User:Walton One/AGF Challenge Exercise Answers

My answers to User:Filll/AGF Challenge.

My wife is not a coauthor
Suppose someone has coauthored 10 books with their wife. And suppose that this person also wrote 10 books on their own, and on this second group of 10 books, their wife is not listed as a coauthor. All 20 of these books are listed on a website belonging to the couple for sale, and on various other websites, with the authorship list for each book listing either the person, or the person and his wife. All of these websites and descriptions of these 20 books agree with each other. Suppose that in interviews, this person is quoted as saying that his wife had coauthored some of his books, and that this person listed this coauthorship in his autobiography.

Therefore, in the biography of this person on Wikipedia, we state that this person has coauthored some of his books with his wife. And then this person contacts WP, using the OTRS system, and threatens to sue Wikipedia for describing his wife as a coauthor of some of his books. He wants Wikipedia to assert that he wrote all the books himself and his wife was not involved.

What should Wikipedia do? Do we just state something that is contrary to more than a dozen reliable sources, which all agree with each other? Do we state something for which we have not a single source except a private email purportedly from the subject of the biography (but of course we do not know for sure)? What is the ethical thing to do? What is the encyclopedic thing to do? What precedent would your actions set, if any?

Answer
Reliable published sources take precedence over private e-mails, for reasons of verification. If the published interviews and the subject's autobiography listed his wife as co-author of some of the books, then we cannot just ignore those sources in favour of the subject's wishes. Therefore, the Wikipedia article should continue to assert that, according to the published sources, he co-authored some of the books with his wife. We could possibly add a note that the claim is disputed (though with only a private e-mail as source, we'd be on shaky ground even doing that, since the information can't be publicly verified).

This is both the ethical and the encyclopaedic approach to take. Articles are not there for the benefit of their subjects, nor are the subjects entitled to whitewash parts of their biography they don't like.

If he continued making legal threats, the case should be referred to the Foundation's legal counsel. However, I don't see that there would be any grounds for a lawsuit (particularly if he stated the co-authorship in his own biography). We certainly can't let people intimidate us into censoring our information by making threats to sue. WaltonOne 12:41, 16 April 2008 (UTC)

My town's library
You run across an article, created a few days ago, that reads:

You do some web searching, and find nothing about this library on the internet. What should Wikipedia do with such an article? How would you handle this situation?

Response
This is not far off qualifying for CSD A7, but I'd probably give it the benefit of the doubt, since it might be notable. I would therefore put it up for AfD, and inform the creator that I had done so. WaltonOne 12:41, 16 April 2008 (UTC)

I am the best
"Theobold Johnson III" is notable for having been involved in a football cheating scandal and also writes books about orchids, illustrated with beautiful pictures. Johnson has written several self-published books about orchids, and in their autobiographies and interviews he describes himself as "the greatest living orchid man" and "widely recognized by the academic world as the greatest orchid scholar in the world". Johnson refers to himself as "Dr. Johnson" or "Professor Johnson" frequently in print. Johnson also asserts in print that he is a professor in the Botany Department at the famous "Winthrop College" and has given his mailing address as "c/o Winthrop College" for many years. Johnson often writes that all other people studying orchids are morons and even all other botanists are stupid and vile disgusting fools who should be publicly flogged or worse.

In the course of writing a Wikipedia biography about Johnson, you start to uncover disturbing information. First, you are able to find a mention of a "Theobold Johnson III" on archived versions of the Winthrop College website from 1994-1997, but there is no mention of Johnson on earlier versions of the website, or later versions. A "T. Johnson, III" is listed as a visitor in the Computer Science Department of Winthrop College in the 1994, 1995, 1996 and 1997 versions of the website, and a phone number is given. You contact the President's office at Winthrop College and the Dean of Science office at Winthrop College and ask if Johnson is or was a faculty member there. Receiving no reply, you ask a friend who knows the Dean personally to ask the Dean privately. The word comes back from your friend that he has talked to the Dean privately, and that Johnson is an embarassment and never had a faculty appointment at Winthrop College and just has his mail forwarded from Winthrop College due to some arrangement he made with someone in the Winthrop College mailroom 25 years previously. Johnson never was on the payroll of Winthrop College and never had an official position at Winthrop College and has not been on campus for 10 years or more. Johnson was listed for a few years on the telephone list and was a short term visitor, but this was just a courtesy and he was one of 3500 visitors a year who get this courtesy. The Dean's office then, thanks to the probing of your friend, issues a very carefully worded "official statement" about Johnson, stating he was never a faculty member at Winthrop College and inviting further inquiries to their Press Office, and sends you a copy.

