preview

Taking a Look at Wikileaks

Decent Essays

Wikileaks, cofounded in 2006 by editor in chief Julian Assange, is a site designed to announce and publicize sensitive information. The goal of Wikileaks is to provide protection for journalists, citizens, and anyone who might need to be protected from the free based or sensitive information they upload to the site. Wikileaks is protected by a network of software, anonymous postal drops, and lawyers, operating on a policy of secrecy to keep all of its posters safe from possible reprisals.

I believe Wikileaks is in the right, as it allows its users to expose sensitive information and secrets that citizens need to know about. Governments have been criticizing some of the content posted, however, there is little legally that they can do. Wikileaks is essentially another branch or avenue of the public press, and there is no "official secrets act” to stop information from being posted. There are people doing pre-publication reviews of articles posted; people who have a vested interest in ensuring the accuracy of the material.

In recent years, Wikileaks has acquired mixed public reception, receiving numerous awards and appraisal, as well as harsh criticism. In 2008 and 2009, Wikileaks received the New Media Award, and in 2010, it was listed as a website that could change the way the news works. It was praised as a tool to empower citizens to voice their opinions and report the truth. However, the site received criticism for defacing the value of a journalist. “Journalists

Get Access