Good Leaks, Bad Leaks

By Big Tent Democrat, Section Media
Posted on Wed Dec 01, 2010 at 11:19:49 AM EST
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In a strange post (strangely seconded by Matt Yglesias), Ezra Klein writes:

[Julian] Assange isn't whistleblowing or leaking. Both of those are targeted acts focused on an identified wrongdoing or event. He's simply taking the private and making it public, with relatively little in the way of discrimination.

Since Assange isn't an American, isn't in the government and has no direct knowledge of the activities of the American government, how could he possibly be "whistleblowing or leaking?" What Assange did was publish documents provided to him by actual leakers (Bradley Manning being the principal one apparently.) Ezra gets "leaks" all the time. (I call it access.) Ezra continues:

[T]he likely outcome won't be that people know more, but that they know less, as major institutions -- both public and private -- will stop sharing their information so widely internally and stop writing so much of it down. That means decision-makers will know less, bureaucrats and managers will know less, reporters will know less, historians will know less, and so on.

That's just silly. People will not write less. They will take better care of what they write. As for "reporters knowing less," reporters now only know what the government sources want them to know. That why "access" is so important to Ezra's job. He's not an investigative reporter. He is a conduit for government approved leaks. Of course Ezra thinks those leaks are good because he is the one getting them. (I do not mean to say that Ezra is incapable of delivering good news analysis at times. He does.)

But the only difference between the leaks to Ezra and the leaks TO Julian Assange are government approval. What will be the government's reaction to a security breach? Ezra's speculation of the "likely outcome" is preposterous. But it really does show you how the journalist ethic has utterly failed to hold. Here is a leading young journalist and this is his reaction to a leak? Really? Pathetic.

Speaking for me only

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Good Leaks, Bad Leaks | 13 comments (13 topical)

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Kinda funny how... (5.00 / 1) (#1)
by kdog on Wed Dec 01, 2010 at 11:32:21 AM EST

the same outfit that strips away our privacy with glee at every turn, is now all bent outta shape because their privacy has been violated, and trying to make a terrorism case out of it...kinda hysterical actually.

I can't wait for the Wiki-bank-leaks! (5.00 / 3) (#4)
by observed on Wed Dec 01, 2010 at 12:00:19 PM EST

Those are good leaks, for sure.

Wikileaks keeps an Obama campaign pledge. (5.00 / 2) (#5)
by Ben Masel on Wed Dec 01, 2010 at 12:33:56 PM EST

"Most transparent Administration in history."

: Really? (none / 0) (#8)
by inclusiveheart on Wed Dec 01, 2010 at 02:04:26 PM EST

You think?
I thought that the release they made was pretty benign. Certainly not likely to be news within the international diplomatic and spy community. Seems to me that the only people who would be shocked by those cables would be people outside of those communities.

Just out of curiosity BTD (none / 0) (#2)
by Faust on Wed Dec 01, 2010 at 11:51:45 AM EST

Have you read the Cryptome essay that Assange wrote? It seems that given what a big deal Wikkileaks is becoming, it's worth having in view what Assange himself thinks of what he's up to. It's quite a bit more involved that I would have thought (which is not to commment on it as a theoretical arguement). And in a wierd way it does dovetail with what Ezra is suggesting, though not in the way Ezra thinks.

Do I haaave to? (5.00 / 1) (#3)
by Big Tent Democrat on Wed Dec 01, 2010 at 11:57:48 AM EST

agree w faust (none / 0) (#7)
by wsn on Wed Dec 01, 2010 at 01:08:33 PM EST

This.

If you don't want to read the essay, read this post linked from Yglesias's post. It gives the upshot of what Assange argues in his essay.

Basically Assange wants to make it more costly for organizations to communicate secretly. It is not to leak documents for the sake of leaking them. So what Klein calls a flaw in Assange's methods is exactly Assange's goal. Which, btw, is the point Yglesias was making in his "strange[] seconding" of Klein's post.


Well (none / 0) (#9)
by Big Tent Democrat on Wed Dec 01, 2010 at 04:28:16 PM EST

I don't think this strategy really works.


: ok (none / 0) (#12)
by wsn on Wed Dec 01, 2010 at 07:08:00 PM EST

Fair enough.
I'm not convinced it will either. I definitely think it won't cause a radical shift in the way the US conducts foreign policy, for instance. It might improve it on the margins. It might make it worse on the margins.
But "taking better care of what they write" and "writing less" are not mutually exclusive, nor would either be strange reactions to wikileaks document dumps.

The referenced article of Ezra Klein (none / 0) (#6)
by KeysDan on Wed Dec 01, 2010 at 12:34:55 PM EST

sounds like a government approved leak to a favorite conduit. Probably should have given credit for his insights to David Axelrod as a source.

A Defense of Wikileaks (none / 0) (#10)
by Capt Howdy on Wed Dec 01, 2010 at 04:55:47 PM EST

How it could actually improve U.S. foreign policy.

the new republic

Assange isn't whistleblowing or leaking (none / 0) (#13)
by Catesby on Wed Dec 01, 2010 at 08:03:56 PM EST

because he doesn't work for the government.

He's just publishing.

It drives me crazy with all these people talking about Assange 'leaking', as if he was part of the vessel designed to keep those secrets safe. He isn't.

He is 'the press' in its most basic form.

Wow the stretch some are making here. (none / 0) (#14)
by Gerald USN Ret on Wed Dec 01, 2010 at 09:24:50 PM EST

So telling the KKK where the hiding slaves are and who is hiding them are and taking money for the information is just what? Take your pick.

spreading gossip (if you just don't take the money)
write it on a piece of paper and it is just selling a news paper
careless
foolishness
etc.

and of course you are not responsible

I like the Intelligence General on Charlie Rose the other night who when Charlie said well what offense has the media like the NYT done in publishing this information that was given them?
How is the NYT responsible?

The General said if someone (Assange) provides a minor (the NYT and others) with a gun, then can the minor be held responsible for using the gun?

It is actually standard policy in corporations AND in SOME Government circles now to control how much information is written down and on what and by what means. As one foreign Government said VERY RECENTLY to some of our people. "Don't call me and don't email me. If you have something to say or discuss get on a plane and come visit me in my office in my country."

We will go back at least to a modified version of the "silos" of intelligence and information where all the silos are separate and independent and you go to the bottom of one and present your credentials and your "need to know" to enter the silo and then present your credentials at each floor the elevator stops at. The old "prior 9/11 way." Sure there will be exceptions in talking about "terrorists" to follow the 9/11 commissions recommendations but otherwise it well be the "old way."

And now what I think is a forgone conclusion, so get ready for it.

Assange is on the run now from Interpol for a rape charge. But actually he is a "dead man running." The US probably wouldn't do anything much about him with Obama and Holder at the helm. In other words, our own lads won't snuff him, but the Russians are in the game now, and they know that the US will get the blame anyway, so they will be after Assange hard and fast. Mr Putin plays for keeps. I wonder if Assange is allergic to Alpha particles?

Hey, maybe one of our agents could just write a location down on a piece of paper and leave it where the Russians might find it. Maybe a personal in the NYT or on Craigs list.

"Hacker seen in Perth."

That should be enough.