National Security Archive director on "Wikimania," and the dangers of demonizing WikiLeaks

Thomas Blanton, executive director of the National Security Archive, was among those who testified before the House Judiciary Committee on the aftermath of "Cablegate" and WikiLeaks. Blanton believes efforts to tighten secrecy and crack down on leakers and press will be "fundamentally self-defeating."

"There is more heat than light," Blanton stated, citing calls for broadening the Espionage Act and assassinating Wikileaks leader, Julian Assange. Hasty punitive reactions, he predicted, "will actually produce more leaks, more crackdowns, less accountable government, and diminished security." "History shows we end up doing more damage from the overreaction than from the original leak."

More on his statements here.