In this 60 Minutes interview, Steve Kroft was no Stephen Colbert. (The Business Insider said, "Steve Kroft came across like a severe scolding parent, who needs help programming the VCR.") Julian Assange came across as the knowledgeable one:
Kroft: One bank, Bank of America, had its stock go down three to five percent based on a rumor, maybe it's a rumor, maybe you know more about it, that you had the contents of a five gigabyte hard drive belonging to one of its executives. Do you have a five gigabyte hard drive?
Assange: I won't make any comment in relation to that upcoming publication.
Kroft: You're certainly not denying it.
Assange: You know, there'll be a process of elimination if we denied some and admitted others.
Kroft: So it might not be Bank of America and you're just gonna let them squirm until you get ready to…
Assange: I think it's great. We have all these banks squirming, thinking maybe it's them.
Kroft: You seem to enjoy stirring things up.
Assange: When you see abusive organizations suffer the consequences as a result of their abuse, and you see victims elevated, it's, yes, that's a very pleasurable activity to be involved in.
Kroft: I mean you see yourself as a check on the power of the United States and other big countries in the world. And in the process of doing that, you have now become powerful yourself. Who is the check on you?
Assange: It is our sources who choose to provide us with information or not, depending on how they see our actions. It is our donors who choose to give us money or not. This organization cannot survive for even a few months without the ongoing support of the public.
