Glenn Greenwald Speech on WikiLeaks & Whistleblowing - March 8, 2011.
Glenn Greenwald gave a speech at the James A. Little Theatre in Santa Fe, New Mexico on March 8, 2011. He talked about defending WikiLeaks, the value of whistleblowing to an open and democratic society, the Obama administration's torture of Bradley Manning, and the National Security State's war on whistleblowing. Greenwald raised several other issues as well, such as the establishment media's support for the draconian policies of the National Security State, and the rhetoric that is being used to delegitimize WikiLeaks (comparing it to a terrorist group, depicting Assange as a criminal who deserves to be killed). Greenwald says that this kind of anti-free speech rhetoric that is being directed against WikiLeaks by the government and establishment media has created a climate of fear in America and caused people to shy away from the organization, which has become a vital tool in the fight for government transparency and accountability.
Greenwald: "This war on WikiLeaks, this war on whistleblowers, is about forever ending the one avenue that we've had over the past decade for learning about what our government and their corporate partners do, which is the process of whistleblowing. And if they succeed, that regime of secrecy will become much more intensified, that deterrence will endure for a long time, but if WikiLeaks is successfully defended, if these efforts are warded off, then one of the most promising means of bringing accountability and transparency that we've seen in a very long time will be preserved, and that's why I talk about WikiLeaks so much, why I write about it so much, and why I think it is so important."
Source: Lannan Podcasts
Greenwald's post-speech interview with radio host and writer David Barsamian:
