While it became “natural” for politicians to employ questionable methods to reach power, it is the job of journalists, the media and whistle-blowers to keep such behaviour in check. Punishing them for doing their job – uncovering uncomfortable truths that those in power would like to keep away from the public – means removing one of the most important checks on executive political power.
Assange had in his hands information of immoral political behaviour by a party and he published it. One can argue about timing and political consequences, but it is hard to deny that it was in the interest of the public to know these facts. The information was not fake or fabricated; it was the truth.
Without WikiLeaks and Julian Assange, without the courageous whistle-blowers and journalists who are revealing the dirty secrets and immoral acts of powerful regimes, who are opposing or criticising authority, truth would quickly lose value.