Focus Taiwan
Date: 04/21/2020
By: Elizabeth Hsu

Taipei, April 21 (CNA) Taiwan was ranked 43rd on the World Press Freedom Index compiled by Reporters Without Borders (RSF) for 2020, down one notch from the previous year.

Despite the regression, Taiwan is one of just four countries in the Asia-Pacific region that fall in the "good" and "fairly good" categories of the index, following New Zealand (ninth), Australia (26th) and South Korea (42nd), according to the 2020 index published Tuesday.

In its analysis on press freedom in Taiwan, the RSF said that political interference there "is rare and less tolerated, but Taiwan's journalists are suffering from a very polarized media environment dominated by sensationalism and the pursuit of profit."

"Although President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) has said she wants to continue developing press freedom in Taiwan, few concrete measures have been taken to improve journalistic editorial independence and encourage the media to raise the quality of public debate," the France-based international organization said.    [FULL  STORY]