{ "title": "Search: official labels, national level", "canonical_url": "https://thewaronnews.com/search?tactic=disinformation_labeling&level=national&view=cards", "filters": { "tactic": "disinformation_labeling", "level": "national", "view": "cards" }, "sort": "date", "count": 12, "page": 1, "pages": 1, "per_page": 50, "counts_caveat": "The number of entries reflects the depth of this record, not the severity of a country's conduct.", "facets": { "country": [ { "value": "BY", "label": "Belarus", "rsf": { "index": "RSF World Press Freedom Index", "year": 2026, "rank": 165, "of": 180, "label": "RSF 2026 rank: 165th of 180", "source_url": "https://rsf.org/en/index" } }, { "value": "EG", "label": "Egypt", "rsf": { "index": "RSF World Press Freedom Index", "year": 2026, "rank": 169, "of": 180, "label": "RSF 2026 rank: 169th of 180", "source_url": "https://rsf.org/en/index" } }, { "value": "GE", "label": "Georgia", "rsf": { "index": "RSF World Press Freedom Index", "year": 2026, "rank": 135, "of": 180, "label": "RSF 2026 rank: 135th of 180", "source_url": "https://rsf.org/en/index" } }, { "value": "HU", "label": "Hungary", "rsf": { "index": "RSF World Press Freedom Index", "year": 2026, "rank": 74, "of": 180, "label": "RSF 2026 rank: 74th of 180", "source_url": "https://rsf.org/en/index" } }, { "value": "IN", "label": "India", "rsf": { "index": "RSF World Press Freedom Index", "year": 2026, "rank": 157, "of": 180, "label": "RSF 2026 rank: 157th of 180", "source_url": "https://rsf.org/en/index" } }, { "value": "NI", "label": "Nicaragua", "rsf": { "index": "RSF World Press Freedom Index", "year": 2026, "rank": 168, "of": 180, "label": "RSF 2026 rank: 168th of 180", "source_url": "https://rsf.org/en/index" } }, { "value": "PK", "label": "Pakistan", "rsf": { "index": "RSF World Press Freedom Index", "year": 2026, "rank": 153, "of": 180, "label": "RSF 2026 rank: 153rd of 180", "source_url": "https://rsf.org/en/index" } }, { "value": "RU", "label": "Russia", "rsf": { "index": "RSF World Press Freedom Index", "year": 2026, "rank": 172, "of": 180, "label": "RSF 2026 rank: 172nd of 180", "source_url": "https://rsf.org/en/index" } }, { "value": "US", "label": "United States", "rsf": { "index": "RSF World Press Freedom Index", "year": 2026, "rank": 64, "of": 180, "label": "RSF 2026 rank: 64th of 180", "source_url": "https://rsf.org/en/index" } }, { "value": "VN", "label": "Viet Nam", "rsf": null } ], "continent": [ { "value": "africa", "label": "Africa" }, { "value": "asia", "label": "Asia" }, { "value": "europe", "label": "Europe" }, { "value": "north-america", "label": "North America" } ], "tactic": [ { "value": "disinformation_labeling", "label": "Official labels", "count": 12 }, { "value": "funding_and_ownership_pressure", "label": "Funding and ownership pressure", "count": 4 }, { "value": "outlet_licensing", "label": "Licensing and closure of outlets", "count": 1 }, { "value": "prior_restraint", "label": "Prior restraint", "count": 1 }, { "value": "expulsion_and_visa_denial", "label": "Expulsion and visa denial", "count": 1 } ], "stage": [ { "value": "pressure", "label": "Pressure", "count": 10 }, { "value": "punish", "label": "Punish", "count": 1 }, { "value": "eliminate", "label": "Eliminate", "count": 1 } ], "level": [ { "value": "national", "label": "National", "count": 12 } ], "outcome": [ { "value": "sustained", "label": "Sustained", "count": 8 }, { "value": "reversed", "label": "Reversed", "count": 2 }, { "value": "ongoing", "label": "Ongoing", "count": 1 }, { "value": "unknown", "label": "Unknown", "count": 1 } ], "leader": [ { "value": "abdel-fattah-el-sisi", "label": "Abdel Fattah el-Sisi" }, { "value": "alexander-lukashenko", "label": "Alexander Lukashenko" }, { "value": "daniel-ortega", "label": "Daniel Ortega" }, { "value": "donald-trump", "label": "Donald Trump" }, { "value": "irakli-kobakhidze", "label": "Irakli Kobakhidze" }, { "value": "narendra-modi", "label": "Narendra Modi" }, { "value": "nguyen-tan-dung", "label": "Nguyen Tan Dung" }, { "value": "shehbaz-sharif", "label": "Shehbaz Sharif" }, { "value": "viktor-orban", "label": "Viktor Orban" }, { "value": "vladimir-putin", "label": "Vladimir Putin" } ], "era": [ { "value": "2020s", "label": "2020s", "count": 