Deck 7: Whistle-Blowing: Should You Ever Break With Protocol

Question 1

Is Edward Snowden a hero or a traitor? Explain.

Answer 1

No Answer.

Question 2

Is whistle-blowing a disloyal act? Explain.

Answer 2

No Answer.

Question 3

How should a morally conscientious employer treat a whistle-blower?

Answer 3

No Answer.

Question 4

What is the best objection to the harm-preventing defense of whistle-blowing?

Question 5

What is the best objection to the complicity-avoiding defense of whistle-blowing?

Question 6

All of the following are features of whistle-blowing except

A) the whistle-blower brings attention to the authorities of wrongdoing.
B) the whistle-blower is within the institution responsible for the wrongdoing.
C) the whistle-blower bypasses normal protocols for reporting, sometimes even contacting media.
D) the whistle-blower works undercover for the government.

Question 7

Which element of whistle-blowing is absent from the following case: An engineer knows that his company is breaking the law by periodically allowing untreated wastewater with a low pH into the sewer, creating a risk of killing the bacteria at the municipal wastewater treatment plant. The engineer sabotages the company's discharge creating a spill that draws the attention of the authorities and then explains to them what the company has been doing.

A) Merely passes information along to authorities
B) Justifiably believes wrongdoing has occurred
C) Intention to end wrongdoing (not merely revenge)
D) Serious wrongdoing

Question 8

What might be the missing element of responsible whistle-blowing in the following scenario? One employee, Amy, tells another employee, Bob, that she has seen the company pass sensitive data on to clients in a way that violates user privacy. Bob then makes a report to the authorities.

A) Merely passes information along to authorities
B) Justifiably believes wrongdoing has occurred
C) Intention to end wrongdoing (not merely revenge)
D) The wrongdoing is serious

Question 9

According to DeGeorge's harm-preventing view, whistle-blowing which of the following conditions is not necessary for whistle-blowing to be morally permissible?

A) A practice or product does or will cause serious harm to individuals or society at large.
B) The charge of wrongdoing has been brought to the attention of immediate superiors.
C) No appropriate action has been taken to remedy the wrongdoing.
D) There is documentation of the potentially harmful practice or defect.

Question 10

On the harm-preventing view, which condition is one of the two necessary conditions to make whistle-blowing morally obligatory?

A) There is good reason to believe that public disclosure will avoid the present or prevent similar.
Future wrongdoing.
B) No appropriate action has been taken to remedy the wrongdoing.
C) The company will not be angry with you when the information is revealed.
D) A practice or product does or will cause serious harm to individuals or society at large.

Question 11

The complicity-avoiding view takes you to be obliged to blow the whistle if and only if (l) what you will reveal derives from your work for an organization; (2) you are a voluntary member of that organization; (3) you believe that the organization, though legitimate, is engaged in serious moral wrongdoing; and (4) you believe that your work for that organization will contribute (more or less directly) to the wrong if (but not only if) you do not publicly reveal what you know and your beliefs are true and justified. What sort of case calls the necessity of these criteria in question?

A) A case where the wrongdoing is in another part of the organization or above you
B) A case where the wrongdoing is illegal
C) A case where you have already participated in the wrongdoing yourself
D) A case where your company is about to be bought by another

Question 12

Which identifies as the crucial condition for whistle-blowing a situation in which people cannot make informed consent without you revealing wrongdoing publicly?

A) Complicity-avoiding
B) Harm-preventing
C) Autonomy-based
D) Utilitarian

Question 13

In the BER case, Engineer A discovered that Engineer A's company, SPQ, was cheating a vendor by using software in violation of agreement. Upon learning of this wrongdoing, Engineer A responded by reporting SPQ on a confidential hotline. BER determined this act of whistle-blowing to be unethical. All of the following considerations supported their conclusion except

A) there was no immediate threat to the public.
B) Engineer A was disloyal.
C) Engineer A did not properly calculate the utility.
D) Engineer A did not notify SPQ to give them a chance to fix the problem.

Question 14

Which of the following accurately describes the case of whistle-blowing of Mr. Vokes against TransCanada over their pipelines for violating safety guidelines?

A) Mr. Vokes did not report his complaint up the chain of command.
B) No other employees at TransCanada thought the violations merited reporting.
C) None of Mr. Vokes worries about pipelines exploding have been validated.
D) After being fired from TransCanada in retaliation for whistle-blowing, Mr. Vokes was unable to find permanent employment elsewhere.

Question 15

All the following are true of Edward Snowden's whistle-blowing on the NSA except

A) Snowden discovered as a private contractor that the NSA was monitoring millions of private phone calls of US citizens.
B) The NSA admitted much of Snowden's allegations were true, and Congress responded with new legislation to restrict the NSA's monitoring activity.
C) Attorney General Eric Holder said that Snowden had performed a public service.
D) Snowden received a presidential pardon for his whistle-blowing.

