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The WikiLeaks Paradigm

Paradoxes and Revelations

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  • © 2018

Overview

  • Rather than assuming that WikiLeaks has changed the rules of the game vis-à-vis activism and/or of journalism in a fundamental way, this book takes the premise that Assange’s organization has encountered serious problems in terms of successfully engaging the public from the outset, and that this situation was inevitable
  • Looks to issues which go beyond conventional accounts of how WikiLeaks’ revelations have been received by audiences over the short-term and how leaked information has been utilized by other transparency proponents to view the organization’s activities within the broader context of an ongoing legitimation crisis on the part of the US political system
  • Evaluates the contexts and sets of circumstances which may serve either to facilitate or undermine the success of any social actor committed to meaningful political change

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Table of contents (6 chapters)

Keywords

About this book

WikiLeaks poses a unique challenge to state and commercial institutions. This book considers the whistleblower platform’s ongoing importance, focusing on the informational and communicative paradoxes it faces, and the shifting strategies it has adopted over time. Attention to these matters provides insight into the nature of the contemporary networked, post-truth media environment, and the types of factors likely to affect the success of activist groups today. Chapter 1 introduces WikiLeaks’ significance as a novel expression of counterpower, outlining the disclosures marking its career. Chapters 2 through 4 address the dilemmas confronting WikiLeaks in its attempts to engage the public with and without the cooperation of mainstream news organizations. Chapter 5 appraises how WikiLeaks has adjusted its strategies to take better advantage of a densely populated and globally networked media environment within the larger context of an ongoing political legitimation crisis. Chapter6 extends this analysis to the case of Russiagate.


Reviews

“Marmura’s timely and critically nuanced account of Wikileaks is important reading for all those interested in the theory and politics of competitive truth tellers in conditions of post-truth communication.” (Jayson Harsin, Associate Professor, Department of Global Communications, The American University of Paris, France)

Authors and Affiliations

  • Department of Sociology, St. Francis Xavier University, Antigonish, NS, Canada

    Stephen M. E. Marmura

About the author

Stephen M. E. Marmura is an associate professor in the Department of Sociology at St. Francis Xavier University, Canada.

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