Freedom of expression and government types worldwide

Is freedom of expression always consistent with democratic governance? Is it more likely to improve or decline under certain types of regime? What about in certain countries? In this briefing, ARTICLE 19 delves into the data to explore these questions and their implications.

Democracy and freedom of expression are closely intertwined, but what can we see in this complex relationship? By cross-cutting data on the two areas, we can interrogate and explore patterns and trends that reveal surprising fissures. By combining the The Democracy Index, compiled by the Economist Intelligence Unit, with data from ARTICLE 19’s Global Expression Report, we can look at the types of government under which freedom of expression is dynamic. Under which forms of regime and in what types of country might it either be susceptible to upwards shifts, or in danger of decline and increasing repression. These correlations might provide some suggestions for further study and advocacy in terms of both region and regime.

The Democracy Index categorises governments across the world into four types:
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1. Full democracies
2. Flawed democracies
3. Hybrid regimes
4. Authoritarian regimes

The defining characteristics of each category are listed in the Appendix to this briefing.
When we combine the categories with data from the Global Expression Report, it becomes possible to see how freedom expression varies by type of government (see Table 1).