Freedom on the Net |
On April 18, 2011, Freedom House released its latest Freedom on the Net report assessing the degree of internet freedom around the world. The new edition includes detailed country reports and a first-of-its-kind numerical index covering 37 countries in six geographical regions. In addition, an analytical overview essay and accompanying graphics will highlight key findings and emerging threats to global digital media freedom. To view the full report, click here.
Over the past decade, the influence of the internet as a means to spread information and challenge existing media controls has rapidly expanded. As events in the Middle East in winter of 2011 have demonstrated, the internet has also emerged as a crucial medium through which citizens can mobilize and advocate for political, social, and economic reform. Fearing the power of the new technologies, authoritarian states have devised subtle and not-so-subtle ways to filter, monitor, and otherwise obstruct or manipulate the openness of the internet. Even a number of democratic states have considered or implemented various restrictions in response to the potential legal, economic, and security challenges raised by new media.
In order to illuminate these emerging threats and identify areas of opportunity for internet freedom, Freedom House has developed the first comprehensive, comparative, and numerically based set of indicators for monitoring and analyzing internet freedom. In consultation with leading experts, Freedom House has devised a unique, systematic, and innovative way of assessing internet freedom across the full spectrum of country types. This methodology was first tested on 15 countries in Freedom House’s pilot edition of Freedom on the Net, published in 2009.
An expanded edition, covering 37 countries in six geographical regions, is being released in April 2011. Each country assessment includes a detailed narrative report and numerical score, based on Freedom House’s first-of-its-kind methodology.
This methodology applies a three-pillared approach to capture the level of internet and ICT freedom:
1) Obstacles to Access—including infrastructural and economic barriers to access, legal and ownership control over internet service providers (ISPs), and independence of regulatory bodies;
2) Limits on Content—including legal regulations on content, technical filtering and blocking of websites, self-censorship, the vibrancy/diversity of online news media, and the use of ICTs for civic mobilization;
3) Violations of User Rights—including surveillance, privacy, and repercussions for online activity, such as imprisonment, extralegal harassment, or cyber attacks.
The 2009 Freedom on the Net pilot edition received widespread media coverage and attention in the policymaking community. This included coverage by Agence France-Presse and the Wall Street Journal, as well as local media in Thailand, South Africa, Australia, and elsewhere. The pilot study’s analysis was also taken up in a U.S. congressional resolution, the 2009 Annual Report of the Congressional-Executive Commission on China, and an online resource repository maintained by the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. In the process of producing these two publications on internet freedom, Freedom House has established an extensive network of researchers and partners who track developments in nearly 40 countries.
“The launch of Freedom House's first study of online freedom last week is welcome... As governments catch up with technology and introduce more sophisticated censorship programs, protecting online speech will only become more important. The Internet can be a powerful avenue for free speech—or for propaganda. The Freedom House study is a good first step in understanding what makes the difference.”
Wall Street Journal editorial, April 9, 2009