It is still a bit taboo to call June's events and this government what they really are: a coup d'état and an administration headed towards fascism. Reporters Without Borders, however, provides a sober assessment in the same way that Transparency International's rankings do: from a solid, quantitative methodology. In its newly released Press Freedom Index of 2009, Iran ranks 172 of 175, down from its 166 position last year. Only Turkmenistan, North Korea, and Eritrea ranked worse than Iran this year.Transparency International's 2008 rankings, meanwhile, had Iran at 141 out of 180. The Islamic Republic's ranking is almost sure to drop when TI releases its 2009 rankings by year's end.
