WIFP calls on the Biden Administration and the Department of Justice to end the prosecution of publisher Julian Assange and to support freedom of the press.

The Assange Defense released the following press release:

Bombshell investigation reveals CIA plots to kidnap, assassinate Assange.

Discussions over kidnapping or killing Assange occurred “at the highest levels” of the Trump administration, said a former senior counterintelligence official. “There seemed to be no boundaries.”

Yahoo! News has uncovered the incredible and disturbing range of actions the CIA was considering against WikiLeaks’ publisher Julian Assange while he was in the Ecuadorian Embassy in London. Zach Dorfman, Sean D. Naylor and Michael Isikoff spoke to more than 30 former U.S. officials to confirm that the agency seriously considered and debated abducting Assange from the embassy and even mentioned the possibility of assassinating him. 

“Some senior officials inside the CIA and the Trump administration even discussed killing Assange, going so far as to request “sketches” or “options” for how to assassinate him. Discussions over kidnapping or killing Assange occurred “at the highest levels” of the Trump administration, said a former senior counterintelligence official. “There seemed to be no boundaries.”

The conversations were part of an unprecedented CIA campaign directed against WikiLeaks and its founder. The agency’s multipronged plans also included extensive spying on WikiLeaks associates, sowing discord among the group’s members, and stealing their electronic devices.”

U.S. officials allege that in 2017 they believed that Russia was working to sneak Assange out of the embassy—which, as Assange’s partner Stella Moris reminds, was a fabricated pretext —and they were willing to go to extreme lengths to thwart such a plot: 

“In response, the CIA and the White House began preparing for a number of scenarios to foil Assange’s Russian departure plans, according to three former officials. Those included potential gun battles with Kremlin operatives on the streets of London, crashing a car into a Russian diplomatic vehicle transporting Assange and then grabbing him, and shooting out the tires of a Russian plane carrying Assange before it could take off for Moscow. (U.S. officials asked their British counterparts to do the shooting if gunfire was required, and the British agreed, according to a former senior administration official.)”

The Obama administration, as has been widely reported and discussed at length during Assange’s extradition hearing, declined to prosecute Assange on publication charges on Constitutional grounds, finding no way to do so without running afoul of the First Amendment. So the intelligence community worked to redefine WikiLeaks to circumvent the problem and to expand their range of targets:

“Still chafing at the limits in place, top intelligence officials lobbied the White House to redefine WikiLeaks — and some high-profile journalists — as “information brokers,” which would have opened up the use of more investigative tools against them, potentially paving the way for their prosecution, according to former officials. It “was a step in the direction of showing a court, if we got that far, that we were dealing with agents of a foreign power,” a former senior counterintelligence official said.

Among the journalists some U.S. officials wanted to designate as “information brokers” were Glenn Greenwald, then a columnist for the Guardian, and Laura Poitras, a documentary filmmaker, who had both been instrumental in publishing documents provided by Snowden.”

While the abduction and assassination plans were ultimately rebuffed by White House lawyers, they sped up the Department of Justice’s legal case against Assange, merely by virtue of being so outrageous:

“Some National Security Council officials worried that the CIA’s proposals to kidnap Assange would not only be illegal but also might jeopardize the prosecution of the WikiLeaks founder. Concerned the CIA’s plans would derail a potential criminal case, the Justice Department expedited the drafting of charges against Assange to ensure that they were in place if he were brought to the United States.”

Assange remains imprisoned in maximum security Belmarsh prison for two and a half years, despite winning his extradition battle in the UK’s District Court. The ruling, which declared that sending Assange from the UK to the U.S. would put him at risk of suicide, was immediately appealed by the U.S. to the High Court, which will hear appeal arguments in London on October 27-28.

Reactions

Barry Pollack, Assange’s U.S. lawyer:

“As an American citizen, I find it absolutely outrageous that our government would be contemplating kidnapping or assassinating somebody without any judicial process simply because he had published truthful information,” Barry Pollack, Assange’s U.S. lawyer, told Yahoo News.
…
“My hope and expectation is that the U.K. courts will consider this information and it will further bolster its decision not to extradite to the U.S.,” Pollack added.
…
“the extreme nature of the type of government misconduct that you’re reporting would certainly be an issue and potentially grounds for dismissal.” He likened the measures used to target Assange to those deployed by the Nixon administration against Daniel Ellsberg for leaking the Pentagon Papers, noting the charges against Ellsberg were ultimately dismissed as well.

