Changes

If the WP experience has proved nothing else, it has proved that there is indeed a reason that previously established print encyclopedias (wikispeak: “paper encyclopedias”) use editorial boards to vet suggested changes to content: '''they are needed'''.  A number of members here (including myself) have suggested as a reform that [i]all[/i] article pages (wikispeak: “articlespace”) on WP be “locked down”, editable only by an editorial board, qualified by knowledge and/or expertise in a particular subject area.  WP could still retain its user pages and discussion pages, which in this case would be refocused upon users making suggested changes to an article, or suggesting new articles, for the editorial board to act on.  The ability of knowledgeable amateurs to suggest changes, and the transparency of the process, would still distinguish WP from other encyclopedias.

If the WP experience has proved nothing else, it has proved that there is indeed a reason that previously established print encyclopedias (wikispeak: “paper encyclopedias”) use editorial boards to vet suggested changes to content: '''they are needed'''.  A number of members here (including myself) have suggested as a reform that [i]all[/i] article pages (wikispeak: “articlespace”) on WP be “locked down”, editable only by an editorial board, qualified by knowledge and/or expertise in a particular subject area.  WP could still retain its user pages and discussion pages, which in this case would be refocused upon users making suggested changes to an article, or suggesting new articles, for the editorial board to act on.  The ability of knowledgeable amateurs to suggest changes, and the transparency of the process, would still distinguish WP from other encyclopedias.

What is chance of such a salubrious reform being enacted?  Absolute zero.  The reason for this simple enough: the “sole founder” and “God-King” of Wikipedia, Jimbo Wales, says so.  His 2001  pharaonic fiat reads [url=http://nostalgia.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Jimbo_Wales/Statement_of_principles&oldid=75340 in pertinent part:]

What is chance of such a salubrious reform being enacted?  Absolute zero.  The reason for this simple enough: the “sole founder” and “God-King” of Wikipedia, Jimbo Wales, says so.  His 2001  pharaonic fiat reads [http://nostalgia.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Jimbo_Wales/Statement_of_principles&oldid=75340 in pertinent part:]

[indent]"You can edit this page right now" is a core guiding check on everything that we do. We must respect this principle as sacred.[/indent]

[indent]"You can edit this page right now" is a core guiding check on everything that we do. We must respect this principle as sacred.[/indent]

Later, this “sacred” principle was made into the Third Pillar of [url=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Five_pillars The Five Pillars of Wikipedia], which “define the character of the project”.  In other words, instant editing is sacred; it is off the table for discussion; and any suggestion of such a reform of WP is wiki-heresy for which the offender shall be banned and consigned to “off-wiki” hell.  Never mind that the central administrative junta that largely runs WP (“The Cabal”) makes exceptions as to who constitutes the “anyone” that may edit WP (after all, certain individuals and IP ranges are unmutual and must be suppressed for the good of the wiki); the basic principle remains inviolable.

Later, this “sacred” principle was made into the Third Pillar of [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Five_pillars The Five Pillars of Wikipedia], which “define the character of the project”.  In other words, instant editing is sacred; it is off the table for discussion; and any suggestion of such a reform of WP is wiki-heresy for which the offender shall be banned and consigned to “off-wiki” hell.  Never mind that the central administrative junta that largely runs WP (“The Cabal”) makes exceptions as to who constitutes the “anyone” that may edit WP (after all, certain individuals and IP ranges are unmutual and must be suppressed for the good of the wiki); the basic principle remains inviolable.

[img]http://img227.imageshack.us/img227/5631/yul20brennerfd6.jpg[/img]

[img]http://img227.imageshack.us/img227/5631/yul20brennerfd6.jpg[/img]

== 2.  “NEUTRALITY” (“NPOV”) OF ARTICLES ==   

== 2.  “NEUTRALITY” (“NPOV”) OF ARTICLES ==   

According to The Jimbo, the most sacred of all the sacred principles of Wikipedia is [url=http://nostalgia.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Jimbo_Wales/Statement_of_principles&oldid=75340 “NPOV”], i.e., “Neutral Point of View”, of articles for “the preservation of our shared vision” and “for a culture of thoughtful diplomatic honesty” (whatever the hell [i]that[/i] means).  While on first read this may seem to make a fair amount of good sense, on close examination, it is about the most confusing and drama-inducing formulation imaginable.

