When a Whistleblower Makes the Call

Corporate hierarchies employ intimidation and fear to convince their workers that the power of the organization is stronger than the power of the individual -- even individuals who have truth on their side. Often, making an example out of one troublemaker is sufficient to keep the majority silent. Keep in mind that the following list is not exhaustive; the forms of harassment are limited only by the imagination and, as in Orwell's 1984, likely will be customized to strike at a whistleblower's unique vulnerabilities. These are: 1. Spotlight the whistleblower, not the wrongdoing. 2. Build a damaging record against the whistleblower. 3. Threaten them. 4. Isolate them. 5. Set them up for failure. 6. Physically attack them. 7. Eliminate their jobs. The point of the tactics is to overwhelm whistleblowers in a struggle for preservation -- to undermine their credibility, career, family, finances, and even sanity until they are silenced and the issues that triggered the whistleblowing are forgotten.