Laura Poitras: 

“In a statement to Yahoo News, Poitras said reported attempts to classify herself, Greenwald and Assange as “information brokers” rather than journalists are “bone-chilling and a threat to journalists worldwide.” 

“That the CIA also conspired to seek the rendition and extrajudicial assassination of Julian Assange is a state-sponsored crime against the press,” she added.

Glenn Greenwald:

“I am not the least bit surprised that the CIA, a longtime authoritarian and antidemocratic institution, plotted to find a way to criminalize journalism and spy on and commit other acts of aggression against journalists,” Greenwald told Yahoo News.

Freedom of the Press Foundation: “After shocking story about CIA illegal acts, Biden admin must drop Assange charges immediately”

“The CIA is a disgrace. The fact that it contemplated and engaged in so many illegal acts against WikiLeaks, its associates, and even other award-winning journalists is an outright scandal that should be investigated by Congress and the Justice Department. The Biden Administration must drop its charges against Assange immediately. The case already threatens the rights of countless reporters. These new revelations, which involve a shocking disregard of the law, are truly beyond the pale.” — Executive director Trevor Timm

Defending Rights & Dissent: DRAD Condemns Outrageous CIA Attacks on Assange and Press Freedom

“Regardless of the targets, such actions are illegal and immoral. That the CIA seriously considered resurrecting some of its most criminal tactics of the Global War on Terror and Cold War is cause for serious alarm. That the target was an award winning journalist, however, makes these revelations all the more chilling,” said Chip Gibbons, Defending Rights & Dissent’s Policy Director.

Assange Defense Committee
Co-Chairs: Noam Chomsky, Alice Walker, and Daniel Ellsberg

By Nora Massignotti-Cortese

Nora Massignotti-Cortese is a Chilean American writer, editor and translator with over twenty years experience on newspapers and magazines, with public relations, marketing and advertising agencies. She is a long-time Associate of WIFP.

Reviewing my beginnings in journalism, I endured thresholds prickled with thorns of unusual, dramatic, comic, and embarrassing experiences combined with joy and pride. My story reflects the real challenges that all women face in their everyday lives and work.

At 18, while attending my first semester at the University, I dared to visit

La Nación newspaper offices in Santiago, Chile with the idea of ​​working there So I ventured to enter into the colossal newsroom where boisterous teletypes uttered the news.

Can I help you? A middle-aged man with the face of a good-natured father came out to meet me. I pitched my idea, throwing enthusiastic phrases to the left and right. When I calmed down, he asked me sympathetically: Would you like to be an intern without pay and anonymously? My heart overflowed with enthusiasm.

I was assigned to assist the manager of the entertainment page in reporting the programming of the two TV channels, 9 – University of Chile and 13 – Catholic University. My problem was that I didn’t have a typewriter, not even a TV set. However, I was able to accomplish this task with the help of my aunt Vittoria who “lent” me her Olivetti and a kind neighbor – Señora Teresa – who let me watch TV at her house.

My boss was a gentleman of few words and very relaxed. In the opinion of the other journalists, he was lazy. After being there two months, his nonchalant attitude helped me expand my writings. I developed a Women’s Supplement, which they accepted because I worked alone and even had to sell ads for this publication. The supplement was a success. 

After that accomplishment, my boss offered me to be in charge of the entire entertainment section because he would be absent for a long weekend. When I tried to get some clarification or plan about the subject, his immediate response was, “you have editorial independence with a byline.”

I decided to interview Jaime Vadell, a handsome and talented theater and TV Chilean actor. I got carried away by my great fascination for him and made the big mistake of crossing the fine line from objective to subjective journalism. Fortunately, no one found out about my ulterior reasons. The following day, many journalists greeted me with applause, praising my report. However, the accolades lasted until a man that I had never seen before barked out my name. He was the Executive Director. 

