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Imprisoned Truths - The Price of the Whistle-blower

There is truth out there for those who search for it; we have always been under the acclimation of thought that pursuing truth can lead to peace, yet for journalists and the common individual, seeking the truth may cost your life.

The mission of a journalist is to report the truth, a true journalist should not be afraid to expose the wrongdoings of large corporations or the government. There are three different party sources in the instance of a whistle-blower; the government is the first source, the whistle-blower is the second, and the journalist is the third party source. Since it is unconstitutional and against the law for the government to prevent the public (journalist) from speaking (this is called prior restraint), the third party receives the information about the first party from the whistle-blower and gathers the information and releases the information to the public.

In 2006, journalist Julian Assange created WikiLeaks, which is a website open for hackers and reporters the same to freely and aim to discreetly release top secret or illegal information which the governments around the world may be hiding from law abiding citizens. in 2010, Assange received information and came upon some American Iraqi War logs, which revealed soldiers in an Apache attack helicopter mowing down innocent people, including journalist Namir Noor-Eldeen, which the government tried to cover up claiming that they were enemy assailants who were initiating them in combat - not a single one of the people gunned down were armed - this was a direct attack against Namir.

Assange rightfully released these covert files for the world to see, and after seeking asylum from the Ecuadorian embassy in London for seven years, he was released into American custody in which he is now detained in Britain's max-level prison in solitary confinement for 23 hours a day.

This is the abuse of power that our government has over innocent civilian figures who only seek to cut the veil to what the government whistle-blower willingly put their life on the line to release this information.

A similar example to abusive power from the government to journalists would be against Toni Loey. The federal court found her guilty of contempt of court for keeping her sources discreet - which is a journalist's duty to abide by to protect his or her sources. Loey was charged to pay $500 daily for the first week, $1,000 daily the second, and $5,000 daily from that point forward if she refused to release her sources. Loey was also denied the ability to receive third-party funds, it all had to come from her own personal income.

These acts of government are heinous countermeasures towards individuals whose only aim is to bring truth to the light, yet are met with assassination, imprisonment and blackmail. People unafraid to step forth outside of an uncomfortable setting of power into another uncomfortable position of uncertainty and of vulnerabilities should be considered brave heroes - "There is nothing concealed that will not be disclosed, or hidden that will not be made known. What you have said in the dark will be heard in the daylight, and what you have whispered in the ear in the inner rooms will be proclaimed from the roofs" Luke 12:2-3.

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