9 }, { "value": "2010s", "label": "2010s", "count": 3 } ], "year": [ { "value": "2013", "label": "2013", "count": 1 }, { "value": "2019", "label": "2019", "count": 2 }, { "value": "2021", "label": "2021", "count": 1 }, { "value": "2022", "label": "2022", "count": 1 }, { "value": "2023", "label": "2023", "count": 2 }, { "value": "2024", "label": "2024", "count": 2 }, { "value": "2025", "label": "2025", "count": 2 }, { "value": "2026", "label": "2026", "count": 1 } ], "has_case": [ { "value": "0", "label": "without a court case", "count": 12 } ] }, "results": [ { "slug": "2026-russia-new-law-targets-exiled-journalists-assets", "title": "Russia: law on asset freezes and service denials for exiled \"foreign agents\", August 2026", "occurred_on": "2026-08-04", "occurred_on_precision": "day", "country": "RU", "country_name": "Russia", "continent": "europe", "jurisdiction": "RU", "level": "national", "tactic_primary": "disinformation_labeling", "tactics": [ "disinformation_labeling", "funding_and_ownership_pressure" ], "leader_slug": "vladimir-putin", "leader_name": "Vladimir Putin", "issue_of_the_day": null, "outcome": "sustained", "outcome_on": "2026-08-04", "outcome_note": "Signed and in force on 2026-08-04, according to RSF (s062).", "stage": "pressure", "ladder_note": null, "rsf": { "index": "RSF World Press Freedom Index", "year": 2026, "rank": 172, "of": 180, "label": "RSF 2026 rank: 172nd of 180", "source_url": "https://rsf.org/en/index" }, "era": "2020s", "granularity": "granular", "status": "in_effect", "case_count": 0, "summary": "On August 4, 2026, the president of Russia, Vladimir Putin, signed a law, adopted unanimously by the Russian parliament on July 24, 2026, that allows the authorities to freeze bank accounts, block property and vehicle sales and deny consular services such as passport renewal to Russians in exile who have been designated \"foreign agents\" or who cooperate with organizations Russia has labelled \"undesirable.\" A \"foreign agent\" is a Russian legal designation that places a person or organization on a government register and subjects them to added restrictions. Of those designated, \"the vast majority are journalists,\" according to Reporters Without Borders (RSF). The law entered into force the same day.", "url": "https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2026-russia-new-law-targets-exiled-journalists-assets" }, { "slug": "2025-pakistan-amends-peca-cybercrime-law", "title": "Pakistan amends cybercrime law to create new agency policing 'fake' online content", "occurred_on": "2025-01-29", "occurred_on_precision": "day", "country": "PK", "country_name": "Pakistan", "continent": "asia", "jurisdiction": "PK", "level": "national", "tactic_primary": "disinformation_labeling", "tactics": [ "disinformation_labeling", "outlet_licensing" ], "leader_slug": "shehbaz-sharif", "leader_name": "Shehbaz Sharif", "issue_of_the_day": "The government said the amendment was needed to curb online disinformation, but journalists said the new offense's vague wording, covering content merely believed likely to cause \"fear, panic, disorder or unrest,\" gave authorities broad discretion over ordinary reporting.", "outcome": "sustained", "outcome_on": null, "outcome_note": "The amendment remained law despite nationwide journalist protests and a Human Rights Watch call for its repeal.", "stage": "punish", "ladder_note": null, "rsf": { "index": "RSF World Press Freedom Index", "year": 2026, "rank": 153, "of": 180, "label": "RSF 2026 rank: 153rd of 180", "source_url": "https://rsf.org/en/index" }, "era": "2020s", "granularity": "granular", "status": "in_effect", "case_count": 0, "summary": "Pakistan's parliament amended the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act to create a new Social Media Protection and Regulatory Authority with power to block online content and a Social Media Protection Tribunal, and made spreading information deemed 'fake or false' punishable by up to three years in prison, prompting nationwide journalist protests.", "url": "https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2025-pakistan-amends-peca-cybercrime-law" }, { "slug": "2025-fcc-carr-news-distortion-complaints-nbc-cbs", "title": "FCC