Index
activist-lawyers
burnout as occupational hazard, 184
challenges for,
Dawn Wooten’s work with,
organizational model,
priorities and commitment to clients,
role of in ICDC campaign, 148
advocates/advocacy organizations
Amazon Labor Union, 93
benefits for whistleblowers, 142
examples of, 10
funding challenges, 12
ignored in discussions of whistleblowing cases, 155
importance of, 205
lobbying by, 59
Project South, 139
whistleblower alliances and,
whistleblowers’ advocacy (Cheung), 129
whistleblowers’ advocacy (Smalls), 93
The Age of Surveillance Capitalism (Zuboff), 101
allies of public whistleblowers
academic research,
elevation of local troubles to a public matter,
informal partnerships,
parrhesia and,
personal relationships,
ambivalence in,
commitment in,
compassion and,
vulnerability and,
Amazon
case of Christian Smalls,
emergence of whistleblowing subcultures, 166
leaked memo, 168
mistakes made by, 167
potential racism problem,
racial stratification, 76
Amazon Employees for Climate Justice, 88
Amazon warehouse whistleblowers, 5
Christian Smalls’ employment at Amazon,
COVID-19 and workers’ health concerns,
demands for formal investigations into dismissal of, 81
and the emergence of whistleblowing subcultures,
escalation of concerns through collective action,
external pressure for reinstatement of, 93
Global Climate Strike (2019), 89
and the importance of connections for whistleblowers,
and improvements to working conditions,
in-house support for actions of,
Kentucky staff walkout, 79
media coverage of walkouts, 80
and openness of New York state to collective action, 93
post-walkout reprisals and the media backlash,
potential exposure of workers to COVID-19, 77
public reaction to anti-whistleblower campaign,
public support for, 90
Americans Who Tell the Truth, 152
Arendt, Hannah, 40n21,
Australian whistleblowers, Lennane’s study, 73n64
Balwani, Sunny
confronts Erika Cheung, 50
employees’ fear of, 46
response to Cheung’s concerns, , 61
response to Tyler Shultz’s concerns, 47
Barbaro, Michael,
Bauman, Z., 29
Berkshire Hathaway, 18
Berlin Wall, 186
Bezos, Jeff, 81
Biden, Jill, 100
Biden, Joe, 98
big tech, concerns about the power of,
#BlackLivesMatter movement, 85
Boies, David, 48, 59
attitude towards Wall Street Journal reporter,
letter to Erika Cheung, 53
litigation experience, 48
position on the board of Theranos, 68
silencing effect of presence, 49
threat of legal action against Wall Street Journal,
Bowden, Courtney, 90
BP oil spill, 142
Breton, Thierry, 100
Bryson, Gerald, 90
Burton, Bill, 120
Burton, Richard, 15
Butler, Judith, 193
Cambridge Analytica, 100
Carreyrou, John, , 95, 129, 183
approach to Erika Cheung, 52
backing of Wall Street Journal, 58
meeting with David Boies, 57
SLAPP suit against,
on the threat of litigation, 48
Tyler Shultz speaks to,
Castro, Joaquín, 147
Challenger Space Shuttle, 17
Chernobyl, 17
Cheung, Erika, 43, 89, 104, 153, 177, 178, 185, 222
background, 43
concerns about Theranos machine, 54
consults a healthcare fraud lawyer, 59
Elizabeth Holmes on her treatment of, 69
industry conference talk, 43
legal protections, 61
pivotal nature of testimony, 69
potential liability for breaching her NDA, 62
quits Theranos, 50
recruitment to Theranos, 43
relocates overseas, 64
signs NDA on recruitment, 43
signs post-resignation NDA, 52
subpoenaed by hedge fund, 60
working relationship with John Carreyrou,
Clark, Dave, 83
Clonan, Tom, 181
collective bricolage
the concept of, 161,
in context,
and organizational parrhesia,
organizing practices, 188
as starting point, 188
temporary relief in an ongoing crisis,
connections, importance of for whistleblowers, 70,
Conway v. Dept of Agriculture, 41n38
COVID-19 pandemic
and Amazon workers’ health concerns,
and helpful whistleblowers, 17
whistleblowing disclosures around,
credibility of whistleblowers, casting doubt on, ,
criminalization of whistleblowers, lawfare and the potential for,
Crisis of Conscience (Mueller), 40n31
Crowe, Russell, 54
Cunningham, Emily, , 94
Davila, Edward, 42
‘Democracy Protection Initiative’ programme, 157
Devine, Tom
educational background, 154
on GAP’s priorities and commitment to clients, 156
on public-interest disclosures, 106
on public support for whistleblowers, 222
‘Reality Check for the Aspiring Whistleblower’, 163
on the stress of representing whistleblowers, 157
