Amazon Won't Host Wikileaks... But Will Sell The Leaked Cables For Your Kindle?

from the choices dept

This is making the rounds on Twitter, but cc was the first to submit it here. When Amazon kicked Wikileaks off of their S3 hosting service, we noted how it had (just weeks earlier) tried to defend a pro-pedophilia book by stating:
"Amazon believes it is censorship not to sell certain books simply because we or others believe their message is objectionable."
While Amazon did cave and pull that book eventually, some suggested that perhaps this just meant that Amazon would be fine with Wikileaks if it was being sold in book form. And, apparently, someone is testing that theory, and so far it's working. You can apparently buy the Wikileaks leaked State Department cables on Amazon for your kindle, if you're so inclined. Of course, since they're available (at an ever increasing number of mirror sites) for free, there's no reason to -- but as a way of showing Amazon's hypocrisy, well, that's just priceless.

Update: Amazon's "explanation" is that the book also contains commentary. Um. What? So if the Wikileaks website also contained commentary (which I believe it does), it would be okay?
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Filed Under: censorship, ebooks, kindle, wikileaks
Companies: amazon


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  1. icon
    The eejit (profile), 9 Dec 2010 @ 10:40am

    lol hypocrites.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  2. icon
    Lisae Boucher (profile), 9 Dec 2010 @ 10:51am

    Hypocrisy? Not really. Any moron can write an ebook, publish it on Amazon and earn a few dollars that way. Someone just did that with those cables, hoping some people are foolish enough to pay for something they could also get for free.
    I don't think Amazon even checks what kinds of ebooks it's actually selling! At least, not until someone complains. Then their bureaucracy will start to slowly get the book removed, possibly hoping that a few more customers will still buy the book before it's gone.
    Well, that pedophile book was sold quite a lot after all the negative publicity, so dropping that book immediately would probably hurt their profits even more...

    link to this | view in thread ]

  3. icon
    Hephaestus (profile), 9 Dec 2010 @ 11:14am

    Amazon. Hypocrite Much?

    I'm on a horse.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  4. identicon
    Anonymous Coward, 9 Dec 2010 @ 11:15am

    No It Does Not

    link to this | view in thread ]

  5. identicon
    Anonymous Coward, 9 Dec 2010 @ 11:19am

    Just remix and retell in your own words.
    So it's 'fair use'?

    link to this | view in thread ]

  6. icon
    RikuoAmero (profile), 9 Dec 2010 @ 11:20am

    It doesn't contain the cables

    It's commentary and analysis, although in my opinion, I wouldn't buy it unless the author had analysed ALL 250K cables.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  7. icon
    Hephaestus (profile), 9 Dec 2010 @ 11:22am

    Someone should suggest to the guys over at wikileaks, that they publish the entire WikiLeaks site as a multi part e-book on Amazon ...

    Actually, I think I will do this tonite and donate all the proceeds to wikileaks. Wouldn't that be a kick in the ass, wikileaks goes from being charged for hosting to getting paid by Amazon ...

    whats the word for that ...

    link to this | view in thread ]

  8. icon
    :Lobo Santo (profile), 9 Dec 2010 @ 11:25am

    Re: whats the word for that...

    Justice?

    link to this | view in thread ]

  9. icon
    Dark Helmet (profile), 9 Dec 2010 @ 11:29am

    Re: Re: whats the word for that...

    Hilariousness?

    link to this | view in thread ]

  10. identicon
    Anonymous Coward, 9 Dec 2010 @ 11:30am

    the minor difference between journalism and a data dump.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  11. icon
    Hephaestus (profile), 9 Dec 2010 @ 11:30am

    Re: Re: whats the word for that...

    I was thinking Irony actually. But justice is good ...

    link to this | view in thread ]

  12. identicon
    swn, 9 Dec 2010 @ 11:31am

    It is not USA government who try to police the world. The Government just does what it is instructwed to do by Elders of Zion.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  13. icon
    Dark Helmet (profile), 9 Dec 2010 @ 11:39am

    Re:

    "The Government just does what it is instructwed to do by Elders of Zion."

