Digital Prometheus: WikiLeaks, the State–Network Dichotomy, and the Antinomies of Academic Reason

This article analyzes two major threads of academic discussions on the WikiLeaks phenomenon and its influence on international and communication studies, which cause a refuelling and reframing of both the questions and the solutions offered by academics and practitioners in these fields. The research examines a sample of the academic literature produced in 2010–2012, in order to trace how WikiLeaks reframed age-old academic debates: In international relations and politics, the major debate is between transparency and secrecy/security. In media and communication studies the major debate is openness versus control. Perspectives are further divided, not only by discipline but also ideologically by the author’s position on the state–network dichotomy. In turn, different academic disciplines can be themselves mapped in terms of their relative closeness to the statist or network side of the controversy.