0:00:01.520,0:00:04.296
How many of us have ever seen something,

0:00:04.320,0:00:06.880
thought that we should report it,[br]but decided not to?

0:00:09.120,0:00:11.136
And not that I need[br]to see a show of hands,

0:00:11.160,0:00:14.216
but I'm sure this has happened[br]to someone in this room before.

0:00:14.240,0:00:17.416
In fact, when this question[br]was asked to a group of employees,

0:00:17.440,0:00:20.936
46 percent of them responded[br]by saying that they had seen something

0:00:20.960,0:00:22.576
and decided not to report it.

0:00:22.600,0:00:25.736
So if you raised your hand,[br]or quietly raised your hand,

0:00:25.760,0:00:28.056
don't feel bad, you're not alone.

0:00:28.080,0:00:31.456
This message of if you see something[br]to say something

0:00:31.480,0:00:33.256
is really all around us.

0:00:33.280,0:00:36.976
Even when driving down the highway,[br]you see billboards like this,

0:00:37.000,0:00:40.456
encouraging us to report crime[br]without revealing ourselves.

0:00:40.480,0:00:43.216
But I still feel like a lot of us[br]are really uncomfortable

0:00:43.240,0:00:45.416
coming forward in the name of the truth.

0:00:45.440,0:00:48.016
I'm an accounting professor,[br]and I do fraud research.

0:00:48.040,0:00:52.216
And in my class, I encourage my students[br]to come forward with information

0:00:52.240,0:00:53.456
if they see it.

0:00:53.480,0:00:57.216
Or in other words, encouraging[br]my students to become whistle-blowers.

0:00:57.240,0:01:00.296
But if I'm being completely[br]honest with myself,

0:01:00.320,0:01:03.936
I am really conflicted with this message[br]that I'm sending to my students.

0:01:03.960,0:01:05.160
And here's why.

0:01:06.000,0:01:08.800
Whistle-blowers are under attack.

0:01:09.560,0:01:12.760
Headline after headline shows us this.

0:01:13.960,0:01:16.336
Many people choose[br]not to become whistle-blowers

0:01:16.360,0:01:18.616
due to the fear of retaliation.

0:01:18.640,0:01:22.336
From demotions to death threats,

0:01:22.360,0:01:24.256
to job loss --

0:01:24.280,0:01:26.136
perpetual job loss.

0:01:26.160,0:01:29.536
Choosing to become a whistle-blower[br]is an uphill battle.

0:01:29.560,0:01:31.976
Their loyalty becomes into question.

0:01:32.000,0:01:35.216
Their motives, their trustworthiness.

0:01:35.240,0:01:38.976
So how can I, as a professor[br]who really cares about her students

0:01:39.000,0:01:41.096
encourage them to become whistle-blowers,

0:01:41.120,0:01:43.680
when I know how the world[br]truly feels about them?

0:01:44.720,0:01:47.936
So, one day I was getting ready[br]for my annual whistle-blower lecture

0:01:47.960,0:01:49.176
with my students.

0:01:49.200,0:01:51.336
And I was working[br]on an article for "Forbes,"

0:01:51.360,0:01:53.856
entitled "Wells Fargo[br]and Millennial Whistle-blowing.

0:01:53.880,0:01:55.096
What Do We Tell Them?"

0:01:55.120,0:01:58.176
And as I was working on this piece[br]and reading about the case,

0:01:58.200,0:01:59.576
I became outraged.

0:01:59.600,0:02:03.736
And what made me angry[br]was when I came to the fact and realized

0:02:03.760,0:02:06.416
that the employees[br]that tried to whistle-blow

0:02:06.440,0:02:08.136
were actually fired.

0:02:08.160,0:02:09.496
And it really made me think

0:02:09.520,0:02:12.256
about the message[br]that I was sharing with my students.

0:02:12.280,0:02:17.096
And it made me think: What if my students[br]had been Wells Fargo employees?

0:02:17.120,0:02:21.256
On the one hand, if they whistle-blew,[br]they would have gotten fired.

