Afghan Media

Afghan Media

The media of Afghanistan includes printing, broadcasting and digital. It is mainly in Pashto and Dari (Persian) languages. Although it was tightly controlled under the religious Taliban government from 1996 to late 2001, the state media gradually relaxed press restriction and private media began growing rapidly in the last decade. In 2008, Reporters Without Borders listed the media environment of Afghanistan as 156 out of 173, with 1st being most free. Journalists in the country operate in one of the world's most complex and contested information environments. At times, the lines between propaganda, intelligence and journalism blur, and some journalists covering Taliban activities have been accused of treachery or arrested, while others have been kidnapped, beaten or harassed by Taliban insurgents.