trump-shrinking-space-press-freedom-literally)). Since October 2023, Israel has barred foreign journalists covering the Gaza Strip from entering it independently, telling its Supreme Court in January 2026 that the ban should stay for "security reasons" ([record](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2026-israel-maintains-ban-on-foreign-press-access-to-gaza)).

### Secrets and espionage laws

These laws make it a crime to obtain or disclose information a government has classified ([tactic](https://thewaronnews.com/tactics/secrets_and_espionage_laws)). In Myanmar, a court sentenced Reuters reporters Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo to seven years under the Official Secrets Act on September 3, 2018; they were pardoned on May 7, 2019 ([record](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2018-myanmar-reuters-journalists-official-secrets-act)). In the United States, the Espionage Act of 1917 has been used mainly against officials who gave information to journalists, and in 2019 against Julian Assange of WikiLeaks ([record](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2019-us-assange-espionage-act-indictment)).

### Insult, defamation and "false information" laws

These laws make it a crime to insult a head of state, damage a reputation or publish what the government declares false ([tactic](https://thewaronnews.com/tactics/insult_and_defamation_laws)). In Thailand, a court sentenced magazine editor Somyot Prueksakasemsuk to 11 years on January 24, 2013, under Article 112 of the penal code, which bars insults to the royal family ([record](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2013-thailand-somyot-lese-majeste-sentence)). On March 4, 2022, Russia's parliament made it a crime, punishable by up to 15 years, to publish information about the military that contradicts official statements; the speaker, Vyacheslav Volodin, said it was needed "to protect our soldiers and officers, and to protect the truth" ([record](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2022-russia-criminalizes-fake-war-reports)). In India, on February 10, 2026, a court sentenced the journalist Ravi Nair to one year in prison for criminal defamation ([record](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2026-india-journalist-sentenced-adani-defamation)).

### Surveillance, subpoenas and spyware

Governments collect journalists' records and communications, often to find their sources ([tactic](https://thewaronnews.com/tactics/surveillance_and_subpoenas)). In Mexico, research groups documented Pegasus spyware sent to the journalist Carmen Aristegui in 2017; the government denied sending it ([record](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2017-mexico-aristegui-pegasus-spyware)). In Hungary, Amnesty International found traces of Pegasus on the phone of the investigative journalist Szabolcs Panyi in 2021 ([record](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2021-hungary-panyi-pegasus-spyware)). In the United States, the Department of Justice obtained two months of Associated Press phone records in a leak investigation, disclosed in May 2013 ([record](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2013-us-doj-seizes-ap-phone-records)).

### Funding and ownership pressure

Governments can act through money or through owners instead of against reporters, withholding financial support or redirecting it to favored outlets ([tactic](https://thewaronnews.com/tactics/funding_and_ownership_pressure)). Egypt's government placed every newspaper and magazine under state ownership by decree on May 24, 1960 ([record](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/1960-egypt-nasser-nationalizes-press)). In Hungary, owners aligned with the governing party donated 476 outlets to one foundation, KESMA, in November 2018, and the government exempted the merger from antitrust review ([record](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2018-hungary-kesma-media-merger)). In Argentina, President Javier Milei's government shut the state news agency Télam in March 2024 ([record](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2024-argentina-milei-closes-telam)). In the United States, on May 1, 2025, the president signed Executive Order 14290 directing an end to federal funding for NPR and PBS, which said public funding for news was "corrosive to the appearance of journalistic independence" ([record](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2025-trump-order-ends-cpb-funding-npr-pbs)).

