The Birth of an Action Repertoire: On the Origins of the Concept of Whistleblowing

Journal of Business Ethics 179 (1):13-24 (2022)
  Copy   BIBTEX

Abstract

The standard account in whistleblowing research fixes the birth of the whistleblowing concept in the early 1970s. Surprisingly, there are no efforts to discuss why whistleblowing emerged as a distinct new action repertoire at this particular moment in time. Whistleblowing is a historical latecomer to an ethos of field transgression, which includes well-established forms of intervention such as watchdog journalism and political activism. Whistleblowing has strong affinities with these practices, but also holds its own unique place in ethics and democracy. We can only appreciate these qualities in full if we trace the historical origins of the concept. The article argues that the concept of whistleblowing crystallized at the intersection of a set of trends that picked up speed in the 1960s–1970s: individualization, changing perceptions of loyalty, declines in authority trust, new participation patterns, and a growing awareness of the dangers and complexities in human production and organization. This is not simply an exercise in disciplinary history. Whistleblowing is on the rise in these years, just as digitalization creates a whole new range of opportunities for disclosure. It takes an increasingly steady hand to isolate the distinct ethical-democratic contribution of whistleblowers within this complex reality. To achieve this, we need to be able to place whistleblowing on a broader sociological and historical map.

Other Versions

No versions found

Links

PhilArchive

    This entry is not archived by us. If you are the author and have permission from the publisher, we recommend that you archive it. Many publishers automatically grant permission to authors to archive pre-prints. By uploading a copy of your work, you will enable us to better index it, making it easier to find.

    Upload a copy of this work     Papers currently archived: 102,067

External links

Setup an account with your affiliations in order to access resources via your University's proxy server

Through your library

Similar books and articles

The political philosophy of whistleblowing.Wim Vandekerckhove - 2022 - Philosophy of Management 21 (3):337-344.
The democratic drama of whistleblowing.Thomas Olesen - 2018 - European Journal of Social Theory 21 (4):508-525.

Analytics

Added to PP
2021-06-14

Downloads
50 (#448,984)

6 months
9 (#455,121)

Historical graph of downloads
How can I increase my downloads?