Global journalist imprisonments remain near historic highs in 2025, CPJ warns |
Journalists around the world continue to face unprecedented levels of repression, with global imprisonments remaining near record highs in 2025, according to a new report released by the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ). The findings underscore a deepening crisis for press freedom, driven primarily by political repression, the expansion of authoritarian governance, and the normalization of punitive measures against independent reporting.
CPJ documented at least 330 journalists imprisoned worldwide in 2025, a slight decline from the all-time high of 385 recorded in 2024. Despite the marginal decrease, the organization cautioned against interpreting the figures as meaningful progress. Instead, CPJ emphasized that the data reflects a persistent and entrenched pattern of state-led intimidation, with many cases remaining undocumented due to secrecy, fear of retaliation, and restricted access to information.
“Persecuting journalists is a means of silencing them,” said CPJ Chief Executive Officer Jodie Ginsberg. “When journalists are criminalized for doing their jobs, corruption thrives, abuses of power go unchecked, and societies lose a critical safeguard. The consequences extend far beyond individual reporters.”
According to the report, the primary forces behind journalist imprisonments in 2025 were political authoritarianism and armed conflict. Governments increasingly equated independent reporting-particularly coverage of political opposition, protests, or state misconduct-with subversion or espionage. As a result, journalists were frequently detained under broad and loosely defined charges such as terrorism,........