Deep Throat, Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein did fine [1].
I’m not convinced that, had Wikileaks filtered their material like the ICIJ did with the Panama Papers [2], they would have been charged. Ignoring the collateral damage caused by Assange’s decision not to curate, like every journalist is trained to do, doesn’t make it immaterial.
[1] https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deep_Throat_%28Watergate%29
But honestly, saying earlier leakers did fine also seems pretty selective. Deep Throat did fine because he kept his identity secret for 30 years. Woodward did well because his publications forced Nixon to resign, producing an administration that wasn't being directly harmed by the leaks.
Before Nixon's resignation, those associated with leaks suffered quite a bit more. Daniel Ellsberg had his medical records stolen from his psychiatrist's office. When Nixon thought the Brookings Institute had Vietnam files, he ordered their office robbed and later planned a firebombing to enable an FBI raid; this was apparently preempted only because the Pentagon Papers were published. Other reporters and editors were regularly targeted with tax audits for criticizing Nixon. Martha Mitchell was kidnapped and sedated to prevent her from discussing her husband's role in Watergate. Many of the people targeted most heavily, for instance for FBI harassment and break-ins, were activists instead of reporters, but Assange's place on that continuum is hardly clear.
It does seem excessive to claim that this was an inevitable outcome. But I don't think the recent or Nixon-era experiences of leakers justify any belief whatsoever that responsible leakers face less retribution.
Of the 4 examples you provided, only Wilson didn't violate any laws. Drake and Kiriakou were government intelligence officers and violated federal laws regarding the disclosure of classified information. For Kirakou, the problem was not that he blew the whistle--the problem was how. He could have blown the whistle in a manner that protected classified information, such as by reporting to the Congressional oversight committee, which is what Drake tried to do. Drake was shielded from prosecution because he attempted to follow proper procedure all the way to the extremes and only breached disclosure rules when he was rebuffed. Kirakou didn't even try, which is why he ended up serving time. Brown may have committed a number of hacking-related crimes while a member of Anonymous; his criminal charges related to that and not to his reporting. (Being a journalist only shields you for journalism-related activities. It's not a magic shield to protect you from any crime you commit.) Wilson was never charged with a violation of the Espionage Act, so I'm not sure why he's on your list....