In our modern-day society, whistleblowers have a “distinct social and political persona”(Olesen 1). We live in a society that is heavily influenced by media, and more than often when whistleblowers are being discussed by media outlets, they are glorified and portrayed as heroes. More recent high-profile whistleblowers that fit this category include Edward Snowden, Chelsea Manning, and Julian Assange (Anvari 1); many whistleblowers have movies, documentaries, and even books written about them. Whether this is a good thing or not is up to the individual to decide, but the slight dramatization of whistleblowers in the media is just one of the many factors that have led to whistleblowing being on the rise. These forms of media have ultimately inspired many viewers, and many of these viewers have been workers that were already debating whether or not they should blow the whistle.
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Past individuals have served as an example of the potential safety that you can be provided with or dangers that you can be protected from even if you decide to blow the whistle. As a result, whistleblower cases have increased due to this as well. We asked our interviewee Daniel Oliverio, a New York lawyer that specializes in whistleblowing cases, “ Have you noticed increased whistleblowing activity resulting from the actions of individuals like Snowden and Gregory?” and Oliverio replied, “Absolutely. More and more people are getting the courage to come forward, both in the money cases and the non-money cases… and I think the reason is this. In the beginning, people weren’t certain about how they were going to be treated… now they’re not as uncertain. If they believe passionately enough in their cause, they are willing to do it. There’s more of it than there was before.” Oliverio also explained that it may not seem this way to the ordinary citizen though, due to these whistleblower cases usually being kept secret. “The only time you hear about them is when the government makes them public.” He confirmed that there are many cases that nobody has heard about but there is definitely a rise in these cases.
Although the public has a generally good response to whistleblowing and whistleblowing cases have increased, it has had a negative effect on the relationship between the government and citizens. Because of the secrets that have been revealed by whistleblowers such as Snowden and many others, there is now distrust. The Pew Research Center conducted a survey in 2019 on how Americans feel about data collection from companies and the government (Auxier). They found that 64% of the surveyed Americans said they were concerned about government data collection (Auxier). Snowden’s ultimate goal was to open eyes to the truth about government surveillance and our personal privacy, and he was successful as shown by this study. Even though the survey was taken 6 years after the whistleblowing incident, the majority of our society is still concerned about government data collection.
Although the effect has slightly lessened over the years, when the Snowden scandal was first revealed to the public in 2013, it was huge. It was put all over television/news for the whole world to see, causing a global debate on government surveillance, personal privacy, and more. Because millions and millions of people were and still are adopting new technology such as smartphones, laptops, and smart TVs, it made this issue even more controversial because of the effect it had on almost everyone. As a result, people began to do things such as cover their webcams on their computers, and there are still many people that do it to this day simply because they don’t trust the government and believe that they are watching them. According to a 2014 poll done by Harris Interactive Inc. (a year after the Snowden scandal), 47% of people said that they “changed their online behavior, and think more carefully about where they go, what they say, and what they do online.” 29% percent of people said they reduced online banking, and 24% of respondents said they were less inclined to use email (Rosenbush). It goes to show how big of impact whistleblowers such as Edward Snowden have on our society when they reveal truths about the world we live in.
Citations:
Anvari, Farid, et al. “The Social Psychology of Whistleblowing: An Integrated Model.” Sage Journals, vol. 9, no. 1, 7 July 2019, doi:10.31234/osf.io/3259b.
Rosenbush, Steve. “Post Snowden, Some Internet Usage Is Contracting, Study Finds.” The Wall Street Journal, Dow Jones & Company, 3 Apr. 2014, www.wsj.com/articles/BL-CIOB-4216.
Auxier, Brooke, et al. “Americans and Privacy: Concerned, Confused and Feeling Lack of Control Over Their Personal Information.” Pew Research Center: Internet, Science & Tech, Pew Research Center, 17 Aug. 2020, www.pewresearch.org/internet/2019/11/15/americans-and-privacy-concerned-confused-and-feeling-lack-of-control-over-their-personal-information/.