0:02:21.280,0:02:22.616
But on the other hand,

0:02:22.640,0:02:25.336
if they didn't report[br]the frauds that they knew,

0:02:25.360,0:02:27.696
the way current regulation is written,

0:02:27.720,0:02:30.296
employees are held responsible

0:02:30.320,0:02:32.616
if they knew something[br]and didn't report it.

0:02:32.640,0:02:35.616
So criminal prosecution is a real option.

0:02:35.640,0:02:38.816
What's a person supposed to do[br]with those type of odds?

0:02:38.840,0:02:42.776
I of all people know[br]the valuable contributions

0:02:42.800,0:02:44.336
that whistle-blowers make.

0:02:44.360,0:02:47.896
In fact, most frauds[br]are discovered by them.

0:02:47.920,0:02:50.856
Forty two percent of frauds[br]are discovered by a whistle-blower

0:02:50.880,0:02:52.736
in comparison to other methods,

0:02:52.760,0:02:55.336
like measurement review[br]and external audit.

0:02:55.360,0:02:57.696
And when you think[br]about some of the more classic

0:02:57.720,0:02:59.336
or historical fraud cases,

0:02:59.360,0:03:02.096
it always is around a whistle-blower.

0:03:02.120,0:03:04.856
Think Watergate --[br]discovered by a whistle-blower.

0:03:04.880,0:03:07.776
Think Enron -- discovered[br]by a whistle-blower.

0:03:07.800,0:03:12.376
And who can forget about Bernard Madoff,[br]discovered by a whistle-blower?

0:03:12.400,0:03:16.856
It takes a tremendous amount of courage[br]to come forward in the name of the truth.

0:03:16.880,0:03:19.576
But when we think[br]about the term whistle-blower,

0:03:19.600,0:03:23.256
we often think of some[br]very descriptive words:

0:03:23.280,0:03:24.480
rat,

0:03:25.360,0:03:26.560
snake,

0:03:27.200,0:03:28.816
traitor,

0:03:28.840,0:03:31.216
tattletale, weasel.

0:03:31.240,0:03:34.816
And those are the nice words,[br]the ones I can say from the stage.

0:03:34.840,0:03:36.256
And so when I'm not in class,

0:03:36.280,0:03:39.176
I go around the country[br]and I interview white-collar felons,

0:03:39.200,0:03:41.216
whistle-blowers and victims of fraud.

0:03:41.240,0:03:44.176
Because really I'm trying to understand[br]what makes them tick

0:03:44.200,0:03:46.800
and to bring those experiences[br]back into the classroom.

0:03:47.680,0:03:51.536
But it's my interviews with[br]whistle-blowers that really stick with me.

0:03:51.560,0:03:52.776
And they stick with me,

0:03:52.800,0:03:55.096
because they make me question[br]my own courage.

0:03:55.120,0:03:58.976
When given the opportunity,[br]would I actually speak up?

0:03:59.000,0:04:01.976
And so, this is a couple stories[br]that I want to share with you.

0:04:02.000,0:04:03.216
This is Mary.

0:04:03.240,0:04:06.936
Mary Willingham is the whistle-blower[br]from the University of North Carolina

0:04:06.960,0:04:10.136
at Chapel Hill, academic fraud case.

0:04:10.160,0:04:13.616
And Mary was a learning specialist[br]at the university,

0:04:13.640,0:04:16.656
and she worked with students,[br]primarily student athletes.

0:04:16.680,0:04:19.375
And what she noticed,[br]when she was working with students,

0:04:19.399,0:04:22.136
is they were turning in term papers

0:04:22.160,0:04:25.256
that seemed well beyond[br]their reading levels.

0:04:25.280,0:04:27.216
She started to ask a couple of questions

0:04:27.240,0:04:29.256
and she found out[br]that there was a database

0:04:29.280,0:04:32.656
where the student athletes[br]could retrieve papers and turn them in.