chair reopens 'news distortion' complaints against CBS and NBC", "occurred_on": "2025-01-22", "occurred_on_precision": "day", "country": "US", "country_name": "United States", "continent": "north-america", "jurisdiction": "US", "level": "national", "tactic_primary": "funding_and_ownership_pressure", "tactics": [ "disinformation_labeling", "funding_and_ownership_pressure" ], "leader_slug": "donald-trump", "leader_name": "Donald Trump", "issue_of_the_day": "The CBS complaint concerned 60 Minutes' October 2024 interview with then-Vice President Kamala Harris; the NBC complaint, filed in April 2025, concerned coverage of the wrongful deportation of Kilmar Abrego Garcia.", "outcome": "ongoing", "outcome_on": null, "outcome_note": "The complaints against CBS and NBC remained open, with no formal licensing action announced in the source reviewed.", "stage": "pressure", "ladder_note": null, "rsf": { "index": "RSF World Press Freedom Index", "year": 2026, "rank": 64, "of": 180, "label": "RSF 2026 rank: 64th of 180", "source_url": "https://rsf.org/en/index" }, "era": "2020s", "granularity": "granular", "status": "in_effect", "case_count": 0, "summary": "Federal Communications Commission Chair Brendan Carr reopened complaints alleging CBS and NBC distorted the news, demanding CBS turn over the full tape and transcript of a 60 Minutes interview and later accusing NBC's parent Comcast of misleading coverage of an immigration case.", "url": "https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2025-fcc-carr-news-distortion-complaints-nbc-cbs" }, { "slug": "2024-georgia-foreign-influence-law", "title": "Georgia enacts 'foreign influence' law requiring media to register as foreign-backed", "occurred_on": "2024-05-28", "occurred_on_precision": "day", "country": "GE", "country_name": "Georgia", "continent": "asia", "jurisdiction": "GE", "level": "national", "tactic_primary": "disinformation_labeling", "tactics": [ "disinformation_labeling", "funding_and_ownership_pressure" ], "leader_slug": "irakli-kobakhidze", "leader_name": "Irakli Kobakhidze", "issue_of_the_day": "The governing Georgian Dream party framed the law as protecting Georgian sovereignty against foreign-funded groups it accused of trying to organize unrest, at a time when the party also faced growing opposition ahead of Georgia's 2024 parliamentary election.", "outcome": "sustained", "outcome_on": null, "outcome_note": "The law took effect despite mass protests and international criticism; the governing party did not withdraw it.", "stage": "pressure", "ladder_note": null, "rsf": { "index": "RSF World Press Freedom Index", "year": 2026, "rank": 135, "of": 180, "label": "RSF 2026 rank: 135th of 180", "source_url": "https://rsf.org/en/index" }, "era": "2020s", "granularity": "granular", "status": "in_effect", "case_count": 0, "summary": "Georgia's parliament passed a law requiring media and civil-society groups that receive 20 percent or more of their funding from abroad to register as organizations \"serving the interests of a foreign power,\" over mass street protests and international criticism that the label would be used to marginalize independent outlets.", "url": "https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2024-georgia-foreign-influence-law" }, { "slug": "2024-india-court-strikes-down-fact-check-unit", "title": "Bombay High Court strikes down India's government 'fact check unit' rule", "occurred_on": "2024-03-01", "occurred_on_precision": "month", "country": "IN", "country_name": "India", "continent": "asia", "jurisdiction": "IN", "level": "national", "tactic_primary": "disinformation_labeling", "tactics": [ "disinformation_labeling", "prior_restraint" ], "leader_slug": "narendra-modi", "leader_name": "Narendra Modi", "issue_of_the_day": "The government said the Fact Check Unit was needed to combat misinformation about its own policies and announcements online, at a time when it separately faced criticism over content restrictions ahead of India's 2024 general election.", "outcome": "reversed", "outcome_on": "2024-09-20", "outcome_note": "The Bombay High Court struck down the rule, finding its key terms 'vague and overbroad,' after the Supreme Court had