This book sets out to do three things: first, to give a general overview of 'the information wars' and get the reader thinking about issues of privacy and transparency, and the relationship between government and the individual; second to tell the story of WikiLeaks; third to recount Brooke's own role within that story and to give an insight into some of the key players, especially - of course - Julian Assange.
The flitting between these these viewpoints is not entirely successful, but Brooke's semi-insider's perspective is interesting.
I'm less convinced by her conclusions about what happens next, and her positioning the question as largely one of bad, centralising, authoritarian government versus good, idealistic citizenry. That's an over-simplification of her position, but equally it felt to me as if she over-simplified the issue.
Still, very definitely worth a read - and even more relevant in a post-Snowden world.
Incidentally, at time of writing there are two one-star reviews here, and it seems to me that both have a bit of an axe to grind - Julian Assange is a polarising figure and it appears that both the one-star reviewers have more sympathy for him than Brooke has. It is of course true that Heather Brooke can only write subjectively - she was a character in the story she's telling. But I think the book, and its judgement on Assange, are more nuanced than those reviews imply.
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About the author
Top reviews from United Kingdom
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- Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 31 January 2014
- Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 18 December 2011
- Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 25 July 2014
- Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 9 October 2012