on whistleblowing strategies, 141
Digital Services Act (EU), 100
Digital Services Act (UK), 100
Dodd Frank Act (US), 220n63
‘dot philosophy’ of whistleblowing, 142
Economy and Society (Weber), 167
effective whistleblowing, definition, 14n10
Ellison, Larry, 43
Elmer, Rudolf, 14n6
errors organizations make,
toleration of reporting, 27
and unintended consequences, 215
whistleblower attunement to, 144
ESB
and the bigger picture,
case of the ESB whistleblower,
denials of disclosures, 31
management responses, 26
persistence of whistleblower,
problems with official whistleblowing channels,
querying of whistleblower’s credibility,
reporting failures, 31
structure of the organization, 25
whistleblower policy, 23
Ethiopia, 98
European Commission, 1
Facebook
case of Frances Haugen,
change of name, 103
concerns about the power of,
damage control efforts, 123
and the global reach of whistleblowing disclosures,
internal dissent, 111
lack of support for whistleblowers, 103
leaked memo, 168
mistakes made by, 167
Ohio files suit against, 100
potential impact on public safety, 98
response to whistleblowing campaign, , 167
role in inciting violence in India, 106
role in 6 January riots, 105
use of employers’ retaliation playbook, 115
attack whistleblower’s credibility,
emphasize suspicious motives,
isolate the whistleblower,
volume of documented evidence in ‘Facebook Files’, 111
whistleblowing disclosures and their impact, ,
fascinance, 199n51
fear, major reason for people staying silent, 18
feminist movements, as source of inspiration, 199n45
films, representation of whistleblowing in, 54
Financial Times
Christian Smalls featured in, 75
on Facebook’s dismissive response to whistleblowing disclosures, 122
Frances Haugen’s opinion piece in, 100
on Haugen’s presentation, 109
on the impact of Haugen’s disclosures on Facebook, 100
nomination of Haugen for ‘Women of 2021’ feature, 102
Fineman, Steve, 27
Fitzgerald, Ernie, 142
Floyd, George, 85
Foucault, Michel, 203
Freud, Sigmund, 131
Georgia Detention Watch, 158n1
Georgia Latino Alliance for Human Rights, 158n1
Gillibrand, Kirsten, 90
Gold, Dana
advice for whistleblowers post disclosure, 141
on countering whistleblower vulnerability, 205
on the ‘dot philosophy’ of whistleblowing, 142
and the fight for legislative change, 152
on relationships with journalists, 130
on what happened to Dawn Wooten, 140
Gore, Al, 48
Government Accountability Project (GAP), 7, 125
activist-lawyers, 141
examples of whistleblowers helped by, 142
and the fight for legislative change, 152
founding, 141
heritage and principles, 155
organizational model,
priorities and commitment to clients,
provisions for whistleblowers, 144
research arm, 144
Greenwald, Glenn, 121
Gun, Katharine, 54
Hale, Daniel, 89
Harris, Kamala, 90
Haugen, Frances, 169, , 178
appearance, 132
association with the US Democratic Party, 121
bigger picture perspective, 174
criticisms, 125
educational and employment background, 110
Facebook’s response to whistleblowing campaign, , 167
feelings about Facebook, 111,
global reach of disclosures,
health issues, 114
ideal discloser,
involvement of multiple media outlets,
lessons learned at Facebook, 164
media defenders,
nominated for FT’s ‘Women of 2021’ feature, 102
opinion pieces in British and American media, 100
personal experience of social media platforms’ influence,
presentation of
as calm and rational,
as channel of authority,
as empathetic and accessible,
as journalist-partner,
as moral, independent critic,
recruitment by Facebook, 99
responsibilities at Facebook, 99
successful disclosures,
televised testimony to the US Senate Commerce Subcommittee, 100
tensions between journalist partners and, 185
whistleblowing disclosures and their impact, ,
HBO, 72n43
HBOS, 14n6
Hegarty, Aoife, 114
helpful whistleblowers,
Holmes, Elizabeth,
background, 43
employees’ fear of, 46
on her treatment of Erika Cheung, 69
role of whistleblowers’ testimony in conviction of, 42
and the threat of litigation, 48
the Holocaust, 40n21
Ifueko, Jordan, 150
incentives for whistleblowing, research on,
inequality, whistleblowing and,
information matchmaking
the concept of, , 172
in action,
focusing on the employer at fault,
GAP’s strategy,
long-term commitment required by,
Inman, Mary, 43
The Insider (Mann), 54
institutionalized whistleblowing, 3
