Global press freedom crackdown widened in 2019: IPI.

KARACHI -- Despite a notable drop in the number of killing of journalists, the global press freedom crisis deepened in 2019 as governments increasingly turned to legal harassment, smear campaigns and online attacks to pressure independent media and journalists into silence, said the International Press Institute (IPI).

The Vienna-based IPI's global coverage of media freedom this year showed a rise in the abuse of new and existing laws to threaten, harass and jail journalists, as well as the increasing use of populist rhetoric designed to undermine journalism and discredit independent journalists.

'2019 has seen a clear drop in the number of journalists killed to the lowest level in 20 years, even as impunity remains a major challenge,' IPI Executive Director Barbara Trionfi said.

'We certainly welcome this development. However, we fear it may be a direct consequence of increased authoritarian tendencies in many countries, where alternative means of silencing the press, such as twisting the law to harass and jail critical journalists while smearing independent media, have been adopted to shield political leaders from scrutiny and criticism.'

Police raids and arrests of journalists became rampant this year, the IPI said.

Across the globe, governments enacted new laws in the name of national security or curbing 'fake news' and hate speech, including legislation in Nigeria, Cambodia and Singapore. Others used existing legal instruments to harass media organisations and journalists.

According to the IPI...