Question 16

According to the harm-preventing account of whistle-blowing, a necessary (but not sufficient) condition for morally permissible instances of whistle-blowing is that

A) You believe that the organization, though legitimate, is engaged in serious moral wrongdoing.
B) You believe that your work for that organization will contribute (more or less directly) to the wrong if (but not only if) you do not publicly reveal what you know.
C) A practice or product does or will cause serious harm to individuals or society at large.
D) None of the above

Question 17

According to the complicity avoiding view about whistle-blowing, a necessary (but not sufficient) condition for morally permissible instances of whistle-blowing is that

A) you believe that the organization, though legitimate, is engaged in serious moral wrongdoing.
B) there is documentation of the potentially harmful practice or defect.
C) a practice or product does or will cause serious harm to individuals or society at large.
D) the charge of wrongdoing has been brought to the attention of immediate superiors.

Question 18

A whistle-blower is someone who

A) sells information about what he or she justifiably believes to be serious moral or legal wrongdoing in an organization to an internal or external party.
B) passes along information about what he or she justifiably believes to be serious moral or legal wrongdoing in an organization.
C) passes along information about what he or she justifiably believes to be serious moral or legal wrongdoing in an organization of which he or she is a member.
D) passes along information about what he or she justifiably believes to be serious moral or legal wrongdoing in an organization of which he or she is a member to an internal or external party he or she is not authorized to contact with the intention to stop this wrongdoing.

Question 19

According to Richard T. DeGeorge's harm-preventing view, whistle-blowing is morally permissible if a practice or product does or will cause serious harm to individuals or society at large,

A) the charge of wrongdoing has been brought to the attention of immediate superiors, and no appropriate action has been taken to remedy the wrongdoing.
B) the charge of wrongdoing has been brought to the attention of immediate superiors, and there is documentation of the potentially harmful practice or defect.
C) the charge of wrongdoing has been brought to the attention of immediate superiors, and there is good reason to believe public disclosure will avoid the present or prevent similar future wrongdoing.
D) and the charge of wrongdoing has been brought to the attention of immediate superiors.

Question 20

According to Michael Davis's complicity-avoiding view, whistle-blowing is morally permissible if

A) a practice or product does or will cause serious harm to individuals or society at large.
B) what you will reveal derives from your work for an organization; you are a voluntary member of that organization; you believe that the organization, though legitimate, is engaged in serious moral wrongdoing; you believe that your work for that organization will contribute (more or less directly) to the wrong if (but not only if) you do not publicly reveal what you know; and these beliefs are true and justified.
C) a practice or product does or will cause serious harm to individuals or society at large and the charge of wrongdoing has been brought to the attention of immediate superiors.
D) the charge of wrongdoing has been brought to the attention of immediate superiors and no appropriate action has been taken to remedy the wrongdoing.

Question 21

Roger Boisjoly is best known for having

A) blown the whistle before the launch of the Space Shuttle Challenger, which he did by contacting the press.
B) blown the whistle before the launch of the Space Shuttle Challenger, which he did by contacting the executive director of NASA.
C) raised serious concerns about the O-ring the months before the launch of the Space Shuttle Challenger.
D) None of the above

Question 22

Michael Davis summarizes his complicity-avoiding account of whistle-blowing in six criteria. In his view, you are obliged to blow the whistle just in case (1) what you will reveal derives from your work for an organization; (2) you are a voluntary member of that organization; (3) you believe that the organization, though legitimate, is engaged in serious moral wrongdoing; (4) you believe that your work for that organization will contribute (more or less directly) to the wrong if (but not only if) you do not publicly reveal what you know; (5) you are justified in beliefs (3) and (4); and (6) beliefs (3) and (4) are true. Which ethical theory offers the best support of this account of whistle-blowing?

A) Utilitarianism
B) Ethical egoism
C) Kantian duty ethics
D) Virtue ethics

Question 23

Richard T. DeGeorge defends a harm-preventing view about whistle-blowing. In his view, it is permissible to blow the whistle just in case (1) a practice or product does or will cause serious harm to individuals or society at large; (2) the charge of wrongdoing has been brought to the attention of immediate superiors; and (3) no appropriate action has been taken to remedy the wrongdoing. Which ethical theory offers the best support of this account of whistle-blowing?

A) Utilitarianism
B) Ethical egoism
C) Kantian duty ethics
D) Virtue ethics
E) None of the above

Question 24

A whistle-blower is someone who passes along information about what he or she justifiably believes to be

A) a violation of the NSPE code of ethics with the intention to stop this wrongdoing.
B) an illegal activity with the intention to stop this wrongdoing.
C) serious moral or legal wrongdoing in an organization of which he or she is not a member with the intention to learn from this wrongdoing.
D) serious moral or legal wrongdoing in an organization of which he or she is a member with the intention to stop this wrongdoing.

Question 25

The fact that whistle-blowers are generally deeply involved in the activity they reveal is thought by some theorists to show that

A) prevention of harm is the salient feature of whistle-blowing.
B) whistle-blowing always involves breaking one's word to one's employee.
C) avoiding complicity is the most morally relevant aspect of whistle-blowing.
D) None of the above