Julian Assange: Wikileaks co-founder arrested in London

[The Minsky Moment]

He leaked hacked info obtained from Russian military intelligence
He delclined to publish a huge leak from the Russian Interior Ministry
His TV show ran on RT (Russian state media)

That's just what I recall from the top of my head

[Admiral Yi]

Thanks.  #2 is a real doozy.

[garbon]

With Assange's appeal to US extradition taking place this week - the Guardian has been out in force about how this represents a fundamental threat to press freedom.

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2024/feb/18/the-guardian-view-on-julian-assange-why-he-should-not-be-extradited

The Guardian view on Julian Assange: why he should not be extradited
Sending him to be tried in the United States would be an unacceptable act against the WikiLeaks founder – and against journalism

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2024/feb/18/julian-assange-press-freedom-wikileaks-uk-high-court

We have seen Assange's plight in a UK prison, but extraditing him this week would be a disaster for us all
It is vital not to forget about the man – and the repercussions for press freedom if the high court says he can be sent to the US

Coverage of the artpiece to destroy art for him hasn't been as rosy.

https://www.theguardian.com/media/2024/feb/13/im-not-trying-to-destroy-art-says-man-planning-to-do-just-that-if-assange-dies-in-jail

I'm not trying to destroy art, says man planning to do just that if Assange dies in jail
Andrei Molodkin believes WikiLeaks founder will be freed, leaving $45m of precious artworks unscathed

https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2024/feb/13/andrei-molodkin-julian-assange-dissolving-art-in-acid

Threatening to dissolve masterpieces in acid is a pathetically banal stunt for our shallow times
Russian artist Andrei Molodkin will destroy works by Picasso, Rembrandt and Warhol if Julian Assange dies in prison. It's an unoriginal idea born of art-historical ignorance

[Sheilbh]

Not to forget former editor, Alan Rusbridger (who almost financially ruined the Guardian), and current editor of Prospect:
https://www.prospectmagazine.co.uk/politics/64791/enough-is-enoughits-time-to-set-julian-assange-free

[The Brain]

I remember (or did I dream it?) when some guy wanted to be buried with a van Gogh, and there was some brouhaha. My understanding is that generally paintings like that aren't protected legally, so who cares if he destroys them?

[garbon]

I remember (or did I dream it?) when some guy wanted to be buried with a van Gogh, and there was some brouhaha. My understanding is that generally paintings like that aren't protected legally, so who cares if he destroys them?

Odd take for a history forum.

[OttoVonBismarck]

I've been ready for this guy to stop being talked about for about 10 years.

[OttoVonBismarck]

Also, I have never really bought into the journalism argument. Journalists aren't allowed to help people hack into government servers, in the UK or the U.S.

[Admiral Yi]

Also, I have never really bought into the journalism argument. Journalists aren't allowed to help people hack into government servers, in the UK or the U.S.

Is there a line in your mind between Assange and the NYT w/ the Pentagon Papers?

[OttoVonBismarck]

Also, I have never really bought into the journalism argument. Journalists aren't allowed to help people hack into government servers, in the UK or the U.S.

Is there a line in your mind between Assange and the NYT w/ the Pentagon Papers?

Yeah, you don't prosecute news outlets for publishing things leaked to them as passive recipients, even if the person leaking it to them broke the law to do so. That is also AFAIK the legal consensus in America.

But if the NYT hired a computer hacker to break into DoD computers the NYT's managers who cooked up the scheme would face serious criminal charges. The indictment against Assange accuses him of providing actual technical help to Chelsea Manning to crack a password hash. You cross the line as a journalist when you help pick the lock.

The NYT didn't help Daniel Ellsberg walk the report out of the Pentagon, they simply published what he gave them.

Now, I have not taken a significant interest in Assange's tedious case (I view him as a rabble rouser and a Russian asset), so I don't know how strong the government's case is on those facts. But we do have a court system here to adjudicate things like that and an extradition treaty with Britain.

[Admiral Yi]

I was not aware of that.

[OttoVonBismarck]

As far as I am aware everything Assange is charged with in the indictment is because it is alleged he helped with the actual breach of the classified data. I don't believe, given previous Supreme Court rulings, a prosecution would get very far if they were going after him simply because he passively received stuff another person stole and then published it.

Although I think some of that has never been fully litigated because cases like Ellsberg's ended up hinging on the government doing illegal things to build its case against him and his charges being dismissed for that reason.

[grumbler]

Although I think some of that has never been fully litigated because cases like Ellsberg's ended up hinging on the government doing illegal things to build its case against him and his charges being dismissed for that reason.

The NYT case was fully litigated.  Ellsberg's criminal trial is the case where the prosecution case was tossed due to the illegal activities of some people investigating it.

[OttoVonBismarck]

Although I think some of that has never been fully litigated because cases like Ellsberg's ended up hinging on the government doing illegal things to build its case against him and his charges being dismissed for that reason.

The NYT case was fully litigated.  Ellsberg's criminal trial is the case where the prosecution case was tossed due to the illegal activities of some people investigating it.

The NYT case wasn't criminal, it was around a government injunction--Ellsberg's case is more comparable to Assange's because it was an Espionage Act case, which the NYT was an entity was never prosecuted under the Espionage Act. I also specifically said it was Ellsberg's case that had not been fully litigated, since it was not carried to a judgment due to the government's illegal evidence collection in his case.