Why WikiLeaks Is Worth Defending

SomePgmr writes "By now, anyone with even a passing interest in the WikiLeaks phenomenon is familiar with most of the elements of its fall from grace: the rift between founder Julian Assange and early supporters over his autocratic and/or erratic behavior, the Swedish rape allegations that led to his seeking sanctuary in Ecuador, a recent childish hoax the organization perpetrated, and so on. Critics paint a picture of an organization that exists only in name, with a leadership vacuum and an increasingly fractured group of adherents. Despite its many flaws, however, there is still something worthwhile in what WikiLeaks has done, and theoretically continues to do. The bottom line is that we need something like a 'stateless news organization,' and so far it is the best candidate we have."

Comments

Re:childish swine

[Anonymous Coward]

soo, you'll stand up for the USA, even if the USA has become corrupt and every bit as criminal as the nazis were during WW2? you spineless piece of shit haven't you got any integrity worth anything?

We don't need Wikileaks

[dcblogs]

It's a reckless, amoral organization, that doesn't care who it hurts, doesn't care if it gets blood on its hand, and could care less about the fate of the people who supply its documents. What the world needs, and still has plenty of, are people of good moral character, who will fight for what's right, who will take stands, and who will take risks. I have way more respect for the three young women of Pussy Riot and what they have accomplished than anything Wikileaks has done.

Re:We don't need Wikileaks

[Smauler]

GP wasn't claiming Wikileaks is investigative journalism (at least that's my reading of it), it was claiming that it fills a similar role that investigative journalism used to. Back in the day investigative journalism used to be used to hold governments to account a lot more effectively than it does now - without it being effective, the government has carte blanche to do what they like and control the media. Wikileaks and sites like it, whether you love or loathe them, do mean governments are more accountable for their actions. Without both sites like these and investigative journalism, governments could be completely unaccountable to the populace.

Re:childish swine

[LordLucless]

Funny, until the "anti-American" bit, I could have sworn you were talking about the US government. Amend it to "anti-American people", and you still could be.