For some weeks now I have been busy with many things and have not found time to follow all the current issues in the new media field.
The wikiLeaks saga is not yet finished. When being busy I have relied strongly to the news provided by the traditional mass media — in practice established Finnish newspapers and TV news.
Now I took some time to study the WikiLeaks -case a bit deeper. I didn’t do any “academic study”, but rather just read various editorials, blogs, commentary, watched and listen to some podcasts/videos about the case. In practice, I spent something like 10 hours to do it – not a big deal, but I did spend some time with the topic.
To save other (new) media educators time, I summarize here the sources which I found most neutral, accurate and useful.
1. WikiRebels by Sweden’s Television SVT
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The documentary, WikiRebels by the Sweden’s Television SVT, the national television broadcaster, is a good introduction to the topic. It summarizes what are the ideas behind the WikiLeaks and also present the people. It also gives a voice for the opponents of the WikiLeaks. I also consider the Sweden’s Television to be a media company with highest journalistic standards. It is interesting to see if the other broadcasters — like the Finnish YLE — will broadcast this. The documentary is available online until January 16 and it comes with English sub-titles. I wouldn’t watch it with children, but it is good material for adults studying media.
2. Wikileaks cable FAQ by Jonathan Zittrain
Professor Jonathan Zittrain of the Berkman Center for Internet & Society at Harvard University / Harvard Law School is maintaining Wikileaks cable FAQ. It covers the event much better than most of the mass media. Also the FAQ format works with this kind of events very well. To start discussion and debate on the topic it is good to have some facts in place.
3. Julian Assange and the Computer Conspiracy by Aaron Badyn
There are thousands of blog posts about the WikLeaks and Julian Assange. Aaron Bady’s (Zunguzungu) post Julian Assange and the Computer Conspiracy; “To destroy this invisible government” goes to the original sources and make analyses of the Assange’s thread of thought. The same writing is available in a in slightly edited form in the Owni.edu online publication. If you want to have a serious discussion on the topic this text is a good starting point.
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