already stayed its operation.", "stage": "pressure", "ladder_note": null, "rsf": { "index": "RSF World Press Freedom Index", "year": 2026, "rank": 157, "of": 180, "label": "RSF 2026 rank: 157th of 180", "source_url": "https://rsf.org/en/index" }, "era": "2020s", "granularity": "granular", "status": "reversed", "case_count": 0, "summary": "India's 2023 amendment to its Information Technology Rules empowered a government-run Fact Check Unit to label online content about the central government 'fake' or 'false' and require its removal; comedian Kunal Kamra and media groups challenged it, and the Bombay High Court struck the rule down as unconstitutionally vague.", "url": "https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2024-india-court-strikes-down-fact-check-unit" }, { "slug": "2023-hungary-sovereignty-protection-act", "title": "Hungary: National Sovereignty Protection Act and Sovereignty Protection Office, December 2023", "occurred_on": "2023-12-20", "occurred_on_precision": "day", "country": "HU", "country_name": "Hungary", "continent": "europe", "jurisdiction": "HU", "level": "national", "tactic_primary": "disinformation_labeling", "tactics": [ "disinformation_labeling", "funding_and_ownership_pressure" ], "leader_slug": "viktor-orban", "leader_name": "Viktor Orban", "issue_of_the_day": null, "outcome": "reversed", "outcome_on": "2026-06-30", "outcome_note": "The National Assembly abolished the Sovereignty Protection Office on 2026-06-30, according to CPJ (s055).", "stage": "pressure", "ladder_note": null, "rsf": { "index": "RSF World Press Freedom Index", "year": 2026, "rank": 74, "of": 180, "label": "RSF 2026 rank: 74th of 180", "source_url": "https://rsf.org/en/index" }, "era": "2020s", "granularity": "granular", "status": "in_effect", "case_count": 0, "summary": "On December 20, 2023, the president of Hungary, Katalin Novák, promulgated the National Sovereignty Protection Act, passed by the National Assembly, Hungary's parliament, during the government of the prime minister, Viktor Orbán. The law created a Sovereignty Protection Office empowered to investigate organizations, including news outlets, that it determined might be influenced by foreign actors or threaten national sovereignty. A week earlier, ten Hungarian media outlets had said the law \"is capable of severely restricting the freedom of the press.\" After a change of government in 2026, the National Assembly abolished the office on June 30, 2026.", "url": "https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2023-hungary-sovereignty-protection-act" }, { "slug": "2023-nicaragua-strips-journalists-citizenship", "title": "Nicaragua strips 94 political opponents, including journalists, of citizenship", "occurred_on": "2023-02-15", "occurred_on_precision": "day", "country": "NI", "country_name": "Nicaragua", "continent": "north-america", "jurisdiction": "NI", "level": "national", "tactic_primary": "expulsion_and_visa_denial", "tactics": [ "disinformation_labeling", "expulsion_and_visa_denial" ], "leader_slug": "daniel-ortega", "leader_name": "Daniel Ortega", "issue_of_the_day": "The rulings followed years of pressure on Nicaragua's independent press, including the earlier forced closure of the country's oldest newspaper, La Prensa, and came days after Ortega's government released 222 jailed dissidents to the United States and stripped their citizenship as well.", "outcome": "sustained", "outcome_on": null, "outcome_note": "Citizenship was not restored to those named; Ortega's government continued comparable actions against critics afterward.", "stage": "eliminate", "ladder_note": null, "rsf": { "index": "RSF World Press Freedom Index", "year": 2026, "rank": 168, "of": 180, "label": "RSF 2026 rank: 168th of 180", "source_url": "https://rsf.org/en/index" }, "era": "2020s", "granularity": "granular", "status": "in_effect", "case_count": 0, "summary": "A Nicaraguan appeals court stripped 94 government opponents, including exiled journalists Carlos Fernando Chamorro and Alvaro Navarro, of their citizenship, days after President Daniel Ortega released 222 political prisoners to the United States and immediately declared them stateless