Asia, Central

Central Asia stretches from the Caspian Sea in the west to the border of China in the east and encompasses the five former Soviet Republics of Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan. Since the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, the region has been characterized by varying degrees of authoritarianism. Attitudes toward the practice of journalism, and media freedom more generally, in the decades since then have often been viewed by outside observers as key indicators of wider political ideologies.

This entry discusses the media systems in each of the five Central Asian countries. Few of these countries have been able to establish open and transparent media systems since gaining their independence. Critical reporting is frequently obstructed, with censorship rife across the region. A long ...