National Journalist Day, also known as National Mass Media Day, is observed in Thailand every March 5. This day celebrates the contributions of media professionals and commemorates the founding anniversary of the Reporters’ Association of Thailand, established on March 5, 1955, by 15 leading journalists. The association later merged with the Newspapers Association of Thailand in 2000 to form the Thai Journalists Association (TJA), which represents the interests of Thai journalists. On the eve of National Journalist Day, members of the TJA gather for an annual congress, followed by celebrations on March 5. Historically, newspapers would give their employees an extra day off, but this practice has diminished as some newspapers continued to publish to attract a wider audience. Thailand's media landscape includes a variety of state and privately owned newspapers, magazines, and over 500 radio stations, with television being the most popular news medium. However, the Thai media faces significant challenges, including government and military censorship, which has led to low rankings in global press freedom indexes.