Michael Moore, the acclaimed American documentary maker, has offered to put up the $20,000 required to release WikiLeaks founder JULIAN ASSANGE from the London prison where he is currently being held, reports Vanity Fair. 56-year-old Moore used his official website to a describe Assange as "a pioneer of free speech, transparent government and the digital revolution in journalism".
According to Assange's lawyer MARK STEPHENS, the 39-year-old is under 24-hour surveillance in prison and has complained that a tooth which broke off while he was eating has been stolen from his cell. He is wanted by authorities in Sweden concerning allegations of sexual harassment and is facing a long battle to avoid extradition. Moore, best known for his polemical film about the Bush administration 'Fahrenheit 9/11, added, "I believe that Julian takes pride in his reputation and as any journalist would understands that if he were to abscond he would ruin his reputation in the media and journalism industries".
The filmmaker recently completed work on a documentary about the whistleblowing website entitled 'Control+Alt+WikiLeaks. As well offering the bail money, Moore has offered the assistance of his website, servers, and domain names in order to 'keep WikiLeaks alive'.