GLOBAL JOURNALIST: How significant are leaked Afghan war documents?

Byron Scott, Professor Emeritus, Missouri School of Journalism: It’s been called bigger than the Pentagon Papers.  And in terms of volume and variety, the more than 92,000 documents contained in the variously called “Wikileaks” or “Afghanistan War Logs” released this week are truly massive. But are they more significant? Will they serve to alter public opinion about the nine-year-old war in Afghanistan as Daniel Ellsberg’s famous leak did for the Vietnam War? And what about the manner in which it was unveiled: sent a month in advance to three of the West’s most prestigious news organizations – The New York Times, Guardian and Observer in London and Germany’s Der Speigel – for sifting and analysis. Then released to the world via the Internet as the Sunday editions of the three media giants hit the streets. Give us your impressions of this story.