Running head: WHISTLE-BLOWING: A CASE STUDY OF THE NSA AND SNOWDEN 1 WHISTLE-BLOWING: A CASE STUDY OF THE NSA AND SNOWDEN 2 The Ethics of Whistle-Blowing: A Case Study of the NSA and Snowden The right to privacy is an emotive aspect of public life across American society. The significance of the right gained added importance in the face of the government crackdown on terrorism. The so-called War on Terror that began in the aftermath of the September 11 terrorist attacks in the United States included government collection of massive information relating to its citizens and abroad. The global surveillance adopted by U.S security agents permeated the private sphere of American citizens raising a critical question on government overreach in the fight against terrorism. While the essence of privacy was not in question, the debate has often surrounded the ethics of collecting private data on millions of Americans without their knowledge. The 2013 global surveillance disclosures by Edward Snowden, a former employee of the NSA raised fundamental ethical questions on the role of whistle blowing and its implications for the whistle blower. Equally important is the conflicting view on the morality of Snowden’s action given the security implications for disclosing such a large amount of information touching on the country’s security. Although the United States Constitution does not expressly state the right to privacy, the Fourth Amendment alludes to this fact stating: “The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized" [CITE] Whistle blowing refers to the decision to call attention to misconduct within an organization by its current or former employee. The Government Accountability Project elaborates on the different ways an employee can whistle-blow. An employee may choose to report the wrong doing directly to state authorities. Alternatively, employees may report misconduct to a superior or refuse to participate in the unethical behavior. Snowden discovered that the Unites States government was actively engaged in activities that grossly violated ethical and legal provisions. The former employee decided to leak the massive information to the media creating unprecedented domestic and diplomatic crisis that threatened to injure the standing of the country in the international community. Although the U.S government termed the action of Snowden as an illegality and opened criminal proceedings against him, many have termed the act as appropriate because it reflected the interests of the public. The government procedure on reporting unethical behavior requires employees to first report suspected misconduct to their superiors. The government accused Snowden of failing to fo.

1. Running head: WHISTLE-BLOWING: A CASE STUDY OF
THE NSA AND SNOWDEN
1
WHISTLE-BLOWING: A CASE STUDY OF THE NSA AND
SNOWDEN
2
The Ethics of Whistle-Blowing: A Case Study of the NSA and
Snowden
The right to privacy is an emotive aspect of public life across
American society. The significance of the right gained added
importance in the face of the government crackdown on
terrorism. The so-called War on Terror that began in the
aftermath of the September 11 terrorist attacks in the United
States included government collection of massive information
relating to its citizens and abroad. The global surveillance
adopted by U.S security agents permeated the private sphere of
American citizens raising a critical question on government
overreach in the fight against terrorism. While the essence of
privacy was not in question, the debate has often surrounded the
ethics of collecting private data on millions of Americans
without their knowledge. The 2013 global surveillance
disclosures by Edward Snowden, a former employee of the NSA
raised fundamental ethical questions on the role of whistle
blowing and its implications for the whistle blower. Equally
important is the conflicting view on the morality of Snowden’s
action given the security implications for disclosing such a
large amount of information touching on the country’s security.
Although the United States Constitution does not expressly state
the right to privacy, the Fourth Amendment alludes to this fact
stating:

2. “The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses,
papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures,
shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon
probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and
particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons
or things to be seized" [CITE]
Whistle blowing refers to the decision to call attention to
misconduct within an organization by its current or former
employee. The Government Accountability Project elaborates on
the different ways an employee can whistle-blow. An employee
may choose to report the wrong doing directly to state
authorities. Alternatively, employees may report misconduct to
a superior or refuse to participate in the unethical behavior.
Snowden discovered that the Unites States government was
actively engaged in activities that grossly violated ethical and
legal provisions. The former employee decided to leak the
massive information to the media creating unprecedented
domestic and diplomatic crisis that threatened to injure the
standing of the country in the international community.
Although the U.S government termed the action of Snowden as
an illegality and opened criminal proceedings against him, many
have termed the act as appropriate because it reflected the
interests of the public.
The government procedure on reporting unethical behavior
requires employees to first report suspected misconduct to their
superiors. The government accused Snowden of failing to
follow the laid-down procedures for reporting the illegal mining
of private citizen’s personal data. However, Snowden disputes
the claims asserting that his attempts to raise the issue
internally in the organization was thwarted more than ten times
before he decided to leak the information to the public media.
Whistle blowing in the public sector faces unique challenges.
The likelihood of disclosure constituting a crime is real. It

