Freedom of the Press
Equatorial Guinea
2002 Scores
Press Status
Not Free
Press Freedom Score (0 = best, 100 = worst)
80
Legal Environment(0 = best, 30 = worst)
26
Political Environment(0 = best, 40 = worst)
29
Economic Environment(0 = best, 30 = worst)
25
The government restricts rights to press freedom that are guaranteed in the constitution. Nearly all print and broadcast media are state-run and tightly controlled. A few small independent newspapers publish occasionally but exercise self-censorship. All journalists must be registered, thereby applying indirect control over content. In February, the country's press association was shut down. Later, the president of the Equatorial Guinea Press Association was detained as he returned from an international conference on press freedom.