The New Yorker’s article ‘No Secrets’ really opened my eyes to the extent Julian Assange has shaped our society. After reading the article I came to the conclusion that Assange is the creator of the e-democracy. A bold statement I know, but a simple scan through the archives of Wikileaks will uncover an abundance of political and government processes that he has unveiled to the public, that were conveniently ‘hidden’ from the public’s eyes.
Plan B, or ‘collateral murder’ as it is now known is discussed throughout the article. If you haven’t seen it, take a look...
Without sites like Wikileaks, there would be miniscule pressures upon the government to tell us facts from fiction. And more incidents, like the above video, will occur without the public’s knowledge. The age of the e-democracy has increased tensions between government, the military and journalism as the fourth estate.
Without the hacking skills of Assange highlighting the issues that our fourth estate is failing to report, individuals would carry on their daily lives oblivious to the wrong doings of those in power. The extract, ‘Conscience of a Hacker’ used by ted throughout the lecture, for me was a perfect piece of irony for those wanting to eradicate Wkileaks.
The decline of truth and accuracy in journalism today, I believe make it almost ethical for hackers such as Assange to be releasing such important information and knowledge into the public realm.
Interesting post Naomi, I completely agree with the points you have made above. Julian Assange can be seen by society in two completely different lights: a saint, or a sinner. Those who take him as a sinner do have valid grounds to stand on, he is afterall the father of information hacking in the web 2.0 age. However those who are so quick to persecute need to remember that as individuals, we all have the right to truthful information, and we all have the right to freedom of speech. With these two elements combined we have Wikileaks- so therefore where is the problem? Afterall, don't we want to know what the government authorities are keeping from us?
ReplyDeleteGood post. That video is so chilling. I agree with people who call the Web the Fifth Estate, referring to online media that run in opposition to the mainstream press. I don't believe Assange is a criminal, and that the information sharing that Wikileaks is especially important during times of warfare - and particularly in regards to the American wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, which were waged on already questionable motives and turned into civilian killing sprees. There is a very interesting documentary called The war you don't see which also features an interview with Assange.
ReplyDeleteI talked about some similar points in my post this week, and I agree, Julian Assange has shaped our society. Information like such is so powerful and has an immense impact on the world as an audience. What other horrific acts and events are occurring that we simply don't know about? I'm sure there would be plenty, which is of course a scary and disturbing thought.
ReplyDeleteThat's right Naomi - The decline of truth and accuracy in journalism today is meaning that we have no choice but to turn to hacktivism for the "truth" and to know what is really going on.
ReplyDeleteI think that it is becoming more and more a reality that media is being controlled by larger corporations that manipulate them to hide information for their purposes and advantages. In the end it is all about exerting power - but hackers are able to take a little of this back using their skills - and as long as they are doing it with the right intentions in mind, I think that the positive benefits make it something worthwhile for sure.
I agree with you all on this issue. As Sam has said it is so frightening to think of how many other unethical crimes are being committed like those in 'collateral murder' that we have no knowledge of.
ReplyDeleteI also believe that the success of Wikileaks is a reflection of our current society which thrives of information and transparency. Governments and major corporations need to realise that today information is more accessible than ever before thanks to the internet the barriers between the powerful elite and the public have been broken. Because these barriers have been eliminated the elite must recognise that their actions both ethical and unethical are going to be published to the world at large and if they are ashamed at what they are participating in then it shouldn’t be happening in the first place.
Hey Naomi.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you, and the comments posted by Sam, Emma and Corryn in that with mainstream journalism standards falling, and the evidence in bias, that it can be seen as being ok that Julian goes to the extreme's that he does to gather and release the information he does. After all, Government is there to guide and help us, and not to control and hide information from us.
In regards to Sams comment on what other information could they be hiding, I find quiet scary with one half of me not really wanting to release the skeletons from the closet (ignorance is bliss I guess).
I believe that this article which I found during my research into this weeks topic might be of interest of you; showing the decreasing Journalism standards in the UK http://www.asiantribune.com/news/2011/07/30/spotlight-british-media-professionalism-declines-and-uncorroborated-allegation-aboun
Hi
ReplyDeleteI agree with you on that there is a decline of truth and accuracy in journalism today, but in the case of Assange's information has to do more with governments than with the media companies.
And I also agree with Annie that reality is being controlled by large corporations that manipulate it to make its own reality, its own world.
Assange opened a new source of information and made the governments of the world be aware of him and other hacktivists like him that want the truth to be told. I sometimes think than some things might not be told, but I also think that citizens should know what their government is doing. What they really are doing and not what we're told they're doing.
Hey Naomi,
ReplyDeleteI've already agree with you based on the title of your blog post. It is because of all these lies and untold truths that would eventually lead people into hacktivism, as to what Annie had mentioned. I think that we the "surprise attack" that Assange had planned was great. Because it had caught the government off guard, and they will be forced to tell the truth. It is definitely ethical for hackers such as Assange to release these sort of information. As Crabtree stated "...it is an ethical duty for hackers to share their expertise by writing free software and facilitating access to information and to computing resources wherever possible".