Conflict and the Freedom of the Press

Abstract

Using data from 146 countries, this study empirically tests the relationship between conflict and press freedom. Holding all else constant, the results indicate that the relationship between conflict and press freedom is best described as nonlinear such that the greatest conflict is observed at an intermediate level of press freedom. It is theorized that while past research has found that greater press freedom serves to reduce conflict, governments with a tightly controlled press can also observe lower levels of conflict as these government can use their control to censored information, images, and messaging to minimize conflict and unrest.