User:Lou Löwe/Evaluate an Article

Which article are you evaluating?
Sykes–Picot Agreement

Why you have chosen this article to evaluate?
I have chosen this article to evauleate, becuase it will serve as a key source for my understaning on the Sykes-Picot agreement. My first impression is that it is very rich in detail, perspectives and sources. This is important as it will aid to trace back to its own original sources and serve as a basis for the simple wikipedia entry on the same subject.

Evaluate the article
Lead section

The article's introductory sentence clearly states precisley what the researches topic is and explains consicely what elements play a role. The table of contents as well as the lead section summarize what major topics will be discussed in the article bellow. Since this is a very extensive subject, including various parties, treaties and conflicts, the lead brings it all well together. I feel the lead already goes into quite a lot of detail about all the different and subsequent treaties among the parties, and only weighs in on the meaning and importance of this treaty later. However in doing so, the lead reamins to vague: "The agreement is seen by many as a turning point in Western and Arab relations" and misses to emphasize the impact this treaty will play for future geopolitics.

Content
The article's content is very subject-relevant, treating the topic for many different angles, such as political goals, motivations, economic factors, the application of the agreement and its consequences, elaborates on the different perspectives of the concerned parties, and also ties it to modern politics. Within these different perspectives, the article does include paragraphs on respective ethical underrepresented groups, however still reamins in a "western" account of events. The site was last updated on the 23rd of February 2022.

Tone and Balance
Like mentioned above, the article recounts the events from a strongly western-european point of view. Although it does address the errors and "embarassments" the european powers incurred, the article focuses on how the Europeans invaded or took control. Therefore, I would argue that minority viewpoints are neglected in this article, but remains neutral for the mostpart. It is a very difficult event to recount from an entirely objectif perspective. Especialy as the recount of events does conclude in various actions from Western powers into the Ottoman Empire.

Sources and References
The refrence list does include BBC News source, but only in connection with a map, other than that the sources range from the 20th to the 21st century, and reaches up to 122 sources in total. Between reports and books from 1918 to more current ones of 2016, there is a very broad spectrum of sources contributing to this article. But not al facts are backed up with secondary reliable sources. From sources focusing on Middle Eastern Studies, to American Journal, it is hard to say precisley if these sources cover all perspectives. But the links word and are accesible with an academic VPN.

Organization and writing quality
Although the content is sensibly structured, the sections about marginalized ethnities are noticeably shorter. The content is highly academic, refering to many historical terminologies and is highly linked to many historical events. I think the site is very well organized since the structure is comprehensible, logical and allows for a in depth understanding. However, certain formulations within the paragraphs are not completely coherent, needing longer and adtional knowledge to comprehend.

Images and Media
The article uses maps, depictions of the orginal treaty texts, and fotographs of the involved principal persons to support the content. All images are cited, and laid out in a way which highlights the message of that paragraph.

Talk page discussion
The Talk page discussion is focused on the lead lacking context, and in turn communicating the wrong message about the Sykes-Picot agreement, it discusses the Central Syrian Congress, and the map of the Treaty of Severs. Futhermore, it discusses the need for different sources, not always agreeing on the way specific sources depict the development or political stances of countries (specifically for Russia).

This article is under the Wiki Project Politics of the United Kindgom and is star-class rated. Also, there are several editing restrictions, reservig access to those IP accounts with more than 500 edits and more than 30 days tenure. Also, as being part of an Arab-Israeli conflict, it is subject to discretionary sanctions.

Overall impressions
Overall, it is a very informative and detailed article about the events that took place because of and as a consequence of the Sykes-Picot agreement. It elaborates on all bilateral and additional treaties which further impacted the continuance of events. It gives a good understanding, although it could stil improve in style, logic, context of the lead and in including historically underdocumented perspectives and non-western worldviews.

In total, i would definitely consider the article well-developed.

Examples of good feedback
A good article evaluation can take a number of forms. The most essential things are to clearly identify the biggest shortcomings, and provide specific guidance on how the article can be improved.