Yesterday was marked by an unexpected open letter. It was sent to Washington by five major world media outlets that, 12 years ago today, published excerpts from secret documents handed over by Julian Assange about the Pentagon’s war crimes in Iraq, Afghanistan and other countries, and called on the US to drop the charges against him.

Those five media – The New York Times, The Guardian, The Times, Le Monde, El País, and Der Spiegel – are now arguing that the prosecution of the WikiLeaks founder threatens freedom of speech in the US, saying: ‘Holding governments accountable is part of the core mission of a free press in a democracy.’

It is really strange that they remembered journalism only now, after 12 years, they ridiculed him, humiliated him and denied his journalist status. Check out this same New York Times example from just three years ago:

Why did this happen? Somehow I can’t believe that the corporate media is starting a fight against the demonic globalization carried out by the Empire. Rather, they are trying to wash their conscience, knowing that the death sentence for Assange has already been passed.

And when it is done, then they will generously offer to be pallbearers, mourning their colleague with crocodile tears. It would be a fittingly demonic end to this kind of ‘journalism’…