Goldsborough,
R., (2010). The New Age of Investigative Journalism? Teacher Librarian 38, (2)
p.57. E L Kurdyla Publishing LLC
This
fairly brief article by Reid Goldbsorough examines the rise of wikis and blogs
in mainstream media and the subsequent decline in investigative-style
journalism that used to be found in traditional print media. He mentions the
whistleblower organisation Wikileaks as filling the void of the ‘fourth estate’
currently absent in most online media (fourth estate meaning media acting as a
guardian to interests of the public), though, on the whole, Goldsborough views
Wikileaks more as a site for dumping data than investigative journalism in a
traditional sense. On the Wikileaks site people view the posted data for
themselves and come to their own conclusions about the information presented to
them, instead of reading a specific story with a narrative edited by a
skilled journalist. Like Peter Juke’s blog for the Daily Beast, this article
presents facts in a refreshingly balanced manner that sheds light on both the
negative and positive aspects associated with Wikileaks. For example, regarding
the leaking of diplomat cables, Goldsborough acknowledges that citizens have to
right to know what their diplomats are up to, but also believes that too much
transparency can hinder the effectiveness in which diplomats can effectively
perform their roles. The article collates a number of memorable quotes that
condemn and praise the organisation but perhaps the ultimate shortcoming
of this peer reviewed article is that it refuses to accept a strong position
itself on the topic.
Juke,
P., (2012 August 19) Assange makes his case in London Embassy Speech. The Daily
Beast. Retrieved from: http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2012/08/19/assange-makes-his-case-in-london-embassy-speech.html.
Written
by Peter Juke, this blog for liberal online newspaper The Daily Beast was
published after Assange’s address outside the Ecuadorian embassy in London in
August 2012. The author delivers a fairly balanced piece that doesn’t
pander too much to the political inclinations of its target audience. While Juke
does begin his blog by cringingly likening Assange’s speech to Eva Peron’s
iconic address to Argentina many years ago, he balances these favourable
comments with several critical remarks from former work colleagues who find
Assange’s request for transparency ironic considering his own deeply
controlling nature; the credibility of Ecuador as a free speech advocating
nation is also doubted by the author, who mentions that Sweden (the country
that Assange fears to revisit) has a much better track record of press freedom
than the South American country. Regarding the speech, Juke believes
Assange is at his most inspiring when events outside of his own recent
hardships are brought up (such as the recent imprisonment of Russian girl group
Pussy Riot and US Marine Bradley Manning), allowing for less martyr-like
self sympathy and more open condemnation of government secrecy in the modern
age. Juke concludes by saying that while the speech will satisfy the converted
Wikileaks supporters, Assange’s future still remains an uncertain one.
Henderson, G (2012 July 3) WikiLeaks founder does not merit a different set of rules, Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved from: http://www.smh.com.au/opinion/by/gerard-henderson.
This article from conservative commentator Gerard Henderson focuses on Julian Assange’s flee to the Ecuadorian embassy in London to avoid extradition to Sweden on rape allegations. A regular panellist on ABC’s Insiders program, Henderson comes across as fairly moderate on most current issues, however his article on Assange paints a very negative portrait of the whistleblower. After outlining the facts regarding Assange’s house arrest situation in London , the author refers to the earlier events that have led to Assange’s current predicament, namely the allegations in Sweden. However, Henderson fails to mention that no formal charges have been made against Assange, or that the definition of ‘rape’ in Sweden does not necessarily correlate with the Australian usage. Additionally, the fact that Assange, as covered in Phillip Adam’s Late night live interview, has had his bank account frozen, as well as his sponsorship by American companies Mastercard and Paypal revoked, Henderson’s argument that Assange is overreacting would be much less convincing. Instead Henderson conveniently skips over these details to retain strength to his opinion. The story also stoops to baseless insults, calling Assange a ‘narcissist’ and ‘hypocrite’, as well as criticizing Australian citizens who support Assange’s cause. Published as an opinion piece for the Sydney Morning Herald, this particular format allows for the opinion of the author to intertwine with factual research. Whereas a regular news article is required to present facts and events in a balanced manner, opinion columns such as these allow for the author to inject their own political views into the mix.
Adams,
P., (2012 June 6) Julian Assange: what next? Late night live, ABC Radio
National. Retrieved from: http://www.abc.net.au/radionational/programs/latenightlive/julian-assange---what-next3f/4055974.
Journalist
Phillip Adams’s June interview with Julian Assange on his ABC Radio National
program is an insightful, detailed conversation that covers a lot of
ground. The interview was conducted two weeks before Assange’s flee to
the Ecuadorian embassy and captures an agitated Assange who, at that point, had
been under house arrest in London for over 540 days. Adams is a left
leaning commentator and a self-professed supporter of Assange’s cause, so the
interview is conducted in a friendly and relaxed atmosphere between two
individuals who clearly respect one another. Adams refrains from bringing
up any controversial aspects to Assange’s legacy, instead focusing heavily on
the negligence of the Australian government and the alleged witch hunt headed
by US to bring Assange to justice. In general, listeners of Radio
National are on the left side of politics, so support for Assange would be much
higher than an audience listening to Alan Jones or John Laws.
Compared to Gerard Henderson’s article, which chooses to brush aside fact in
favour of baseless insults, Adams’s interview focuses on the lesser known
aspects of Assange’s situation, such as his inability to have a bank account in
his name since being branded a ‘politically exposed person’, Sweden’s
unjustifiable insistence that Assange appear in person for questioning, and the
secret jury operating in Virginia slowly building a case against Wikileaks.
While non-supporters such as Henderson are adamant that the idea of US
government conspiracy against Assange is ludicrous, facts such as these
illuminate the listener as to why Assange is so fearful for his
life.
