Democracy or Dictatorship? What will happen if the government gains the right to censor free speech?

First off, I would like to say that Julian Assange is doing what any self-respecting journalist in main stream media should be doing. Our country was built on the idea of freedom, and that includes the idea of free press; this is exactly what Julian Assange is exercising, he right to free speech. There is no reason to be prosecuted for exposing the truth about public officials and about our government secrets. Isn't there supposed to be a sense of transparency within government and also through media?

The article from Newsweek makes a very good point -- the prosecution of Assange would make the United States just like any authoritarian governments that American troops are fighting so hard to demolish. How can our government give into the idea of suppression and censorship, when that is against the law, and against what our constitution states?

I understand that in theory, the government can get away with whatever they want, they have almost all of the power, and if the people don't take a stand, the government will gain complete control, and eventually the people will not have a say at all; we will go from a democracy, to what Russia calls a democracy but is more like a dictatorship.

In no way is censorship by any means okay. I understand that the government says that these confidential documents that Assange leaked through WikiLeaks provided a threat to national security, but when it comes down to the evidence, there is nothing that shows that this information caused any damage when it came to the military, just to the governmental egos. Assange exposed the truth; he created the transparency that is supposed to be present in mainstream media, but is not. If he doesn't expose it, who else will? Not the mainstream networks.


A good point is made by Bruce Maiman in his post in the Examiner: Journalists and newspapers such as the Washington Post are so quick to call Assange a traitor, but aren't they the ones that broke the story about the Watergate scandal? Aren't they the ones who exposed the truth about governmental corruption?

This just goes to show how much the mainstream media is now influenced by the government. It's sad really -- it's sad that the media outlet that was created to expose the truth about our government and about our country as a whole, has now bowed down to higher officials. This is highlighted by the fact that, although some journalists have come out against Assange's prosecution, they don't think that he should have exposed confidential documents; they believe that he was within his rights, but don't think that he should have exposed the truth. Isn't that what journalists (especially investigative journalists) are supposed to do?

Back in the time of Woodward and Bernstein, this behavior would have been, in my opinion, not only accepted, but encouraged. To expose government scandals and corruption is part of what journalism is all about. So how can you turn your back on someone who is doing just that? Isn't that his job? Isn't he just doing exactly what Woodward and Bernstein were praised for doing?

Not only does it upset me that some mainstream outlets are standing by the side of the government, but that some of these government officials are calling for the execution of Assange, like Sarah Palin. Now we are trying to execute people for exercising their right to free speech? We are trying to dispose of people who speak out against the government? That sounds like a dictatorship to me.

Julian Assange talking to reporters.

Michael Ratner makes a good point, where he says that the government will have a hard time explaining why they are going after Assange and not others. He says that if the government ends up winning, it will have a scary effect on investigative journalism in the coming years. This is true, if the government is able to censor and dispose of anything and anyone that they don't like and who expose them, what kind of democracy are we? We aren't one.

Investigative journalism is part of what makes this country so great -- the idea that no one is above the law, and that the government shouldn't really be keeping secrets. I understand that some things are better left unsaid, but there are also times, like in the instance of the confidential documents exposed by WikiLeaks, that show the government lies to the people, and the people should have the right to know the truth. A man who exposed this truth should not be prosecuted, and no one should be scared of governmental retaliation just because they expose the truth about governmental corruption.

Our constitution calls for the right to free speech, and just because the government doesn't like what is being said, doesn't mean that they should be above the law and have the right to censor it's citizens, as I said, that's not a democracy. I, 100 percent, stand behind Julian Assange and believe that what he did was right and is what every journalist should set out to do, even the mainstream ones.

I know that they would most likely get fired in modern times for running a story about governmental corruption as an original piece, and any mainstream media outlet, like Amazon will be subject to the wrath of the government just for hosting this kind of information, but if we are scared of the government, then what is journalism really for anyway? Yes, there is an aspect of reporting the news, but shouldn't that not be government controlled news?

Journlaists should back Assange, not only that, they should take a few notes, and maybe begin to stand up for what's right and start writing about the truth, not just what the government wants you to see, not just in independent media, but in mainstream media as well. This is being done by organizations such as ProPublica and others like it, and I think that more people should take after these people -- they should investigate and expose, not bow down in fear. Julian Assange took a stand against the government, not only in the United States, but around the world and he should not be prosecuted for doing that.

If Assange is prosecuted, we should not only fear for the sake of journalism, but for the idea of what the government will be able to get away with next.