In her ruling, the judge rejected claims that Assange’s case was an assault on press freedom, which must concern anyone who believes in the oversight role that journalists play in a democracy.
Assange’s legal team is expected to argue the US extradition request is politically motivated and the Wikileaks founder is unlikely to receive a fair trial in the US.
As British courts this week hear arguments for and against the Wikileaks founder’s extradition to the US, the questions about journalism, the law and freedom of speech it raises are vital ones.
Julian Assange’s indictment under the Espionage Act, a sweeping law with heavy penalties for unauthorized receiving or disclosing of classified information, poses a threat to press freedom.
The US indicted WikiLeaks co-founder Julian Assange for conspiring to hack into a government computer. But the prosecution of Assange may also pose a risk to the rights of journalists in the US.
The Mueller report is out, heavily redacted and the investigative materials it’s based on aren’t public. That’s where Congress comes in, writes a former House counsel. Now they can investigate.
It’s dangerous for the press to take up Julian Assange’s cause, two journalism scholars write. Assange is no journalist, they say, and making him out to be one is likely to damage press freedoms.
If the Swedish charges against Assange are revived he could face a second extradition request, on top of the existing request from the US. Then it will be up to the UK to decide which to prioritise.
WikiLeaks’ latest release details what it claims is the CIA’s hacking activities, including compromising phones, TVs, cars and becoming an NSA with less accountability.
The announcement of Chelsea Manning’s commutation raises questions regarding the future of other high-profile leakers, like Julian Assange and Edward Snowden.
Russian interests are far from aligned with those of the West, and no amount of revisionist commentary about Russia not being ‘such a bad guy’’ after all will alter that reality.
Social media does not eradicate the line between personal or private. Instead, it shifts the line in ways that require thought rather than unreflexive condemnation or celebration.
A UN panel has called on the UK and Swedish governments to ensure Julian Assange’s human rights are respected and to compensate him for his time in ‘arbitrary’ detention.