Fight for Survival: Independent Media Under Dictatorship in Myanmar

After Myanmar’s 2021 military coup, independent media across the country came under attack. This study focuses on two of the most affected regions—Rakhine and Kachin States—where repression has been especially harsh. Drawing on interviews with journalists, editors, and media workers, the research documents how media actors are navigating censorship, surveillance, displacement, and digital threats.

The report shows how the military targets ethnic media outlets through internet shutdowns, raids, arrests, and intimidation. Journalists face risks from multiple directions: the junta, local armed groups, and shrinking safe spaces for reporting. Many are now working in exile, using VPNs, encrypted apps, and pseudonyms to continue their work online. The study also highlights how repression in ethnic states is often more intense and less visible than in central Myanmar.

To protect independent media in these regions, the study recommends digital security training, funding for exile operations, and international advocacy. It argues that media workers are not just fighting for survival—they’re defending access to truth in places where authoritarian control and civil conflict are evolving by the day.

This study is part of the Myanmar Digital Research series published by Knowledge for Democracy Myanmar (K4DM) with support from International Development Research Centre and The SecDev Foundation.