“Did you write this interview”?

Confused, I said ‘yes.’

“Do you have any idea who Roberto Rossellini is”? 

When I tried to answer, he became vociferous. I observed the pained faces of the journalists that were begging me with signs and gestures to be quiet.

“How could you miss a tremendous opportunity to interview the most famous Italian film director”?

“Who the hell is Jaime Vadell and why did you dedicate a whole page to him”?

 “YOU ARE FIRED!!!!!

Being a young intern, I did not have the proper authority to interview Rossellini. In retrospect, the irony of this melodramatic and ridiculous incident is that although it hurt me, it was an experience that inspired me to continue with more vigor. Nevertheless, I was just happy to have been published.

 So far, I have faced a myriad of prejudice, but the gratification has been more significant. Since then, I have refined my journalistic abilities under the guidance of highly regarded male and female editors. I worked in Washington D.C. for the Hispanic media for over 25 years. My essays, artworks and poems have been published by The Creative Woman, a quarterly of Governors State Universityand by Voices a publication of the Arts and Humanities Program of Lombardi Georgetown University

In 1998, I created the magazines’ MUJER 2000 and Educación Más(under the umbrella of El Tiempo Latino). I interviewed notable women such as Guatemalan activist and Nobel Peace Prize winner Rigoberta Menchu, among others. 

No matter what, the journey is littered with so many biases that we women must use coping skills and resilience to survive. We fight twice as hard for our fundamental rights and, unfortunately, reach half of the resolution. 

Our efforts to achieve gender equality begin to pay off with the latest appointments of competent and experienced women editors. This action will elevate the level of leadership, even though it will take a century and a half to achieve global parity.

• In September 2011, Jill Abramson was the first woman to become an executive editor at The New York Times after 160 years
• In 2015, Audrey Cooper was named the first female editor-in-chief of The San Francisco Chronicle’s 150-year history. 
• In 2020, Monica Richardson became the first black woman executive editor to lead The Miami Herald, El Nuevo Herald, and the Bradenton Herald after117 years
• In April 2021, Alessandra Galloni was named the first woman editor-in-chief of Reuters News Agency after 170 years.  
• InMay2021, Sally Buzbee was named the first woman executive editor by The Washington Post after 143 years. 
• In May 2021, Laurence des Cars was the first woman Director elected by the Louvre after 228 years.

This phenomenon is centuries in the making. The best illustration of this gender disparity is the Swedish Nobel Prize Academy that, since 1901, has awarded 962 laureates; only 57 women have received this honor.

In 1945, Gabriela Mistral was Latin America’s first-ever NobelPrize winner in Literature. She also was the victim of blatant chauvinism of the Chilean literary society that six years later deigned to grant her the Chilean National Prize for Literature. Since its creation, 50 male writers have been credited with the award –in stark contrast with only five female writers.

For these reasons, a new era of young international reporter platforms is incubating. Groups of experts are forming non-profit projects that will explore opportunities to the fullest extent for journalists of all races, carefully investigating the most immediate and urgent social problems.

The “carpe diem moment” of appointing women editors is turning pages, not fast enough, but at least … we have a chance to hear the vibrant sound of the pages turning.

Nora Massignotti-Cortese
Journalist, Artist, and Poet

Six media conglomerates control 90% of what we read, watch, or listen to. These corporate media all have the same interests as the 1% and it is reflected in their news coverage.

Much of the other 10% of media control includes right-wing, 1% ownership. Media is a lucrative business (print, television, film, video, music, internet businesses, etc.). The total 2010 revenue for the six was $275 billion. The ownerships of the conglomerates change because they keep buying each other up and consolidating. Less than fifty years ago there were 50 companies controlling our information, though the owners all had the same economic interests so it did not make them much more democratic. One effect of consolidation was the loss of local programming and local news.

It is not the wealth they gain that is the most damaging to democracy. Plenty of other corporations rake in wealth and lobby Congress. But the control of the information by the few is serious. They determine what is news, how it is covered, and what to exclude. They portray themselves as objective. Because they are not closed down by the government or interfered with, they imply the U.S. has a free press. These conglomerates have a free press but the people do not.