interviews with whistleblowers
about the financial costs of whistleblowing, 151
Dawn Wooten, , 146
for research project, 195
ICDC detainees, 147
Ioannidis, John P. A., 46
Irwin County Detention Center (ICDC),
activist-lawyers’ role in campaign against, 148
case of Dawn Wooten, 138
conditions in which women were held, 138
failures in provision of necessary medical care to detainees, 138
formal complaint filed against, 139
hysterectomies performed on detained women, 140,
ICE ordered to end its contract with, 140
lawsuits of women detainees still pending, 153
media reporting on, 140
New Yorker podcast item on,
publication of reports into conditions at, 150
response to COVID-19 pandemic, , 148
role in the local economy, 149
role of women detainees in whistleblowing campaign,
Isaac, Mike, 124
lawfare, 178, 184, 187, 193
the concept of, 50
background to Theranos’s use of,
intimidatory tactics,
potential criminalization of whistleblowers,
rise in opportunities to engage in, 65
use of against public whistleblowers,
legislation
Defend Trade Secrets Act (California), 60
Digital Services Act (EU), 100
Digital Services Act (UK), 100
Dodd Frank Act (US), 220n63
Protected Disclosures Act (Ireland), 33
Public Interest Disclosure Act (UK), 71n22
legislative reform
campaigns for sparked by whistleblower stories, 198n29
closing legal loopholes, 221
legal aid,
public whistleblowing,
role of campaigning groups, 222
Lennane, K. Jean, 73n64
Linebaugh, Kate, 108,
Liu, Libby, 103
Luminate, 121
lunch counter protests, during US civil rights movement, 186
Lush, shutting down of social media accounts, 100
LuxLeaks, 198n29
Madoff Ponzi scheme, 198n29
‘Malek Manual’, 115
management, potential implications of whistleblowing for, 28
manager ethics, Jackall’s observations, 28
Markopolos, Harry, 198n29
Martin, Brian,
Official Channels, 35
on employers’ mistakes and forced errors, 167
on media credibility, 126
on official channels, 35
on the aftermath of whistleblowing, 9
on the avoidance of publicity, 214
on the hazards of whistleblowing, 91
on the paradox of repression, 168
‘Seven Common Traps’, 176
The Whistleblower’s Handbook, 134n14
Maxwell, Lida, 133
McAdam, Doug, 186
media coverage, potential role in reform, 144
mental health, potential impact of whistleblowing for, 30
Meta, renaming of Facebook as, 103
#MeToo, 216
mistakes made by organizations,
exploitation of by whistleblowers, 10
and the growth of subcultures of dissent, 187
Mohamed, Bashir, 90
Moore, Michael, 48
Moore, Paul, 14n6
Moral Mazes (Jackall), 25
Morgan, David, 53
Murdoch, Rupert, 43
Murray, Bob, 72n43
Myanmar, 98
Nader, Ralph, 154
national security organizations, classification of documents, 72n38
New York State, openness to worker collective action, 93
The New York Times
commentary on Theranos case, 42
on conviction of Elizabeth Holmes, 69
on Erika Cheung’s testimony, 42
on Facebook’s internal response to workers, 122
Frances Haugen’s opinion piece in, 100
investigations into complaints against ICDC, 147
reporting on Haugen’s colleagues’ reactions to her disclosures, 115
reporting on Haugen’s Facebook revelations, 103
reporting on ICDC, 140
reporting on protests by detained migrants, 139
on the work of activist-lawyers, 158n7
obliteration, risk of for whistleblowers, 95
Official Channels (Martin), 35
official channels for whistleblowing
casting doubt on the whistleblower’s credibility,
consequences of failure, 4
creating smoother pathways,
helpful whistleblowers,
lack of protection for unwanted whistleblowers,
organizational anxiety around public disclosures,
problems with,
as reprisal,
uncomfortable truths,
whistleblower disclosures and the restoration of control,
Official Secrets (Hood), 54
Oliver, John, 72n43
Omidyar, Pierre, 121
On Violence (Arendt), 170
Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), statement on whistleblowers, 1
Panama Papers, 198n29
partner roles
amplifying disclosures,
lending credibility,
looking after the whistleblower’s well-being,
practical support, 177
rewriting subject positions,
Permanent Record (Snowden), 196n11
personal relationships, negative impacts of whistleblowing, 73n64
private investigators, Theranos’s use of, 42
Protected Disclosures Act (Ireland), 33
protection for whistleblowers, upsurge in,
Public Interest Disclosure Act (UK), 71n22
public whistleblowers
the concept of, 4
