4 ms·

I'm unclear what crime this blogger committed? Is the blogger even in Israel? Using my American mindset, isn't a reporter relatively immune from prosecution as

by tibbon 14y ago

I'm unclear what crime this blogger committed? Is the blogger even in Israel? Using my American mindset, isn't a reporter relatively immune from prosecution as a publisher of stuff as long as they didn't break into computer systems themselves? The NYT isn't being prosecuted for publishing Wikileaks stuff, etc...

pron 14y ago
Here's the explanation: http://www.haaretz.com/blogs/diplomania/idf-probe-of-anonymous-blogger-isn-t-about-security-it-s-about-sources.premium-1.485145 http://www.haaretz.com/blogs/diplomania/idf-probe-of-anonymo... This blogger, eishton, investigates suicides in general and in the IDF in particular. He claims that suicides are more common in the military than among civilians. Anyway, Haaretz reports that the police has begun investigating him after receiving complaints from families of soldiers who had committed suicide that the blogger obtained private records pertaining to their loved ones' death. The military police wants to find out who the soldiers who leaked that sensitive, personal information are. Because this is not an issue of national security, Haaretz chastises the IDF for using the police to exert pressure on a journalist so that they could find the leak.
- azakai 14y ago
  > This blogger, eishton, investigates suicides in general and in the IDF in particular. He claims that suicides are more common in the military than among civilians. This seems unsurprising. Aren't there more suicides in general in high-stress places?
  - neumann_alfred 14y ago
    Of course it's not surprising, it's just not helpful to obfusctate it; how can you try to prevent/improve something you deny to exist in the first place?
shenberg 14y ago
My understanding is he obtained unclassified information that he shouldn't have been able to obtain (probably privacy concerns). The prosecution is because the government doesn't like to be challenged (see how the US government is suing illegal wiretapping whistleblowers). Also, blogger != journalist, at least legally. Another issue here is that he didn't "play by the rules" - usually you don't talk about suicides in the press because there's a certain social stigma attached to the family, and it's a small country where everyone knows everyone. He published full names of several people who committed suicide, while most regular journalists would leave it at the initials level.

by tibbon 14y ago

pron 14y ago

Here's the explanation: http://www.haaretz.com/blogs/diplomania/idf-probe-of-anonymous-blogger-isn-t-about-security-it-s-about-sources.premium-1.485145 http://www.haaretz.com/blogs/diplomania/idf-probe-of-anonymo... This blogger, eishton, investigates suicides in general and in the IDF in particular. He claims that suicides are more common in the military than among civilians. Anyway, Haaretz reports that the police has begun investigating him after receiving complaints from families of soldiers who had committed suicide that the blogger obtained private records pertaining to their loved ones' death. The military police wants to find out who the soldiers who leaked that sensitive, personal information are. Because this is not an issue of national security, Haaretz chastises the IDF for using the police to exert pressure on a journalist so that they could find the leak.

azakai 14y ago
> This blogger, eishton, investigates suicides in general and in the IDF in particular. He claims that suicides are more common in the military than among civilians. This seems unsurprising. Aren't there more suicides in general in high-stress places?
- neumann_alfred 14y ago
  Of course it's not surprising, it's just not helpful to obfusctate it; how can you try to prevent/improve something you deny to exist in the first place?

shenberg 14y ago

My understanding is he obtained unclassified information that he shouldn't have been able to obtain (probably privacy concerns). The prosecution is because the government doesn't like to be challenged (see how the US government is suing illegal wiretapping whistleblowers). Also, blogger != journalist, at least legally. Another issue here is that he didn't "play by the rules" - usually you don't talk about suicides in the press because there's a certain social stigma attached to the family, and it's a small country where everyone knows everyone. He published full names of several people who committed suicide, while most regular journalists would leave it at the initials level.