Whistleblower Intentions
Just as journalists may sometimes have unethical motivations for pursuing a story, whistleblowers can have unethical intentions for coming forward. Whistleblowing is not appropriate in the following scenarios: Sharing information that is not rooted in fact but based on a hunch, or sharing information without necessary context — It is crucial for a whistleblower to […]
Journalist-Whistleblower Relationships
Journalists are advised to maintain professional relationships with sources and to minimize all personal conversation or contact that could compromise the reporting process. Romantic or sexual relationships are considered to be particularly unethical and can jeopardize the credibility of both the journalist and the whistleblower. Example Journalist Christie Smyth was covering white-collar crime for Bloomberg […]
Important to Know
Knowing what information you should and should not share with the media is critical to having productive conversations that result in a well-told story. Therefore, a number of common misconceptions must be addressed: Anonymity is never 100% guaranteed Journalists can grant anonymity to a source who hopes to protect their identity when sharing information on […]
Standards
To work effectively with the press, a whistleblower must understand the ethical guidelines journalists are trained to follow. Standards vary by media outlet, but the following principles lay the groundwork for how reporters are expected to conduct themselves. Source: Society of Professional Journalists’ Code of Ethics Seek truth and accuracy. Above all else, ethical and […]
Waiting for Publication (and What to Do Post-Publication)
After the initial interview, a reporter is likely to take time to assess the information and set up interviews with other sources to better understand all sides of the story. The reporter will work with their editor and other staff to fact-check and ensure credibility, and may ask to speak with you again (possibly several […]
Participating in an Interview
It is very important to establish the ground rules of the conversation with the reporter before the interview itself is conducted. Explain in what capacity you are willing to speak, and get the reporter’s confirmation of the terms in writing. Reporters offer interviews in various formats: Phone or Zoom call — the most common interview […]
Making Contact With a Journalist
When it is time to initiate contact with the media, follow these steps to help set the stage for a conversation. Create a designated email address To avoid mixing your whistleblowing communications with your personal messaging — or worse, your work messaging — create a unique email address to use exclusively for this process. Remember […]
Finding the Right Journalist
Once a whistleblower is ready to come forward, they must find a media outlet and/or reporter to share their story with — which can be a tedious process, especially for someone unfamiliar with today’s digital media landscape and the focus of various publications. This checklist is a helpful guide: Identify your target audience. Every media […]
Understanding the Press
Roles Reporters are at the forefront of the media landscape, but many roles in a newsroom contribute to the journalistic process: Reporters — Within a news organization, reporters are usually hired to cover a specified subject or topic (“beat”). These coverage areas can be broad (such as business) or detailed (such as Uber and the […]
Creating Tangible Change
In recent years, whistleblowing in the tech space has led to concrete change. Here are several noteworthy examples. Calls from shareholders for corporate whistleblower protections Following Timnit Gebru’s firing, shareholders of Google’s parent company Alphabet filed a resolution asking its board to oversee a review of corporate whistleblower policies and their effectiveness in protecting employees. […]
