Talk:David Seals

Untitled
I'm glad I checked the history here. This article was better a few edits ago. -  Kathryn NicDhàna  ♫ ♦ ♫ 05:40, 19 August 2009 (UTC)

Category Tags?
According to ethnicity references in this article's footnotes and links, David Seals should be tagged in Categories: "Native American writers"; "Wyandot people"; "Cheyenne tribe". But in the current article body as Seals himself has left it, all claims of Native American status are absent; he is merely an "American Poet". What gives? Should we tag him or not? {Added note: To save later typing, I inserted the Categories in "commented" mode pending discussion. If approved, simply decomment; if disapproved, simply delete.} PhilbertB (talk) 19:00, 19 August 2009 (UTC)


 * Looking through the history, it was an IP editor who removed some of the sources:, and then the reference to Native American subject matter in the authors' works: . -  Kathryn NicDhàna  ♫ ♦ ♫ 01:58, 20 August 2009 (UTC)

Followup: upon Googling, found doubts expressed on Net about the ethnic authenticity of this subject. Help Wanted from wiser heads. PhilbertB (talk) 01:51, 20 August 2009 (UTC)


 * Unless I missed something, no claim has been made in the article or cats as to ethnicity, aside from your suggestion to add them. If you want to add statements of ethnicity to the article, the burden is upon the one adding the statements to source them. -  Kathryn NicDhàna  ♫ ♦ ♫ 02:09, 20 August 2009 (UTC)


 * Ethnicity references in the article: (1) "Seals' essays have appeared in... Genocide of the Mind " (footnote shows the subtitle is New Native American Writing), implying Seals is Native American. (2) External Link: "David Seals at Native American Authors Project", same implication in the very title; the linked site itself states that he is Huron, which for Wikipedia Category purposes would be tagged "Wyandot". (3) External Link: "David Seals at Phoenix Examiner", linked site's "My Bio" refers to "his Huron-Cheyenne heritage". So, yes, you missed something, but the question remains, can any of it be trusted? PhilbertB (talk) 07:06, 20 August 2009 (UTC)


 * Genocide of the Mind: "Native American Writing" doesn't indicate what sort of ethnicity, BQ or enrollment, if any, is a requirement for inclusion. Not having the book at hand, I wouldn't presume to interpret how the editors and publishers are defining "Native American Writing".
 * The Native American Authors Project is not a suitable source for biographical data. There are too many entries on that site that have misinformation. However, I consider it usable as a simple list of published works, as that can be confirmed elsewhere. Given the flawed nature of the site, it would be better to find a concise list of publications on another site, if a non-commercial one exists.
 * The Examiner Bio seems more likely an accurate statement from the author, as the author defines himself, as I assume he wrote the bio himself. The statement "Huron-Cheyenne heritage", as well as his statements in the Examiner articles of having "Cheyenne relatives", doesn't necessarily indicate ethnicity or enrollment status.
 * It is not required for WP:BLPs to list ethnicity. I have no attachment to whether it's listed or not. -  Kathryn NicDhàna  ♫ ♦ ♫ 22:57, 20 August 2009 (UTC)


 * Then "When in doubt, leave it out." Or at least leave it commented out, unless it should just be deleted to reduce clutter. (My thought is, if in future the issue is clearly resolved in the affirmative, the tags could still be decommented.) PhilbertB (talk) 23:25, 20 August 2009 (UTC)

As the author says "heritage", perhaps this would be the better category. -  Kathryn NicDhàna  ♫ ♦ ♫ 21:35, 23 August 2009 (UTC)

One-Source Bio Material?
Certain events in this subject's life may be described only in his own "family memoir", Abduction at Roswell. Of the two possible problems using that material, copyright and verifiability (against another source), I think verifiability might be the greater issue. Seals posted a summary blurb here:. Perhaps credibility would be the better word. I don't think we can just take the subject's own uncorroborated word for all that, can we? And... frankly, it raises the question of how much else to take his word for. PhilbertB (talk) 21:50, 19 August 2009 (UTC)
 * As in any Bio of a living person, and in WP:RS and WP:V, uncontroversial material may be sourced from an author's own statements. If a claim seems controversial, it can be cited for better sourcing, and cut if no WP:V/WP:RS source exists. Unless I missed something, I don't see much of anything in here that looks to be sourced to the Roswell book. "Memoir" leaves room for a certain degree of novelization not inherent in a strict Bio or Autobio. I haven't read the Roswell book, but being familiar with the author's humorous fiction, as well as looking at a description of the Roswell memoir, I am bearing in mind that it may not be intended as a strict autobio. -  Kathryn NicDhàna  ♫ ♦ ♫ 02:05, 20 August 2009 (UTC)

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Rumours of his death...
Are only rumours until we have a solid source. If someone wants to confirm off-wiki, you can contact me or another admin. Or you can post a link here to any place where a family member or credible close friend has announced it, even if it's not a source we can use in the article. But if people just keep adding unsourced stuff about him being dead, we will have to lock down the article on the chance it's a hoax. I have no wish to cause distress to anyone, but until we confirm what the truth is, I don't want people edit-warring. Thanks. (And my condolences to his loved ones if this is true.) - Co rb ie V    ☊ ☼ 01:02, 13 February 2017 (UTC)

OK, apparently Seals' son has mentioned in a Facebook post that his dad has died. It's not a formal announcement, so there isn't anything that would be appropriate to link to. Though we don't have a WP:RS source yet, I'm not going to revert anyone who adds it. I assume anyone who adds it at this point are friends or family. If you're reading this, just add a link to the formal announcement when one is published. And again, sorry for your loss. - Co rb ie V    ☊ ☼ 01:13, 13 February 2017 (UTC)