Australian Media's Finest Defend Wikileaks

[Better Believe It]

Australian Media's Finest Defend Wikileaks
13 December 2010

Australia’s most senior media professionals have written to Prime Minister Julia Gillard today to express their support for WikiLeaks...

The letter was initiated by the Walkley Foundation and signed by the ten members of the Walkley Advisory Board as well as editors of major Australian newspapers and news websites and the news directors of the country’s three commercial TV networks and two public broadcasters.

The following is the text of the full public letter sent to Prime Minister Julia Gillard:


STATEMENT FROM AUSTRALIAN NEWSPAPER EDITORS, TELEVISION AND RADIO DIRECTORS AND ONLINE MEDIA EDITORS


The leaking of 250,000 confidential American diplomatic cables is the most astonishing leak of official information in recent history, and its full implications are yet to emerge. But some things are clear. In essence, WikiLeaks, an organisation that aims to expose official secrets, is doing what the media have always done: bringing to light material that governments would prefer to keep secret.

In this case, WikiLeaks, founded by Australian Julian Assange, worked with five major newspapers around the world, which published and analysed the embassy cables. Diplomatic correspondence relating to Australia has begun to be published here.

The volume of the leaks is unprecedented, yet the leaking and publication of diplomatic correspondence is not new. We, as editors and news directors of major media organisations, believe the reaction of the US and Australian governments to date has been deeply troubling. We will strongly resist any attempts to make the publication of these or similar documents illegal. Any such action would impact not only on WikiLeaks, but every media organisation in the world that aims to inform the public about decisions made on their behalf. WikiLeaks, just four years old, is part of the media and deserves our support.

Already, the chairman of the US Senate homeland security committee, Joe Lieberman, is suggesting The New York Times should face investigation for publishing some of the documents. The newspaper told its readers that it had ‘‘taken care to exclude, in its articles and in supplementary material, in print and online, information that would endanger confidential informants or compromise national security.’’ Such an approach is responsible — we do not support the publication of material that threatens national security or anything which would put individual lives in danger. Those judgements are never easy, but there has been no evidence to date that the WikiLeaks material has done either.

There is no evidence, either, that Julian Assange and WikiLeaks have broken any Australian law. The Australian government is investigating whether Mr Assange has committed an offence, and the Prime Minister has condemned WikiLeaks’ actions as ‘‘illegal’’. So far, it has been able to point to no Australian law that has been breached.

To prosecute a media organisation for publishing a leak would be unprecedented in the US, breaching the First Amendment protecting a free press. In Australia, it would seriously curtail Australian media organisations reporting on subjects the government decides are against its interests.

WikiLeaks has no doubt made errors. But many of its revelations have been significant. It has given citizens an insight into US thinking about some of the most complex foreign policy issues of our age, including North Korea, Iran and China.

It is the media’s duty to responsibly report such material if it comes into their possession. To aggressively attempt to shut WikiLeaks down, to threaten to prosecute those who publish official leaks, and to pressure companies to cease doing commercial business with WikiLeaks, is a serious threat to democracy, which relies on a free and fearless press.

Yours faithfully

Clinton Maynard, news director, 2UE

David Penberthy, editor-in-chief, news.com.au

Eric Beecher, chairman, Crikey, Smart Company, Business Spectator, The Eureka Report

Gay Alcorn, editor, The Sunday Age

Garry Bailey, editor, The Mercury (Hobart)

Garry Linnell, editor, The Daily Telegraph

Ian Ferguson, director of news and programs, Sky News Australia/New Zealand

Jim Carroll, network director of news and public affairs, Ten Network

Julian Ricci, editor, Northern Territory News

Kate Torney, director of news, ABC

Mark Calvert, director of news and current affairs, Nine Network

Melvin Mansell, editor, The Advertiser (Adelaide)

Megan Lloyd, editor, Sunday Mail (Adelaide)

Michael Crutcher, editor, The Courier Mail,

Mike van Niekerk, editor in chief, Fairfax online

Paul Cutler, news director, SBS

Paul Ramadge, editor-in-chief, The Age

Peter Fray, editor-in-chief, The Sydney Morning Herald

Peter Meakin, director of news and public affairs, Seven Network

Rick Feneley, editor, The Sun-Herald

Rob Curtain, news director, 3AW

Rod Quinn, editor, The Canberra Times

Sam Weir, editor, The Sunday Times

Scott Thompson, The Sunday Mail (Queensland)

Simon Pristel, editor, Herald Sun

Tory Maguire, editor, The Punch

Walkley Advisory Board

Gay Alcorn

Mike Carlton

Helen Dalley

John Donegan

Peter Meakin

Laurie Oakes

Jeni O'Dowd

Alan Kennedy

Malcolm Schmidtke

Fenella Souter

http://www.walkleys.com/news/1076/

[bemildred]

1. So are we going to see the US media take a stand for press freedom?

(Rhetorical question.)

[Better Believe It]

2. Good question.

[Luminous Animal]

5. There's not been one comprehensive letter but plenty of U.S. journalists support Wikileaks.

Columbia School of Journalism
http://www.poynter.org/latest-news/romenesko/110885/columbia-j-school-staff-wikileaks-prosecution-sets-dangerous-precedent/

The Nation
http://www.thenation.com/article/157017/first-they-came-wikileaks-then

The LA Progressive
http://www.laprogressive.com/the-media/wikileaks-as-this-centurys-upton-sinclair/

Adam Westbrook
http://adamwestbrook.wordpress.com/2010/12/14/goodbye-mainstream-media-its-been-fun/

The Wall Street Journal
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/12/11/AR2010121102564.html

And many more news orgs and individuals can be found here:

About every other day or so, WL Central links to supporters around the world.

http://wlcentral.org/

[Better Believe It]

6. Thank you for the links and information.

[Luminous Animal]

7. You are welcome. And thank you for doing what you do.

[bemildred]

9. Good to know, thank you. nt

[Better Believe It]

3. Australian media support Wikileaks

Australian media support Wikileaks
Monday, 13 December 2010

At the 55th Annual Walkley Awards for Excellence in Journalism on Thursday night, federal secretary Christopher Warren said:

"Tonight, journalists and editors around the world are concerned about the attacks on WikiLeaks. This is an issue of freedom of the press. People have a right to information through the opportunities provided by the web. Journalists remain ready to fight for the principle of exposure journalism.”

The winner of the Gold Walkley Award, Laurie Oakes, used part of his speech to attack the hysteria over WikiLeaks, and strongly criticised Prime Minister Julia Gillard and Federal Attorney-General Robert McClelland for saying that Assange had done something illegal by publishing the leaked diplomatic cables.

“What they said was ridiculous. To brand what the WikiLeaks site has done as illegal when there is no evidence at all of any breach of the law, was I think, demeaning. I think as journalists we should make it clear that that is our view. Whether it’s a letterbox full of classified cables, or a quarter of a million documents in digital form, the principle is the same, and we should fight for the right to publish.”

http://www.alliance.org.au/alliance_support_for_assange/

[Scurrilous]

4. K & R

:bounce: :bounce: :bounce: :bounce:

[David Zephyr]

8. He should be the pride of Australia.

.