Oct 2023: Major win for confidential source protection, takeaways from Frontline Club, 25 years of PIDA

Confidential sources still protected if journalist dies, Nevada court rules

Earlier this month, the Nevada Supreme Court ruled that a reporter’s privilege survives death and can be claimed by the journalist’s newspaper.

This means the confidentiality of a journalist’s source is protected even if the journalist dies. The Signals Network filed an amicus brief in the case, advocating for the privilege to be upheld so whistleblowers can be assured their identities will be protected in such cases.

Learn more here.

5 takeaways from our whistleblower event at Frontline Club

A couple of weeks ago, Frontline Club in London hosted Time magazine investigative reporter Billy Perrigo, Uber Files whistleblower Mark MacGann and former Facebook content moderater Daniel Motaung for a talk about whistleblowing, investigative journalism and the tech industry.

Couldn’t make it to the event? You can listen to the audio recording of the conversation here, or get a recap of main takeaways here.

Reflecting on U.K.’s whistleblower protections, 25 years later

Quick history lesson: This year marks 25 years since the enactment of the U.K.’s Public Interest Disclosure Act of 1998.

Known as PIDA, it’s an integral part of the Employment Rights Act 1996 (ERA) meant to protect whistleblowers from unfair treatment by their employer for reporting wrongdoing.

“One of the ways to safely and effectively blow the whistle is by knowing the laws that exist to help you,” said TSN’s London-based Legal Director Jennifer Gibson. “PIDA is complex. But understanding its functions — as well as its shortcomings — increases a whistleblower’s chances of being protected and having impact for the greater good.”

This is one of several laws and protections you can learn more about in “A Tech Workers Guide to Whistleblowing: U.K. & Ireland Editions,” which we recently published to help whistleblowers better understand their options when speaking out about corporate wrongdoing. Find downloadable PDFs here.

Whistleblower news roundup

• Nearly 100 current and former workers at Middle Eastern locations of Western franchises such as Chuck E. Cheese and McDonald’s have reported being subjected to practices that are widely considered indicators of labor trafficking, write Katie McQue and Pramod Acharya for ICIJ.
• National Law Review: The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission received a record number of whistleblower tips in fiscal year 2023, according to its chair, Gary Gensler.
• Reuters: The SEC is targeting separation and severance agreements that impede whistleblowers.
• Tesla whistleblowers filed a complaint to the SEC in 2021 about Tesla’s business practices, but the SEC never interviewed them or followed up on their offers to look at more than 18,000 files detailing the allegations, reports Lora Kolodny for CNBC.
• The investment giant Vanguard has resolved long-running whistleblower complaints, writes Joseph N. DiStefano for the Philadelphia Inquirer.