How do you reckon? He tried going through the official channels for many months, and when it was clear that the system he was working in would not allow those programs to receive even the slightest airing in public, he went to the press.
What would you have had him do?
Do you have any evidence that he tried going through the official channels for any amount of time? The only evidence shown was an email where he asked about executive orders vs legislation to the office of legal counsel for the NSA during his last 30 days of employment.
I know you can't prove a negative, but ordinarily we shouldn't accept unsubstantiated claims.
Hypothetically, if no more evidence for or against this claim surfaces, we probably should give him the presumption of innocence on this point -- and since "avoiding the proper channels" is likely illegal, we have to assume that he tried.