So let’s say there’s a fairly major thing in the news. One day in conversation with a friend, you ask “hey- You know some of those people. You worked there around that time, didn’t you? What’s up with this?”
They tell you that there is a lot more to the situation which isn’t being reported, and that it’s way more serious than they’re letting on. They won’t say anything more (assume an NDA, being there illegally, national security, whatever reason), but it’s obvious they know at least some of what happened, which is not public record. This is someone you’ve known for years- decadeS, almost- and you trust them completely. A cursory glance at their employment record would show that they were at least tangentially involved with part of the incident.
What do you do with this knowledge?
You know that this source is far more reputable than anyone reporting on the thing, but all I have is anonymous hearsay.
I think you can only really use it to inform your own point of view on the subject; beyond that, maybe just deliver a hint as to “Y’know, maybe the situation is a bit more complicated than it’s being reported as,” with perhaps a reference to the Gell-Mann Amnesia Effect.
If there are obvious holes in the official story, you can point them out, but claiming that you have a friend of a friend who knows something that you can’t elaborate upon isn’t going to do anything more than paint you as a conspiracy theorist.
How brave are you? If you are not up for a fight, you should probably do nothing.
If you are willing to become an activist, get an investigative journalist involved. I say that like it’s easy, I know it isn’t. IF someone needs to blow a huge whistle, I hope it is blown.
Of course, if the issue is that big, someone has to be willing to blow up their life, Snowden-style. If your friend is not willing to do that, and YOU do something, they may end up crushed under the thing (if there is legal blow-back.)