According to The Jimbo, the most sacred of all the sacred principles of Wikipedia is [http://nostalgia.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Jimbo_Wales/Statement_of_principles&oldid=75340 “NPOV”], i.e., “Neutral Point of View”, of articles for “the preservation of our shared vision” and “for a culture of thoughtful diplomatic honesty” (whatever the hell [i]that[/i] means).  While on first read this may seem to make a fair amount of good sense, on close examination, it is about the most confusing and drama-inducing formulation imaginable.

“Neutral” in regular English (as opposed to English wikispeak) usually denotes nonalignment; taking none of any of the contending viewpoints as to a subject.  But on WP, as with so many other common words, “neutral” has a rather different meaning.  The [url=http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Wikipedia%3ANeutral_point_of_view&diff=244018337&oldid=243690817 official policy] starts off the definition of “NPOV” as follows:

“Neutral” in regular English (as opposed to English wikispeak) usually denotes nonalignment; taking none of any of the contending viewpoints as to a subject.  But on WP, as with so many other common words, “neutral” has a rather different meaning.  The [http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Wikipedia%3ANeutral_point_of_view&diff=244018337&oldid=243690817 official policy] starts off the definition of “NPOV” as follows:

[indent]The neutral point of view is a means of dealing with conflicting verifiable perspectives on a topic as evidenced by reliable sources. The policy requires that where multiple or conflicting perspectives exist within a topic each should be presented fairly. None of the views should be given [i]undue weight[/i] or asserted as being judged as "the truth", in order that the various significant published viewpoints are made accessible to the reader, not just the most popular one.[/indent]

[indent]The neutral point of view is a means of dealing with conflicting verifiable perspectives on a topic as evidenced by reliable sources. The policy requires that where multiple or conflicting perspectives exist within a topic each should be presented fairly. None of the views should be given [i]undue weight[/i] or asserted as being judged as "the truth", in order that the various significant published viewpoints are made accessible to the reader, not just the most popular one.[/indent]

Anonymous commentary, particularly that involving political criticism or satire, has a rather long and storied tradition in English-speaking nations.  Contrast this with the encyclopedist tradition in 18th Century Britain and France, taking in contributions from well known and credited experts in their respective fields to produce the first western general knowledge encyclopedias in the modern era.  In constructing its online “encyclopedia”, however, Wikipedia draws upon a far more recent tradition dating from the 1980s– Usenet message boards populated mostly by anonymous users.

Anonymous commentary, particularly that involving political criticism or satire, has a rather long and storied tradition in English-speaking nations.  Contrast this with the encyclopedist tradition in 18th Century Britain and France, taking in contributions from well known and credited experts in their respective fields to produce the first western general knowledge encyclopedias in the modern era.  In constructing its online “encyclopedia”, however, Wikipedia draws upon a far more recent tradition dating from the 1980s– Usenet message boards populated mostly by anonymous users.

Anonymous editing is the most sacred cow on WP, other than “NPOV” and instant editing.  Per [url=http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Wikipedia%3AHarassment&diff=244251128&oldid=244244263 official policy], the “outing” of personal information about a WP user (defined as “legal name, date of birth, social security number, home or workplace address, telephone number, email address, or other contact information, [i]regardless of whether or not the information is actually correct[/i]”) is absolutely verboten and a blockable offense.  There is also no exception for posting such information when the user themself has publicly posted the information elsewhere.  The hyperbolic justification given is that “outing” “is an unjustifiable and uninvited invasion of privacy and may place that editor at risk of harm in ‘the real world’.”  The [url=http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Wikipedia%3ANo_personal_attacks&diff=245919151&oldid=245339068 “harm”] that is being anticipated here are those “actions which deliberately expose other Wikipedia editors to political, religious or other persecution by government, their employer or any others.”  This, then, is the rationale of abandoning the centuries old practice of crediting contributors using their real names, and instead allowing the anonymous contribution practices of the Usenet.

Anonymous editing is the most sacred cow on WP, other than “NPOV” and instant editing.  Per [http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Wikipedia%3AHarassment&diff=244251128&oldid=244244263 official policy], the “outing” of personal information about a WP user (defined as “legal name, date of birth, social security number, home or workplace address, telephone number, email address, or other contact information, [i]regardless of whether or not the information is actually correct[/i]”) is absolutely verboten and a blockable offense.  There is also no exception for posting such information when the user themself has publicly posted the information elsewhere.  The hyperbolic justification given is that “outing” “is an unjustifiable and uninvited invasion of privacy and may place that editor at risk of harm in ‘the real world’.”  The [http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Wikipedia%3ANo_personal_attacks&diff=245919151&oldid=245339068 “harm”] that is being anticipated here are those “actions which deliberately expose other Wikipedia editors to political, religious or other persecution by government, their employer or any others.”  This, then, is the rationale of abandoning the centuries old practice of crediting contributors using their real names, and instead allowing the anonymous contribution practices of the Usenet.

