Re: <nettime> Pilger on flow of information

[John Young <jya@pipeline.com>]

Fine for offense for estabished, seasoned 
journalists beholden to commercial publishers to 
promote the industry as defenders of, well, the 
superstructure varies, but usually rests on the 
advertising foundation, or generous benefactors 
of the NGO species, not to overlook the evenly 
more capaciously-backed GOV-supported enterprises, BBG, RFE, Tor, Signal, etc.

But, upon careful scrutiny of the 
WikiLeaks/Assange saga, the voluminous outpouring 
is not yet so applicable to WL/Assange despite 
innumerable journalists making use of it/him for 
their purposes, as done by the press for the 
history of WikiLeaks, Assange doing his part to 
play along with the rather over the top 
comedic-melodrama customarily deployed by used vehicle salespersons.

Hang out with journalists for an earful of their 
venomous hatred of publishers and advertisers and 
public relations practitioners, and, not least, 
lawyers devising and running the plays of what 
can be published with limited risk to owners/investors of the press.

Assange once castigated journalists for their 
cowardice but elected to tone that down after 
being joined by a coterie of "seasoned" jounos 
and 1A lawyers who advised to wear the costume of 
press privilege, to shade releases enough to 
forestall official armageddon, that is, prevent 
and/or dry-up funding, to perform "responsibly," 
and quietly vet with authorities. Assange's 
indictments, original and superceding, appear 
crafted with the 1A industry prime target.

The very exaggerated defense of press sanctity in 
the Assange case certainly betrays venal 
opportunism with least risk to journalism and 
maximum publicity. Pile it on, so seldom does a 
group of usually vicious competitors get to 
choral a glorification of a sacrificial victim: 
they can only hope Assange is paraded for months 
and years "on the way to the gallows." Cliche gold mine awaits.



At 01:43 PM 6/16/2019, you wrote:
> Dear nettime,Â
>
> This interview is an impressive account, if you 
> have not read one?and by one of our most 
> impressive brothers?- of the at attacks and 
> governmental punishment of journalists in a 
> several countries, and the falling down of free 
> press and flow of information in liberal 
> democracies which are still pretending to be liberal democracies.Â
>
> John Pilger - such a commanding voice for these 
> times - a supporter of Assange?gives us history and aanalysis:
>
> <https://consortiumnews.com/2019/06/14/john-pilger-the-global-war-on-assange-journalism-dissent/>https://consortiumnews.com/2019/06/14/john-pilger-the-global-war-on-assange-journalism-dissent/
>
> Molly
>
>
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