The United States v Julian Assange: the implications for media freedom

The prosecution of Julian Assange under the Espionage Act of 1917 (US) and the United Kingdom (UK)’s eventual approval of his extradition to the United States (US) have been pivotal moments for national security journalism. While this article argues that Assange is not a journalist and that his publication activities should not be considered journalism, it finds that his extradition proceedings and criminal indictment nonetheless have detrimental implications for media freedom in the US and beyond. His indictment marks the first occasion on which the US Espionage Act has been deployed to prosecute the act of publishing national defence information, collapsing the long-standing distinctions between government officials who leak national defence information and the publishers who report on and publish their leaks. The decisions of the UK courts regarding the US’s extradition request for Assange further illustrate the limitations of media freedom in the UK.