Through this series I will explore the...

Through this series I will explore the possibilities for our future in conversations with those who are shaping it. Are we heading towards utopia, or dystopia and how we can set our paths? This is an exciting opportunity to discuss the vision of my guests in a new style of show that examines their philosophies and struggles in a deeper and clearer way than has been done before.

Julian Assange announces that he’ll host a weekly television talk show starting in mid-March. The series will air for 10 weeks on RT, an English-language Russian satellite channel. (via futurejournalismproject)

I’ve shared my feelings about this idea with a few confidants, but I’m curious what others think about this: Has Assange ‘jumped the shark’?

I don’t mean to say that I won’t watch or even that it won’t be interesting to see what his new 10-episode show on RT will be, who it will incorporate, how it will tell the stories it seeks to tell, but it strikes me as a far cry from the stateless, transparent, fighting for right organization that he and WIkiLeaks once were.

Am I wrong? Is this me being curmudgeonly?

I have mixed feelings about Assange, particularly as his persona has clouded and obscured and colored perceptions of WikiLeaks the organization. Still, I feel like this endeavor of his (it seems to be his, and not WL’s) will damage the credibility and cause of both. Maybe he’s moved beyond being the same cause-driven iconoclast he set out as. Maybe this is a part of what he sees as that same role and identity. I suppose we’ll only know when the shows air how this gels with the rest of the Assange and WikiLeaks story.

If at all.

I also find the partnership with RT a bit curious. I know WikiLeaks has had some linkages with them before, but Russian-sponsored media does not, traditionally, have a reputation for being open and transparent and influence free. I know that is painting with a broad brush, but I have my doubts over how this series will pan out in terms of the mission that Assange has advocated up till now.

As always, I could be wrong, it’s just something I think about.

(Source: futurejournalismproject)

Posted 4 months ago