FOTP 2013 Full Report

More than 200 radio and television stations operate in the country, and there are at leastfive national dailies. Government-owned media demonstrate a progovernment bias, but theopposition has significant access to state-run media such as the official daily, Sidwaya. Althoughthe private print media are growing, including through newsmagazines, ownership still lackstransparency. The print sector’s struggles with interrupted production, low literacy rates, andpoor economic conditions make the broadcast media the preferred choice for news andentertainment. Radiodiffusion Télévision du Burkina (RTB) was established as the nationalbroadcaster in 1963 and remained the only television channel for many years. A handful ofprivate television stations now compete with RTB. Radio is still the country’s most popularmedium and source of information. Community radio stations are prevalent throughout thecountry and play a significant role in local development and community building. Foreign radiostations are able to broadcast freely. While the CSC has approved a growing number of privateradio stations, newspapers, and television channels, as well as requests for radio frequencyspectrum, critics argue that it should focus additional efforts on addressing the economicsustainability of media outlets. Low levels of training and expertise, as well as low salaries,affect the integrity of journalism as a profession. Infrastructural deficiencies and poverty limitedinternet penetration to 3.7 percent of the population in 2012.Burma (Myanmar)Status: Not FreeLegal Environment: 23Political Environment: 24Economic Environment: 25Total Score: 72Survey Edition 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012Total Score, Status 97,NF 96,NF 95,NF 94,NF 85,NFSignificant changes in Burma’s media landscape in 2012 were driven in part by continuedopenings in the general political environment, most notably increased space for political partiesto operate and parliamentary by-elections in April that led to the opposition National League forDemocracy (NLD) rejoining the political process and winning 43 of the 44 seats it competed for.Positive developments for press freedom during the year included the release of a number ofimprisoned bloggers and journalists, an end to official prepublication censorship, the lifting ofbans on coverage of certain topics, the establishment of several independent journalists’ andpublishers’ associations, fewer reports of harassment and attacks against journalists, the removalof several foreign journalists from the government’s blacklist, and despite a rocky start, progresstoward a new media law. In addition, exile media groups continued to return to the country, withseveral opening offices and a few obtaining publishing licenses. But even after these rapidchanges, Burma remained one of the more repressive countries in Asia, featuring significant statecontrol over the domestic media sector, low penetration rates for electronic media, and a numberof restrictive laws still on the books.104