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We have found that there is much more to whistleblowing than the ordinary person might think. Whistleblowing has a long history, dating all the way back to the 7th century when citizens were encouraged to reveal any knowledge of malpractice on behalf of the king. There’s been tons of corruption for centuries, and an increase in illegal activity during the Civil War led to the False Claims Act being enacted in 1863. As a result of being rewarded for providing knowledge under this act, whistleblower cases increased and illegal activity then decreased.

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Because of the development of whistleblowing, it now has the power to influence political decisions that would otherwise have continued in its original course. New laws have been developed across the globe such as a bill in Russia that provides whistleblowers with confidentiality, legal aid, and more if they speak up about government proceedings, the Anti-Corruption Act in South Korea, and more. Whistleblowing also has a long history with large corporate businesses,  especially during the financial crisis of 2007-2009. We found that although these corporate whistleblowers may be seen as disloyal because they are “biting the hand that feeds them”, true fairness often trumps this moral. There has been a lot of controversy over the ethics and value of whistleblowing; there are many that believe that whistleblowers such as Edward Snowden are patriots, but there are also those that believe whistleblowers are traitors. 

 

Regardless of how these whistleblowers are viewed, what cannot be argued is that they have had a major impact on our society, such as an increase in whistleblower cases, an increase in the distrust between not only citizens and the government but also citizens and large corporations, production of new laws across the globe, and more.