World press freedom ranked

This is the first time press freedom has been ranked

The international journalism pressure group Reporters Without Borders has published a list judging 139 countries on their respect for press freedom.

At the top of the list are Finland, Iceland, Norway and the Netherlands. North Korea, China and Burma are at the other end of the scale.

Top 10

1 - Finland, Iceland, Norway, Netherlands
5 - Canada
6 - Ireland
7 - Germany, Portugal, Sweden
10 - Denmark

There are some surprises for Western governments - the United States ranks below Costa Rica and Italy scores lower than Benin.

The pressure group's list - the first of its kind - has been compiled according to levels of censorship, arrests and killings of journalists, state monopoly ownership and legal restrictions.

Asia ruled worst

Rich countries do not have a monopoly on press freedom, according to the report.

Costa Rica (ranked 15) and Benin (11) were identified as leaders among poorer nations.

Nor is a democratic government a guarantee of press freedom - democracies such as Colombia (114) and Bangladesh (118) are far down the list.

Italy's Prime Minister Berlusconi also owns a media empire

The report from the Paris-based organisation said the situation is particularly bad in Asia, home to the worst four offenders - North Korea, China, Burma and Turkmenistan.

Reporters Without Borders said in the worst countries "press freedom is a dead letter and independent newspapers do not exist".

The only media sources are tightly controlled or monitored by the government, and the few independent journalists left in these countries are constantly harassed, the report says.

In contrast, the top four countries are labelled as states which "scrupulously respect press freedom in their own countries, but also speak up for it elsewhere".

Israel scores badly

The US' 17th place was lowered because of the number of journalists arrested for refusing to reveal their sources, the report says.

EU member countries score well in the list - except for Italy, ranked 40th.

Bottom 10

139 - N Korea
138 - China
137 - Burma
136 - Turkmenistan
135 - Bhutan
134 - Cuba
133 - Laos
132 - Eritrea
131 - Vietnam
130 - Iraq

According to Reporters Without Borders, news diversity in Italy is under serious threat, as Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi continues to combine his job as head of government with being the boss of a privately owned media group.

Elsewhere, the organisation places the Palestinian Authority (82) higher than Israel (92) in terms of press freedom.

Israel's ranking was hurt by what the pressure group claims are "a large number of violations of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights" in the West Bank and Gaza.