0:04:32.680,0:04:35.136
And then she found out[br]that some of her colleagues

0:04:35.160,0:04:41.376
were funneling students into fake classes,[br]just to keep them eligible to play.

0:04:41.400,0:04:44.136
Now, when Mary found this out,[br]she was outraged.

0:04:44.160,0:04:47.096
And so what she tried to do[br]was go to her direct supervisor.

0:04:47.120,0:04:48.976
But they didn't do anything.

0:04:49.000,0:04:52.816
And then Mary tried to go to some[br]internal university administrators.

0:04:52.840,0:04:54.456
And they didn't do anything.

0:04:54.480,0:04:56.856
So, what happens when nobody listens?

0:04:56.880,0:04:58.096
You blog.

0:04:58.120,0:04:59.976
So Mary decided to develop a blog.

0:05:00.000,0:05:02.656
Her blog went viral within 24 hours,

0:05:02.680,0:05:05.176
and she was contacted by a reporter.

0:05:05.200,0:05:07.496
Now, when she was contacted[br]by this reporter,

0:05:07.520,0:05:09.296
her identity was known.

0:05:09.320,0:05:10.656
She was exposed.

0:05:10.680,0:05:14.496
And when she was exposed,[br]she received a demotion,

0:05:14.520,0:05:17.560
death threats, over collegiate sports.

0:05:18.280,0:05:22.096
Mary didn't do anything wrong.[br]She didn't participate in the fraud.

0:05:22.120,0:05:24.336
She really thought[br]that she was giving voice

0:05:24.360,0:05:26.656
to students that were voiceless.

0:05:26.680,0:05:29.056
But her loyalty was questioned.

0:05:29.080,0:05:31.720
Her trustworthiness and her motives.

0:05:33.480,0:05:36.856
Now, whistle-blowing[br]doesn't always have to end

0:05:36.880,0:05:38.576
in demotions or death threats.

0:05:38.600,0:05:42.536
Actually, in 2002, this was[br]the cover of "Time" magazine,

0:05:42.560,0:05:45.896
where we were actually honoring[br]three brave whistle-blowers

0:05:45.920,0:05:48.856
for their decision to come forward[br]in the name of the truth.

0:05:48.880,0:05:50.536
And when you look at the research,

0:05:50.560,0:05:54.136
22 percent of whistle-blowers[br]actually report retaliation.

0:05:54.160,0:05:59.616
So there is a huge population of people[br]that report and are not retaliated against

0:05:59.640,0:06:01.160
and that gives me hope.

0:06:02.280,0:06:03.936
So this is Kathe.

0:06:03.960,0:06:08.376
Kathe Swanson is a retired city clerk[br]from the city of Dixon.

0:06:08.400,0:06:12.056
And one day, Kathe was doing her job,[br]just like she always did,

0:06:12.080,0:06:15.816
and she stumbled upon[br]a pretty interesting case.

0:06:15.840,0:06:17.696
See, Kathe was at the end of the month,

0:06:17.720,0:06:20.496
and she was doing[br]her treasures report for the city,

0:06:20.520,0:06:24.576
and typically, her boss, Rita Crundwell,[br]gave her a list of accounts and said,

0:06:24.600,0:06:27.576
"Kathe, call the bank[br]and get these specific accounts."

0:06:27.600,0:06:29.256
And Kathe did her job.

0:06:29.280,0:06:30.656
But this particular day,

0:06:30.680,0:06:33.136
Rita was out of town, and Kathe was busy.

0:06:33.160,0:06:38.336
She picks up the phone, she calls the bank[br]and says, "Fax me all of the accounts."

0:06:38.360,0:06:41.656
And when she gets the fax,[br]she sees that there is an account

0:06:41.680,0:06:43.816
that has some withdrawals[br]and deposits in it

0:06:43.840,0:06:45.296
that she did not know about.

0:06:45.320,0:06:48.616
It was an account controlled only by Rita.

