US Press Freedom Ranking Drops as Trump Cuts Media Funding, Watchdog Warns

The latest press freedom rankings are in, and the U.S. just took a tumble. Reporters Without Borders has dropped the U.S. to 57th place globally, putting it in the same neighborhood as Uruguay and Ghana—definitely not the company you'd expect for the self-proclaimed beacon of free speech.

The group's report points a finger directly at President Donald Trump, whose second term, they say, has been marked by a dramatic decline in press freedom. According to their assessment, Trump’s administration has "weaponized institutions, cut support for independent media, and sidelined reporters." If there were an Olympic event for media hostility, it seems the U.S. would be going for gold.

Trump’s strategy of battling mainstream media has been a defining feature of his presidency, with outlets like ABC, CBS, and NBC delivering a whopping 92% negative coverage, according to a right-leaning media watchdog. Looks like there's no love lost between the press and the president.

One of the most headline-grabbing moves was Trump’s executive order slashing taxpayer funding for PBS and NPR, which he labeled as "radical, woke propaganda." With that, federal support for independent public media took a direct hit, and the U.S. Agency for Global Media saw its funding axed as well. That agency isn’t just a domestic player—it supports international outlets, so the ripple effects are global.

Reporters Without Borders notes that trust in the media is falling like a stone, and local newsrooms are vanishing, creating what they call "news deserts" across the country. As if the landscape wasn’t dry enough, journalists are now facing more risks—including harassment, intimidation, and even assault—while just trying to do their jobs.

The numbers speak for themselves: 49 journalists were arrested in 2024, compared to just 15 the previous year, according to the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker. It's not exactly the kind of trend you want to see in a democracy.

The White House, for its part, hasn’t offered up any comments on the ranking. Given the way things are going, I guess the silent treatment is the new press strategy.