17 October 2012 Last updated at 04:58 ET

Turkmenistan profile

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Programmes from Russian TV are censored before being rebroadcast

The Turkmen government has an absolute monopoly of the media. The authorities monitor media outlets, control printing presses, block websites, monitor internet use and lay down editorial policies.

The Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe has described the lack of press freedom in Turkmenistan as "unprecedented" in the body's history.

Turkmen citizens are "completely cut off from the rest of the world while the media are treated as government mouthpieces", says Reporters Without Borders (RSF).

In the RSF Press Freedom Index for 2011-12, Turkmenistan was listed as the third worst country in terms of media freedom, after Eritrea and North Korea.

TV is the most popular medium. State-run broadcast media comprise five national TV stations and five radio networks. Programmes from Russian TV are censored before being rebroadcast.

Turkmentelecom and other state bodies control internet access. There were nearly 253,000 internet users by December 2011 (InternetWorldStats).

Social networks, including Facebook, Twitter and YouTube, are blocked. This censorship was extended to Gmail in 2012, reports RSF, which lists Turkmenistan as an "Enemy of the Internet".

The press

• Neytralnyy Turkmenistan - Russian-language, published six times a week
• Turkmenistan - Turkmen-language, published six times a week
• Watan (Homeland) - Turkmen-language, published three times a week
• Galkynys (Revival) - Turkmen-language weekly, mouthpiece of the ruling Democratic Party of Turkmenistan

Television

• Turkmen TV - state-owned, networks include main channel Altyn Asyr (Golden Age)

Radio

• Turkmen radio - state-owned, operates four networks

News agency/internet

• Turkmen Dovlet Habarlary (TDH) - state news agency
• News Central Asia - Turkmenistan-based agency, registered in US