too.", "url": "https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2023-nicaragua-strips-journalists-citizenship" }, { "slug": "2022-belarus-labels-dw-extremist", "title": "Belarus: Deutsche Welle and other outlets labeled 'extremist'", "occurred_on": "2022-03-09", "occurred_on_precision": "day", "country": "BY", "country_name": "Belarus", "continent": "europe", "jurisdiction": "BY", "level": "national", "tactic_primary": "disinformation_labeling", "tactics": [ "disinformation_labeling" ], "leader_slug": "alexander-lukashenko", "leader_name": "Alexander Lukashenko", "issue_of_the_day": "Not stated in the sources reviewed.", "outcome": "sustained", "outcome_on": "2022-03-09", "outcome_note": "The designation brought the total number of outlets labeled extremist in Belarus to 20 and was not reported as reversed.", "stage": "pressure", "ladder_note": "Belarus banned a foreign broadcaster's entire output as extremist material, making it a crime to read or share it, and jailed a former correspondent the same week; no United States \"fake news\" label makes sharing an outlet's work a crime.", "rsf": { "index": "RSF World Press Freedom Index", "year": 2026, "rank": 165, "of": 180, "label": "RSF 2026 rank: 165th of 180", "source_url": "https://rsf.org/en/index" }, "era": "2020s", "granularity": "granular", "status": "in_effect", "case_count": 0, "summary": "A Minsk court declared all output from German broadcaster Deutsche Welle \"extremist,\" alongside a local newspaper and a Russian blogger's videos, making it a crime to produce, store or share the labeled material, as a former correspondent was jailed the same week.", "url": "https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2022-belarus-labels-dw-extremist" }, { "slug": "2021-russia-designates-meduza-foreign-agent", "title": "Russia: independent outlet Meduza designated a 'foreign agent'", "occurred_on": "2021-04-23", "occurred_on_precision": "day", "country": "RU", "country_name": "Russia", "continent": "europe", "jurisdiction": "RU", "level": "national", "tactic_primary": "disinformation_labeling", "tactics": [ "disinformation_labeling" ], "leader_slug": "vladimir-putin", "leader_name": "Vladimir Putin", "issue_of_the_day": "Not stated in the sources reviewed.", "outcome": "sustained", "outcome_on": "2021-04-23", "outcome_note": "The designation was not reversed; Russia later declared Meduza an 'undesirable organization' and outlawed it entirely.", "stage": "pressure", "ladder_note": "Russia's foreign agent label forced an outlet to mark every article, file quarterly reports and risk two years in prison for lapses, by its own editor's account destroying its advertising business; no United States \"fake news\" designation carries a legal reporting duty or prison exposure.", "rsf": { "index": "RSF World Press Freedom Index", "year": 2026, "rank": 172, "of": 180, "label": "RSF 2026 rank: 172nd of 180", "source_url": "https://rsf.org/en/index" }, "era": "2020s", "granularity": "granular", "status": "in_effect", "case_count": 0, "summary": "Russia's Justice Ministry labeled the independent news site Meduza and outlet PASMI \"foreign agents,\" a status requiring constant public disclosure, quarterly reports and audits, and carrying up to two years in prison for noncompliance, which Meduza said would destroy its advertising business.", "url": "https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2021-russia-designates-meduza-foreign-agent" }, { "slug": "2019-egypt-media-law-blocks-al-mashhad", "title": "Egypt: media law used to fine and block news site al-Mashhad", "occurred_on": "2019-03-22", "occurred_on_precision": "day", "country": "EG", "country_name": "Egypt", "continent": "africa", "jurisdiction": "EG", "level": "national", "tactic_primary": "disinformation_labeling", "tactics": [ "disinformation_labeling" ], "leader_slug": "abdel-fattah-el-sisi", "leader_name": "Abdel Fattah el-Sisi", "issue_of_the_day": "Not stated in the sources reviewed.", "outcome": "unknown", "outcome_on": "2019-05-07", "outcome_note": "Al-Mashhad's website was still inaccessible in Egypt as of May 7, 2019, the last date given in the source reviewed.", "stage": "pressure", "ladder_note": "Egyptian law classifies any social media account over five thousand