NameIsRobertPaulson said:
Yeah...
I'm siding with the real Julian Assange on this one. The movie is a glorified smear campaign, and holds almost zero accuracy.
When the British Prime Minister, one of the people most hurt by WikiLeaks' actions, calls the film about the leader of WikiLeaks a "Masterpiece", something has gone horribly fucking wrong.
Admittedly, I don't actually know enough about Julian Assange's personal history to judge the accuracy of this film. However, if you're going to call out a piece of art as character assassination, you need more to go on than 'somebody who probably doesn't like Julian Assange very much likes this film'.
I believe that people in positions of power should be held accountable for the mistakes they make, just like any other citizen, and the people who operate Wikileaks stand in a unique position to hold said people accountable when they try to cover up their transgressions. As far as that line of reasoning goes, I have respect for the movement's motives.
However, on the other side of the coin, 'accountability' is exactly the problem I have with Wikileaks and Assange himself. He, and they, take it upon themselves to compile information that is extremely sensitive to the national security of several nations charge with the protection of hundreds of millions of people worldwide. It cannot be overstated just how much power an organisation like Wikileaks can hold; and they hold it, actively revelling in the fact that they are beholden to no rule of law or any body that could possibly enforce one. Granted, they wouldn't be able to do what they do if they were, but that doesn't make the situation any less concerning. They can hold others accountable, but they have no accountability themselves.
Wikileaks is a faceless body of individuals. More faceless in fact, than any government of corporation I know of. Within that body I'm sure there are people who merely want to see those in power stand up and be counted, and who wouldn't go so far as to put innocent lives at risk to see that happen. I am equally sure that there are others who do not take the responsibility of what they hold in their hands so seriously. As for Assange himself, I am not certain, although I doubt he is a saint. Regardless, to blanket-label a bunch of people you don't know as "heroes" is naive. I would be one of the last to claim that our current mainstream new outlets have no room for improvement. I do however, sleep easily knowing that if the BBC or CNN or even FOX decided one day that they would knowingly and recklessly put innocent lives at risk just for the sake of sticking it to The Man, someone would answer for it in a court of law.