The War On News

How governments have limited journalists, 1900 to today.

Search, national level, outcome reversed

The number of entries reflects the depth of this record, not the severity of a country's conduct.

36 incidents match this view.

Country: Argentina, RSF 2026 rank: 98th of 180 Australia, RSF 2026 rank: 33rd of 180 Brazil, RSF 2026 rank: 52nd of 180 Czechia, RSF 2026 rank: 11th of 180 Ecuador, RSF 2026 rank: 125th of 180 Egypt, RSF 2026 rank: 169th of 180 Germany, RSF 2026 rank: 14th of 180 Haiti, RSF 2026 rank: 107th of 180 Hungary, RSF 2026 rank: 74th of 180 India, RSF 2026 rank: 157th of 180 Myanmar, RSF 2026 rank: 166th of 180 Nigeria, RSF 2026 rank: 112th of 180 Philippines, RSF 2026 rank: 114th of 180 Poland, RSF 2026 rank: 27th of 180 Portugal, RSF 2026 rank: 10th of 180 Serbia, RSF 2026 rank: 104th of 180 South Africa, RSF 2026 rank: 21st of 180 South Korea, RSF 2026 rank: 47th of 180 Spain, RSF 2026 rank: 29th of 180 United Kingdom, RSF 2026 rank: 18th of 180 United States, RSF 2026 rank: 64th of 180

Continent: Africa Asia Europe North America South America Oceania

Tactic: Prior restraint (12) Detention and violence (11) Secrets and espionage laws (8) Licensing and closure of outlets (7) Surveillance and subpoenas (6) Funding and ownership pressure (5) Access bans (5) Shutdowns and blocking (5) Credential control (4) Insult and defamation laws (3) Official labels (2) Expulsion and visa denial (1)

Stage: Restrict (3) Pressure (5) Punish (10) Silence (14) Eliminate (4)

Outcome: Reversed (36)

Level: National (36)

Head of government: Adly Mansour Adolf Hitler Alexander Dubček António de Oliveira Salazar Aung San Suu Kyi Barack Obama Chun Doo-hwan Daniel François Malan Donald Trump Ferdinand Marcos Francisco Franco Getúlio Vargas Indira Gandhi Jean-Claude Duvalier Joe Biden John Curtin Jorge Rafael Videla Margaret Thatcher Narendra Modi P. W. Botha Rafael Correa Richard Nixon Ronald Reagan Sani Abacha Scott Morrison Slobodan Milosevic Viktor Orban Wojciech Jaruzelski

