Costa Rica leads press freedom

Costa Rica is first in Latin America and sixth globally in press freedom, according to the 2017 ranking of Reporters Without Borders.

Costa Rica, which has led Latin America two years in a row, climbed from 21st position in 2014.

El Salvador – second in the isthmus – fell four spots from last year’s ranking, to 62nd position globally, while Honduras in 140th place worldwide is last in Central America.

Norway displaced Finland as the world leader in press freedom among 180 countries, while North Korea is last.

Pluralism, security, consistent jurisprudence, and government transparency are some of the criteria used in the ranking (numbers in brackets indicate each country’s position in the global index).

1            Costa Rica (6)
2            El Salvador (62)
3            Nicaragua (92)
4            Panama (96)
5            Guatemala (118)
6            Honduras (140)