Status: Free
Legal Environment: 1
Political Influences: 2
Economic Pressures: 5
Total Score: 8
Population: n/a
GNI/capita: n/a
Life Expectancy: 79
Religious Groups: Evangelical Lutheran (93 percent), Protestant and Roman Catholic (7 percent)
Ethnic Groups: Icelander
Capital: Reykjavik
Iceland has an exceptionally open and free media environment. The constitution and governing institutions provide strong guarantees of freedom of expression. Current legislation, however, restricts the production and distribution of films depicting violence against people or animals. In the past six years, the state Motion Picture Review Committee has censored more than 20 films for being unsuitable for children. Independent and party-affiliated newspapers offer a variety of perspectives. The country maintains a mixture of both private and public television stations. An autonomous board of directors oversees the state broadcasting service. Internet access is open and unrestricted. More than 80 percent of the population access the Internet from their homes.
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