You do some more checking, and find no evidence that Johnson has a PhD or any degree in botany or science whatsoever, at least from Liberty Washington University, as he claims. You do find a record at Liberty Washington Community College that Johnson obtained a bachelor's degree in history 30 years previously. You also find a report in the local newspaper that Johnson was expelled from Liberty Washington Community College for theft while he was an undergraduate, and then was readmitted and eventually graduated. You look at various lists and directories of prominent orchid scholars and find no mention of a Theobold Johnson in any edition of these directories. You also dig up 5 reviews of Johnson's books on orchids in various scholarly journals from different botanists and orchid scholars from Harvard and University of Pennsylvania and Yale. These reviews are uniformly poor, and state that Johnson is a charlatan and a fraud and his books are replete with errors and the worst possible nonsense. You then find another interview of Johnson published in Sports Illustrated where it is stated that Johnson has no PhD or other Doctorate, but it is a title that people use for him out of respect for his tremendous knowledge and learning.

How would you write a biography of this person on Wikipedia? What would be reasonable and accurate and ethical? What would be fair? What should Wikipedia do if this person contacts Wikipedia and demands that it write his biography the way he dictates? What if this person threatens legal action if Wikipedia does not do what he asks?

Response
Wow, this sounds more like investigative journalism than Wikipedia research. Since a lot of this is original research, some parts of it cannot be included in the article, but others can.

The Harvard and Yale book reviews can certainly be included as part of a criticism section; these are reliable published sources, and since they are directly about Johnson, it is entirely appropriate to include them in the article. The Sports Illustrated interview can also be included as relevant to his claim to possess a doctorate. Possibly you can also use the Winthrop College Dean's official statement, provided it has been released to the public and meets WP:RS. All of these are published sources which discuss Johnson directly, and so using them in the article does not constitute OR.

However, the absence of Johnson from lists of botanists, or the fact that he does not appear to have a degree from Liberty Washington University as he claims, cannot be included in the article; this is original research, unless it has been specifically noted in a published source.

If Johnson contacts Wikipedia and demands that his biography be written a certain way, then we should not accede to his wishes. Subjects of articles do not have the right to have their biographies whitewashed at their request, and we have a responsibility to write balanced articles, including any relevant criticism which is published in reliable external sources. If he makes legal threats, this should be referred to the Foundation's legal counsel. WaltonOne 12:55, 16 April 2008 (UTC)

Arrow of Time
In the Young Earth Creationism article, an editor with a total of 47 edits to their credit repeatedly inserts the phrase

This appears to have little if anything to do with Young Earth Creationism. After all, the Big Bang produced time itself, according to the Big Bang theory, first advanced by Belgian Roman Catholic priest Georges Lemaître. Discussions of whether time existed before the Big Bang have already discarded one of the main features of the Big Bang, and so are not about the Big Bang, and definitely not relevant to Young Earth Creationism, which does not have a Big Bang associated with most versions of it. It is a confused and somewhat nonsensical statement.

No sources or references are provided, although this editor is asked for sources dozens of times by several other editors. Other editors remove this phrase, and the new editor responds angrily that he is being censored. The new editor reinserts this phrase 38 times over the next 2 weeks, and never provides references or sources of any kind. When asked for sources, he states it is the responsibility of the other editors to provide them, not him.

On the talk page of the article, this editor posts vaguely obnoxious statements like

He states that since the other editors do not want to include his statement about the Arrow of Time without a reference, they will be sued:

Everyone is polite to this editor. No one threatens him. No one curses him. He is tolerated.

