The Distinctiveness of Whistleblowing
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The Distinctiveness of Whistleblowing Michele Bocchiola1
© Springer Nature B.V. 2020
1 Introduction Whistleblowers are members of organizations who, coming to know, or reasonably believing, the occurrence of wrongful or hazardous behaviors, decide to voice their concerns either to higher-level management (through internal channels) or, if this proves ineffective, by reporting the case to an external and independent oversight body that has the power, but not the knowledge, to put in place adequate measures to counter wrongful and hazardous behaviors. Notwithstanding its proven efficacy in remedying organizational wrongdoings such as fraud and corruption,1 and the public recognition that whistleblowers have recently received,2 scholars keep looking at whistleblowing as something problematic and morally ambiguous that stands in need of a special justification.3 To illustrate the difficulties involved in the justification of whistleblowing, consider the following scenario: 1 See, for example, B. Culiberg and K.K. Mihelič (2017), “The Evolution of Whistleblowing Studies: A Critical Review and Research Agenda,” Journal of Business Ethics 46(4), pp. 787-803. 2 In 2002, Time magazine nominated the whistleblowers “persons of the year” (R. Lacayo R and A. Ripley (2002), “Persons of The Year 2002: The Whistleblowers,” Time Magazine 30 December 2002). See also C. Grant C (2002), “Whistle Blowers: Saints of Secular Culture,” Journal of Business Ethics 39(4), pp. 391-399. More recent cases, such as that of Edward Snowden (who, in 2013, revealed a mass violation of individual privacy rights perpetrated by the US and British governments through a secret telecommunication surveillance program around the world), have generated a wide debate among philosophers. See W.E. Sheuerman (2014), “Whistleblowing as Civil Disobedience. The Case of Edward Snowden,” Philosophy and Social Criticism 40(7), pp. 609-628, C. Delmas (2015), “The Ethics of Government Whistleblowing,” Social Theory and Practice 41(1), pp. 77-105, K. Brownlee (2016), “The Civil Disobedience of Edward Snowden,” Philosophy and Social Criticism 42 (10), pp. 965-970, R. P. Hamilton (2016), “The Wholehearted Professional,” Journal of Value Inquiry 50(4), pp. 735-751, and E.R. Boot (2017), “Classified Public Whistleblowing: How to Justify a pro tanto Wrong,” Social Theory and Practice 43(3), pp. 541-567. 3 For example, De George, one of the leading figures in the philosophical debate on whistleblowing, acknowledges that “tradition has placed the onus on those who justify whistle-blowing, the common assumption being that it is morally prohibited.” R.T. De George (2010), “Whistle-Blowing,” in Business Ethics 7th ed., New York: Macmillan, pp. 298-318, on p. 300.
* Michele Bocchiola [email protected] 1
Dipartimento di Studi Politici e Sociali, Università degli Studi di Pavia, C.So Strada Nuova 65, 27100 Pavia, Italy
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