When journalists and people not employed by these conglomerates try to expose injustices or cover news excluded by mass media, it becomes more evident that the “right” to a free press does not belong to all of us. Julian Assange exposed war crimes and the U.S. government is going after him as if he was the criminal. Chelsea Manning, Edward Snowden, and other whistleblowers have been attacked by the government too with little concern by the media conglomerates. Rather they distort and confuse the issues and join in on the smearing — particularly in the case of Julian Assange.

Media conglomerates have supported wars, foreign interventions, militarism, and given distorted coverage of people’s movements against injustices.

Bernie Sanders on media ownership:
“These 15 billionaires essentially own the media: Jeff Bezos, Michael Bloomberg, Rupert Murdoch, Donald & Samuel Newhouse, Cox Family, John Henry, Sheldon Adelson, Joe Mansueto, Mortimer Zuckerman, Barbey Family, Stanley Hubbard,Patrick Soon-Shiong, Carlos Slim Helu, Warren Buffett, Viktor Vekselberg. Behind the scenes, the billionaires control the
news.”

Having media democracy and freedom of the press is crucial to correcting all injustices and taking care of the needs of all people, not just the rich.

What we need is more equality in outreach.

We need to support and defend independent news sources and information.

We need Internet access and net neutrality.

We need discussions and critiques of what must be done to have media democracy, to have freedom of the press for all, not just the few wealthy conglomerates.

We need media literacy so that people realize that it matters where they get their information.

We need to expose the myth that these media conglomerates are objective while others who disagree are portrayed as biased.

What we need is media democracy if there is to be real democracy.

_______________

A few media ownership links:

https://www.freepress.net/issues/media-control/media-consolidation

https://www.gsb.stanford.edu/insights/media-consolidation-means-less-local-news-more-right-wing-slant

https://www.pbs.org/moyers/moyersonamerica/net/timeline.html

https://www.filmsforaction.org/articles/why-does-the-us-media-lie-so-much/

https://www.filmsforaction.org/watch/media-concentration-its-kind-of-a-bad-thing/

We do not have freedom of the press in this country if those who expose what our government is doing are prosecuted. We need the information that Julian Assange, Chelsea Manning, Edward Snowden, and others have made public at great personal cost.

We do not have freedom of the press if the corporate media are the only ones who the government doesn’t go after when journalists and citizens speak up. Over 90% of the media is owned by five conglomerates, and most of the other 10% are also owned by the wealthy. If independent media and citizens cannot communicate our information without harassment and prosecution, then this is extremely serious.

Secrecy by our government and military, including extrajudicial killings and human rights abuses, spying on citizens, and other undemocratic actions, is not acceptable. We are grateful for those who shed light on all injustices and crimes by our country. We must lift the veil of secrecy. We must not be silent when whistleblowers and independent media become scapegoats.

The treatment of Julian Assange and Chelsea Manning have been subjected to outrageous treatment. This is the time when speaking out about what is happening in the Julian Assange case is critical. We must not be swayed by the silence and complicit coverage of the corporate media. 

No one has been harmed by the release of the information by these whistleblowers. The knowledge of what is going on is crucial to correct injustices and expose illegal actions. Chelsea Manning went to trial and no harm was shown resulting from Manning’s action. After four years of the release of the information by Manning, at the time of the trial there was still no one shown to be harmed. The government doesn’t want to have a discussion about what has been done. Rather they want to have a conversation about what might happen if no one trusts them or if journalists investigate them. 

Julian Assange exposed actions by the U.S. government and embarrassed them so the U.S. is set on extradition. There have been efforts to get him for a while but now they are getting close to success. The U.S. government knows if he gets away with exposing U.S. war crimes and other actions, then there could be more. They want to make clear to independent media, as well as the generally supportive corporate media, that they will not tolerate exposures like this.