### Expulsion of foreign journalists and visa denial

Governments can expel foreign journalists or refuse them visas ([tactic](https://thewaronnews.com/tactics/expulsion_and_visa_denial)). On February 19, 2020, China's foreign ministry expelled three Wall Street Journal correspondents over an opinion headline that a ministry spokesperson called "racist" ([record](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2020-china-expels-three-wsj-journalists-headline)). In May 2022, Russia closed the Moscow bureau of CBC/Radio-Canada, the Canadian public broadcaster, and cancelled its journalists' visas ([record](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2022-russia-expels-cbc-cancels-visas)). In Ethiopia, the media regulator gave The Economist's correspondent Tom Gardner 48 hours to leave on May 13, 2022 ([record](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2022-ethiopia-expels-tom-gardner)). In the United States, the Department of Homeland Security proposed a rule in August 2025 under which visas used by foreign journalists "would be restricted to 90 days for Chinese nationals and 240 days for citizens of other countries," according to RSF ([RSF](https://rsf.org/en/usa-8-ways-trump-shrinking-space-press-freedom-literally)).

### Internet shutdowns and blocking

A shutdown cuts internet or phone service so that audiences cannot receive news and reporters cannot send it ([tactic](https://thewaronnews.com/tactics/shutdowns_and_blocking)). India cut internet and phone service across Jammu and Kashmir from August 5, 2019, citing public order and security ([record](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2019-india-kashmir-communications-blackout)). Iran reduced internet connectivity to about five percent of normal for nearly a week during protests in November 2019 ([record](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2019-iran-nationwide-internet-shutdown)). In India in August 2023, the news outlet Gaon Savera's Facebook page and X account (formerly Twitter) were blocked without a public explanation ([record](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2023-india-blocks-gaon-savera-accounts)). Russia's media regulator blocked the news sites of BBC Russian, Deutsche Welle and Meduza in March 2022, cutting off internet users inside Russia from independent reporting on the war ([record](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2022-russia-blocks-bbc-dw-meduza)).

### Detention, prosecution and violence

The record includes harm to journalists where a government actor was involved ([tactic](https://thewaronnews.com/tactics/detention_and_violence)). On October 2, 2018, Saudi agents killed the journalist Jamal Khashoggi inside Saudi Arabia's consulate in Istanbul ([record](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2018-saudi-arabia-khashoggi-killed-consulate)). In Egypt, security forces arrested Al Jazeera English journalists Peter Greste, Mohamed Fahmy and Baher Mohamed on December 29, 2013; they were later convicted and then pardoned ([record](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2013-egypt-al-jazeera-journalists-jailed)). In China's Hong Kong, the High Court sentenced the media owner Jimmy Lai to 20 years on February 8, 2026 ([record](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2025-hong-kong-convicts-jimmy-lai-under-national-security-law)). CPJ counted 336 journalists imprisoned as of December 1, 2025 ([CPJ](https://cpj.org/about/)).

### Lawsuits by officials

Officials sometimes sue journalists and outlets ([tactic](https://thewaronnews.com/tactics/lawsuits_against_press)). In Malta, the economy minister had the journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia's bank account frozen in February 2017, months before she was killed ([record](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2017-malta-freezes-caruana-galizia-account)). In the Philippines, a Manila court convicted Maria Ressa of Rappler of cyber libel on June 15, 2020 ([record](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2020-philippines-ressa-cyber-libel-conviction)). In the United States, President Trump sued The New York Times for $15 billion in September 2025 ([record](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2025-trump-sues-new-york-times-15-billion)).

### Official labels: "foreign agent" and "fake news"

Some governments officially label outlets as foreign agents or sources of false news ([tactic](https://thewaronnews.com/tactics/disinformation_labeling); [glossary: foreign agent law](https://thewaronnews.com/glossary/foreign-agent-law)). On April 23, 2021, Russia's Justice Ministry labelled the independent site Meduza a "foreign agent" ([record](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2021-russia-designates-meduza-foreign-agent)). In Georgia, parliament passed a law in May 2024 requiring media that receive 20 percent or more of their funding from abroad to register ([record](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2024-georgia-foreign-influence-law)). In India, the Bombay High Court struck down a government "fact check unit" rule in September 2024, finding its key terms "vague and overbroad" ([record](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2024-india-court-strikes-down-fact-check-unit)).

