New journalist training, TSN in Forbes and more uncovered
Protecting the protectors
Whistleblowers, sources, leakers, truth-tellers — much debate can be had on the definition for each of these terms. For the benefit of simplicity, we refer to them as sensitive sources. While this definition is traditionally individuals who act in society’s interest by shining light on injustices through public disclosure of wrongdoing, we also define them as undocumented individuals, LGBTQ+ and/or any community member that may be negatively impacted by contributing to news coverage.
Sensitive sources face unprecedented danger. As government and corporate power converge with rapidly advancing technology, sensitive sources find themselves confronting sophisticated adversaries and complicated processes.
That’s why The Signals Network (TSN) and the Reynolds Journalism Institute (RJI) are launching comprehensive training for journalists working with sensitive sources.
Insights from SXSW
At this year’s SXSW conference, our Executive Director Delphine Halgand-Mishra, Whistleblower & ex-Data Scientist at Facebook Sophie Zhang and TIME correspondent Billy Perrigo came together for a powerful conversation about whistleblowing in the tech and AI world.
They talked about the positive potential of AI and the concerns it raised, reminding that most of the revelations of wrongdoing in tech came from brave insiders speaking out. Sophie shared her perspective, emphasizing that while whistleblowers can raise awareness, they can’t do it alone.
One year on: Joshua Farinella’s courageous stand
One year ago, Joshua Farinella took a stand, exposing food safety, labor and human rights abuses in a shrimp processing plant in India. His revelations led the FDA to block contaminated shrimp shipments and enhanced calls for better control of shrimp imports.
Whistleblowers like Joshua are not just speaking truth – they are risking their lives, their careers and their families’ well-being to protect us all.
Learn more about his impact one year later.
Expanding our community: join us!
We’re excited to let you know that TSN is now on Bluesky and Mastodon!
We’d love for you to join us there and stay updated on whistleblowing and the support we offer to journalists and sources at every step of their journey. Following us is an easy way to stay in the loop and help raise awareness of the important work we do.
If you haven’t already, we’ve also been active on LinkedIn and Facebook for a while, and we’d love for you to follow us there too.
Feel free to share our work – you never know who it might help!
Follow us on:
We can’t wait to keep the conversation going with you!
TSN in the News
- Forbes showcases The Signals Network for its role in empowering whistleblowers, offering practical support and a comprehensive network of resources to those challenging powerful entities.
For more information, read the full article on Forbes.
- NiemanLab highlights The Signals Network’s Whistleblower Protection Program, which offers advice on individual situations, helps ensure secure communication and assists with legal support.
For more information, read the full article on NiemanLab.
Whistleblower News Roundup
— New research reveals that ignoring whistleblowers costs U.K. taxpayers hundreds of millions of pounds, with financial consequences from not addressing critical whistleblowing reports, writes Protect.
— DEP state park whistleblower James Gaddis was honored with the Pelican Island Audubon Society’s “Special Recognition, Merit, Appreciation, and Thanks Award” on March 24, writes Jack Lemnus for Treasure Coast Newspapers
— The U.S. Supreme Court thwarted President Trump’s dream of ‘opening up’ libel laws, dismissing a petition without dissent or comment, the unanimity being the most surprising development, writes Ed Kilgore for Intelligencer.
— The UK’s biggest ‘renewable’ power station sacked an employee who blew the whistle on environmental claims, writes Simon Childs for Novara Media
— A top ad agency is facing a landmark whistleblower lawsuit over greenwashing, with the whistleblower exposing the industry’s involvement in promoting unsubstantiated environmental claims by major brands, writes Climate Whistleblowers.
—Hampton Dellinger, who led the U.S. Office of Special Counsel and worked to reinstate wrongfully fired civil servants, was fired himself, writes David A. Graham for The Atlantic
Discover more whistleblowing stories making headlines here.
P.S. … Do you have a friend or colleague who is interested in holding power to account?
Help us grow our mailing list!
They can sign up for our newsletter here.
