Press Freedom Index: Media in Albania is threatened by politics, the legal framework is deficient

Reporters Without Borders has published the latest data from the World Press Freedom Index 2025.

Albania ranks 80th out of 180 countries for which the index measurements were made. According to the data, in our country, the media is threatened by conflicts of interest between the business world and politics.

The index also highlights the political pressure exerted on journalists, especially during election periods. Referring to the protection of journalists, the report suggests that the protection of the confidentiality of sources is insufficient.

The report highlights that journalists covering demonstrations and police operations are sometimes victims of police violence.

Index findings:

In Albania, press freedom and media independence are threatened by conflicts of interest between business and politics, a weak legal framework, and party regulation. Journalists are victims of acts of intimidation by politicians and organized crime.

Media landscape

The most influential private sector media in Albania is owned by a handful of companies with political connections in highly regulated sectors such as construction. While there are hundreds of online media outlets in the country, only a small number have a sustainable business model with transparent financing. The main media outlets include the public broadcaster RTSH, Top Channel, TV Klan and RTV Ora.

Political context

Journalists face political pressure, particularly during elections. Politicians limit editorial independence by politicizing media regulators and appointing those responsible for public media. Journalists critical of the authorities are often subject to attacks designed to discredit them from both the government and the opposition, and they have difficulty obtaining state information, access to which may be further limited by a recent centralization of government communications.

Legal framework

Although Albania's constitution and international legal commitments guarantee freedom of the press, protection of the confidentiality of sources is insufficient. As a result of controversial court decisions, media outlets were prohibited from covering sensitive issues of public interest.

Economic context

Ownership of most of the Albanian media landscape is concentrated in the hands of just four or five companies. State funding represents a major source of revenue for the media, but its opaque and discriminatory distribution raises suspicions of illicit influence.

Sociocultural context

Journalists who investigate crime and corruption are particularly targeted by threats. Female journalists, who make up the majority of the profession, face online harassment and in some cases gender-based discrimination within news organizations, although there has been progress in this area. Self-censorship is widespread, but the media has nevertheless created a platform for ethical self-regulation, the first of its kind in Albania.

Safety

Journalists covering demonstrations and police operations are sometimes victims of police violence. But organized crime represents one of the greatest threats to the safety of journalists. Although the police have recently taken steps to investigate attacks against journalists, impunity for these crimes, combined with political efforts to discredit journalists, has created a climate that is likely to encourage further attacks. In March 2023, the headquarters of Top Channel was the target of an unprecedented automatic weapon attack that killed one of the security guards.