60 Minutes: WikiLeaks' Julian Assange, Pt. 1

[alp227]

Run time: 15:00 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DzC9invn4Ko   Posted on YouTube: January 30, 2011 By YouTube Member: CBSNewsOnline Views on YouTube: 154   Posted on DU: January 31, 2011 By DU Member: alp227 Views on DU: 1379

 
(CBS) Just a few months ago, most people had never heard of a Web site called WikiLeaks, or of its mysterious and eccentric founder, Julian Assange. But in that short period of time both have managed to rattle the worlds of journalism, diplomacy, and national security. WikiLeaks, which solicits and publishes secrets and suppressed material from whistleblowers around the world, has been under cyber attack from governments that want to shut it down. And Assange is currently under legal attack from the U.S. government which would like to charge him with espionage for publishing volumes of classified material from the Pentagon and the State Department.

"60 Minutes" and correspondent Steve Kroft spent two days with him in Great Britain where he is under house arrest, while fighting extradition to Sweden for questioning in two sexual assault cases, which he's called part of a smear campaign against him. In his most extensive television interview to date, Assange talked to us about his work, his vision and the prospects of facing criminal charges in the United States.

Full story: http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2011/01/26/60minutes/main7286686.shtml

Part 2 (can't embed): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FOSEgbg-6uA

[FreakinDJ]

1. Can't wait for the information on American Banks

[snot]

2. How to safely donate to WL, which is being financially strangled:

http://c-cyte.blogspot.com/2011/01/how-to-donate-to-wikileaks-using-flattr.html

[go west young man]

3. 60 minutes in this clip mention that the state dept cables

are the a leading reason for the revolution in Tunisia. I put a thread up the other day
in regards to Bradley Manning being the best we have and his actions may have brought
about not one but two revolutions. One soldier has accomplished more in over throwing
two governments than the entire U.S. military has in 10 years. Now I say it once again.
That's a fucking soldier!

[JDPriestly]

12. I do not think that the cables are the "leading reason for the

revolution in Tunisia." Rather, the cables were the torch that lit a fire to the anger that was smoldering in Tunisia. The cables did not cause the conflagration. The smoldering mass, the anger of the hungry caused the conflagration. Had Wikileaks not existed, something else would have lit that fire.

History just has its own path. Wikileaks is just one of a number of historical events piling on each other leading ultimately toward increased freedom but also toward increased personal and societal responsibility.

As Assange points out, our revolution was a milestone in the historical push toward the kind of freedom and responsibility I am describing. But we somehow have lost the lead. Our time in the history of human progress is being overtaken by events happening in other countries. It is hard to say which country will take the lead in the march toward increasing social harmony and freedom now.

[JJW]

4. Truth

The truth will set you free.

If you've done nothing wrong, you have nothing to hide.

[Manifestor_of_Light]

5. Where'd they get those gnarly 1970s drapes?

Assange is so cool, defending freedom of the press.

Making Steve-O look stupid.

[defendandprotect]

6. Watched -- anyone else notice they didn't show the WHOLE of the notorious video ....

of the senseless attack on a group of people which included two journalists?

They cut out the parts which should be "embarrassing" to us all, including our government!!

Keep in mind, I probably haven't seen one of these shows, ever --

But Kroft was annoying in the slanting of his questions --

but thought Assange always managed to turn things around --

especially when Kroft mentioned he is thought of as a "martyr" -- !!

Assange quickly pointed out he was not yet dead!

Also, after Assange recited the many calls for his death by Palin and others --

Kroft just shook it off as "free speech" -- which shocked me and made me wonder

how many had picked THAT up? But, Assange picked it up quickly and made clear

no one is permitted to call for violence/death of another!

At another point, Kroft/60 Minutes went off on this Assange bio which seemed

intended to try to portray him as a nut case -- exactly what they did to OSWALD

is what came to my mind.

Amazing -- Amazing junk!

[go west young man]

10. Picked that up too.

There was a lot of edits throughout. I have a feeling they edited out Assange's
defense of Manning but clearly they didn't show the rescue van being attacked
by the Apache in Iraq. They could have but chose not to.

[defendandprotect]

15. .. and after that, I really should have tuned out ...

I'd rather hear from Assange directly -

[JDPriestly]

13. Kroft is afraid. That is understandable. He probably has

kids and a huge mortgage and an expensive lifestyle. Those things enchain our "journalists." It's a far cry from the days of Benjamin Franklin who was pretty much self-educated or Thomas Paine.

http://www.ushistory.org/paine/rights/

The Rights of Man

[Hissyspit]

7. From Greg Mitchell:

http://www.thenation.com/blog/158141/wikileaks-news-views-blog-special-weekend-edition

9:10 @WLLegal tweets: "Kroft's report 2 weeks ago http://bit.ly/fxM1BP He clearly cites the Yemen cables, though he (strangely) doesn't mention #Wikileaks by name."

[LandR]

8. great interview

Fantastic showing on Assange's behalf. The interviewer was raising most of the critical points against WikiLeaks and Assange threw it back in his face every time. We could say the interviewer was playing devils advocate to Assange, but I think he was really trying to catch Assange in a journalistic contradiction.

It reminds me of the interviews Jon Stewart does on fox when they try to catch Stewart in a trivial matter, then Stewart throws it right back in their face. Assange is clearly becoming better versed in media matters and how to prevent hit pieces on himself. I was worried this interview would be similar to the 60 minutes piece on Sam Harris recently, where they did not provide a fair picture of Harris, but Assange did well.

Thanks for posting

[Raschel]

9. Great post. I totally agree. Assange threw it right back at him.

[pam4water]

11. Great thanks for posting. The 60 guy looks like an idiot!

[Enthusiast]

14. 60 Minutes and Kroft

are very disappointing. We need more whistle blowers out there looking out for our interests, not fewer.

The key point here is Assange is pointing out that the U.S. government is a potential threat to our keystone freedom, freedom of the press. Amazingly enough Kroft doesn't appear to recognize that. Is Kroft just playing dumb?

[pdsimdars]

16. So intelligent

It is nice to hear someone express so clearly what our values are. And in the piece he said if we are setting up barriers for the press to publish then we have lost our way . . . . I think we have already lost our way. And it's great to see freedom loving people throughout the world stepping up to steer us back home and help us restore ourselves as the beacon light of freedom.