The group ranked 179 of the UN’s 193 member states, skipping most of the island ministates of the Pacific and Caribbean.
It ranked Iran in 175th place with just Syria, Turkmenistan, North Korea and Eritrea (in last place) below Iran. Two of the four states ranked below Iran –Syria and North Korea—are probably the Islamic Republic’s closest allies.
Iran has generally been ranked fourth or fifth from the bottom in recent years under President Ahmadi-nejad. But even before Ahmadi-nejad, it was ranked low. In 2004, the last full year President Khatami held office, Iran was ranked 10th from the bottom.
Perhaps more Important than the rankings, however, are the scores. Most countries actually score well. A total of 74 countries or 40 percent of those rated have scores of 25 or less. (A low score indicates few impediments on a free press). Only 11 countries have scores above 100, with Eritrea in last place with a score of 142. Iran is only marginally better with a score of 136.6.
The best scores are largely Northern European, with Finland and Norway tied at the top.