How brittle and small the WikiLeaks staff was in its early years, or how Assange's often unpredictable and less-than-cordial personality and management style shaped it, are some of the questions that have almost become academic in the midst of developments around the platform, and its creator, in recent years. But they are in full display here, and Domscheit-Berg's humble narration and personality aids the exploration greatly.
Fascinating account of the rise and fall(?) of Wikileaks. I read it cover to cover over two days.
It clearly recounts the early history of Wikileaks and in a way is the account of a breakup of the relationship between Julian Assange and Daniel Domscheit-Berg. Also it is the story of a start-up. It shows what can be done by two driven guys sleeping on sofas with an old server and a concept to sell to the world. Assange is portrayed as brilliant, eccentric and manipulative and Domscheit-Berg often seems like he longs to return to the good old days when they were close friends.
It's interesting to see what has been left out in this book and how it compares to the Guardian's account. I'm waiting for Assange's book, though I wouldn't be surprised if it never gets finished. This book is may be the closest to the truth …
Fascinating account of the rise and fall(?) of Wikileaks. I read it cover to cover over two days.
It clearly recounts the early history of Wikileaks and in a way is the account of a breakup of the relationship between Julian Assange and Daniel Domscheit-Berg. Also it is the story of a start-up. It shows what can be done by two driven guys sleeping on sofas with an old server and a concept to sell to the world. Assange is portrayed as brilliant, eccentric and manipulative and Domscheit-Berg often seems like he longs to return to the good old days when they were close friends.
It's interesting to see what has been left out in this book and how it compares to the Guardian's account. I'm waiting for Assange's book, though I wouldn't be surprised if it never gets finished. This book is may be the closest to the truth that we will know. I'm not sure we'll ever find out what is the whole truth was.
A difficult book to judge. In large part, it seems to be one side of a battle over a broken relationship. Not knowing the other side, how am I to judge who's right? And why should I bother?
In this particular case, the dispute is between the book's co-author, Daniel Domscheit-Berg, and famed Wikileaks director Julian Assange. I'll credit Domscheit-Berg and/or his co-author Tina Klopp (who I presume is a ghost writer), with showing some restraint; they paint Assange as an arrogant and irresponsible egomaniac, but you can see them trying hard not to seem too obviously one-sided.
As for the truth of the details, how the hell am I to know? It's believable that Assange is an asshole. On the other hand, that's just if you go by Domscheit-Berg's word. Frankly, there are a million stories like this out there: a working relationship gone sour. I've had a few …
A difficult book to judge. In large part, it seems to be one side of a battle over a broken relationship. Not knowing the other side, how am I to judge who's right? And why should I bother?
In this particular case, the dispute is between the book's co-author, Daniel Domscheit-Berg, and famed Wikileaks director Julian Assange. I'll credit Domscheit-Berg and/or his co-author Tina Klopp (who I presume is a ghost writer), with showing some restraint; they paint Assange as an arrogant and irresponsible egomaniac, but you can see them trying hard not to seem too obviously one-sided.
As for the truth of the details, how the hell am I to know? It's believable that Assange is an asshole. On the other hand, that's just if you go by Domscheit-Berg's word. Frankly, there are a million stories like this out there: a working relationship gone sour. I've had a few of them myself. Unfortunately this one isn't terribly more interesting than, well, any of mine for example! It's only the celebrity of Assange and Wikileaks that got this book into print.
There are two things that could have redeemed this book. One would have been great writing. I can't speak for the original German edition, but the translation in the English edition was merely workmanlike. Oh, it was handled well enough that it didn't jump out at me as a translation; whoever went over the translation did a good enough job, as far as that goes (and incidentally, I used to touch up and in some cases re-write poorly translated articles for a magazine myself, so I have some experience in this area). But the writing simply isn't anything special. Nor is there, for example, any particular humor to the book.
The other potentially redeeming factor would have been some really insightful details about the workings of Wikileaks. There's some of that here, and it is somewhat interesting. If it's credible (and I have no particular reason to doubt it) then Wikileaks is in a real technological pickle. But again, although I support openness and the stated principles of Wikileaks, technical issues don't mean a lot to me here.
The book is remarkably current. It's about issues that took place as recently as five or six months ago. That's a bit jarring! It gave me the feeling that I could have been reading the whole thing on some online forum.
I also have to say that I can't help but feel a little bit taken advantage of by Mr. Domscheit-Berg. His book seems to be little more than a veiled continuation of a running battle with Julian Assange. Okay, if his account is accurate, then Assange is an irresponsible egotist and bastard. But I wasn't involved in this battle, and why is Mr. Domscheit-Berg making money off of me in pursuit of his war? Apart from anything else, that seems a highly ironic act for someone who professes such high ideals.
Incidentally, the book was a birthday gift from my sister and her husband. I'm quite sure they hadn't read it themselves. It was a thoughtful gift - if you're reading this, sis, I hope this review doesn't hurt your feelings - because I am interested in openness, politics, and Wikileaks. I just wish Domscheit-Berg had produced something more worthwhile and in-depth.
