WHILE more than half the countries in the Americas have seen their press freedom situation deteriorate in the past year, Jamaica has moved up eight places to be ranked 24th out of 180 countries in the 2024 Reporters Without Borders (RSF) World Press Freedom Index.

Despite a dip in the country’s overall score from 75.89, when it was ranked 32nd last year, to 77.3 this year, Jamaica was the top ranked country in the Caribbean.

According to RSF, “In the past two decades, freedom of the press as a whole, has continued to improve in Jamaica. However, there is a growing gulf of distrust between Government officials and the media that has contributed to a decline in institutional respect for press freedom.”

RSF added: “Physical attacks are rare, but they do happen. A gunman opened fire in the parking lot of Nationwide Radio’s Kingston offices in September 2023, fortunately hurting nobody. A videographer for Television Jamaica and a reporter for the Jamaica Gleaner were attacked in November 2022 while covering a teachers’ protest in St Catherine… Reporters must continue to measure the threat posed to them by the country’s high crime rate when they are investigating a sensitive subject.”

Last year, the Andrew Holness Administration found itself on the defensive after RSF reported that Jamaica had slipped by 20 places from 12th in 2022 to 32nd of the 180 countries ranked.

But with the advance this year Holness, in a media release, said the improvement in the ranking was a testament to the nation’s commitment to creating a safe and open environment for journalists.

“This remarkable improvement in our rankings not only underscores our unwavering commitment to media freedom but also reflects the successful implementation of our policies aimed at enhancing the flow of factual and timely information to our citizens,” said Holness in the release issued by the Office of the Prime Minister.

In the meantime, minister with responsibility for information Robert Morgan attributed the improved ranking to the Government’s proactive policies on information access and initiatives to enrich the information ecosystem for public benefit.

“This ranking reaffirms Jamaica’s dedication to improving conditions for journalistic work, ensuring the safety of media professionals, and fostering an atmosphere where press freedom is integral to our strong democracy and increased government transparency and accountability,” said Morgan.

“Jamaica remains committed to deepening our engagement with government bodies, media groups, and civil society to address new challenges and bolster the resilience of our press freedom landscape.

“Jamaica stands tall globally as one of the countries with the better press freedom rankings and the Government recognises the importance of encouraging press freedom as part of encouraging a strong democracy, improving transparency and accountability. We will continue to work hard to ensure that our rankings improve even further and we encourage our journalists…to continue doing their work,” added Morgan in a release from Guyana where he was a participant in the UNESCO World Press Freedom Day observances.

Morgan delivered the keynote address at an awards ceremony and media appreciation reception in Guyana and participated in a panel discussion themed ‘A Press for the Planet… Journalism in the Face of the Environmental Crisis,’ which emphasised the pivotal role of traditional media in informing the public about climate change impacts.

Meanwhile, in its 2014 report RSF said that a growing number of governments and political authorities around the world are not fulfilling their role as guarantors of the best possible environment for journalism and for the public’s right to reliable, independent, and diverse news and information.

According to RSF, it is seeing a worrying decline in support and respect for media autonomy and an increase in pressure from the State or other political actors.

The body noted that in the Americas, the inability of journalists to cover subjects related to organised crime, corruption or the environment for fear of reprisals poses a major problem.

“The percentage of countries whose situation is classified as ‘satisfactory’ (yellow) has drastically dropped from 36 per cent in 2023 to 21 per cent in 2024. One of the world’s biggest economic powers, the United States, has fallen 10 places.

“In almost all of the countries in South America, the press freedom situation is now ‘problematic’, a deterioration due in part to the election of press freedom predators… and governments’ inability to reduce violence against journalists. Mexico continues to be the most dangerous country for journalists[in the Americas], with 37 killed since 2019,” said RSF.

It pointed out that more than half the countries in the Americas have seen their situation deteriorate, particularly due to the fall in the political indicator.

“More and more politicians are stigmatizing journalists and the media in their speeches. On top of this, political actors employ disinformation campaigns, abusive prosecutions and state propaganda that openly foster distrust of the press and encourages polarization. This violence, combined with physical attacks on journalists with total impunity, is fuelling a climate of censorship in South and Central America,” said RSF.

The United States (55th) fell 10 places as it prepares for the 2024 elections amid growing distrust in the media, which is at least in part fuelled by open antagonism from political officials, including calls to jail journalists.