## How have these methods changed since 1900?

The record is organized by decade as well as by tactic, and the methods in use have shifted over time ([era: 1910s](https://thewaronnews.com/eras/1910s)). This history runs from mail bans and formal state press offices to the licensing, labelling and shutdown tools used today.

### 1900 to 1945: mail bans and state press offices

In the First World War, the United States Post Office used the Espionage Act to bar anti-war publications such as The Masses from the mail in 1917 ([record](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/1917-us-espionage-act-bars-the-masses-from-the-mail)). In the 1930s, Portugal's government under António de Oliveira Salazar formally established press controls under a new constitution in 1933, and Brazil's government under Getúlio Vargas created a state department with broad press powers in 1939 ([record](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/1939-brazil-vargas-creates-dip)). Spain's Press Law of April 1938, under Francisco Franco, required government permission to found a newspaper or work as a journalist ([record](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/1938-spain-franco-press-law)).

### 1946 to 1999: coups, martial law and emergencies

After seizing or suspending power, several governments closed the press all at once. In the Philippines, President Ferdinand Marcos closed every major news outlet under martial law on September 21, 1972 ([record](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/1972-philippines-marcos-martial-law-media-closures)). In Chile, the armed forces shut down opposition radio stations and newspapers on the day of the September 11, 1973 coup ([record](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/1973-chile-coup-press-shutdown)). In Poland, General Wojciech Jaruzelski's martial law of December 13, 1981, suspended nearly all newspapers ([record](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/1981-poland-martial-law-press-suspended)).

### 2000 to 2026: licences, labels, spyware and shutdowns

Entries from 2000 onward include administrative and technical tools: media licensing laws such as Zimbabwe's in 2002, "foreign agent" labels in Russia and Georgia, spyware found on journalists' phones in Mexico, Morocco and Hungary, and internet shutdowns in India, Iran, Ethiopia and Tanzania ([record](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2002-zimbabwe-aippa-media-licensing); [record](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2021-russia-designates-meduza-foreign-agent); [record](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2020-morocco-omar-radi-pegasus-and-detention); [record](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2025-tanzania-internet-shutdown-election-day)). Tanzania cut national internet traffic by nearly 90 percent on October 29, 2025, election day ([record](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2025-tanzania-internet-shutdown-election-day)).

## How do these restrictions affect the public?

Press freedom organizations describe the effect on audiences, not only on reporters. RSF wrote on September 22, 2026, that the White House ban of CNN, MS NOW and Politico "is really a ban on the public's access to the American presidency," in the words of Clayton Weimers, executive director of RSF North America ([RSF](https://rsf.org/en/usa-white-house-media-ban-robs-public-access-independent-presidential-coverage)). RSF wrote in its review of access restrictions in the United States that they mean "journalists are unable to ask important questions, break important stories and keep the public informed," and called on the administration to rescind them "to ensure government transparency and accountability" ([RSF](https://rsf.org/en/usa-8-ways-trump-shrinking-space-press-freedom-literally)).

The United Nations reports that "self-censorship has grown by more than 60%, driven by fear of reprisals, online harassment, judicial intimidation, and economic pressure," citing UNESCO's World Trends Report 2022 to 2025 ([United Nations](https://www.un.org/en/observances/press-freedom-day)); when reporters hold back stories they would otherwise publish, public opinion forms on a narrower range of reporting than existed before.

## What reasons do governments give?

The stated justification is recorded in each government's own words, and the reason a political leader gives in public is not always the reason a court later accepts. Israel's government cited "security reasons" for the Gaza ban ([record](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2026-israel-maintains-ban-on-foreign-press-access-to-gaza)). The Royal Canadian Mounted Police, Canada's federal police, said restrictions on reporters at the Fairy Creek logging blockades in British Columbia were "reasonably necessary" because of terrain, space and poor phone coverage ([record](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2021-rcmp-restricts-press-fairy-creek-court-order)). The United Kingdom said in 2013 that David Miranda was suspected of carrying "highly sensitive stolen information that would help terrorism" ([record](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2013-uk-miranda-detention-guardian-hard-drives)). The Philippine president's spokesperson said in 2018 that President Rodrigo Duterte had "lost trust" in Rappler's "fake news" reporting ([record](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2018-philippines-bans-rappler-presidential-palace)).

