It’s a common talking point people use to obfuscate and defend wikileaks.

As you note, it’s irrelevant but also, if true, illustrates how selectively showing true info is deceptive.

The better question is whether he’s buried true facts in order to help public figures. There’s strong evidence he’s censored whistleblowers leaking damaging documents about Russia involvement in syria[0], along with his pretty open partnership with the Russian government.

[0]https://www.theverge.com/platform/amp/2016/9/9/12864328/wiki...

I'm not saying his record means the charges are bullshit, but I'm saying if the charges are bullshit and his record is infallible then the implication is that we live under a government without freedom of the press, where truthful hard-hitting journalism gets you put in prison.

If you don't believe that Assange has done truthful hard-hitting journalism, or you believe that he isn't a journalist at all, then you can maintain the belief that we don't put journalists in prison while sitting idle as he rots in prison, because he is not a True Journalist. "We wouldn't do that to True Journalists. Assange is different."

Freedom of the Press doesn't give you carte blanche to disclose state secrets without repercussions. Just because the information is hard hitting doesn't give you a pass on the crimes you committed to get it.

Freedom of the Press has limitations.

Example, as a journalist you cannot just walk into a US Army base and start reporting.

Gee, that sounds problematic. We give them $750B/yr, they kill innocent people around the world, and they don't submit to public oversight? I wish we lived in a free society...

The Senate Committee on Armed Services is the public government "group" charged with oversight of the US Military.

I don't know if that meets your definition of public oversight.

Congress is infamously bad at overseeing anything. For that reason, from time to time journalists have helped the public to make direct policy recommendations. Of course the bureaucratic state prefers not to accommodate that form of oversight.

To be fair, true journalists don’t host shows on RT.