0:06:48.640,0:06:52.616
So Kathe looked at the information,[br]she reported it to her direct supervisor,

0:06:52.640,0:06:54.776
which was then-mayor Burke,

0:06:54.800,0:06:58.560
and this led into a huge investigation,[br]a six-month investigation.

0:06:59.200,0:07:04.216
Come to find out, Kathe's boss,[br]Rita Crundwell, was embezzling money.

0:07:04.240,0:07:09.456
Rita was embezzling 53 million dollars[br]over a 20-year period,

0:07:09.480,0:07:11.960
and Kathe just happened[br]to stumble upon it.

0:07:13.080,0:07:16.016
Kathe is a hero.

0:07:16.040,0:07:17.736
And actually, I had the opportunity

0:07:17.760,0:07:21.136
of interviewing Kathe for my documentary,[br]"All the Queen's Horses."

0:07:21.160,0:07:23.496
And Kathe wasn't seeking fame.

0:07:23.520,0:07:26.976
In fact, she really didn't want[br]to talk to me for a really long time,

0:07:27.000,0:07:30.096
but through strategic stalking,[br]she ended up doing the interview.

0:07:30.120,0:07:31.256
(Laughter)

0:07:31.280,0:07:33.496
But she was seeking fairness, not fame.

0:07:33.520,0:07:35.136
And if it wasn't for Kathe,

0:07:35.160,0:07:37.800
who's to say this fraud[br]would have ever been discovered?

0:07:39.120,0:07:41.736
So, remember that "Forbes" article[br]I was talking about,

0:07:41.760,0:07:43.665
that I was working on before my lecture?

0:07:43.689,0:07:47.256
Well, I posted it and something[br]really fantastic happened.

0:07:47.280,0:07:51.976
I started receiving emails[br]from whistle-blowers all over the world.

0:07:52.000,0:07:55.576
And as I was receiving these emails[br]and responding back to them,

0:07:55.600,0:07:58.256
there was a common theme[br]in the message that I received,

0:07:58.280,0:07:59.496
and this is what it was:

0:07:59.520,0:08:03.896
they all said this, "I blew the whistle,[br]people really hate me now.

0:08:03.920,0:08:06.096
I got fired, but guess what?

0:08:06.120,0:08:09.496
I would do it all over again if I could."

0:08:09.520,0:08:12.736
And so as I kept reading this message,[br]all these messages,

0:08:12.760,0:08:15.576
I wanted to think,[br]what could I share with my students?

0:08:15.600,0:08:19.176
And so, I pulled it all together[br]and this is what I learned.

0:08:19.200,0:08:22.296
It's important for us to cultivate hope.

0:08:22.320,0:08:24.256
Whistle-blowers are hopeful.

0:08:24.280,0:08:25.696
Despite popular belief,

0:08:25.720,0:08:30.016
they're not all disgruntled employees[br]that have a beef with the company.

0:08:30.040,0:08:34.216
Their hopefulness really is[br]what drives them to come forward.

0:08:34.240,0:08:36.655
We also have to cultivate commitment.

0:08:36.679,0:08:38.535
Whistle-blowers are committed.

0:08:38.559,0:08:41.056
And it's that passion[br]to their organization

0:08:41.080,0:08:43.496
that makes them want to come forward.

0:08:43.520,0:08:45.136
Whistle-blowers are humble.

0:08:45.160,0:08:49.216
Again, they're not seeking fame,[br]but they are seeking fairness.

0:08:49.240,0:08:52.096
And we need to continue[br]to cultivate bravery.

0:08:52.120,0:08:53.696
Whistle-blowers are brave.

0:08:53.720,0:08:57.416
Often, they underestimated

0:08:57.440,0:09:00.056
the impact whistle-blowing[br]had on their family,

0:09:00.080,0:09:05.000
but what they continue to comment on[br]is how hard it is to withhold the truth.

0:09:05.960,0:09:08.776
With that, I want to leave you[br]with one additional name:

0:09:08.800,0:09:10.120
Peter Buxtun.

0:09:11.160,0:09:17.336
Peter Buxtun was a 27-year-old[br]employee for the US Public Health Service.

