> Do you realize that it's not hyperbole to say press freedom in the United States hinges on this case?
If that were actually the case, I'd expect the kind of breathless coverage from the rest of the press that Assange's fans are clamoring for. So it's either...
1. there's a conspiracy afoot, and the press (as a whole) is deliberately coordinating amongst themselves to suppress this significant development, because they're all in the pocket of... etc., etc.;
2. the mainstream press are all dumbasses who don't know the difference between their head and a hole in the ground; or...
3. it is hyperbole to say press freedom in the United States hinges on this case.
My bet is with the latter. Maybe I'm wrong, but it seems like the far safer bet.
Personally, I've long since stopped expecting breathless coverage of important events from a press that collectively prefers covering who Miley Cyrus most recently flashed her crotch to. You'll need to go beyond CNN, MSNBC, or FOX.
“For the first time in the history of our country, the government has brought criminal charges against a publisher for the publication of truthful information. This is an extraordinary escalation of the Trump administration's attacks on journalism, and a direct assault on the First Amendment. It establishes a dangerous precedent that can be used to target all news organizations that hold the government accountable by publishing its secrets. And it is equally dangerous for U.S. journalists who uncover the secrets of other nations. If the US can prosecute a foreign publisher for violating our secrecy laws, there’s nothing preventing China, or Russia, from doing the same.”
"Don’t let the misdirection around “blown informants” fool you—this case is nothing less than the first time in American history that the US government has sought to prosecute the act of publishing state secrets, something that national security reporters do with some regularity."
"The U.S. Government’s Indictment of Julian Assange Poses Grave Threats to Press Freedom. The Trump DOJ is exploiting animosity toward Assange to launch a thinly disguised effort to criminalize core functions of investigative journalism."
If that were actually the case, I'd expect the kind of breathless coverage from the rest of the press that Assange's fans are clamoring for. So it's either...
1. there's a conspiracy afoot, and the press (as a whole) is deliberately coordinating amongst themselves to suppress this significant development, because they're all in the pocket of... etc., etc.;
2. the mainstream press are all dumbasses who don't know the difference between their head and a hole in the ground; or...
3. it is hyperbole to say press freedom in the United States hinges on this case.
My bet is with the latter. Maybe I'm wrong, but it seems like the far safer bet.