Is the Philippines the third most dangerous place for journalists to work?

Media outlets in the Philippines like GMA 7 and Inquirer have reported last May 3, 2013 that the Philippines remains the third most dangerous place in the world for journalists to work. Although it cannot be denied that the Philippines is not a heaven for journalists, certainly it does not rank among the worst, let alone the third worst! In the Inquirer report herein cited, no mention as to the organization, agency, or body that actually conducted such research, only that the Philippines "remains the third worst place for journalists." I am somehow perplexed why such reports are circulating, or that the Inquirer did not even cite its source.

In a recently published article that appeared at FP, the following countries were listed as the worst places for journalists to work:

1. North Korea
2. Turkmenistan
3. Uzbekistan
4. Eritrea
5. Belarus
6. Cuba
7. Iran
8. Equatorial Guinea
9. Syria
10. Bahrain

It is clear that the Philippines does not even make it to the top five. Even accounting for the total number of juornalists killed for 2012, the Philippines would still not make it to the top ten over-all. There are still worst places in the world, indeed much, much worse places for journalists to work that pales in comparison to the oer-all fate of journalists in the country.

Clearly such haphazard reporting with generic standards, coupled with ambiguous sources and sketchy bases is a hallmark of poor journalistic research. Maybe in that category the Philippines could round up within the top ten, even then, I doubt it could even make the cut!

I decry the Philippine Daily Inquirer for its baseless and unscientific reporting of such crucial data. For a reputable news organization, this is a disappointment to say the least.