Wikipedia:Wikipedia Signpost/2012-07-02/Discussion report

The following is a brief overview of the current discussions on the English Wikipedia.

Proposals

 * '''Extend use of authority control
 * Authority controls are unique identifiers to differentiate objects. Only about 4,000 biography articles on the English Wikipedia use these controls, while the German Wikipedia has about 220,000 such articles, and Commons an unknown number.


 * '''New user group: moderator
 * "Moderators" would face the standard RFX process but would receive fewer tools. Moderators would not receive tools that "deal with the assessing of editor behaviour", like block or protect. The number of user rights has been reduced from an administrator's 54 to 17, just a few more than autoconfirmed users. As the originator of the proposal, Jc37 states, "The goal here is to not add to admin's work, but to give the moderator ... [the] ability to assess consensus [and] handle content-related issues without needing to run to an admin, because the moderator, in these situations, will be as trusted as an admin to perform them."

Requests for comment (RfCs)

 * 3rd party unblock requests
 * Comments have been requested regarding allowing a third party to request an unblock. An editor can see a block they believe is unjust and request a review of the block. Experienced editors who can interpret policy can help new editors who may have a harder time understanding the vast policies of Wikipedia.


 * Can it be verifiable and not the truth?
 * A look into the rewording of the content of the verifiability policy. Five versions of the lede are under discussion, along with 12 questions regarding the content. The last request for comment on this topic ended without a consensus.


 * Updating level-one user warnings
 * A study looking at how users reacted to warnings was conducted to improve the warnings so they do not bite the newcomers, while still deterring vandalism. Comments are requested on whether the new warnings are adequate or still need improving.


 * '''Internet Defense League and the Wikimedia Foundation
 * The Internet Defense League has approached the Wikimedia Foundation to join their ranks. The Wikimedia Foundation is requesting your input as to whether or not they join the league. The Internet Defense League is a group of websites that will join in any future protests against anti-piracy legislation (see related Signpost coverage).


 * '''Global ban policy
 * Since the update of the terms of service in May, a process for a global ban policy is yet to be decided. The policy is for problematic editors who have been blocked from multiple communities.