Key media freedoms in Malaysia
Malaysia: Key media freedoms was -0.017 in 2025. ▲ Rising
Latest (2025)
-0.017
Change on year
up 89.8%
World rank
107th
of 175 countries
All-time high
1.01
in 2019
All-time low
-2.41
in 1900
Years of data
126
1900–2025
Key media freedoms in Malaysia, 1900–2025
Source: V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
Analysis
Malaysia recorded -0.017 for key media freedoms in 2025.
The figure is up 89.8% on the previous year and up 97.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, key media freedoms in Malaysia peaked at 1.01 in 2019 and was at its lowest, -2.41, in 1900.
That places Malaysia 107th out of 175 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 126 years of available data.
Key media freedoms in Malaysia, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1900 | -2.41 | — |
| 1901 | -2.41 | -0.0% |
| 1902 | -2.41 | -0.0% |
| 1903 | -2.41 | -0.0% |
| 1904 | -2.41 | -0.0% |
| 1905 | -2.41 | -0.0% |
| 1906 | -2.41 | -0.0% |
| 1907 | -2.41 | -0.0% |
| 1908 | -2.41 | -0.0% |
| 1909 | -2.41 | -0.0% |
| 1910 | -2.41 | -0.0% |
| 1911 | -2.41 | -0.0% |
| 1912 | -2.41 | -0.0% |
| 1913 | -2.41 | -0.0% |
| 1914 | -2.41 | -0.0% |
| 1915 | -2.41 | -0.0% |
| 1916 | -2.41 | -0.0% |
| 1917 | -2.41 | -0.0% |
| 1918 | -2.41 | -0.0% |
| 1919 | -2.41 | -0.0% |
| 1920 | -2.41 | -0.0% |
| 1921 | -2.41 | -0.0% |
| 1922 | -2.41 | -0.0% |
| 1923 | -2.41 | -0.0% |
| 1924 | -2.41 | -0.0% |
| 1925 | -2.41 | -0.0% |
| 1926 | -2.41 | -0.0% |
| 1927 | -2.41 | -0.0% |
| 1928 | -2.41 | -0.0% |
| 1929 | -2.41 | -0.0% |
| 1930 | -2.41 | -0.0% |
| 1931 | -2.41 | -0.0% |
| 1932 | -2.41 | -0.0% |
| 1933 | -2.41 | -0.0% |
| 1934 | -2.41 | -0.0% |
| 1935 | -2.41 | -0.0% |
| 1936 | -2.41 | -0.0% |
| 1937 | -2.41 | -0.0% |
| 1938 | -2.41 | -0.0% |
| 1939 | -2.41 | -0.0% |
| 1940 | -2.41 | -0.0% |
| 1941 | -2.41 | -0.0% |
| 1942 | -2.41 | -0.0% |
| 1943 | -2.41 | -0.0% |
| 1944 | -2.41 | -0.0% |
| 1945 | -2.41 | -0.0% |
| 1946 | -1.7 | -29.4% |
| 1947 | -1.7 | -0.0% |
| 1948 | -1.7 | -0.0% |
| 1949 | -1.7 | -0.0% |
| 1950 | -1.7 | -0.0% |
| 1951 | -1.7 | -0.0% |
| 1952 | -1.7 | -0.0% |
| 1953 | -1.7 | -0.0% |
| 1954 | -1.7 | -0.0% |
| 1955 | -1.7 | -0.0% |
| 1956 | -1.7 | -0.0% |
| 1957 | -1.7 | -0.0% |
| 1958 | -1.7 | -0.0% |
| 1959 | -1.7 | -0.0% |
| 1960 | -1.7 | -0.0% |
| 1961 | -1.7 | -0.0% |
| 1962 | -1.7 | -0.0% |
| 1963 | -1.7 | -0.0% |
| 1964 | -1.7 | -0.0% |
| 1965 | -1.7 | -0.0% |
| 1966 | -1.7 | -0.0% |
| 1967 | -1.7 | -0.0% |
| 1968 | -1.7 | -0.0% |
| 1969 | -1.7 | -0.0% |
| 1970 | -1.7 | -0.0% |
| 1971 | -1.7 | -0.0% |
| 1972 | -1.7 | -0.0% |
| 1973 | -1.7 | -0.0% |
| 1974 | -1.7 | -0.0% |
| 1975 | -1.7 | -0.0% |
| 1976 | -1.7 | -0.0% |
| 1977 | -1.7 | -0.0% |
| 1978 | -1.7 | -0.0% |
| 1979 | -1.7 | -0.0% |
| 1980 | -1.7 | -0.0% |
| 1981 | -1.7 | -0.0% |
| 1982 | -1.7 | -0.0% |
| 1983 | -1.7 | -0.0% |
| 1984 | -1.7 | -0.0% |
| 1985 | -1.7 | -0.0% |
| 1986 | -1.7 | -0.0% |
| 1987 | -1.7 | -0.0% |
| 1988 | -2 | +17.7% |
| 1989 | -2 | -0.0% |
| 1990 | -2 | -0.0% |
| 1991 | -2 | -0.0% |
| 1992 | -2 | -0.0% |
| 1993 | -2 | -0.0% |
| 1994 | -2 | -0.0% |
| 1995 | -2 | -0.0% |
| 1996 | -2 | -0.0% |
| 1997 | -2 | -0.0% |
| 1998 | -2 | -0.0% |
