US Freedom of the Press Ranked 47th in the World - East Idaho News
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US Freedom of the Press Ranked 47th in the World

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Thinkstock P 032411 Constitution?  SQUARESPACE CACHEVERSION=1327575822036Jupiterimages/Thinkstock(PARIS) — “Crackdown” was the word of the year in 2011, according to Reporters Without Borders.

The organization made the designation in its annual World Press Freedom Index, which listed the U.S. 47th in its rankings.

The U.S. was already in 27th place in terms of freedom of the press when Reporters Without Borders dropped it 20 places because of the arrest of journalists last year during the Occupy Wall Street protest.  That means the U.S. is now behind countries such as Czech Republic, Niger, El Salvador, and South Africa.

Iran, Syria and North Korea were at the bottom of the list of the 179 ranked countries, while Egypt and Bahrain also fell because of government action taken against reformers.

Copyright 2012 ABC News Radio

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