Reporters Without Borders has responded to Prime Minister Edi Rama's statements regarding its report on media freedom, where Albania ranks 83rd, a drop of three positions compared to a year ago.
In its response, the organization emphasizes that the assessment is not related to government communication, but to concrete indicators of media freedom in the country, including political pressure, transparency, and the safety of journalists.
“Prime Minister Edi Rama, we measure media freedom, not government communication. Albania's ranking of 83rd (-3) in the 2026 Index reflects political attacks, abuse of law enforcement bodies, low media transparency, and threats against journalists,” the response reads.
The statement by Reporters Without Borders came after an earlier post by Prime Minister Rama, who had praised a SIGMA-OECD report on the Media and Information Agency (MIA), ironizing criticism of the government over the state of the media.
In its report on Albania, Reporters Without Borders notes that journalists face political pressure, difficulties in accessing information, and attacks aimed at discrediting them, both from the government and the opposition. The organization also says that the centralization of government communication has negatively affected transparency.
Following the organization's reaction, Rama responded by suggesting that the various international reports be read in a comparative manner, as according to him there are inconsistencies in assessments of the functioning of the media and institutional communication in Albania.