    Bwahahahah! You're trolling, right? Please tell me that the people on this site aren't so uneducated so as not to know the twisted history of the document that term (Elders of Zion) comes from, and how false the conclusions those pushing antisemite views are about it....

    link to this | view in thread ]

  14. icon
    Hephaestus (profile), 9 Dec 2010 @ 11:41am

    Re: Re: Re: whats the word for that...

    What do you think we should call the e-book?

    The official or Unofficial ...

    WikiLeaks Bible, Weekly WikiLeaks, Encyclopedia WikiLeaks, ????


    Does Amazon, Apple, Barne and Noble, do subscription e-magazines? Because the "Weekly WikiLeaks" actually sounds pretty good.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  15. icon
    Dark Helmet (profile), 9 Dec 2010 @ 11:44am

    Re: Re: Re: Re: whats the word for that...

    "What do you think we should call the e-book?"

    How about just "Truth"....

    link to this | view in thread ]

  16. icon
    Andrew (profile), 9 Dec 2010 @ 11:46am

    Supporting Wikileaks and showing Amazon's hypocrisy by getting the leaked cables on your Kindle? That's priceless. And for everything else, there's MasterCard.

    Oh come on, someone had to say it...

    link to this | view in thread ]

  17. icon
    Hephaestus (profile), 9 Dec 2010 @ 11:49am

    Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: whats the word for that...

    I like it but "Truth" wouldn't get many hits search wise on Amazon, barnes and noble, or Apple.

    (cover)
    Truth

    With Weekly Updates From
    - WikiLeaks
    - etc
    - etc

    (/cover)

    link to this | view in thread ]

  18. icon
    Marcus Carab (profile), 9 Dec 2010 @ 11:54am

    Re:

    From what I've read, the person who put the cables up was doing it to make a point not to make money

    link to this | view in thread ]

  19. icon
    Marcus Carab (profile), 9 Dec 2010 @ 11:55am

    The book seems to have disappeared now. Anyone know what happened?

    link to this | view in thread ]

  20. identicon
    Michial Thompson, 9 Dec 2010 @ 11:56am

    WOW

    "if you're so inclined. Of course, since they're available (at an ever increasing number of mirror sites) for free, there's no reason to"


    WOW just how many times have I read little mikee talking about how piracy doesn't affect the music industry... And god I have no clue how many times he has sat there and stated that just because something was available for free it doesn't prevent people from paying for it...

    WOW little mikee's true colors are shining on this entire wikileaks thing.... Real credibility here little mikee...

    link to this | view in thread ]

  21. icon
    cc (profile), 9 Dec 2010 @ 11:58am

    Re: WOW

    FAIL

    link to this | view in thread ]

  22. icon
    Marcus Carab (profile), 9 Dec 2010 @ 11:59am

    Re: No It Does Not

    Interesting... the link now seems to be gone. And I see what you are saying about the "DOES NOT CONTAIN" - but that's especially weird because it was definitely NOT like that when it first went up. Check out Techcrunch's screenshot from earlier today:

    http://techcrunch.com/2010/12/09/wikileaks-against-amazons-tos-but-for-sale-in-the-kindle- store/

    It's weird how the title still says "ALL CABLES WITH TAGS" but now the note "DOES NOT CONTAIN TEXT" has been added. And the book is gone now anyway (though it still comes up in search results)

    Anyone know what's goin on?

    link to this | view in thread ]

  23. icon
    Marcus Carab (profile), 9 Dec 2010 @ 12:00pm

    Re: WOW

    Why do you keep calling him "little mikee"? Is that really your standard of debate? What are you, 12 years old?

    link to this | view in thread ]

  24. icon
    Gabriel Tane (profile), 9 Dec 2010 @ 12:02pm

    Re: WOW

    "god I have no clue"

    Yes, we know.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  25. identicon
    Anonymous Coward, 9 Dec 2010 @ 12:02pm

    Rational decision, if you only think part way through.

