R:ETRO webinar - Transformation in networked whistleblowing

The second in our Trinity term R:ETRO webinars - Reputation: Ethics, Trust, and Relationships at Oxford, hosted by Intesa Sanpaolo Research Fellow Rita Mota, Professor Alan Morrison, and the Oxford University Centre for Corporate Reputation at Oxford Saïd. Iain Munro, Professor of Leadership and Organisation Change at University of Newcastle Business School, discussed 'Transformation in networked whistleblowing: counter-hegemony and moral leadership'. Abstract: This paper on which this seminar is based investigates a number of questions concerning changing practices of whistleblowing, with particular reference to the increased use of networks in this process. It discusses the role of such networked whistleblowing as a form of human rights activism and counter-hegemonic practice. Moral leadership has been defined as 'the demonstration of normatively appropriate conduct through personal actions and interpersonal relationships, and the promotion of such conduct to followers through two-way communication, reinforcement, and decision making' (Brown, Treviño, and Harrison 2005, 120). The paper challenges this conception of moral leadership with reference to the practice of whistleblowing as a counter-hegemonic practice, and revolves around a number of key issues: • The recent emergence of forms of networked whistleblowing. • The failures of whistleblower protections. • The extent to which whistleblowing can be understood as being reformist in nature or an 'insurgent truth' and counter-hegemonic practice. Some whistleblowers may see themselves as reformists exercising 'civil disobedience' (e.g., Daniel Ellsberg, Edward Snowden), others may portray them as threats to the social order and insurgents. • When understood as moral leaders, whistleblowers may not follow existing social norms but challenge such norms. In this respect they may be compared with the leaders of radical social movements such as Martin Luther King and the civ