More aggressive tactics by authoritarian regimes and an upsurge in terrorist attacks contributed to a disturbing decline in global freedom in 2014. 

Freedom in the World 2015 found that the main factors driving the decline were the passage and use of restrictive laws against the media and and limits on the ability of local and foreign journalists to report freely within a given country.

A new report argues that dropping human rights conditions will yield better security ties with Central Asian regimes. But those conditions are largely ignored already, and the results aren't pretty.