Media Corruption Score in Ghana
Ghana: Media Corruption Score was 1.39 in 2025. ▼ Falling
Latest (2025)
1.39
Change on year
up 18.3%
World rank
46th
of 175 countries
All-time high
1.62
in 1902
All-time low
0.493
in 1968
Years of data
124
1902–2025
Media Corruption Score in Ghana, 1902–2025
Source: V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
Analysis
In 2025, media corruption score in Ghana stood at 1.39.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 18.3% on the previous year and up 53.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, media corruption score in Ghana peaked at 1.62 in 1902 and was at its lowest, 0.493, in 1968.
That places Ghana 46th out of 175 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 124 years of available data.
Media Corruption Score in Ghana, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1902 | 1.62 | — |
| 1903 | 1.62 | +0.0% |
| 1904 | 1.62 | +0.0% |
| 1905 | 1.62 | +0.0% |
| 1906 | 1.62 | +0.0% |
| 1907 | 1.62 | +0.0% |
| 1908 | 1.62 | +0.0% |
| 1909 | 1.62 | +0.0% |
| 1910 | 1.62 | +0.0% |
| 1911 | 1.62 | +0.0% |
| 1912 | 1.62 | +0.0% |
| 1913 | 1.62 | +0.0% |
| 1914 | 1.62 | +0.0% |
| 1915 | 1.62 | +0.0% |
| 1916 | 1.62 | +0.0% |
| 1917 | 1.62 | +0.0% |
| 1918 | 1.62 | +0.0% |
| 1919 | 1.62 | +0.0% |
| 1920 | 1.62 | +0.0% |
| 1921 | 1.62 | +0.0% |
| 1922 | 1.62 | +0.0% |
| 1923 | 1.62 | +0.0% |
| 1924 | 1.62 | +0.0% |
| 1925 | 1.62 | +0.0% |
| 1926 | 1.62 | +0.0% |
| 1927 | 1.62 | +0.0% |
| 1928 | 1.62 | +0.0% |
| 1929 | 1.62 | +0.0% |
| 1930 | 1.62 | +0.0% |
| 1931 | 1.62 | +0.0% |
| 1932 | 1.62 | +0.0% |
| 1933 | 1.62 | +0.0% |
| 1934 | 1.62 | +0.0% |
| 1935 | 1.62 | +0.0% |
| 1936 | 1.62 | +0.0% |
| 1937 | 1.62 | +0.0% |
| 1938 | 1.62 | +0.0% |
| 1939 | 1.62 | +0.0% |
| 1940 | 1.62 | +0.0% |
| 1941 | 1.62 | +0.0% |
| 1942 | 1.62 | +0.0% |
| 1943 | 1.62 | +0.0% |
| 1944 | 1.62 | +0.0% |
| 1945 | 1.62 | +0.0% |
| 1946 | 1.62 | +0.0% |
| 1947 | 1.62 | +0.0% |
| 1948 | 1.62 | +0.0% |
| 1949 | 1.62 | +0.0% |
| 1950 | 1.62 | +0.0% |
| 1951 | 1.62 | +0.0% |
| 1952 | 1.62 | +0.0% |
| 1953 | 1.62 | +0.0% |
| 1954 | 1.62 | +0.0% |
| 1955 | 1.62 | +0.0% |
| 1956 | 1.62 | +0.0% |
| 1957 | 1.62 | +0.0% |
| 1958 | 1.62 | +0.0% |
| 1959 | 1.62 | +0.0% |
| 1960 | 1.62 | +0.0% |
| 1961 | 1.62 | +0.0% |
| 1962 | 0.848 | -47.7% |
| 1963 | 0.848 | +0.0% |
| 1964 | 0.848 | +0.0% |
| 1965 | 0.848 | +0.0% |
| 1966 | 0.848 | +0.0% |
| 1967 | 0.848 | +0.0% |
| 1968 | 0.493 | -41.9% |
| 1969 | 1.09 | +120.7% |
| 1970 | 1.29 | +18.5% |
| 1971 | 1.29 | +0.0% |
| 1972 | 1.02 | -21.2% |
| 1973 | 1.02 | +0.0% |
| 1974 | 1.02 | +0.0% |
| 1975 | 1.02 | +0.0% |
| 1976 | 1.02 | +0.0% |
| 1977 | 1.02 | +0.0% |
| 1978 | 1.02 | +0.0% |
| 1979 | 1.18 | +16.1% |
| 1980 | 1.18 | +0.0% |
| 1981 | 1.18 | +0.0% |
| 1982 | 1.27 | +7.6% |
| 1983 | 1.27 | +0.0% |
| 1984 | 1.27 | +0.0% |
| 1985 | 1.27 | +0.0% |
| 1986 | 1.27 | +0.0% |
| 1987 | 1.27 | +0.0% |
| 1988 | 1.27 | +0.0% |
| 1989 | 1.27 | +0.0% |
| 1990 | 1.27 | +0.0% |
| 1991 | 1.27 | +0.0% |
| 1992 | 1.27 | +0.0% |
| 1993 | 1.49 | +17.5% |
| 1994 | 1.49 | +0.0% |
| 1995 | 1.49 | +0.0% |
| 1996 | 1.49 | +0.0% |
| 1997 | 1.16 | -22.0% |
| 1998 | 1.16 | +0.0% |
| 1999 | 1.16 | +0.0% |
| 2000 | 1.16 | +0.0% |
| 2001 | 1 | -13.8% |
