[p2p-research] “Openleaks” Fwd: <nettime> "A new WikiLeaks" revolts against Assange

[Dante-Gabryell Monson]

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: nettime's avid reader <nettime at kein.org>
Date: Fri, Dec 10, 2010 at 9:01 PM
Subject: <nettime> "A new WikiLeaks" revolts against Assange
To: nettime-l at kein.org




http://www.dn.se/nyheter/varlden/a-new-wikileaks-revolts-against-
assange-1.1224764

Uppdaterat 2010-12-09 22:17.
Publicerat 2010-12-09 22:16

The pressure on WikiLeaks is increasing. DN.se reveals that several key
figures behind the website that publishes anonymous submissions and leaks
of sensitive governmental, corporate, organizational or religious documents
have resigned in protest against the controversial leader Julian Assange
only to launch a new service for the so-called whistleblowers. The goal: to
leak sensitive information to the public.

The new project, “Openleaks,” has been under way for some time and will be
launched Monday. DN.se has spoken to individuals behind the new site and
the message is clear.

“Our long term goal is to build a strong, transparent platform to support
whistleblowers--both in terms of technology and politics--while at the same
time encouraging others to start similar projects,” says a colleague
wishing to remain anonymous.

”As a short-term goal, this is about completing the technical
infrastructure and ensuring that the organization continues to be
democratically governed by all its members, rather than limited to one
group or individual.”

The news comes in turbulent times for WikiLeaks. Thousands of documents
infuriating global leaders and policy-makers have been unveiled to the
public via Cablegate. Meanwhile, Julian Assange has been arrested in Great
Britain on suspected rape charges based in Sweden. News about WikiLeaks has
been over-shadowed by Assange's personal problems.

Earlier this year, WikiLeaks experienced accessibility issues. According to
information revealed to DN.se, the problem was not linked to outsiders
trying to sabotage, but came from the inside as a signal to Julian Assange
to step down. The colleagues were dissatisfied with the operation's
association with Assange's personal problems and how he used the
organization in his explanation of the criminal charges.

It is the top-down management style which is under critique.

On the other hand, the DN.se source emphasizes the fact that the new
website is supportive of WikiLeaks purpose and goal.

“The two organizations are similar in that aspect that both are focusing on
providing means for whistleblowers to anonymously provide the public with
information,” one insider says.

Unlike WikiLeaks, Openleaks will not receive and publish information
directly for the public eye. Instead, other organizations will access the
Openleaks system and in turn, present their audience with the material.
Documents will be processed and published by various collaborating
organizations.

“We intend to split the work in a way where we handle only the anonymity
and receiving end of the information,” says another colleague.

According to the internal documents shared with DN.se, Openleaks intends to
establish itself as a neutral intermediary ”without a political agenda
except from the dissemination of information to the media, the public, non-
profit organizations, trade- and union organizations and other
participating groups.”

“All editorial control and responsibility rests with the publishing
organization. We will, as far as possible, take the role of the messenger
between the whistleblower and the organization the whistleblower is trying
to cooperate with,” says one anonymous informant.
Another intended consequence is to avoid the pressure from world leaders
that WikiLeaks has experienced.

“As a result of our intention not to publish any document directly and in
our own name, we do not expect to experience the kind of political pressure
which WikiLeaks is under at this time. In that aspect, it is quite
interesting to see how little of politicians' anger seems directed at the
newspapers using WikiLeaks sources.”


Translation: Majsan Boström.
Ossi Carp, ossi.carp at dn.se





#  distributed via <nettime>: no commercial use without permission
#  <nettime>  is a moderated mailing list for net criticism,
#  collaborative text filtering and cultural politics of the nets
#  more info: http://mail.kein.org/mailman/listinfo/nettime-l
#  archive: http://www.nettime.org contact: nettime at kein.org
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://listcultures.org/pipermail/p2presearch_listcultures.org/attachments/20101210/c1e84315/attachment.html>