What should Wikipedia do in this case? What is fair? What is the journalistic thing to do? What is the encyclopedic thing to do? Could someone like this demand that Encyclopedia Britannica include this kind of statement in one of its articles? The New York Times? What sort of chance of success would they have?

Response
This sems fairly clear-cut to me, based on the facts as presented. Obviously, the "arrow of time" statement has little relevance to the article and is unsourced. If the editor keeps reinserting it and refuses to discuss the issue civilly or to compromise, then action may need to be taken, including a temporary block and/or temporary page protection. While we should assume good faith as far as possible, there is a point at which stubbornness can become disruptive.

As regards the legal threat, if he makes any concrete threat of legal action this should be referred to the Foundation's legal counsel, as per normal procedure. However, it does not sound like he would have any grounds for a lawsuit, since nothing detailed above could possibly constitute defamation; hence it's probably just empty rhetoric. A block could, of course, be imposed if necessary (per WP:NLT) until the issue is resolved.

As an aside, things are rarely this clear-cut in real cases. "Everyone is polite to this editor. No one threatens him. No one curses him. He is tolerated." In reality, editing disputes are rarely the sole fault of a single editor, and threats and obnoxious comments tend to come from both sides. But I've answered the question based on the facts as presented above. WaltonOne 15:17, 16 April 2008 (UTC)

Ghost in the machine
Some people have decided that sometimes ghosts call humans using cellular telephones (i.e., mobile phones). Strange anonymous cell phone calls are said to be caused by phantoms and spirits trying to communicate with the living. Ringing cellular phones during inopportune moments are believed to be caused by mischievous spirits playing tricks on humans. Static during cellular telephone calls is said to be the voices of those from beyond the grave, that can be heard if you listen closely enough. Crosstalk between calls and other phenomena are said to be the results of spectral beings and supernatural influences. Cats that get strange looks on their faces when cell phones ring, or run and hide, are said to able to hear the ghosts. It is claimed that sometimes cats look into the corners of empty rooms watching these phantoms that are present, and invisible to humans.

Several articles on this "Cellular Phantom Phenomenon" (CPP) are written for Wikipedia. Since there are no mainstream scientific studies of CPP, the editors demand that no negative material or mainstream material be presented in the Wikipedia articles on CPP, since there are no mainstream reliable sources. Conventional explanations for CPP and information about how cellular telephones work and the causes of crosstalk and static are dismissed by the proponents of CPP as WP:OR and WP:SYNTH. The proponents of CPP maintain that the conventional mainstream scientific explanation must be kept out of the articles on CPP, and refer to those trying to include them as "pseudoskeptics" and "not real scientists" and "close-minded". Efforts to try to balance the article lead to huge disputes about trying to distort WP:NPOV and make it WP:SPOV instead, which some claim is an abuse of the policies of Wikipedia.

What should these articles on CPP in Wikipedia look like? Does mainstream science have any place in these Wikipedia CPP articles? What should Wikipedia do in this case? Can the rules of WP:FRINGE be applied or is that inappropriate and unfair?

Take me to your Leader Extraterrestrial Shape-shifting Reptile
David Icke is one of a suprisingly large group of people that believe that most of the world's leaders, from Bill Clinton, Hillary Rodham Clinton and George W. Bush to members of the British Royal Family, are blood drinking shapeshifting reptilian humanoids from the Alpha Draconis star system. A little investigation reveals that there are literally dozens of books and videos on this subject, including a number that purport to present "proof" of the truth of these claims. There are also thousands of websites on this subject matter and many many people who believe this to be completely true, and supported by immense bodies of incontrovertable and irrefutable evidence.

An editor appears on Wikipedia and wants to include a paragraph or two in the biographies of many politicians around the world alluding to the fact that these politicians are in fact secretly shape-shifting extraterrestrial lizards of some kind. This editor links to one or more of the sources that are claimed to provide "proof" for these allegations. This editor wants to include this material in several hundred Wikipedia biographies. This editor protests vehemently about any efforts to remove this material from Wikipedia articles. This editor angrily denounces Wikipedia as unfair and biased, and the removal of this material as evidence that Jimbo and Arbcomm and many of the admins on Wikipedia are also shapeshifting extraterrestrial reptiles, conspiring to keep this information secret and from the public.