Assange had over six years of arbitrary detention after he sought asylum in the Ecuadorian Embassy in London. Now the court prosecution in Britain and the U.S. extradition effort presents dangerous precedents. If they get away with this effort, any journalist who publishes information can face prosecution and jail. Anyone who publishes leaks is at risk and will think twice about exposing injustice. Freedom of the press will be unavailable for the most serious abuses.

We cannot rely on the corporate mass media to tell us what is going on. They are mostly silent and do not bring out the important issues. Search out the information of how the Assange trial has been conducted and what can be done. We cannot be silent in the face of this extreme violation of press freedom going on right now.

On January 4, 2021, a British judge will rule on whether Assange should be extradited to the U.S.

Update: The extradition of Julian Assange was halted by the judge at Westminster Magistrates Court. The U.S. is appealing to the High Court to overturn this decision. They intend to try him under the Espionage Act in the U.S. where he could face a 175 year sentence. We must prevent this outrageous abuse of press freedom.

A few resources:

Guardian editorial: https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2020/dec/18/the-guardian-view-on-julian-assange-do-not-extradite-him

Background articles:

https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2020/12/20/julian-assange

https://theintercept.com/2020/10/06/julian-assange-trial-extradition/

On November 8th the Women’s Institute for Freedom of the Press presented six outstanding media women each with the annual 2020 Women and Media Award: Anya Parampil, Alina Duarte, Esther Iverem, Medea Benjamin, Dr. Margaret Flowers, and Eleanor Goldfield.

The Women and Media Award is given to those who make substantial contributions on behalf of media democracy. WIFP is honored to have this opportunity to recognize their work.

The exceptional contributions each of these media women are making will be evident as you explore their work. When it is challenging to get accurate and reliable information in our current media environment, voices as these are invaluable. Be sure to support these first-rate reporting and creative endeavors.

Anya Parampil

Anya Parampil is the host of “Red Lines” at The Grayzone. She has produced and reported several documentaries, including on-the-ground reports from the Korean peninsula, Palestine, Venezuela, Honduras, and Bolivia. 

https://thegrayzone.com/red-lines/embed/#?secret=j70ayzeUD0

___________________________________

Alina Duarte

Independent Journalist

Former Producer and Correspondent Mexico & U.S. for TeleSUR 

Former Correspondent for La Radio del Sur, Caracas, Venezuela

“I am a Xochimilca journalist, feminist, socialist, anti-imperialist, anti-capitalist and anti-fascist.”

“I am originally from a magical place in the south of Mexico City called Xochimilco, specifically from a town at the top of the mountain called Santa Cecilia Tepetlapa.”

“I also assume I am a feminist. In a country marked by 10 femicides a day such as Mexico, talking about gender violence is talking about daily life in our homes, schools, factories, streets, talking about violence everywhere. Not only is patriarchal violence going through us like millions of women in the world, in Mexican territory we are also going through a civil war that was falsely called by Felipe Calderón in 2012 “ war against drug trafficking ” but that in reality was a civil war that destroyed our country and whose consequences we continue to pay every day, especially women, our women’s bodies are trafficked, raped, beaten, violated in a thousand ways every day. It seems that being Mexican implies that speaking out as a feminist is only a matter of time, it is trying to avoid that death sentence that becomes inevitable for you and for the women around you. I discovered violence after violence, bullet after bullet. The names of the women we most admire, love, love, have become plaques on monuments and on the streets that demand justice.”

https://www.migrantrootsmedia.org/articles/2020/5/13/ser-periodista-militante-y-ocupar-las-trincheras-alina-duarte

___________________________________

Margaret Flowers

Margaret Flowers, MD, is a mother of three young adults and retired pediatrician living in Baltimore, Maryland. She left medical practice in 2007 to advocate full time for a single payer healthcare system. She served as a Congressional fellow for Physicians for a National Health Program in 2009-10 and is adviser to the board. She co-founded the Maryland Health Care is a Human Right campaign. Flowers was a principal organizer of the occupation of Freedom Plaza in 2011.  In 2012, Flowers launched the show Clearing the FOG with her partner Kevin Zeese on We Act Radio in Anacostia. That show continues today as a podcast and on Pacifica Radio. Flowers and Zeese ran It’s Our Economy, which advocated for economic democracy. They organized national and local economic democracy conferences.   In 2013, Flowers and Zeese co-founded Popular Resistance, a daily movement news website that covers resistance campaigns and work to create alternative systems in the United States and around the world. Popular Resistance also organizes campaigns and participates in coalitions on issues for economic, racial and environmental justice and peace. Flowers’ writing has been featured in a variety of progressive online outlets. She was interviewed on Bill Moyers’ Journal twice and has appeared on programs such as Democracy Now, MSNBC, Fault Lines, RT America and others. 