ambivalence around, 5
disclosures around COVID-19 pandemic,
as focus of this book, 161
potential partners, 4
use of lawfare against,
value of support for,
public whistleblowing
academic research on,
future research,
lack of support strategies, 12
last resort,
legislative reform,
parrhesia and, ,
psychosocial approach,
public whistleblowers and their allies,
research approach and methods,
signs of success, 9
society’s reliance on, 7
strategic role of other disclosers,
public-interest motivation, importance of for whistleblowing, 109
Rajendra, Dania, 85
reprisal
EU criteria for protection of public disclosures against, 41n33
official channels as,
rethinking aggressive reprisal,
unintended consequences for employers,
as warning to other workers, 74n65see also retaliation against whistleblowers; retaliating organizations.
research on public whistleblowing
academic research,
financial impacts for whistleblowers, 151
future research,
academics,
exclusion from collective bricolage, 216
planned campaigns,
trade unions, 215
unintended consequences, 215
methodology and approach,
parrhesia, ,
psychosocial approach,
whistleblowers and their allies,
Reset Tech, 121
retaliating organizations
digital leaks,
emergence of whistleblowing subcultures,
mistakes and forced errors,
power of,
rethinking whistleblower reprisal,
whistleblowers’ investments in company principles,
retaliation against whistleblowers
Amazon, 90
‘dot philosophy’ and,
ESB,
failure to investigate as act of retaliation, 41n38
focus on development of legal protections against, 18
personal impacts, 177
possible reasons for, 25
potential consequences, 18
prevalence, 38n3
role of HR departments, 33
shift in burden of proof, 40n26
social media and, 193
Rifkin, Will, 167
risk, whistleblowing as forward indicator of, 17
‘shadow-whistleblowers’,
Shultz, George, 56
Shultz, Tyler, 89
concerns about Theranos machines,
contact with Wall Street Journal,
financial status, 58
Smalls, Christian, 95, 104, 153, 168, 171, 176, 178, 185
advice for whistleblowers,
background information, 75
commitment to Amazon’s principles, 165
contacts politicians and the media, 78
deliberate discrediting,
exaggerates numbers of colleagues walking out, 94
initial approach to HR, 77
internal discord within Amazon about treatment of, 88
post-walkout dismissal, 81
quarantined, 79
role in organizing the Amazon workforce,
social media campaigning, 79
social media
free speech and, 119
Glenn Greenwald on, 121
ICDC detainees’ use of, 148
mental health issues for young users of, 114
and online escalation of abuse, 183
role in spread of information emanating from whistleblowing disclosures,
and weak social ties, 185
whistleblowers’ use of, 93
Soros, George, 113
South Georgia Immigrant Support Network, 158n1
speak-up systems, 2, 35
best practices,
Brian Martin on, 36
challenges for speak-up staff,
‘institutionalized critique’, 22
positive associations, 19
type of wrongdoings designed for, 20
Staley, Jes, 39n9
strategic lawsuits against public participation (SLAPP)
overview, 55
against Bob Murray, 72n43
against John Oliver, 72n43
criminal versus civil cases, 66
criticisms, 57
intimidatory effects, 65
potential targets, 57
subcultures, emergence of whistleblowing subcultures, ,
Taibbi, Matt, 121
Tech Workers’ Collective, 216
Tevanian, Avie, 67
Theranos
ambition of the company, 43
application process, 43
case of Erika Cheung,
culture of secrecy, , 49
David Boies’s board position, 68
employees’ fear of the threat of litigation,
Erika Cheung
account of whistleblowing campaign, 42,
beginning of employment, 42,
discusses initial concerns with Tyler Shultz, 44
response to threatening letter, 59
threatening letter received by,
and examples of retaliation against whistleblowers,
investors in the company, 43
John Carreyrou’s investigation, 46
jokes about the Theranos device, 45
and legal protections,
management responses to employee concerns,
mechanical failures, , 54
mistakes made by, 167
outside counsel for the company, 48
and the protection of knowledge,
quality control failures, 44
SLAPP suits
against journalists,
against whistleblowers,
use of lawfare
background,
to criminalize whistleblowers,
to target whistleblowers,
use of NDAs, 43,
Wall Street Journal story, 52see also Balwani, Sunny; Carreyrou, John; Cheung, Erika; Holmes, Elizabeth; Shultz, Tyler.
