Wikipedia:Copyright problems/2014 April 10

Copyright investigations (manual article tagging)

 * All contributions by.
 * In January 2010, this IP added a large block of text to A. N. R. Robinson ([ history] · [ last edit] · rewrite) from . It went undetected for 4+ years, creating a complicated situation to remedy.  The IP's other contributions are highly suspect and should also be checked for lingering problems. --ThaddeusB (talk) 17:07, 10 April 2014 (UTC)
 * Partially resolved - Pictogram_voting_keep.svg for A. N. R. Robinson, cleaned by
 * Other contributions of IP still need checked. --ThaddeusB (talk) 03:08, 11 April 2014 (UTC)


 * Pictogram voting keep.svg Article cleaned by investigator or others. No remaining infringement. He or she only added substantially to one other article, Glynis Roberts. Content has been checked and cleaned. --Moonriddengirl (talk) 11:34, 18 April 2014 (UTC)


 * Green sturgeon ([ history] · [ last edit] · rewrite) from.
 * Almost everything was added by user:Mikesbrain in a series of edits from August 2007. It is an exact copy of various sections in chapter 8 in USBR's Biological Assessment on the Continued Long-term Operations of the Central Valley Project and the State Water Project. published in August 2008. Therein lies the problem. Normally I would have removed all, per WP:COPYVIO, but here it appears it was added to the wiki article a year before the official publication! It is highly unlikely USBR would copy huge sections from wikipedia and the format and language is typical of USBR's publications, but not typical of wikipedia articles. This leaves some questions:
 * Was it published elsewhere first? Sometimes URBR publications are featured elsewhere before they are made available on USBR's page. If so, the wiki editor could have copied it from there to wikipedia, in which case it is copyvio and should be deleted.
 * Was the editor involved in USBR's publications; perhaps an author? If so, he/she could have added it both to wiki and the USBR publication. We could have asked the editor, but unfortunately he/she has not been active on wikipedia since 2007. Assuming he/she was an USBR author, does he/she have the rights to publish it elsewhere? In some cases copyrights of scientific reports made while hired for specific agencies/companies lie with that agency/company, meaning that the author need authorization by the agency/company to publish it elsewhere (e.g. on wiki). My knowledge of U.S. copyright rules and URBR guidelines on this are lacking.
 * There has been quite a few edits since user:Mikesbrain's edits, but the majority of the article still consists of his additions. 62.107.195.80 (talk) 17:41, 10 April 2014 (UTC)
 * This is a good sign for user:Mikesbrain: . He corrected an error that he had placed. The external source does not have this error. Unfortunately, this is the only difference I have been able to verify, which I wouldn't generally regard as "good enough" to alleviate a copyright concern. However, there's further good news here: this shouldn't be a copyright issue in any regards, due to the copyright status of USBR. It is reasonable to assume that the publication is public domain in the absence of any indication otherwise, as the only author listed is the agency. If Mike did not author the content, it would be a matter of plagiarism not to acknowledge that source, but the uncertainty there given the dates of publication make me feel comfortable enough not to worry about it. Plagiarism is not a legal issue, and it seems probable that Mike is connected to the USBR. Thank you for locating the issue and your careful reporting of it. :) --Moonriddengirl (talk) 11:51, 18 April 2014 (UTC)


 * So can someone (an admin or other suitable person) bring the page back? Regardless of Mike's affiliation, the work in question is in the public domain. (http://www.usa.gov/copyright.shtml) Mr. Snow (talk) 18:18, 3 June 2014 (UTC)