3. creates an ethical dilemma particularly given the severity of
government actions on civil liberties. Faced with limited
prospect that the vice was going to stop in the foreseeable
future, leaking the information should be considered acceptable.
However, the appropriateness of the decision is based on the
assumption that the whistle blower had exhausted all available
internal mechanisms for addressing the problem before going
public. The government, by virtue of it being the custodian of
law and ethical conduct is supposed to be open and promote
ethical behavior more than any other body. The disclosure of an
organization’s unethical behavior into the public domain is
particularly important. According to Cho and Song (2015), the
decision to disclose highly sensitive information that
compromises the national security should be weighed against
potential benefits. Where there is no imminent danger to the
public, the most appropriate decision to take is to follow
international process for reporting potential unethical behavior.
This process entails following the organization’s laid down
procedure for addressing cases of unethical behavior.
Once internal conflict resolution mechanisms are exhausted, an
individual is at liberty to air frustrations with the public through
congressional committees or through the press. Crucial to this
determination is the evaluation of the whistleblowers security.
Whistle blowing carries inherent danger to the whistle blower.
While many countries have elaborate laws on whistle blower
protection, the threat to the informer’s life and their families
cannot be underestimated. Snowden faced unique threats given
the formidable resources the government was willing to engage
to punish him for supposedly breaking the law. Before whistle
blowing, Snowden was on a well-paying job estimated at
$200,000. The loss of earnings had direct impact on his family
and his own future prospects. It was essential that the decision
to whistle blow be made in light of potential impact of that
decision.

4. References
Cho, Y. J., & Song, H. J. (2015). Determinants of
whistleblowing within government agencies. Public Personnel
Management, 44(4), 450-472.
Renan, D. (2016). The Fourth Amendment as administrative
governance. Stan. L. Rev., 68, 1039.
Whistleblower Analysis
Ethics and social responsibility of business simply is a moral
obligation or duty that a company has to society to run the
business in a responsible manner. By developing standards and
practices that benefit employees, the community, the economy
and the environment, a company will achieve a corporate
environment that is respected by society.
Choose a case where a whistleblower has reported an activity
that he/she considers to be illegal or dishonest to one or more of
the parties involved. Write for that industry. If you are not
currently involved in any industry, choose a hypothetical
industry. You may use a current whistleblower case in the news,
such as the Veterans Administration or the Eric Snowden case.
Address the following in your case analysis:
· Whether or not it was ethical to be the whistleblower.
· The way in which he or she exposed how the information was
being used.
· Discuss how he or she should have followed proper protocol
(such as that required of a contractor, e.g.).
· Discuss the reasons for leaking the documents to various
media resources.
· How does the reporting affect the company that the
whistleblower was working for?
· What are the ethical implications of the actions?
· How might you, as a company representative, handle a
situation like this?

5. · What is your view regarding the case you chose?
· Support your stand based on what you have learned in the
course.
Discuss and define a whistleblower as defined by the policy of
the company/organization you have chosen. Explain who reports
an activity that he or she considers illegal or dishonest to one or
more of the parties specified.
The whistleblower is not responsible for investigating the
activity or for determining fault or corrective measures;
appropriate management officials are charged with these
responsibilities.
Give some examples of illegal or dishonest activities that are
violations of federal, state or local laws.
If an employee has knowledge of or a concern about illegal or
dishonest fraudulent activity, the employee is to contact his or
her immediate supervisor or the Human Resources Director. Do
you agree with this protocol?
The employee must exercise sound judgment to avoid baseless
allegations. An employee who intentionally files a false report
of wrongdoing will be subject to discipline up to and including
termination. Whistleblower protections are provided in two
important areas—first, to protect confidentiality and second, to
protect against retaliation. Insofar as possible, the
confidentiality of the whistleblower will be maintained.
However, identity may have to be disclosed to conduct a
thorough investigation, to comply with the law and to provide
accused individuals their legal rights of defense. The company
will not retaliate against a whistleblower.
Reflect on whistleblower protections and answer the questions
posed. Organize your paper with clear headings so your reader
knows that you are addressing each required question.