WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange is facing arrest for violating a Swedish law about sex without condoms, rather than a mainstream interpretation of “rape.” Yet that’s the charge reports often levy against him. Behold the smear campaign.

The New York Times wrote about the case on Thursday, noting that Swedish authorities were hunting Assange on charges of “rape, sexual molestation, and unlawful coercion.”

It commented on the alleged offense, stating claims by two women that

“each had consensual sexual encounters with Mr. Assange that became

nonconsensual.”

The Swedish charges aren’t exactly new, though. Some of the

media had reported “rape” allegations back in August, and the Daily Mail

even asserted the first alleged illegal act occurred when a condom

broke, and the woman concerned “whatever her views about the incident,”

then “appeared relaxed and untroubled at the seminar the next day.” At

this seminar, Assange met the second alleged victim and “a source close

to the investigation said the woman had insisted he wear a condom, but

the following morning he made love to her without one.”

Assange has questioned the “veracity” of the two women’s statements, as the Times report notes. Assange’s former lawyer yesterday “confirmed” the charges were to do with sexual misconduct concerning sex without condoms. Assange’s current lawyer then revealed

Swedish prosectors had told him they were not seeking Assange for

“rape” at all, instead the alleged crime is “sex by surprise,” which

carries a penalty of a fine, although the details of the allegations

haven’t been revealed yet.

Then came the Interpol warrant, and with it, a new life for the previous rape accusations.

But few outlets are as concerned as the Times with nuance. Washington’s Blog, to its credit, does report that

the Swedish arrest warrant–and the following Interpol alert, adding

Assange to its “most wanted” list–makes no reference to “rape.” Instead

Assange is being sought for sexual “coercion,” after engaging in what

was an allegedly non-consensual sex act with two women on two separate

occasions within a short space of time. The act in question was sex

without a condom, seemingly without the consent of the two women

involved. Assange is also alleged to have been reluctant to submit to

medical tests for sexually transmitted diseases. The two women reported

him to the police, together, leading to the first arrest warrant for

“rape,” from a duty prosecutor, which was quickly canceled, then a

later warrant for “sexual coercion.”