Power, Politics and Powerful Information
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Those with power often stand at the mercy of powerful information. Leaders sculpt the world with their actions, but mass media paints a portrait of their work for all to see. The freedom of the media to paint the portrait it sees in the world can be both toxic and beneficial to those in charge. Three cases of extradition reveal a triangle of powerful information and its powerful enemies.
Over the last few months, Ecuador has granted asylum to two oppenents of political hegemony. In July, President Rafael Correa accepted a request by Wikileaks founder Julian Assange who is seeking refuge from allegations of sexual assault in Sweden. Assange fears that such an extradition would provide the US with an opportunity to seize and prosecute the whistleblower for publicizing state secrets.
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Meanwhile, the US has granted political asylum to an Ecuadorian journalist convicted of libel against the country’s president. Columnist Emilio Palacio has been in the US for a year, escaping a three year sentence and a $40 million fine, for publishing an article that described President Correa as “the dictator” and accused the leftist leader of ordering soldiers to open fire on a hospital, during a brief coup attempt by members of the national police force.
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more: http://revpana.wordpress.com/2012/09/05/power-politics-and-powerful-information/
