Governmental control of the Internet and WikiLeaks: How does the press in four countries discuss freedom of expression?

Abstract

This study looked at how newspapers operating in nations with varying degrees of governmental Internet control discussed Internet freedom of expression within their coverage of Wikileaks. This was done through a thematic analysis of news items about WikiLeaks and Internet freedom of expression in the left-leaning newspapers of The Guardian (Great Britain), Le Monde (France), The Sydney Morning Herald (Australia), and The China Daily (China). The analysis revealed that government stances regarding Internet control did not shape the newspapers' discussion about WikiLeaks and freedom of expression on the Internet. Although governments in these countries exercise different levels of Internet control, the newspapers had similar positions about freedom of expression on the Internet and the role of the United States in censoring it. They supported Internet freedom as well as the actions of WikiLeaks and Julian Assange while criticizing U.S. attempts to suppress the online organization and its founder.

Leaks-based journalism and media scandals: From official sources to the networked Fourth Estate?

“…These types of leaks, and their relation with media systems, have not yet been explored in depth by academic literature. Some of the first approximations in this field are related, on an international level, to the analysis of frameworks and media coverage of WikiLeaks cables (Handley and Ismail, 2012;Handley and Rutigliano, 2012;Imre et al, 2016) and Edward Snowden leaks (Kuehn, 2018;Wahl-Jorgensen et al, 2017). In the Spanish case, initial empirical work has recently appeared on leaks boxes and their links with new collaborative press experiences (Sampedro, 2017).…”

Prácticas comunicativas de cambio social y sistemas mediáticos híbridos. Un análisis del escenario comunicativo post-15M en España

“…-Incorporar un relato contrahegemónico y contravisual de los bancos -y por lo tanto de la estructura económica neoliberal-interviniendo así en lo real y aportando una mirada que permita poner en valor lo colectivo, (Handley and Ismail, 2012;Handley and Rutigliano, 2012;Imre et al, 2016) and Edward Snowden leaks (Kuehn, 2017;Wahl-Jorgensen et al, 2017). In the Spanish case, initial empirical work has recently appeared on leaks boxes and their links with new collaborative press experiences ).…”