According to international watchdog networks Finland has maintained its position as one of the most democratic countries in the world, with a government that generally respects freedom of the press in practice.

According to Freedom House, In 2009, the countries where press was the most free were the five Nordic countries, Iceland, Finland, Norway, Denmark and Sweden. The same countries top the Reporters Without Borders (RSF) Press Freedom Index 2009.

For more than 240 years ago the world's first Freedom of Information Act took effect in Sweden-Finland. The Finnish enlightenment thinker and politician Anders Chydenius (1729-1803) played a crucial role in creating the new law in 1766. It abolished political censorship and gave the public access to government documents.

Today, Freedom of expression and access to information in Finland are guaranteed under Article 12 of the revised constitution, adopted in March 2000. There were no cases of defamation suits filed against journalists or media outlets during the year, nor were there any attacks on the press.

Finland has often been called a dreamland for newspapers, with traditions, quality journalism and early morning distributions system. The newspaper readership ranks third in the world for circulation in relation to population.

Two hundred newspapers are published, including some 30 dailies, according to the Finnish Newspaper Association. Media ownership is concentrated, with Alma Media and SanomaWSOY controlling most newspaper distribution. Broadcasting was once dominated by the public broadcaster Yleisradio OY and commercial MTV, but 2 new broadcasters have since emerged. Included in the 67 commercial radio stations are 3 national public stations in Finnish, 2 in Swedish, and 1 in the Sami (Lapp) language.

The internet is open and unrestricted, and more than 62 percent of all citizens have regular access. However, web publications must name a responsible editor in chief and archive published materials for at least 21 days. In addition, Finnish law, which gives every citizen the right of reply and to have false published information corrected, includes internet publications.

All this does not mean there are no problems in Media Freedom in Finland. The interpretation of the new Freedom of Expression in Mass Media Act has been controversial, and recently there have been several questionable court cases and verdicts concerning media.