Iceland has least free press in the Nordics

Iceland now ranks 19^th in the world in the 2016 Reporters without Borders Press Freedom Index – some way below the other Nordic countries.

Finland tops the 2016 list, while Norway comes in third. Denmark is in fourth place, and Sweden in eighth. Iceland brings up the rear for the Nordic countries down in 19^th place.

According to the accompanying report, “[i]n June 2010, Iceland’s parliament unanimously adopted the Icelandic Modern Media Initiative (IMMI), an unprecedented initiative aimed at turning Iceland into a judicial haven for investigative journalism and sensitive online media. It also aims to defend whistle-blowers and provide protection against ‘libel tourism’.

It goes on say, however, that “although the constitution guarantees ‘absolute’ freedom of expression, the situation of journalists has deteriorated since 2012 because of worsening relations between politicians and the media.”