WikiLeaks Criminals or HeroesMany people have heard of the website called WikiLeaks. WikiLeaks is an organization owned and operated by Juliann Assange. This website allows whistleblowers, or people who have leaked information to WikiLeaks, to send confidential information anonymously to the website, which is then reviewed and released to the public. The website is anonymous, so even Assange himself does not know who is sending the information (Assange 7). Some believe that whistleblowers should be considered and prosecuted as criminals. Many researchers believe that whistleblowers should be seen as liberators from an unjust system and should not be prosecuted as terrorists would be. Many believe that WikiLeaks violates the Espionage Act of 1917. This law states that it is a crime to transmit or possess information about espionage. national defense that could harm the United States or give an advantage to foreign nations (Feinstein 2). This law makes it a crime to possess and fail to return information, including classified and unclassified documents. Those arrested can be sentenced to ten years in prison for each violation or offense. Disclosing classified information about troop positions and giving information about covert operations carried out by the military can be dangerous to our national security and put many people at risk. Even if not everything leaked by WikiLeaks makes the front page of the New York Times, the information that does make it there can give foreign countries an advantage when it comes to strategic military moves. Additionally, when it comes to certain leaked videos and files, the secrets of our technological advancements in weaponry can be exploited, giving foreign nations information that lies in the middle of paper...... in their context. Internet. April 1, 2014. Feinstein, Dianne. “WikiLeaks should be prosecuted under Espionage Act.” Wikileaks. Ed. Tamara Thompson. Detroit: Greenhaven Press, 2013. At issue. Rep. Excerpt from “Prosecuting Assange under the Espionage Act.” Wall Street Journal December 7, 2010. Opposing Viewpoints in Context. Internet. April 1, 2014.Milligan, Susan. “WikiLeaks is not journalism in any way.” Wikileaks. Ed. Tamara Thompson. Detroit: Greenhaven Press, 2013. At issue. Rep. Excerpt from “WikiLeaks is a high-stakes paparazzi, not a journalist. » US News & World Report (November 29, 2010). Opposing viewpoints in context. Internet. April 1, 2014. “Prosecuting Government Whistleblowers.” » Problems and controversies. Facts On File News Services, May 2, 2011. Web. May 4, 2014. Wilmore, Kathy. “Hero or traitor?.” Junior Scholastic 116.13 (2014): 6. Primary research. Internet. May 4 2014.