The Thin Blue Line (Morris), 54
Tibbo, Robert, 183
unintended consequences of reprisals, , 172, 191
surprising outcomes, 215
whistleblowers’ capacity to capitalize on, 187
United Kingdom (UK)
Digital Services Act, 100
parliamentary appearance of Frances Haugen, 100
percentage of claims settled under PIDA legislation, 71n22
whistleblowing protection criteria, 73n52
United Nations (UN)
failures to protect civilians, 142
Principles for Responsible Investment, recommendations on whistleblowing systems, 17
United States (US), 186
civil rights movement, 83
Defend Trade Secrets Act (California), 60
‘Democracy Protection Initiative’ programme, 157
Dodd Frank Act, 220n63
legal protection for whistleblowers,
Madoff Ponzi scheme, 198n29
University of the District of Columbia School of Law (Antioch), 154
Whistleblower Protection Act (1989), 2
valuable employees, framing of whistleblowers as, 18
industrial revolution, and the value of knowledge, 56
Wachovia whistleblower, 14n6
Walgreens, announcement of Theranos’s partnership with, 45
Wall Street Journal
publication of the ‘Facebook Files’,
Warren, Elizabeth, 90
Weber, Max, 167
Weinstein, Harvey, 48
Whistleblower Aid, 103
Whistleblower International Network, 155
whistleblower protection law, underlying principles, 63
whistleblowers/whistleblowing
overview, , 17
Brian Martin’s advice, 91
Chris Smalls’ advice,
current landscape, 18
differing definitions of ‘whistleblowers’, 40n29
differing experiences,
emergence of subcultures, ,
employers’ retaliation playbook, 115
attack whistleblower’s credibility,
emphasize suspicious motives,
isolate the whistleblower,
as forward indicator of risk, 17
framing of whistleblowers as valuable employees, 18
history of planned whistleblower reprisals, 115
importance of a public-interest motivation, 109
importance of connections for whistleblowers, 70,
importance of journalistic relationships, 104,
inequality and,
institutionalized, 3
lack of protection in official channels,
messiness of legal protections,
OECD statement, 1
perception within the organization, 30
philosophical musings, 202
potential personal consequences, 73n64
private costs,
protection under US law,
public support for, 55
public whistleblower concept, 4
racial perspective, 132
recent scenarios, 5
research into financial impacts, 151
safeguarding role, 2
as targets of lawfare,
typical scenario, 25
upsurge in protection for,
The Whistleblowing Guide: Speak-up Arrangements, Challenges and Best Practices (Kenny et al.), 19, 38n5
Whistleblowing: A Practical Guide (Martin), 91
‘whistleblowing channels’, negative associations, 19
Whistleblowing International Network, 185
whistleblowing software, value of the global industry, 18
Wigand, Jeffrey, 54
Winner, Reality, 132
Woods, Martin, 14n6
Wooten, Dawn
blacklisting of and its impacts, , , 168
complaint about whistleblowing retaliation, 153
Congressman Joaquín Castro’s praise for, 147
local backlash, , 159n13
media interviews, 139
personal website, 147
private costs of whistleblowing for,
targeting of by her employers,
whistleblowing rights violation claim, 139
wins First Amendment award, 152
work with activist-lawyers,
