In Europe, Freedom of the Press Is an Illusion

European regulators recently fined X €120 million for breaching the Digital Services Act. Elon Musk and Vice President JD Vance fired back, accusing the EU of becoming a speech-policing bureaucracy. Almost immediately, EU officials and cheerleaders rushed to post a graphic of the World Press Freedom Index (WPFI) as a rebuttal. The image shows that European countries top the rankings, while the United States is all the way down at 57th. Who are Americans to lecture anyone about free expression?

There’s just one problem. The ranking they’re waving around doesn’t measure what they think it does.

About the Author

Mark Grabowski

Mark Grabowski is a former Washington correspondent and lawyer who is chair of Adelphi University’s Communications Department. His latest book, Cyber Law and Ethics: Regulation of the Connected World, will be published in March.

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European regulators recently fined X €120 million for breaching the Digital Services Act. Elon Musk and Vice President JD Vance fired back, accusing the EU of becoming a speech-policing bureaucracy. Almost immediately, EU officials and cheerleaders rushed to post a graphic of the World Press Freedom Index (WPFI) as a rebuttal. The image shows that European countries top the rankings, while the United States is all the way down at 57th. Who are Americans to lecture anyone about free expression?

There’s just one problem. The ranking they’re waving around doesn’t measure what they think it does.

About the Author

Mark Grabowski

Mark Grabowski is a former Washington correspondent and lawyer who is chair of Adelphi University’s Communications Department. His latest book, Cyber Law and Ethics: Regulation of the Connected World, will be published in March.