 Freedom of speech was guaranteed in law by the Danish Constitution of 1849 , as it is today by The Constitutional Act of Denmark of 5 June 1953 . Danish freedom of expression is quite far @-@ reaching — even by Western European standards — although it is subject to some legal restrictions dealing with libel , hate speech , blasphemy and defamation . The country 's comparatively lenient attitude toward freedom of expression has provoked official protests from several foreign governments , for example Germany , Turkey and Russia for allowing controversial organisations to use Denmark as a base for their operations . Reporters Without Borders ranked Denmark at the top of its Worldwide Press Freedom Index for 2005 . Danish newspapers are privately owned and independent from the government . 