    I will buy that amazon dropped their hosting of wikileaks to protect their other customers from the inevitable DDOS attacks against the site.

    It does however, need to be be remembered that wikileaks WAS A CUSTOMER who should have been protected from...

    link to this | view in thread ]

  26. icon
    Marcus Carab (profile), 9 Dec 2010 @ 12:03pm

    Re: WOW

    (and for the record, this blog has never said that people will still pay for things when they are available exactly the same for free - in fact it has constantly said it's stupid to try to compete with piracy if you aren't going to offer anything else. The point has always been that free content can drive people to buy related things that add value to that content, whether something simple like a vinyl record or something wacky and elaborate like mini-golf with the band.)

    link to this | view in thread ]

  27. icon
    Dark Helmet (profile), 9 Dec 2010 @ 12:03pm

    Re: Re: No It Does Not

    Taken out by the Amazon behind the grassy knoll, most likely....

    link to this | view in thread ]

  28. icon
    nasch (profile), 9 Dec 2010 @ 12:15pm

    Re: Re: Re: Re: whats the word for that...

    WeeklyLeaks?

    link to this | view in thread ]

  29. icon
    nasch (profile), 9 Dec 2010 @ 12:18pm

    Re: Re: WOW

    He claims to be an adult who has served in the military and holds a driver's license. Scary, huh?

    link to this | view in thread ]

  30. icon
    SUNWARD (profile), 9 Dec 2010 @ 12:23pm

    Now GONE

    that was fast.

    the link is now to a 404 document not found.

    What happened to their explanation?

    link to this | view in thread ]

  31. identicon
    Anonymous Coward, 9 Dec 2010 @ 12:27pm

    Some ideas:

    1. People should release many thousands of e-books that contain the cables, but certain sections are redacted. Find out what the cut-off point is from e-book sellers/tie up their analytical department until they give up in exasperation.

    2. Release books with the title "Censor this book" or "Don't censor this book" that contain the cables as 1% of the content of the book. Amazon/borders/etc will go down in history as participatory in the act of actual censorship.(amongst the above examples given.)

    3. Probably the most effective: Cancel your amazon/visa/mastercard accounts, and tell them you cancelled these accounts because of the censorship. Nothing speaks faster to a company than permanent loss of revenue.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  32. identicon
    RD, 9 Dec 2010 @ 12:27pm

    Re: Now GONE

    "that was fast.

    the link is now to a 404 document not found.

    What happened to their explanation?"

    Suppression and censorship, let alone kowtowing to Big Brother, always happen with all due haste and zero accountability.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  33. identicon
    New Mexico Mark, 9 Dec 2010 @ 12:57pm

    Re: Re: Re: Re: whats the word for that...

    Call the book: Twilight - Wikigrams

    "Bella receives a series of strange messages from Edward. What can they mean?"

    It would get a million purchases with zero risk of the information falling into intelligent hands. Win-win.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  34. icon
    Dark Helmet (profile), 9 Dec 2010 @ 1:09pm

    Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: whats the word for that...

    How do I mark this pants-shitting hilarious?

    link to this | view in thread ]

  35. icon
    techflaws.org (profile), 9 Dec 2010 @ 10:50pm

    Re: WOW

    And god I have no clue

    Correct. You completely summed up everything there's to know about you.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  36. icon
    Lisae Boucher (profile), 10 Dec 2010 @ 6:13am

    Re: Re:

    Yet, Amazon does make a profit from this sale! And perhaps a few others too...

    link to this | view in thread ]

  37. icon
    Marcus Carab (profile), 10 Dec 2010 @ 11:03am

    Re:

    Do uh, does SWN = Single White Nazi?

    link to this | view in thread ]

  38. identicon
    cable ties, 28 Mar 2012 @ 1:03am

    cable ties

    cable ties is very useful ties . it use in many different works like people makes the colorful flowers like red ,green pink roes.

    link to this | view in thread ]


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