Reaction: Whistleblowers

Whistleblowers are perceived as heroes struggling with life-altering dilemmas throughout film and TV. Through portrayed stories, these people struggle with the tough choices laid out before them. On the one hand, whistleblowers believe it's their duty to shed light on and expose organizations to corruption and injustices. On the other, however, they want to keep themselves and those they love out of harm's way, because once that Pandora's box is opened, you can never go back.

Making the ultimate sacrifice is always challenging. Hollywood, a dramatic outlet, allows us as watchers to understand how and why a certain individual chooses to make these decisions. And in the spirit of Hollywood, whistleblowing is always taken to the extreme. 

The extent of my knowledge surrounding whistleblowers came from what I saw on TV. The concept was always more dangerous and dramatic in my mind. The assumption, at least for me, was that if an individual went up against an organization or leaked certain damaging information, they would end up dead. But that is rarely the case.

Through education and culture, the names Snowden and Ellsberg came up a lot. They were some of the more famous whistleblowers the world had seen. 

So, what exactly is whistleblowing? Well, it's when someone, who works for an organization, leaks any act of wrongdoing to the public. Whistleblowing is more common than I assumed, mainly because it can occur in almost any situation. A few examples include exposing tax fraud, bad accounting, bad pollution, and embezzlement, to more extreme cases such as those involving Edward Snowden, Daniel Ellsberg, and Chelsea Manning.

In these extreme cases, the results ended in many being charged with violating the Espionage Act, which I was not aware of. I assumed that whistleblowers are protected by law and, for the most part, they are. In the U.S., several laws have been put into place, at all levels, to protect those who leak information. But these laws, much like everything else in the legal world are not black and white. Yes, there are protection laws, but each one is unique and has its own set of rules and policies. 

In some of the more famous cases, the whistleblower has been charged with and punished for committing acts of treason. Edward Snowden was charged with espionage but fled the country before he was caught, and is now living as an exile in Russia. Snowden was a computer intelligence consultant working for the NSA when he blew the whistle and leaked information to the Guardian and the New York Post. He released to the world, the biggest piece of information, regarding technology and government surveillance. Because of Snowden, the U.S. was made aware that the government was collecting data and information about people's personal lives.

Chelsea Manning was a U.S. Army intelligence analyst, who made known to the public, the largest set of classified documents, containing details about the abuse, torture, and detention of prisoners. Like Snowden, she was charged with violating the Espionage Act, however, unlike him, she was convicted and sentenced to 35 years in prison.  In his final days of presidency, Obama unexpectedly granted her clemency. Today she still uses her voice to advocate for the freedom of information. 

The results of Manning and Snowden's actions resulted in big debates being spread all throughout the U.S. on privacy, government surveillance, and security. The results of Daniel Ellsberg's actions led to the extension of the First Amendment. 

Ellsberg, a former military analyst, leaked the Pentagon Papers to the New York Times in 1971. These papers proved that everyone working for the Johnson Administration had lied about the scope and actions of our political and military involvement in the Vietnam War. Ellsberg was initially charged with conspiracy, espionage, and theft of government property. However, due to the Watergate scandal, the charges were dropped.  Thanks to him, a landmark decision was made, and the First Amendment now includes the right to free press against a prior restraint by the government. 

My understanding of whistleblowing has certainly changed, after listening to the presentation and going off on my own to do more research. It's a high-stakes necessary role in our society. Sometimes, sacrifices need to be made, and whistleblowing is a choice, that sparks debates about certain truths that most would rather not speak about. Despite the risk, whistleblowing can check certain powers, and hold organizations and governments accountable, and in a world where transparency is lacking, we should applaud whistleblowers and thank them, not punish or try to silence them.