Taiwan's freedom of the press has been declining since 2008. According to a new report released on Thursday by US-based non- profit watchdog Freedom House, Taiwan's freedom of the press ranked 47th globally, a drop of four places from last year. The report said a revival of 'embedded marketing' caused by economic difficulties, action by media owners and government influence over the editorial content of publicly owned outlets posed challenges for media independence in Taiwan. In a democratic country, the government should not threaten or seduce media to serve as a mouthpiece of the government. During the economic slump, however, the government has paid the media for packaging the government's propaganda in their news content so the audience cannot distinguish the truth. The government has also tried to pressure the media by amending laws and suing media for breaking the law. In addition, it has used its power to threaten specific media and to keep people's mouths shut. If the government's attitude of controlling media does not change, Taiwan's press freedom rating will continue to drop. (May 1, 2010) 