Media Corruption Score in United States
United States: Media Corruption Score was 1.85 in 2025. ▲ Rising
Media Corruption Score in United States, 1900–2025
Source: V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
Analysis
United States recorded 1.85 for media corruption score in 2025.
That represents a change of down 9.3% on the previous year and down 33.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, media corruption score in United States peaked at 3.12 in 2008 and was at its lowest, 1.26, in 1900.
United States ranks 35th of 175 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 126 years of available data.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1900s | 1.26 | 1.26 | 1.26 | 10 |
| 1910s | 1.42 | 1.26 | 1.53 | 10 |
| 1920s | 1.98 | 1.98 | 1.98 | 10 |
| 1930s | 1.98 | 1.98 | 1.98 | 10 |
| 1940s | 1.98 | 1.98 | 1.98 | 10 |
| 1950s | 1.98 | 1.98 | 1.98 | 10 |
| 1960s | 1.98 | 1.98 | 1.98 | 10 |
| 1970s | 2.79 | 1.98 | 2.91 | 10 |
| 1980s | 2.91 | 2.91 | 2.91 | 10 |
| 1990s | 2.91 | 2.91 | 2.91 | 10 |
| 2000s | 3.01 | 2.99 | 3.12 | 10 |
| 2010s | 2.63 | 2.17 | 2.76 | 10 |
| 2020s | 2.16 | 1.85 | 2.77 | 6 |
Countries ranked near United States
More social development data for United States
- Political Rights Rating 2 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of asy 457,647 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of ori 3,667 (2025)
- Electoral democracy 1 (2025)
- Key features of democracy 0.735 (2025)
- Freedom of Expression Index 0.729 (2025)
- Freedom of Association Index 0.913 (2025)
- Electoral Democracy Index 0.735 (2025)
- Participatory Democracy Index 0.51 (2025)
- Liberal Democracy Index 0.571 (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is media corruption score in United States?
- Media corruption score in United States was 1.85 in 2025, according to V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest media corruption score recorded in United States?
- The highest recorded value was 3.12 in 2008.
- What is the lowest media corruption score recorded in United States?
- The lowest recorded value was 1.26 in 1900.
- How does United States rank for media corruption score?
- United States ranks 35th out of 175 countries with data for 2025.
- Is media corruption score rising or falling in United States?
- Over the last ten years it is down 33.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this United States 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 — 126 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.