The big picture: Press freedom in the U.S. - Axios

The U.S. ranks 45th out of 180 countries on the World Press Freedom Index, according to a Reporters without Borders study.

Why it matters: Press freedom experts cite President Trump's actions and threats — such as calling them "fake news" or an "enemy of the people, and witholding information like his tax returns — as contributing factors in the decline of press freedoms in the U.S. over the past two years.

• It's also helped to fuel a growing distrust of media. An Axios/SurveyMonkey poll recently found that 72% of American adults think that traditional news outlets knowingly report false or misleading stories at least sometimes.