What should Wikipedia do in this case? What would be fair and reasonable? Should Wikipedia allow these claims only in the biographies of politicians and leaders that are already deceased, to avoid problems with WP:BLP? What is the best course of action, and most journalistic and encyclopedic and ethical? How does one avoid offending this editor? What if this editor is joined by 50 others with the same agenda so they can overwhelm any minor response by Wikipedia editors? What sort of precedent would this set? Are the rules of Wikipedia important in this situation or not? Should they be ignored? Whose rules should be applied and when, to which cases?

Related to a saint
Oacan was an editor whose aunt compiled Oacan's family genealogical history in the 1950s. Oacan's aunt claimed that Oacan's family was descended from the brother of a well known 15th century saint. Oacan then altered the Wikipedia article about the 15th century saint drastically and aggressively, for over a year, to support the claim his aunt had made in the family genealogy. Oacan removed any discussion that was contrary to this claim of his aunt, and any sources that contradicted this claim. Oacan drove off several other contributors because he insisted on creating a biography that supported his aunt's claims and "altering" the Wikipedia articles to do so.

However, Oacan's aunt's genealogy was never published, or checked by a professional genealogist. It also appears to contradict several published reliable sources. In addition, Oacan's aunt's genealogy has gaps in it as long as 95 years.

In this case, what should Wikipedia do? What is fair to Oacan? What is fair to everyone else? Should Wikipedia go with the published material from reliable sources, even if it hurts this editor's feelings? What about the ethical issues? What would a good journalist do?

Response
Should Wikipedia go with the published material from reliable sources, even if it hurts this editor's feelings? - Yes, it should. We cannot give precedence to an unpublished, non-professional genealogy over published reliable sources, nor can we allow such sources to be unilaterally removed by a single editor. Clearly, Oacan cannot be allowed to WP:OWN the article. It's probably acceptable to include Oacan's aunt's claims in the article (though we're on shaky ground even doing that, given that her genealogy hasn't been published, and we don't generally include unverifiable and unpublished claims), but we also need to include the mainstream viewpoint, backed up by reliable sources, as per Wikipedia policies and guidelines. Oacan's removal of this viewpoint should be reverted.

If Oacan continued to aggressively edit the article, we might have to impose page protection, or, in the worst case scenario, take him to WP:ANI and consider imposing a selective topic ban (if community consensus existed to do so). WaltonOne 20:48, 16 April 2008 (UTC)

I make my own rules
One editor who was fond of WP:FRINGE theories such as conspiracy theories and alien abduction theories, and edited articles on these topics on Wikipedia, decided that he disagreed with the standard interpretations of Wikipedia principles like WP:NOR and WP:RS and WP:NPOV. So he wrote his own versions of these policies. He altered all these standard policies to make them more friendly to WP:FRINGE topics, contrary to community consensus and rulings of Arbcomm, etc.

Then this editor proceeded to send out his own "welcoming statements" to new Wikipedia editors, with links to his nonstandard altered versions of Wikipedia policies, similar to the procedure normally followed for new Wikipedia editors.

What is appropriate in this case? Can someone decide unilaterally to design their own policy statements, contrary to those of the community? What is the ethical thing to do? What is the reasonable thing to do in this case?

Response
Allowing someone to misrepresent official policy is not a good idea. The community is the governing body on Wikipedia, and it is community consensus which gives policies and guidelines their authority. I personally disagree with several policies and guidelines; but I do not seek to supplant them with my own preferred views.

The editor should be informed, politely, that while he is more than welcome to criticise Wikipedia policies and to draft his own preferred versions of the policies (since debate and criticism are very healthy for the community), he should not represent his own opinion as if it were agreed policy or guideline, especially when welcoming new users.

If he repeatedly persists in this conduct, the matter should be discussed at WP:ANI, and a short block should be issued if there is consensus to do so. (Side note: I'm not a fan of unilateral on-the-spot blocks by individual admins, except for vandalism or legal threats. More difficult or controversial blocks should always be discussed, and a good-faith editor should be given a chance to defend themselves.) WaltonOne 20:38, 16 April 2008 (UTC)