The Dissenter

The Dissenter

The Dissenter newsletter is re-launching and embarking on a new chapter in June 2021, says host Kevin Gosztola.

History

The Dissenter launched on Substack in mid-July 2020, a little more than a month before the extradition trial against WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange.

During this time, over 125 readers subscribed and helped fund a newsletter focused on whistleblowers in corporations and government and the obstacles they face.

These readers made it possible to pay CIA whistleblower Jeffrey Sterling to contribute an essay comparing his case to the case against Assange. They also made it possible to hire journalist Mohamed Elmaazi to report on the political case against whistleblower Craig Murray.

Plans

I have many more plans for this newsletter, but they will not happen at Substack.

Shadowproof is leaving this platform for Ghost, where we can keep all the revenue from this newsletter and have more funds for journalism. The newsletter will have its own domain without having to pay any platform an extra sum.

There is a lot of work that goes into producing, distributing, and operating a membership-driven newsletter. In order to make everything a bit easier, and improve the administration of this newsletter, Outpost, built by tech journalist Ryan Singel, has been incorporated for subscriber support and communication.

Special thanks to graphic designer Somerset Bean for developing the icon and logo for The Dissenter.

First report

As a statement of principle, the first report will be from Mohamed Elmaazi, a journalist who has written for numerous publications including The Canary, Jacobin, The Electronic Intifada and openDemocracy. Subscribers will receive it on Tuesday, June 8.

Mohamed covered the political case against Craig Murray, an ex-diplomat in the United Kingdom, before The Dissenter went on hiatus. Murray is appealing an eight-month prison sentence and conviction that has implications for press freedom, and Mohamed is covering the appeal for the newsletter.

 

Documents sourced from The Dissenter

Title	Type	Subject(s)	Publication date	Author(s)	Description
Document:Scottish High Court Denies Whistleblower Craig Murray's Request To Appeal Conviction Over Blog Posts	Article	Craig Murray Alex Salmond Nicola Sturgeon UK/Supreme Court Lady Leeona Dorrian	9 June 2021	Mohamed Elmaazi	Craig Murray's fate turns on whether the judges in London, where the Supreme Court is based, consider the application on an expedited basis.
Document:Whistleblower Craig Murray Sentenced To 8 Months In Prison Over His Reporting On Former Scottish First Minister’s Trial	Article	Craig Murray Hugh Kerr Alex Salmond European Court of Human Rights David Sánchez Morales UK/Supreme Court Jury trial	11 May 2021	Mohamed Elmaazi	Craig Murray tweets: "I cannot commend this article highly enough to anybody who wants to understand why and how I have been sentenced to prison."

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