維基解密——傳播和媒體工具
Wikileaks As A Communication And Media Tool

 

維基解密是一個非盈利媒體組織工作的動機模型，沒有任何政府障礙地將公正的重要信息和新聞傳遞給公眾。 維基解密還為讀者和歷史學家出版了原始的新聞資料。維基解密網依賴于警惕和活躍的志愿者提供的數據，再通過安全通道進行維基解密。 維基解密已經飽受各種政府組織的攻擊壓制，使信息不能傳遞到普通人群的手中。 維基解密是公共合作的一個活生生的例子，它憑借言論自由的基本權利提供信息，以提供整個世界信息，不論在志愿者之間的地區差異。“維基解密”是<<人權宣言>>的基本原則。

維基解密是仿照一種稱為“數據新聞”新新聞，合并數據挖掘和數據管理。“維基解密”記者執行了調查研究和節目制作的關鍵任務，以產生與公眾背景相關的原創故事、信息和新聞。“維基解密”為處理外交提供一個完美的平臺，而沒有傳統新聞生產成本不斷上升等的恐懼。維基解密上運行的主要優勢是來自匿名的捐款。

 

維基解密執行一系列重要角色的信息公開：

 

資料來源：志愿者通過安全通道和加密媒介收集的信息

聚合和管理——類似的賬戶,對瑞士銀行開戶印第安人的私人銀行家，告密者魯道夫埃爾默，在維基解密一個詳盡的列表提名。審查列表信息完整后才出版。

審查的數據,基于現代科技方法，如法醫分析，偽造成本和發送團隊的網站等一些方法來驗證數據的真實性。

 

Wikileaks is an media organization working on a non profit model with the motive of bringing unbiased important information and news to the public without any govt barrier. Wikileaks also publishes original news provident relevant data for readers and historians as well. Wikileaks relies on data provided by vigilant and active group of volunteers who provide data to Wikileaks through secured channel. Wikileaks has been under constant attack from various governmental organisations to suppress the senstitive information from passing onto the hands of the general population. Wikileaks is a live example of the optimum usage of the fundamental right of freedom to speech to provide information to whole world through public collaboration irrespective of the regional disparity among the volunteers. Wikileaks work on the foundation principle of Universal declaration of human rights.#p#分頁標題#e#

 

維基解密,新聞的新模式-Wikileaks, a new model of Journalism

 

Wikileaks is modelled on a new type of journalism called 'Data Journalism' which merges data mining and curation of data. Wikileaks' journalist perform the critical task of investigative research and programming to generate original stories and information and news relevant to public context. Wikileaks provides the perfect platform to handle diplomacy without the fear of conventional journalism like rising production costs etc. The major advantage is that Wikileaks runs on donations from nameless donors.

 

Wikileaks perform a list of important roles to bring the information to public:

 

Source Finding - Collection of information from volunteers through secured channels and encrypted mediums

 

Aggregation and Curation - On a similar account, an exhaustive list of names of Swiss Bank account holding Indians given to Wikileaks by private banker turned whistleblower Rudolf Elmer. The complete list of name was promised to be published only after information has been vetted.

 

Scrutiny of Data - Modern technology based methods like forensic analysis, forgery costs and sending teams to sites are some of the methods employed to verify the authenticity of the data. 

 

In the case of leak of almost 400,000 US Army reports from the Iraq war covering events from Iraq war from 2004 to 2009 containing classified data. Wikileaks sent its own team to verify the authenticity of the reports before making it public. This sets a completely new standard for journalism.

 

Distribution of Information - Wikileaks provides the information free of costs on all the digital mediums like social media websites.

 

Data Indexing - the content on Wikileaks can be easily searched with are indexed on the basis of geographic metadata like maps, textual metadata, comments by users, context based like Guardian, user generated ranking for new content etc. The content on the website can only be published and edited by team of experts and journalists and not by common public to maintain the sanctity of the news information.

 

Although Wikileaks provides an ideal journalism model, it is surrounded by critical issues of Privacy, Legal Issues and ownership issues. The nameless donors could become dictators and pose threat to the existence of Wikileaks

 

維基解密的關鍵作用在媒體和法律-Wikileaks' critical role in Media and Law

 

The operation of Wikileaks has raised many eye brows against right to WhistleBlowing and Privacy concerns among the power holders of the world. As quoted by the Canadian Privacy Commissioner "Information and the manipulation of information is the key to power. Those who can control the information can influence society enormously". For the above reason it becomes imperative to draw attention towards the issue of information control and role of gatekeepers in todays information era. In India the recent passing of RTI(Right To Information) Act, provides the public the right to ask for information pertaining to public bodies and information considered to important in public interest. Whistle blowing acts a separate but critical method of keeping the public informed about information in interest to public or important for maintaining the transparency of institution both private and public having public stake. The other side of the multi edged swored comprises of right to privacy.#p#分頁標題#e#

 

Ratan Tata的談話與企業的說客Nira Radia-Case of Ratan Tata's conversation with corporate lobbyist Nira Radia

 

Ratan Tata, chairman of Tata Group was forced to appeal to Honourable Supreme Court of India to seek restraint against publication of the transcripts related to his conversation with Ms Nadia in relation to the 2G spectrum scam in India brought to light last year. The transcripts were published in Wikileaks via volunteer who submitted those tapes. Ratan Tata appealed in court with reference to Article 21 of the Indian Constitution to appeal against infringement of Privacy. Ratan Tata objected against those transcripts being made publicly available instead of being used for investigation.

