In Mongolia, television is the most popular medium, accounting for at least 60% of the market. The Mongolian National Broadcaster, the only public service media group, includes TV channels, radio stations and news sites, and has the largest audience in the country. The most popular daily newspapers are Unuudur (Today), Udriin Sonin (Daily News) and Zuunii Medee (Century News). The Montsame News Agency, which has six newspapers in different languages, is still owned by the state although the 1998 Media Freedom Law says it should be turned into a public service media group, and that the state should not own media.

Mongolian media ownership is very concentrated and lacks transparency. Whether owned privately or by the state, most Mongolian media openly show their affiliation with the government or political parties. The media’s ability to operate independently is limited by pressure from politicians. 

More than half of all defamation cases in Mongolia are brought against journalists and media outlets. Harsh financial penalties force them to censor themselves and curtail the development of independent and investigative media. Many cases of journalists accused of spreading false information are based on complaints by senior politicians, parliamentarians, civil servants or government agencies.

For a country with around 3 million inhabitants, there are more than 260 media outlets, most of them privately owned. Mongolian media owners are not in the business solely for profit. They also use their media as a tool to promote their political preferences and protect their economic interests. As a result of low salaries and high workload, journalists accept being paid to produce certain content, which damages public trust in the media.

Mongolians tend to distrust the media because of concerns about the quality of content and their coverage of major political events. According to a survey conducted by RSF in 2016, Mongolia’s national public radio and television enjoy the highest credibility with a 44% trust rate, compared with daily newspapers (10%) and online news sources (5%).

Many Mongolian journalists face threats, pressure or insults related to their work, and several cases of harassment and violence have been reported.