Press freedom in Liberia
Liberia: Press freedom was 1 in 2016. ◆ Volatile
Press freedom in Liberia, 1979–2016
Source: Freedom House (2017) – processed by Our World in Data.
Analysis
In 2016, press freedom in Liberia stood at 1. That is the highest value across all 36 years on record.
That represents a change of unchanged over five years.
Over the whole period, press freedom in Liberia peaked at 1 in 1979 and was at its lowest, 0, in 1980.
That places Liberia 61st out of 194 countries with data for 2016, putting it in the middle of the range.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Press freedom in Liberia, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1979 | 1 | — |
| 1980 | 0 | -100.0% |
| 1982 | 0 | — |
| 1983 | 0 | — |
| 1984 | 0 | — |
| 1985 | 0 | — |
| 1986 | 0 | — |
| 1987 | 0 | — |
| 1988 | 0 | — |
| 1990 | 0 | — |
| 1991 | 0 | — |
| 1992 | 0 | — |
| 1993 | 0 | — |
| 1994 | 0 | — |
| 1995 | 0 | — |
| 1996 | 0 | — |
| 1997 | 0 | — |
| 1998 | 0 | — |
| 1999 | 0 | — |
| 2000 | 0 | — |
| 2001 | 0 | — |
| 2002 | 0 | — |
| 2003 | 0 | — |
| 2004 | 0 | — |
| 2005 | 0 | — |
| 2006 | 0 | — |
| 2007 | 0 | — |
| 2008 | 0 | — |
| 2009 | 0 | — |
| 2010 | 1 | — |
| 2011 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 2012 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 2013 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 2014 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 2015 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 2016 | 1 | +0.0% |
Liberia compared with similar countries
- Liberia's 1 is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 1, 1.0× the median. (48 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 1980s | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 |
| 1990s | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 |
| 2000s | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 |
| 2010s | 1 | 1 | 1 | 7 |
Countries ranked near Liberia
- 61 Afghanistan 1 compare
- 61 Albania 1 compare
- 61 Antigua and Barbuda 1 compare
- 61 Argentina 1 compare
- 61 Benin 1 compare
- 61 Bhutan 1 compare
- 61 Bolivia 1 compare
- 61 Bosnia and Herzegovina 1 compare
- 61 Botswana 1 compare
- 61 Brazil 1 compare
- 61 Bulgaria 1 compare
- 61 Burkina Faso 1 compare
- 61 Colombia 1 compare
- 61 Comoros 1 compare
- 61 Congo 1 compare
- 61 Cote d'Ivoire 1 compare
- 61 Croatia 1 compare
- 61 Dominican Republic 1 compare
- 61 East Timor 1 compare
- 61 El Salvador 1 compare
- 61 Fiji 1 compare
- 61 Georgia 1 compare
- 61 Ghana 1 compare
- 61 Greece 1 compare
- 61 Guatemala 1 compare
- 61 Guinea-Bissau 1 compare
- 61 Guyana 1 compare
- 61 Haiti 1 compare
- 61 Hong Kong 1 compare
- 61 Hungary 1 compare
- 61 India 1 compare
- 61 Indonesia 1 compare
- 61 Israel 1 compare
- 61 Italy 1 compare
- 61 Kenya 1 compare
- 61 Kuwait 1 compare
- 61 Lebanon 1 compare
- 61 Lesotho 1 compare
- 61 Madagascar 1 compare
- 61 Malawi 1 compare
- 61 Mali 1 compare
- 61 Mauritania 1 compare
- 61 Moldova 1 compare
- 61 Mongolia 1 compare
- 61 Montenegro 1 compare
- 61 Mozambique 1 compare
- 61 Namibia 1 compare
- 61 Nauru 1 compare
- 61 Nepal 1 compare
- 61 Nicaragua 1 compare
- 61 Niger 1 compare
- 61 Nigeria 1 compare
- 61 Panama 1 compare
- 61 Paraguay 1 compare
- 61 Peru 1 compare
- 61 Philippines 1 compare
- 61 Poland 1 compare
- 61 Romania 1 compare
- 61 Senegal 1 compare
- 61 Serbia 1 compare
- 61 Seychelles 1 compare
- 61 Sierra Leone 1 compare
- 61 South Africa 1 compare
- 61 South Korea 1 compare
- 61 Tanzania 1 compare
- 61 Togo 1 compare
- 61 Tunisia 1 compare
- 61 Uganda 1 compare
- 61 Ukraine 1 compare
More social development data for Liberia
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 1,172 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 5,117 (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 0.0009 units per person (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 5,117 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0.0002 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 press freedom in Liberia?
- Press freedom in Liberia was 1 in 2016, according to Freedom House (2017) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest press freedom recorded in Liberia?
- The highest recorded value was 1 in 1979.
- What is the lowest press freedom recorded in Liberia?
- The lowest recorded value was 0 in 1980.
- How does Liberia rank for press freedom?
- Liberia ranks 61st out of 194 countries with data for 2016.
- Where does this Liberia data come from?
- The figures come from Freedom House (2017) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Press freedom. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Based on the classification and data by Freedom House. It captures the legal, political, and economic environment of the press.