0:09:17.360,0:09:21.296
And he was hired to interview people

0:09:21.320,0:09:23.696
that had sexually transmitted diseases.

0:09:23.720,0:09:25.776
And through the course of his work,

0:09:25.800,0:09:29.736
he noticed a clinical study[br]that was going on within the organization.

0:09:29.760,0:09:33.856
And it was a study that was looking[br]at the progression of untreated syphilis.

0:09:33.880,0:09:36.656
And so, there were[br]600 African American males

0:09:36.680,0:09:37.896
that were in this study.

0:09:37.920,0:09:39.496
They were enticed into the study

0:09:39.520,0:09:43.456
through being given[br]free medical exams, burial insurance.

0:09:43.480,0:09:47.176
And so, what happened[br]through the course of this study,

0:09:47.200,0:09:52.096
is penicillin was discovered[br]to help treat syphilis.

0:09:52.120,0:09:54.056
And what Peter noticed was,

0:09:54.080,0:09:58.016
the participants in this study[br]were not given the penicillin

0:09:58.040,0:09:59.536
to treat their syphilis.

0:09:59.560,0:10:01.376
And the participants didn't know.

0:10:01.400,0:10:06.576
So similar to Mary, Peter tried to report[br]and talk to his internal supervisors,

0:10:06.600,0:10:08.336
but no one listened.

0:10:08.360,0:10:10.776
And so Peter thought[br]this was completely unfair

0:10:10.800,0:10:12.376
and he tried to report again,

0:10:12.400,0:10:16.056
and finally talked to a reporter --[br]very similar to Mary.

0:10:16.080,0:10:20.376
And in 1972, this was the front page[br]of the "New York Times":

0:10:20.400,0:10:24.480
"Syphilis Victims in US Study[br]Went Untreated for 40 Years."

0:10:25.640,0:10:30.056
This is known to us today[br]as the Tuskegee syphilis experiment.

0:10:30.080,0:10:32.296
And Peter was the whistle-blower.

0:10:32.320,0:10:36.376
What happened to the 600 men,[br]you may wonder, the 600 original men?

0:10:36.400,0:10:39.376
Twenty eight men died from syphilis.

0:10:39.400,0:10:42.536
One hundred died[br]from syphilis complications,

0:10:42.560,0:10:44.416
forty wives were infected

0:10:44.440,0:10:47.296
and 10 children were born[br]with congenital syphilis.

0:10:47.320,0:10:49.656
Who's to say what these numbers would be

0:10:49.680,0:10:53.776
if it wasn't for the brave,[br]courageous act of Peter?

0:10:53.800,0:10:56.296
We're all connected to Peter, actually.

0:10:56.320,0:10:58.896
If you know anybody[br]that's in a clinical trial,

0:10:58.920,0:11:02.096
the reason why we have[br]informed consent today

0:11:02.120,0:11:04.240
is because of Peter's courageous act.

0:11:05.400,0:11:06.816
So let me ask you a question.

0:11:06.840,0:11:09.736
That original question,[br]a variation of the original question.

0:11:09.760,0:11:12.856
How many of us have ever used the term

0:11:12.880,0:11:15.856
snitch, rat

0:11:15.880,0:11:17.456
tattletale,

0:11:17.480,0:11:19.136
snake,

0:11:19.160,0:11:20.656
weasel,

0:11:20.680,0:11:21.880
leak?

0:11:22.920,0:11:24.120
Anybody?

0:11:27.640,0:11:30.696
Before you get the urge to do that again,

0:11:30.720,0:11:32.536
I want you to think a little bit.

0:11:32.560,0:11:36.440
It might be the Mary,[br]the Peter, the Kathes of the world.

0:11:37.480,0:11:40.416
You might be the person[br]that could shape history,

0:11:40.440,0:11:42.976
or they could be the person[br]that shapes yours.

0:11:43.000,0:11:44.216
Thank you.

0:11:44.240,0:11:48.000
(Applause)