Samoa press restrictions on the country’s only daily newspaper remain in place nearly a year after Prime Minister La’aulialemalietoa Leuatea Schmidt barred it from press briefings in November 2025.
Key Takeaways
- The Samoa Observer remains excluded from government press briefings.
- The newspaper recently published footage that prompted an apology from the prime minister.
Samoa press restrictions followed critical reporting
The ban followed the Samoa Observer’s reporting on the prime minister’s unexplained absence and a government photograph that had been digitally altered to remove a wheelchair. Reporters from the newspaper have also been escorted from official events.
In October 2026, the newspaper published previously unseen footage from a 2007 family reunion showing the prime minister making a stiff-arm salute and saying “Heil Hitler.” The footage prompted an apology.
Australia responds on media freedom
Australia has budgeted $117 million over two years to 2026 for aid programs in Samoa, including support for improving conditions for independent media.
On October 25, 2026, a spokesperson for Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong said Australia continued to support independent media in the Pacific and called press freedom fundamental to democracy. The spokesperson did not call for the restrictions on the newspaper to be lifted.
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