#freedom

The United States is still widely perceived as the global benchmark for free speech.

Yet in recent years, this self-image has felt increasingly fragile — politically, socially, and culturally.

The Global Expression Report 2025 reflects this shift: the U.S. is no longer among the top-ranked countries for freedom of expression and does not appear in the top tier of the ranking.

This doesn’t mean that freedom of expression has disappeared in the United States.

But it does suggest that the long-standing narrative of absolute leadership in free speech no longer fully aligns with how this freedom is currently experienced and measured