Freedom of the Press 2008 - Madagascar

Status: Partly Free
Legal Environment: 14 (of 30)
Political Environment: 19 (of 40)
Economic Environment: 15 (of 30)
Total Score: 48 (of 100)
(Lower scores = freer)

Although freedom of speech and of the press are protected by the constitution, strict libel laws and other restrictions are occasionally used to muzzle the media. However, as with the previous year, no journalists were convicted of libel during 2007. In addition, unlike in the previous year, there were no reported incidents in which government authorities arrested journalists, and no journalists were attacked because of their work. Due to low pay, journalists are subject to bribery. Occasionally, the government also exerts pressure on private media outlets to curb their coverage of political issues and criticism of the government, causing many journalists to practice self-censorship.

In 2007, there were approximately 245 licensed radio stations, 12 registered daily newspapers and 37 licensed TV stations. A 1990 Law on Press Freedom was followed by the creation of privately owned FM radio stations and more critical political reporting by the print media. However, President Marc Ravalomana owns the private Malagasy Broadcasting System, which operates the MBS TV and Radio MBS networks. Many private radio stations in the capital are owned by Ravalomanana supporters. Due to poverty and fairly widespread illiteracy, the print media are primarily accessed by the French-speaking urban elite. The internet is unrestricted by the government but was accessed by less than 1 percent of the population in 2007.