followers as a media outlet subject to state fines and blocking, and Egypt used it to fine and block a news site for weeks; no United States \"fake news\" designation can fine or block an outlet.", "rsf": { "index": "RSF World Press Freedom Index", "year": 2026, "rank": 169, "of": 180, "label": "RSF 2026 rank: 169th of 180", "source_url": "https://rsf.org/en/index" }, "era": "2010s", "granularity": "granular", "status": "in_effect", "case_count": 0, "summary": "Under a 2018 law that treats any social media account with more than 5,000 followers as a media outlet, Egypt's media regulator fined news site al-Mashhad and ordered internet providers to block it for spreading what it called false news.", "url": "https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2019-egypt-media-law-blocks-al-mashhad" }, { "slug": "2019-russia-fake-news-disrespect-law", "title": "Russia: new laws penalize online \"fake news\" and \"disrespecting authorities\"", "occurred_on": "2019-03-07", "occurred_on_precision": "day", "country": "RU", "country_name": "Russia", "continent": "europe", "jurisdiction": "RU", "level": "national", "tactic_primary": "disinformation_labeling", "tactics": [ "disinformation_labeling" ], "leader_slug": "vladimir-putin", "leader_name": "Vladimir Putin", "issue_of_the_day": "Not stated in the sources reviewed.", "outcome": "sustained", "outcome_on": "2019-03-07", "outcome_note": "The laws were enacted and were later expanded in March 2022 to include prison terms of up to 15 years for wartime 'fakes.'", "stage": "pressure", "ladder_note": "Russia's parliament created fines and jail terms for online posts that authorities alone judge false or disrespectful of officials; no enacted United States law imposes jail time for calling an official statement false.", "rsf": { "index": "RSF World Press Freedom Index", "year": 2026, "rank": 172, "of": 180, "label": "RSF 2026 rank: 172nd of 180", "source_url": "https://rsf.org/en/index" }, "era": "2010s", "granularity": "granular", "status": "historical", "case_count": 0, "summary": "Russia's parliament passed laws letting courts jail and fine people, including journalists, for posting information the government alone judges to be false, or for statements found to disrespect officials or state symbols online.", "url": "https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2019-russia-fake-news-disrespect-law" }, { "slug": "2013-vietnam-decree-72-restricts-blogs", "title": "Vietnam: Decree 72 restricts blogs to personal information", "occurred_on": "2013-09-01", "occurred_on_precision": "month", "country": "VN", "country_name": "Viet Nam", "continent": "asia", "jurisdiction": "VN", "level": "national", "tactic_primary": "disinformation_labeling", "tactics": [ "disinformation_labeling" ], "leader_slug": "nguyen-tan-dung", "leader_name": "Nguyen Tan Dung", "issue_of_the_day": "Not stated in the sources reviewed.", "outcome": "sustained", "outcome_on": "2013-09-01", "outcome_note": "The decree remained in force and was not reported as reversed in the source reviewed.", "stage": "pressure", "ladder_note": "Vietnam's decree barred bloggers from sharing news articles at all, restricting them to personal content on pain of prosecution; no United States rule confines an outlet or blogger to personal content.", "rsf": null, "era": "2010s", "granularity": "granular", "status": "historical", "case_count": 0, "summary": "Vietnam's Decree 72 took effect in September 2013, barring bloggers and social media users from linking to or reposting news from press organizations or foreign government websites, restricting them to sharing personal information only.", "url": "https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2013-vietnam-decree-72-restricts-blogs" } ], "other_results": [], "downloads": { "csv": "https://thewaronnews.com/search?tactic=disinformation_labeling&level=national&view=cards&format=csv", "json": "https://thewaronnews.com/search.json?tactic=disinformation_labeling&level=national&view=cards", "md": "https://thewaronnews.com/search.md?tactic=disinformation_labeling&level=national&view=cards" }, "license": { "name": "CC BY 4.0", "url": "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/" } }