Truth needs a lower cost of entry.
People with bad news are calculating whether honesty will be punished. If the first person who names risk gets cross-examined like a suspect, everyone else learns to polish the update.
Safety for truth is built in the first response. Thank the signal. Separate diagnosis from blame. Ask for evidence. Define the next action. You can hold standards without making truth dangerous.
Operator artifact: use an early-truth response: "Good signal. What do we know? What is at risk? What do you need from me? What is the next check?"
Field test: Reward one early warning so visibly that the room learns the new rule.
This is part 7 of 10 in Social Awareness for Operators.
