© ReutersWikiLeaks founder Julian Assange: "Where did you get my number?"
In about April last year, just before his name became a byword for, depending on your viewpoint, either transparency or treason, I attempted to interview WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange. Armed with a mobile phone number passed on to me by a colleague from an unknown source, I found myself talking to Assange himself. His response to the call was understandable and hypocritical.
His first words were: ''Where did you get my number?'' When I offered a vague explanation, he expressed displeasure that it had been passed on to me. It was a natural response given his organisation was in the process of severely embarrassing the almighty US government by releasing the video from an American attack helicopter showing non-combatants, including two Reuters newsagency staff, being shot dead. Assange had reason to cover his tracks, but missed the irony in being contacted via leaked information.
We conducted a stilted discussion in which he said he had already been interviewed by
Good Weekend (published subsequently), said he might talk to me if I had some information to trade, and required that I text my phone details. Apart from acknowledging that he received my SMS, I never heard from him again.
The WikiLeaks frontman's response was no different to some journalists who seem to give substance to the aphorism: suspicion of others stems from self-knowledge.
Many would dispute Assange's claim that he is a journalist, but I agree that in a loose sense he probably does qualify.
Journalism is changing as traditional news organisations contract. A couple of years ago I calculated there were probably three or four former journalists who had crossed to what we still in the business consider ''the dark side'', for every one left working for the mainstream media.
By the dark side I mean spin doctoring, public relating or otherwise manipulating information fed back to their former colleagues. Incidentally, I can't blame people taking this path given the contraction of media jobs; people have to earn a living.
Comment: The principle of Wikileaks is sound and it has done some good in some cases. For that we salute them. The problem is it is just as useful for a "limited hangout" operation. "We'll let you find out about some of our dirt, which will distract everyone from the really bad stuff we're doing." We are so starved for anything resembling real information, we scramble gratefully for the smallest crumbs wile missing the larger strategies of the PTB.
For more background on Wikileaks see here:
Wikileaks and the War for your Mind
Beware Julian Assange and Wikileaks - Darlings Of The Mainstream Media
Wiki-Leaks and Plausible Lies - Where Have All The Critical Thinkers Gone?
Gordon Duff: Wikileaks, A Touch Of Assange and the Stench of AIPAC