|
What is WikiLeaks?
A spokesman for the controversial site said it exists to
"ensure the legally and technically protected retrieval of
information from anonymous sources and to make available
this information for the general public." Essentially,
WikiLeaks provides a secure system for the online submission
by whistleblowers of sensitive information whilst protecting
sources and identities.
Who is
behind it?
The organisers of WikiLeaks maintain a deliberately opaque
exterior as part of their efforts to prevent legal
challenges, so understanding the group structure is tricky.
Most of the site’s volunteers work anonymously but Daniel
Schmitt and Julian Assange often act as spokesmen for
organisation. WikiLeaks is currently funded by voluntary
donations although it has dabbled in other methods including
exclusivity arrangements with specific mass media
organisations.
Where is
WikiLeaks based?
The organisation has no recognisable central location
although we know that Schmitt and Assange are originally
from Germany and Australia. WikiLeaks hosts its main web
servers in Sweden with backup servers in other jurisdictions
and has recently been collaborating with Icelandic
legislators to pass a series of legal reforms that would
give Iceland strong protections for whistleblowers, sources,
and Internet hosts. The aim is to minimise the risk of legal
challenges to its published material.
What kind of documents has WikiLeaks published?
The site states that "WikiLeaks accepts classified, censored
or otherwise restricted material of political, diplomatic or
ethical significance. WikiLeaks does not accept rumour,
opinion or other kinds of first hand reporting or material
that is already publicly available."
Besides the footage of the controversial 2007 US air strikes
in Iraq, previous document releases have included:
|