| 1999 | -2 | -0.0% |
| 2000 | -2 | -0.0% |
| 2001 | -1.29 | -35.6% |
| 2002 | -1.29 | -0.0% |
| 2003 | -1.29 | -0.0% |
| 2004 | -0.754 | -41.5% |
| 2005 | -0.754 | -0.0% |
| 2006 | -0.754 | -0.0% |
| 2007 | -0.754 | -0.0% |
| 2008 | -0.754 | -0.0% |
| 2009 | -0.754 | -0.0% |
| 2010 | -0.754 | -0.0% |
| 2011 | -0.754 | -0.0% |
| 2012 | -0.754 | -0.0% |
| 2013 | -0.754 | -0.0% |
| 2014 | -0.754 | -0.0% |
| 2015 | -0.754 | -0.0% |
| 2016 | -0.754 | -0.0% |
| 2017 | -0.822 | +9.0% |
| 2018 | 0.11 | -113.4% |
| 2019 | 1.01 | +820.9% |
| 2020 | 0.067 | -93.4% |
| 2021 | 0.067 | +0.0% |
| 2022 | 0.046 | -31.3% |
| 2023 | -0.166 | -460.9% |
| 2024 | -0.166 | -0.0% |
| 2025 | -0.017 | -89.8% |
Malaysia compared with similar countries
- Malaysia's -0.017 is below the median for upper middle income countries, which is 0.209. (48 countries reporting)
- Malaysia's -0.017 is below the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 0.3835. (22 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1900s | -2.41 | -2.41 | -2.41 | 10 |
| 1910s | -2.41 | -2.41 | -2.41 | 10 |
| 1920s | -2.41 | -2.41 | -2.41 | 10 |
| 1930s | -2.41 | -2.41 | -2.41 | 10 |
| 1940s | -2.13 | -2.41 | -1.7 | 10 |
| 1950s | -1.7 | -1.7 | -1.7 | 10 |
| 1960s | -1.7 | -1.7 | -1.7 | 10 |
| 1970s | -1.7 | -1.7 | -1.7 | 10 |
| 1980s | -1.76 | -2 | -1.7 | 10 |
| 1990s | -2 | -2 | -2 | 10 |
| 2000s | -1.04 | -2 | -0.754 | 10 |
| 2010s | -0.4977 | -0.822 | 1.01 | 10 |
| 2020s | -0.0282 | -0.166 | 0.067 | 6 |
Countries ranked near Malaysia
More social development data for Malaysia
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 150,164 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 2,477 (2025)
- Political Rights Rating 4 (2025)
- Electoral democracy 1 (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, gaps filled 4 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0.0001 units per person (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 2,477 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0.0042 units per person (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is key media freedoms in Malaysia?
- Key media freedoms in Malaysia was -0.017 in 2025, according to V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest key media freedoms recorded in Malaysia?
- The highest recorded value was 1.01 in 2019.
- What is the lowest key media freedoms recorded in Malaysia?
- The lowest recorded value was -2.41 in 1900.
- How does Malaysia rank for key media freedoms?
- Malaysia ranks 107th out of 175 countries with data for 2025.
- Is key media freedoms rising or falling in Malaysia?
- Over the last ten years it is up 97.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Malaysia data come from?
- The figures come from V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Key media freedoms. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 126 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Central estimate of the extent to which the government directly or indirectly attempts to censor political content in print and broadcast media, through formal restrictions or indirect pressures such as financial control, licensing, or access to distribution channels.