Snowden Awarded Alternative Nobel

Edward Snowden is a controversial name among most Americans. A CBS poll earlier this year showed 61 percent of Americans believe Snowden should stand trial for leaking sensitive NSA documents. But in a different poll from the Huffington Post, the majority of Americans agree that the federal government should be more transparent with their surveillance programs. And in two other polls from Time Magazine and US News and World Report, respondents classified Snowden as a Whistleblower, NOT a traitor, over 50 percent of participants saying he did a good thing by exposing the NSA. Snowden’s actions are so polarizing, newspaper editorial boards and TV station managers all over the country are still looking for ways to sell their spin.

Meanwhile, other countries look at Snowden in a completely different light. In fact, in Sweden, Snowden just got awarded with a huge peace prize. The ex-NSA contractor split the 2014 Right Livelihood Award along with British news editor, Alan Rusbridger. He works at The Guardian, and his articles about Snowden’s findings and other government spy programs have made some big waves.

The Swedish award is so famous, many people refer to it as the “other Nobel Peace Prize.” Some reports have indicated Snowden might also be nominated for the Nobel award, but while he still faces serious charges from the US government, many consider the potential political fallout as a major obstacle for Snowden to actually win the award.

This announcement of Snowden’s big award was supposed to come later this week, but go figure, someone leaked the information.