________________________________

Esther Iverem

Author, Artist and Activist

Esther Iverem is a multi-disciplinary writer, artist, curator and independent journalist. Her diverse body of work, which includes a show on Pacifica Radio, four books, two digital media projects and several visual art exhibits, is about social justice and human existence. She is a recipient of numerous awards and honors, including a 2018 Fellowship in the Humanities from the DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities and a National Arts Journalism Fellowship at Columbia University.

Radio Host and Producer of “On The Ground Show.” 

Former Professor at Howard University

Former Culture Writer and Critic at The Washington Post

Former journalist at New York Newsday

Former journalist at The New York Times

Studied journalism at Columbia University

_____________________________

Medea Benjamin

Medea Benjamin is the co-founder of the women-led peace group CODEPINK and the co-founder of the human rights group Global Exchange. She has been an advocate for social justice for more than 40 years. Described as “one of America’s most committed — and most effective — fighters for human rights” by New York Newsday, and “one of the high profile leaders of the peace movement” by the Los Angeles Times, she was one of 1,000 exemplary women from 140 countries nominated to receive the Nobel Peace Prize on behalf of the millions of women who do the essential work of peace worldwide. 

She is the author of ten books, including Drone Warfare: Killing by Remote Control and Kingdom of the Unjust: Behind the U.S.-Saudi Connection. Her most recent book, Inside Iran: The Real History and Politics of the Islamic Republic of Iran, is part of a campaign to prevent a war with Iran and instead promote normal trade and diplomatic relations. 

Her articles appear regularly in outlets such as The Guardian, The Huffington Post, CommonDreams, Alternet and The Hill. Medea can be reached at: medea@codepink.org or @medeabenjamin.

_____________________________________

Eleanor Goldfield

Journalist, Filmmaker, Creative Activist 

Eleanor Goldfield is a creative radical, journalist and filmmaker. Her reporting work has appeared on Press TV, RT America, and Free Speech TV where she produced and hosted the weekly radical news show, Act Out! for five years. It was the second most watched program on the network. 

Her print work has appeared via Mint Press News, ROAR, Popular Resistance, Truthdig and more.She is currently a board member of the Media Freedom Foundation. 

Her first documentary, “Hard Road of Hope,” covers past and present radicalism in the resource colony known as West Virginia. Thus far, the film has garnered international praise, a best woman filmmaker award and has Official Selection laurels in 8 film festivals including Cannes Independent. 

Previously, she founded, fronted and managed the political hard rock band, Rooftop Revolutionaries who released four albums and toured throughout the United States, opening for celebrity acts such as Tom Morello on several occasions. Their music has appeared in films, on radio and TV. 

Her first book, a compilation of spoken word poetry, Paradigm Lost, was released in 2016 and received critical acclaim for the combination of radical poetry and radical visual art, as each poem is accompanied by artwork from artists around the world such as Tammam Azzam, Recycled Propaganda, Lucy Dyer and more. 

Currently, Eleanor is the host of the podcast Act Out! and the co-host of the podcast Common Censored along with Lee Camp as well as the Silver Threads Podcast with carla bergman. She regularly contributes to several other podcasts including By Any Means Necessary, Economic Update with Richard Wolff, Fault Lines and more. 

Her work as a community organizer is based on mutual aid principles and direct action. 

As an artist, her work typically combines live music, spoken word and projected visuals. Besides touring, performing and media work, she also assists in frontline action organizing and activist trainings.

ArtKillingApathy.com 

HardRoadofHope.com