What we can learn from WikiLeaks

Dennie Quill, Contributor

IT HAS become part of everyone's vocabulary and, predictably, the world will be talking about WikiLeaks - the secret-spilling website run by the Sunshine Press - for many months to come. With estimates of more than 1,000 cables on Jamaica, more harsh assessments like that accorded to the wife of the prime minister and the alleged concerns of Kingston's mayor may be revealed down the road.

And since these leaked cables relate to information spelt out in diplomatic cables from United States embassies around the world between 1966 and early 2010, many locals may be sitting on needles as they anticipate upcoming revelation.

WikiLeaks has revealed corruption, espionage, hypocrisy, double-dealing and more. Even those who scoff at the fact that a 22-year-old high-school dropout and pizza delivery boy was able to obtain 1.6 gigabyte of data by smuggling a thumb drive and a rewritable CD labelled Lady Gaga to WikiLeaks, are happy to digest the information.

Double speak

As with freedom of speech, so with WikiLeaks, we must consider the context in which the information was given. For example, is the leak telling us that our government officials are saying one thing in private and doing something quite different in public? Are the politicians and other personnel being written about speaking frankly because they believe their conversations will be kept secret?

As a journalist, I find that even my closest associates are never quite comfortable when sharing information, and often they preface remarks by saying, "This is off the record." To say I find this offensive is an understatement. But it is wholly understandable, since journalism is about disclosure and it is a fact that a journalist is never really off duty. It really comes down to trust. And the question is, can a journalist be trusted?

Cocktail parties and social outings are where really interesting information gets picked up. Journalists and diplomats operate in the same arena - meeting people and gathering information. For example, it is not unusual for someone whose tongue has been loosened by fine alcohol to whisper some interesting tidbit in a reporter's ear. And in diplomatic circles, it is conceivable that a partygoer comfortable with being included in diplomatic circles would likely reveal vital information to one considered a friend.

Texture and drama

The revelations by WikiLeaks have provided texture and drama to the relationships between diplomats and politicians and other personnel in their host countries. No longer can diplomats be seen as pampered socialites sipping champagne and nibbling on hors d'oeuvres. Those who were in the dark must now understand that cable writing is an integral part of what diplomats do. In these dispatches, they provide analyses and candid assessments of their host countries and its movers and shakers. Diplomats are not merely cocktail hoppers. They are, in fact, there to help shape American foreign policy.

But the Jamaica Labour Party administration must be quite furious at the disclosure of the kinds of manoeuvres made in the face of the Coke extradition request. The fall-out from WikiLeaks could mean that people will be inhibited in a willingness to be candid in their exchanges with diplomats because at the back of their minds will be the issue of trust. One anticipates many awkward meetings at the next cocktail reception.

denniequill@hotmail.com

'The revelations by WikiLeaks have provided texture and drama to the relationships between diplomats and politicians ... .'