We CAN Handle The Truth

Governments are under the impression that they are entitled to their secrecy, and don't bother to tell the public issues of interest. According to the people in "power", the general public is incapable of the "weight" that comes with the truth. One such excuse that is rolled out time and time again is that certain peices of information are a case of "national security". However, "national security" is never fully explained to the citizens, nor do any politicians question it, with the fear of being unpatriotic.

Secrecy for governments allows them to abuse their power. It is thought that citizens should be entitled to secrecy, and governments should exercise transparency. Nothing should be kepts from citizens, unless there is a good reason for it. However, it appears that there is a large amount of infomation, which the government has kept a 'secret', yet it may not have been necessary to have done so. This is where WikiLeaks comes to play.

The main idea behind the non-profit organisation that is WikiLeaks is that they shouldn't be any secrets, whether that be in action, agreements or promises; including people in both public and private organisations. Furthermore, it is a secure platform where whistleblowers can share what the government believe is classified information. One of the main reasons individuals have been providing information to WikiLeaks is to reveal the unethical behaviour by our governments.

There are many criticisms of WikiLeaks, one of which is that it will create distrust and fear within citizens, furthermore, it is thought that people will no longer want to express themselves as they won't want their words taken out of the context that they were formed. The founders of WikiLeaks are also assuming that the public want to know all that is going on with our government, this is not true. In some cases people do not wish to know what WikiLeaks has to offer the public. On the other hand, citizens wanting to put information on WikiLeaks have to ask themselves if by putting this peice of information up; will they endanger an innocent's life? In 2011, the US Defence Department hadn't reported that any informant has been killed or killed as  a result of WikiLeaks.

WikiLeaks has also changed the media in numerous ways, one of which is that it has challenged traditional media. Journalists are now starting to ask the gard questions again. WikiLeaks have also changed the way traditional media presents itself due to the creative collaborations that WikiLeaks have done with them.

And now a video from Anti-Flag, their music includes their left-wing political views, and this particular song is  focusing on anti-war activism. This particular song, is about how much money the US Government is willing to spend on guns.

 

FREEDOM OF SPEECH IS THE MOST IMPORTANT FREEDOM IN OUR SOCIETY

References:
Dreyfus, S, Lederman, R, Bosua, R, &Milton, S 2011, 'Can We Handle the Truth? Whistleblowing to the Media in the Digital Era', Global Media Journal- Australian Edition, 5, 1, pp. 1-6, EBSCOhost, viewed 17th April 2012

Sauter, T, & Kendall, G 2011, 'Parrhesia and Democracy: Truthtelling, WikiLeaks and the Arab Spring', Social Alternatives, 30, 3, pp. 10-14, EBSCOhost, viewed 17th April 2012

Siegel, D 2011, 'Secrecy, Betrayal and Crime', Utrecht Law Review, 7, 3, pp. 107-119, EBSCOhost, viewed17th April 2012