User:Bluerasberry/pressrelease

Press release use
Hello. I would like to integrate some content from many press releases into Wikipedia. I am writing here to ask for some feedback on my thought process, and reasons why this is a bad idea.
 * 1) Press releases are POV
 * 2) It is preferable to summarize content rather than try to take copyrighted contented and get it licensed appropriately for integration into Wikipedia.
 * 3) Press releases alone do not indicate notability
 * 4) Press releases are self-published sources and are not reliable

Having considered the reasons not to do this, I weighed them against my motivation for wanting to try.


 * 1) The press releases are descriptions of the outcomes of science experiments. Most or all of this content is a bland recitation of facts, so it seems like POV is not a concern.
 * 2) The press releases are copyrighted by a research institution which is willing to go through WP:CONSENT and WP:IOWN to release it.
 * 3) The press releases have been republished in other sources, sometimes nearly exactly and sometimes re-phrased by a journalist who started with the press release.
 * 4) The research itself has been described by various journalists. Notability of the articles' subjects is not in question. Probably the research could be described as large-scale, big budget, government-organized, taxpayer-funded research.
 * 5) The press release represents the official views of the network of multiple government agencies and research institutions. When one organization coordinates the research and publishes results in a press release, the press release is not a typical self-published source

The reason why I think press releases are best is because they are the source from which all other non-technical, layman sources get their data, and because the information in the press releases is the official, expert-reviewed statement. When non-scientist journalists write about science, they often simplify it in non-scientific and perhaps inaccurate ways. Another thing which often gets confused everywhere except in the original press release is the relationship between research entities. Typically research involves several government agencies, universities, and research institutions, and while regional journalistic sources name everyone in their region, often only the press release names everyone worldwide. I would prefer to use a press release as a source than many regional sources, despite the press release being a primary source.

I do not want to copy the releases verbatim in entirety, but I think it would be helpful to start with the full release, cut out what is not encyclopedic, and not worry about rewriting everything as I would if I were working with material which is not licensed for reuse.

Would everything about this be cool if it was as I described it? I am posting on this board because I am thinking of doing several things I have never done before which all scratch Wikipedia taboos - request copyright release, using a primary source, copy/pasting to Wikipedia. I wanted to get some feedback before I did this.

Some of what has already been said -
 * Jimbo's statement
 * Talk:News_release
 * IOWN
 * Wikipedia_talk:Copyright_problems/Archive_13