Whistleblowing via YouTube

Michael De Kort, an engineer with the military contracting giant Lockheed Martin, recently blew the whistle on the corporation’s “alarming incompetence” and “ethical compromises” in a very startling way. After getting nowhere with the normal channels in the company, he hit the internet on YouTube, with a 42 second clip, where he describes the problems.

The clip, which has since been removed by De Kort pending legal action, (view an updated clip at YouTube) has reportedly been seen by over 800,000 viewers around the country. The corporation has many military contracts, and one is the refurbishing of Coast Guard ships. De Kort alleges that faulty equipment and dangerously inadequate security systems are being knowingly allowed by the corporation on these boats.

Probably to no one’s surprise, Lockheed is denying this. De Kort was laid off from the company shortly after he went public in this innovative manner.

While his blowing the whistle is admirable, and could ultimately save the lives of American sailors, this startling, news-making method is not really a good idea. It would be much more effective if he had quietly copied the key documents showing the faults, and especially the corporation’s knowledge, and gone to the key federal investigators and U.S. attorneys.

With the guidance of experienced False Claims Act attorneys, he likely would have had the right federal investigators digging in and helping him prove the allegations. He would then also likely have been in a position to recover a good percentage of the monetary penalties the corporation would have to pay if he was correct about the faults and the cover up.

Public exposure is good for our safety, and often even our national defense. However, public exposure through the media is nearly always better after a good case has been put together and presented to the key federal investigators.