Press freedom is Europe is facing a widespread and growing threat by "soft" censorship that includes governments' use of financial power to pressure news media, punish critical reporting and reward favourable coverage. While Europe's press is not generally threatened by the jailing of journalists or the closure of media outlets, "soft" censorship is a more subtle but significant new danger, according to new reports released Tuesday by the World Association of Newspapers and News Publishers (WAN-IFRA).