CoveragePost
May 10, 2026
COMMENTARY: By Kalafi Moala The importance of media freedom is recognised each year globally on May 3. This year the Pacific Island country of Tonga commemorated World Press Freedom Day just a week after one of the most frightening threats to that freedom which took place at a media outlet. A hooded man brandishing a ... <a title="Tongan armed threat against journalist troubles Pacific media freedom" class="read-more" href="https://eveningreport.nz/2026/05/10/tongan-armed-threat-against-journalist-troubles-pacific-media-freedom/" aria-label="Read more about Tongan armed threat against journalist troubles Pacific media freedom">Read more</a>
CoveragePost
May 5, 2026
By Khalia Strong of PMN News Fiji has shot up the world rankings for press freedom but the victory feels hollow as journalists across the Pacific face a wave of court battles, police raids, and vicious online abuse. The 2026 World Press Freedom Index, released last Thursday by Reporters Without Borders, shows Fiji climbing to ... <a title="Fiji’s media win in World Press Freedom Index overshadowed by threats and court summons" class="read-more" href="https://eveningreport.nz/2026/05/05/fijis-media-win-in-world-press-freedom-index-overshadowed-by-threats-and-court-summons/" aria-label="Read more about Fiji’s media win in World Press Freedom Index overshadowed by threats and court summons">Read more</a>
CoveragePost
May 4, 2026
By Stefan Armbruster of Pasifika TV Fiji has recorded a dramatic jump in its media freedom rating to be in the top 25 nations globally while Samoan government press restrictions have seen its rating plummet in the latest World Press Freedom Index. Advocacy group Reporters Sans Frontières (RSF) said globally it was the first time ... <a title="Fiji jumps, Samoa plunges in World Press Freedom Index" class="read-more" href="https://eveningreport.nz/2026/05/04/fiji-jumps-samoa-plunges-in-world-press-freedom-index/" aria-label="Read more about Fiji jumps, Samoa plunges in World Press Freedom Index">Read more</a>
CoveragePost
May 4, 2026
RNZ Pacific Fiji has recorded the biggest improvement in the Pacific in the 2026 World Press Freedom Index, rising to 24th out of 180 countries. The index has been compiled and published by global media watchdog Reporters Without Borders (RSF) since 2002. Papua New Guinea moved up slightly on the index to 73rd. But Samoa ... <a title="Fiji climbs to 24th in World Press Freedom Index, biggest gain in the Pacific" class="read-more" href="https://eveningreport.nz/2026/05/04/fiji-climbs-to-24th-in-world-press-freedom-index-biggest-gain-in-the-pacific/" aria-label="Read more about Fiji climbs to 24th in World Press Freedom Index, biggest gain in the Pacific">Read more</a>
CoveragePost
May 4, 2026
Fijian Media Association Three years after the lifting of draconian media laws under which Fiji’s media industry operated, and even with significant improvements in the country’s media freedom rankings, the gains from the return of media freedom remain tenuous. This World Press Freedom Day, the Fijian Media Association is heartened by the country’s remarkable progress ... <a title="FMA praises Fiji media workers for press freedom climb but warns it is ‘tenuous’" class="read-more" href="https://eveningreport.nz/2026/05/04/fma-praises-fiji-media-workers-for-press-freedom-climb-but-warns-it-is-tenuous/" aria-label="Read more about FMA praises Fiji media workers for press freedom climb but warns it is ‘tenuous’">Read more</a>
CoveragePost
May 4, 2026
By Anish Chand in Suva Fiji’s rise in the latest global press freedom rankings is being credited to improved media conditions following key political and legal reforms in recent years. Reporters Without Borders (RSF) says the country’s jump to 24th place in the 2026 World Press Freedom Index reflects a shift in the media environment ... <a title="Political reforms drive Fiji’s big press freedom gains, says RSF" class="read-more" href="https://eveningreport.nz/2026/05/04/political-reforms-drive-fijis-big-press-freedom-gains-says-rsf/" aria-label="Read more about Political reforms drive Fiji’s big press freedom gains, says RSF">Read more</a>