## What happens when courts review these actions?

Outcomes differ by country and court. In Canada, a British Columbia judge found on July 20, 2021, that the police had not justified their exclusion zones, and ordered them to keep in mind the media's role in a free and democratic society ([record](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2021-rcmp-restricts-press-fairy-creek-court-order)). In Australia, the High Court ruled on April 15, 2020, that the warrant used to search the journalist Annika Smethurst's home was invalid ([record](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2020-australia-high-court-invalidates-smethurst-warrant)). In the United Kingdom, the Court of Appeal ruled in January 2016 that Miranda's detention was lawful but that the stop power was incompatible with protections for journalistic material ([record](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2013-uk-miranda-detention-guardian-hard-drives)). In the United States, a federal judge ruled against the Pentagon's credential rules in March 2026, and the Defense Department appealed ([record](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2025-pentagon-issues-new-press-credentialing-rules)).

### Selected examples and outcomes

| Date | Country | Action | Outcome |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1922 | Russia (USSR) | Glavlit created | Dissolved 1991 |
| 1975-06-26 | India | Pre-publication clearance for all newspapers | Lifted 1977-03-21 |
| 2007-05-27 | Venezuela | RCTV concession not renewed ([record](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2007-venezuela-rctv-license-not-renewed)) | Sustained |
| 2018-09-03 | Myanmar | Reuters reporters sentenced ([record](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2018-myanmar-reuters-journalists-official-secrets-act)) | Pardoned 2019-05-07 |
| 2019-08-05 | India | Kashmir communications cut ([record](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2019-india-kashmir-communications-blackout)) | Ongoing |
| 2021-07-20 | Canada | Court limits RCMP exclusion zones ([record](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2021-rcmp-restricts-press-fairy-creek-court-order)) | Reversed by court |
| 2022-03-04 | Russia | Law on "false" military reports ([record](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2022-russia-criminalizes-fake-war-reports)) | In force |
| 2024-09 | India | Fact check unit rule struck down ([record](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2024-india-court-strikes-down-fact-check-unit)) | Reversed by court |
| 2025-09-19 | United States | Pentagon credential rules ([record](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2025-pentagon-issues-new-press-credentialing-rules)) | On appeal |
| 2026-09-19 | United States | White House hard passes deactivated ([record](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2026-white-house-bans-cnn-msnow-politico)) | Case pending |

## Which laws protect journalists in different countries?

Each country's protection is set by its own constitution, statutes and courts, and one country's law is not a measure for another's. In the United States, the [First Amendment](https://thewaronnews.com/glossary/first-amendment) to the Constitution provides that Congress shall make no law "abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press" ([glossary](https://thewaronnews.com/glossary/first-amendment)); free speech and press freedom overlap in this and other legal systems, though a constitution can protect one without fully protecting the other. In Canada, section 2(b) of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms protects "freedom of thought, belief, opinion and expression, including freedom of the press and other media of communication" ([Government of Canada](https://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/const/page-12.html)). In the United Kingdom, Article 10 of the European Convention on Human Rights, given effect by the Human Rights Act 1998, provides that "everyone has the right to freedom of expression," and also that it "shall not prevent States from requiring the licensing of broadcasting, television or cinema enterprises" ([Human Rights Act 1998, Schedule 1](https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1998/42/schedule/1)). At the international level, Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, adopted by the United Nations in 1948, is the reference RSF cites for its own mandate ([RSF](https://rsf.org/en/who-are-we)); that declaration lists freedom of expression among the fundamental rights it sets out for every country.