DateIncidentCountryTacticHead of governmentOutcome
July 10, 2026Customs officers seize Grayzone editor's phones at Virginia airport over Iran reportingUnited States (RSF 2026 rank: 64th of 180)Surveillance and subpoenasDonald TrumpReversed (July 17, 2026)
September 17, 2025United States: Federal Communications Commission chairman's remarks and the suspension of Jimmy Kimmel Live!, September 2025United States (RSF 2026 rank: 64th of 180)Funding and ownership pressureDonald TrumpReversed (September 23, 2025)
March 2024Bombay High Court strikes down India's government 'fact check unit' ruleIndia (RSF 2026 rank: 157th of 180)Official labelsNarendra ModiReversed (September 20, 2024)
December 20, 2023Hungary: National Sovereignty Protection Act and Sovereignty Protection Office, December 2023Hungary (RSF 2026 rank: 74th of 180)Official labelsViktor OrbanReversed (June 30, 2026)
July 19, 2021Justice Department bars seizing reporters' phone and email recordsUnited States (RSF 2026 rank: 64th of 180)Surveillance and subpoenasJoe BidenReversed (April 25, 2025)
July 23, 2020Federal officers restrict press access to Portland protests; judge orders them to stopUnited States (RSF 2026 rank: 64th of 180)Access bansDonald TrumpReversed (July 23, 2020)
April 15, 2020Australia's High Court invalidates warrant for raid on journalist Annika SmethurstAustralia (RSF 2026 rank: 33rd of 180)Surveillance and subpoenasScott MorrisonReversed (May 27, 2020)
June 5, 2019Australian Federal Police raid the national broadcaster over reporting on alleged war crimes in AfghanistanAustralia (RSF 2026 rank: 33rd of 180)Surveillance and subpoenasScott MorrisonReversed (October 15, 2020)
May 23, 2019United States indicts WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange under the Espionage ActUnited States (RSF 2026 rank: 64th of 180)Secrets and espionage lawsDonald TrumpReversed (June 25, 2024)
November 7, 2018White House revokes CNN correspondent Jim Acosta's press credential after a news conference exchange with President TrumpUnited States (RSF 2026 rank: 64th of 180)Credential controlDonald TrumpReversed (November 19, 2018)
November 7, 2018United States: White House suspension of CNN correspondent Jim Acosta's hard pass, November 2018United States (RSF 2026 rank: 64th of 180)Credential controlDonald TrumpReversed (November 19, 2018)
September 3, 2018Myanmar sentences two Reuters journalists to seven years under the Official Secrets Act for reporting on a massacreMyanmar (RSF 2026 rank: 166th of 180)Secrets and espionage lawsAung San Suu KyiReversed (May 7, 2019)
October 17, 2014United States pursues New York Times reporter James Risen's testimony for years before dropping its demand for his sourceUnited States (RSF 2026 rank: 64th of 180)Surveillance and subpoenasBarack ObamaReversed (October 17, 2014)
December 29, 2013Egypt arrests and later convicts three Al Jazeera journalists on terrorism-related chargesEgypt (RSF 2026 rank: 169th of 180)Detention and violenceAdly MansourReversed (September 23, 2015)
June 25, 2013Ecuador's Organic Communication Law creates a regulator that issues hundreds of sanctions against journalists and outletsEcuador (RSF 2026 rank: 125th of 180)Funding and ownership pressureRafael CorreaReversed (February 20, 2019)
July 5, 2010United States charges Army analyst Chelsea Manning under the Espionage Act for leaking to WikiLeaksUnited States (RSF 2026 rank: 64th of 180)Secrets and espionage lawsBarack ObamaReversed (January 17, 2017)
October 20, 1998Serbia's Public Information Act lets courts fine independent newspapers into financial dangerSerbia (RSF 2026 rank: 104th of 180)Insult and defamation lawsSlobodan MilosevicReversed (January 1, 2001)
July 1995Nigeria's military government convicts journalists by special tribunal over coup-plot reportingNigeria (RSF 2026 rank: 112th of 180)Detention and violenceSani AbachaReversed (June 15, 1998)
October 1988United Kingdom bars broadcasters from airing Sinn Féin members' own voicesUnited Kingdom (RSF 2026 rank: 18th of 180)Licensing and closure of outletsMargaret ThatcherReversed (September 16, 1994)
November 2, 1985South Africa bans television and photographic coverage of unrest under a state of emergencySouth Africa (RSF 2026 rank: 21st of 180)Shutdowns and blockingP. W. BothaReversed (June 1, 1990)
October 25, 1983United States military bars journalists from the invasion of GrenadaUnited States (RSF 2026 rank: 64th of 180)Access bansRonald ReaganReversed (April 1, 1985)
December 13, 1981Poland's martial law government shuts nearly all newspapers and interns journalists overnightPoland (RSF 2026 rank: 27th of 180)Shutdowns and blockingWojciech JaruzelskiReversed (July 22, 1983)
1981Haiti's Duvalier government arrests and deports Radio Haiti-Inter staff, driving its director into exileHaiti (RSF 2026 rank: 107th of 180)Expulsion and visa denialJean-Claude DuvalierReversed (February 1, 1986)
July 31, 1980South Korea's martial-law government purges journalists who resisted press controlsSouth Korea (RSF 2026 rank: 47th of 180)Licensing and closure of outletsChun Doo-hwanReversed (June 1, 1987)
March 24, 1976Argentina's military junta threatens journalists with prison for reporting on its opponentsArgentina (RSF 2026 rank: 98th of 180)Detention and violenceJorge Rafael VidelaReversed (December 10, 1983)
June 26, 1975India imposes pre-press controls on every newspaper during the 1975 EmergencyIndia (RSF 2026 rank: 157th of 180)Prior restraintIndira GandhiReversed (March 21, 1977)
September 21, 1972Philippines President Marcos closes every major news outlet under martial lawPhilippines (RSF 2026 rank: 114th of 180)Shutdowns and blockingFerdinand MarcosReversed (February 25, 1986)
August 16, 1971Nixon White House compiles an enemies list naming journalists for official pressureUnited States (RSF 2026 rank: 64th of 180)Surveillance and subpoenasRichard NixonReversed (June 27, 1973)
June 15, 1971United States government seeks an injunction to stop The New York Times publishing the Pentagon PapersUnited States (RSF 2026 rank: 64th of 180)Prior restraintRichard NixonReversed (June 30, 1971)
August 21, 1968Soviet-led invasion of Czechoslovakia is followed by the return of government press press controlsCzechia (RSF 2026 rank: 11th of 180)Prior restraintAlexander DubčekReversed (November 1, 1989)
March 17, 1950South Africa's Suppression of Communism Act lets the government ban publications and restrict individualsSouth Africa (RSF 2026 rank: 21st of 180)Prior restraintDaniel François MalanReversed (February 2, 1990)
April 16, 1944Australia's wartime government seizes a Sydney newspaper edition under press controls rulesAustralia (RSF 2026 rank: 33rd of 180)Prior restraintJohn CurtinReversed (April 18, 1944)
1939Brazil's Vargas government creates a state messaging department with broad press powersBrazil (RSF 2026 rank: 52nd of 180)Licensing and closure of outletsGetúlio VargasReversed (January 1, 1945)
April 1938Franco's Spain requires state permission to be a journalist under a wartime Press LawSpain (RSF 2026 rank: 29th of 180)Credential controlFrancisco FrancoReversed (April 1, 1977)
October 4, 1933Nazi Germany's Editors Law bars Jewish journalists from the press and puts editors under state directionGermany (RSF 2026 rank: 14th of 180)Credential controlAdolf HitlerReversed (May 8, 1945)
1933Portugal's Salazar government formally establishes press press controls under a new constitutionPortugal (RSF 2026 rank: 10th of 180)Prior restraintAntónio de Oliveira SalazarReversed (April 25, 1974)
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