 

The above mentioned case clearly brings the issue of lack to law enforcement to keep the three equally important but fuzzily differentiated responsibilities of Wikileaks as a active medium in information dissemination among public keeping its own role sacrosanct. It also raises few critical issues related to Law and regulation to keep balance between privacy rules and right to information to public in interest of public.

 

維基解密,積極促進民主的平臺-Wikileaks, active platform for promoting Democracy

 

Internet as a tool for democracy has raised two critical arguments in its favour. Internet will help dissemination of information among public leading to more educated and informed electorate. Also, it would give voices to general public by letting them a platform to discuss and participate in the political process more actively.

 

The expansion of digital world has led to the growth of a new world coined as 'Cyberutopia'. The utopian characteristic of the cyber world arises from the fact that it doesn't discriminates people on the basis of gender, age, class, language, race, occupation, nationality etc. which are the major socio economic differentiators in the real world. Internet provides everyone equal opportunity to raise his/her voice through this medium. While internet forms the foundation to utopian society, it also raises issue related to control of internet for surveillance of population through exhaustive database and controlling other socio economic activities.

 

Many websites in the past and current world have enabled the users to share information among the community like Wikipedia, Facebook, Blogs, Torrents, EBay, Napster, Youtube etc. These websites are mostly based on the principle of building value for the users through business models with a lesser focus on democratic participation. These websites provide the consumers to meet face to face to bring forth critical issues and discuss on an open platform. Wikileaks on the other hand encourages democracy through its model of accepting volunteer submitted content and parallel maintaining of secrecy of identity of the volunteers. The content is of less importance for commercial purpose than for political usage.#p#分頁標題#e#

 

維基解密和數字公民-Wikileaks and Digital Citizenship

 

As brought forward by Nikolas Rose and Carlos Nova, the current age has been active in raising question about national citizenship of an individual. Citizenship in its original form defines a one with entitlement to participate in political events in the nation, obliged to speaking the national language, developing social insurance systems to bind the citizens together with all the above traits being national. The notion of citizenship in the digital age has been altered significantly. Now all the individuals sharing a common belief, sharing common experience for example health issues etc form a new group of citizens. Digital era through internet provides these groups to meet and interact and form a strong community and acting as a citizen. For example, all the cancer survivors forming a digital nation and acting as digital citizens with the motive to spread awareness about cancer and help preventing it in real world.

 

Wikileaks along similar lines helps develop a strong, interconnected group of volunteers dedicated to collection of information sources relevant to public viewing and considered important for public display to enhance transparency in the working of the govt and corporates functioning having public stake in it.

 

維基解密幫助透明的治理-Wikileaks helping Transparent Governance

 

Wikileaks founder Julian Assange compared Wikileaks' push for transparent governance to civil rights movement in 1950s, peace movement in 1960s and feminism and environmental movements. Wikileaks appears as information avatars which provides every citizen the detailed accounts of international events and deals beyond the boundary of his parent nation. These are important as deals have direct or indirect effects on masses. The list of governance exposure ranges from exposing oppressive regimes in sub-saharan Africa and middle east, corruption in Kenya to Guantanamo Bay prisoner camp, Sarah Palin personal Email account, toxic waste scandal in Africa, publishing of classified information from Pentagon and British military.

 

Wikileaks has been the most effective catalyst to the postmodernism movement by providing information to attain objective truth and minimize suspicion towards the global culture by increasing transparency. Wikileaks has helped cross the boundary of gender, class, language and political boundary thorough supporting of critical theory.

 

Wikileaks would obviously not completely change the face of diplomacy but would certainly throw some caution to the winds in the political corridors. It would certainly make transfer of confidential data more difficult, provide a pause on the minds of businessmen, journalist, corporate lobbyist, campaigners and other diplomats before any transaction.#p#分頁標題#e#

 

Some of the Exposure by Wikileaks,

 

討論-Discussion

 

Wikileaks has created a completely new standard in the field of investigative journalism with optimum mix of technology and journalism expertise. It has been able to bring 'original and authentic news information' to public . It has maintained open and transparent relationships with other newsgroup and users. Wikileaks on the contrary has been the in the eye of the storm of political and legal issues which raises the question of its long term sustainability as a journalism model. It has been able to keep govt and corporates to its toes but it also faces from the critical concern of financial dependence from donors.