Written guarantees do not settle every case. The Supreme Court of the United States ruled 5 to 4 in 1972 that reporters have no constitutional privilege to refuse to answer a grand jury's questions ([record](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/1972-us-branzburg-v-hayes-reporters-privilege)), and India required pre-publication clearance of every newspaper under a declared state of emergency from 1975 to 1977.

## Where does the USA rank in press freedom?

In RSF's 2026 World Press Freedom Index, the United States ranks 64th of 180 countries and territories, down from 57th in 2025 ([RSF](https://rsf.org/en/country/united-states)). The [United States overview](https://thewaronnews.com/united-states) lists the dated actions behind the country's entries.

## What are the consequences of a censure?

A censure is a different thing from the restrictions above. It is a formal statement of disapproval, for example by a legislature against one of its own members; it does not stop anyone from publishing. The restrictions described in this article are actions by governments that limit what journalists can gather, publish or distribute.

## Why does press freedom matter for democracy?

The United Nations writes that "press freedom and independent journalism are key to peace, economic recovery, sustainable development, and human rights" ([United Nations](https://www.un.org/en/observances/press-freedom-day)). It notes that information manipulation, "including the use of AI by malicious actors," is weakening trust, and that World Press Freedom Day, May 3, was proclaimed by the General Assembly in December 1993. CPJ states on its website that "without a free press, few other human rights are attainable" ([CPJ FAQ](https://cpj.org/about/faq/)). In the United States, a 2021 Department of Justice memo said that "a free and independent press is vital to the functioning of our democracy" ([record](https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2021-doj-bans-seizing-reporters-records-garland)).

## Who documents restrictions on journalists?

Press freedom organizations and news media document cases and publish their methods. CPJ says it works in "more than 120 countries" and that each case it classifies "is corroborated by more than one source for factual accuracy" ([CPJ FAQ](https://cpj.org/about/faq/)). RSF publishes the annual World Press Freedom Index ([RSF](https://rsf.org/en/who-are-we)). In the United States, the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker, run by the Freedom of the Press Foundation, records incidents ([glossary](https://thewaronnews.com/glossary/us-press-freedom-tracker)).

## Sources

1. Frequently asked questions. https://cpj.org/about/faq/ (Frequently asked questions).
2. About CPJ. https://cpj.org/about/ (Committee to Protect Journalists).
3. Reporters Without Borders, methodology of the 2026 index. https://rsf.org/en/methodology-used-compiling-world-press-freedom-index-2026 (Reporters Without Borders).
4. Reporters Without Borders, United States country page. https://rsf.org/en/country/united-states (Reporters Without Borders).
5. Who are we?. https://rsf.org/en/who-are-we (Reporters Without Borders).
6. Reporters Without Borders, "USA: 8 ways Trump is shrinking the space for press freedom". https://rsf.org/en/usa-8-ways-trump-shrinking-space-press-freedom-literally (Reporters Without Borders).
7. United Nations, World Press Freedom Day. https://www.un.org/en/observances/press-freedom-day (United Nations).
8. New York Times Co. v. United States, 403 U.S. 713 (1971). https://supreme.justia.com/cases/federal/us/403/713/ (Justia US Supreme Court Center, 1971-06-30).
9. Trump says CNN, MS NOW and Politico will be banned from the White House. https://www.npr.org/2026/09/19/nx-s1-5974854/trump-cnn-msnow-politico-ban Archived copy: https://web.archive.org/web/20260921004920/https://www.npr.org/2026/09/19/nx-s1-5974854/trump-cnn-msnow-politico-ban (NPR, 2026-09-19).
10. Reporters Without Borders, 2026-09-22. https://rsf.org/en/usa-white-house-media-ban-robs-public-access-independent-presidential-coverage (Reporters Without Borders, 2026-09-22).
11. Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, Government of Canada. https://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/const/page-12.html (Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms).
12. Human Rights Act 1998, Schedule 1, legislation.gov.uk. https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1998/42/schedule/1 (Human Rights Act 1998).

Source page: https://thewaronnews.com/explainers/government-censorship-of-journalists. The War On News, CC BY 4.0.