| 2002 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 2003 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 2004 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 2005 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 2006 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 2007 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 2008 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 2009 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 2010 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 2011 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 2012 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 2013 | 0.908 | -9.5% |
| 2014 | 0.908 | +0.0% |
| 2015 | 0.908 | +0.0% |
| 2016 | 0.908 | +0.0% |
| 2017 | 0.93 | +2.4% |
| 2018 | 0.952 | +2.4% |
| 2019 | 1.04 | +8.8% |
| 2020 | 1.31 | +26.3% |
| 2021 | 0.98 | -25.1% |
| 2022 | 1.2 | +22.7% |
| 2023 | 0.829 | -31.0% |
| 2024 | 1.17 | +41.6% |
| 2025 | 1.39 | +18.3% |
Ghana compared with similar countries
- Ghana's 1.39 is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 0.2205, 6.3× the median. (46 countries reporting)
- Ghana's 1.39 is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 0.2435, 5.7× the median. (48 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1900s | 1.62 | 1.62 | 1.62 | 8 |
| 1910s | 1.62 | 1.62 | 1.62 | 10 |
| 1920s | 1.62 | 1.62 | 1.62 | 10 |
| 1930s | 1.62 | 1.62 | 1.62 | 10 |
| 1940s | 1.62 | 1.62 | 1.62 | 10 |
| 1950s | 1.62 | 1.62 | 1.62 | 10 |
| 1960s | 0.9909 | 0.493 | 1.62 | 10 |
| 1970s | 1.09 | 1.02 | 1.29 | 10 |
| 1980s | 1.25 | 1.18 | 1.27 | 10 |
| 1990s | 1.33 | 1.16 | 1.49 | 10 |
| 2000s | 1.02 | 1 | 1.16 | 10 |
| 2010s | 0.9559 | 0.908 | 1.04 | 10 |
| 2020s | 1.15 | 0.829 | 1.39 | 6 |
Countries ranked near Ghana
More social development data for Ghana
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 21,050 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 16,030 (2025)
- Political Rights Rating 2 (2025)
- Electoral democracy 1 (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, gaps filled 2 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0.0005 units per person (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 16,030 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0.0006 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 media corruption score in Ghana?
- Media corruption score in Ghana was 1.39 in 2025, according to V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest media corruption score recorded in Ghana?
- The highest recorded value was 1.62 in 1902.
- What is the lowest media corruption score recorded in Ghana?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.493 in 1968.
- How does Ghana rank for media corruption score?
- Ghana ranks 46th out of 175 countries with data for 2025.
- Is media corruption score rising or falling in Ghana?
- Over the last ten years it is up 53.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Ghana data come from?
- The figures come from V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Media Corruption Score. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 124 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Gauges the frequency with which journalists, publishers, or broadcasters accept payments to modify news content, indicating the integrity (or corruption) of the media sphere.