By the time WP came along in 2001, the flamewars of the Usenet had already passed into legend.  Also by that time, the fact that anonymous posting on the internet has the power to turn some ordinarily well behaved and seemingly sensible people into raving sociopaths was well documented. It would seem, then, that whenever presented with a choice between little or no drama and lots of drama, WP can be reliably expected to choose the path of “moar dramahz”.  That would fit, of course, with the MMORPG character of WP.  But WP is more than just a MMORPG; it is also a libel platform containing thousands of “BLPs” (biographies of living persons).  Anonymous editing, accordingly, is convenient for avoiding responsibility for publishing libels about celebrities, bosses, colleagues, competitors, or others that piss you off.  But the advantages of anonymity don’t stop there.  Polemicists can avoid disclosing their personal interests (wikispeak: “COI”) while advancing their agendas.  Spammers and shills can hide the fact that they are spamming and shilling, as long as they aren’t being too obvious about it.  Politicians and their staffs can enhance C.V.s and legislative records, and de-emphasize or eliminate scandals, without disclosing their “COI”.  If you enjoy engaging in trolling, you don’t really want your real name associated that seventh grade level prose, even if you [i]are[/i] still in the seventh grade. And as for the advantages for fetishists, that’s obvious.

By the time WP came along in 2001, the flamewars of the Usenet had already passed into legend.  Also by that time, the fact that anonymous posting on the internet has the power to turn some ordinarily well behaved and seemingly sensible people into raving sociopaths was well documented. It would seem, then, that whenever presented with a choice between little or no drama and lots of drama, WP can be reliably expected to choose the path of “moar dramahz”.  That would fit, of course, with the MMORPG character of WP.  But WP is more than just a MMORPG; it is also a libel platform containing thousands of “BLPs” (biographies of living persons).  Anonymous editing, accordingly, is convenient for avoiding responsibility for publishing libels about celebrities, bosses, colleagues, competitors, or others that piss you off.  But the advantages of anonymity don’t stop there.  Polemicists can avoid disclosing their personal interests (wikispeak: “COI”) while advancing their agendas.  Spammers and shills can hide the fact that they are spamming and shilling, as long as they aren’t being too obvious about it.  Politicians and their staffs can enhance C.V.s and legislative records, and de-emphasize or eliminate scandals, without disclosing their “COI”.  If you enjoy engaging in trolling, you don’t really want your real name associated that seventh grade level prose, even if you [i]are[/i] still in the seventh grade. And as for the advantages for fetishists, that’s obvious.

Wikipedia’s hostility toward experts editing “the encyclopedia”, and its inability to retain expert users, are problems well documented here at Wikipedia Review.  While hostility to experts does have a lot to do with the “anyone can edit” policy of WP, in my view it has even more to do with how “consensus” is reached to determine the content of articles.

Wikipedia’s hostility toward experts editing “the encyclopedia”, and its inability to retain expert users, are problems well documented here at Wikipedia Review.  While hostility to experts does have a lot to do with the “anyone can edit” policy of WP, in my view it has even more to do with how “consensus” is reached to determine the content of articles.

WP does not have any explicit policy to discourage expert participation, but it might as well have.  In terms of determining content, WP focuses not so much on the actual merits of factual claims or contentions, but rather upon [i]process[/i] and [i]user behavior[/i].  Central to this view is [url=http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Wikipedia%3AConsensus&diff=245812716&oldid=245806625 WP’s official policy on consensus], which is founded directly upon The Jimbo’s peculiar definition of that word:

WP does not have any explicit policy to discourage expert participation, but it might as well have.  In terms of determining content, WP focuses not so much on the actual merits of factual claims or contentions, but rather upon [i]process[/i] and [i]user behavior[/i].  Central to this view is [http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Wikipedia%3AConsensus&diff=245812716&oldid=245806625 WP’s official policy on consensus], which is founded directly upon The Jimbo’s peculiar definition of that word:

[indent]Consensus is a partnership between interested parties working positively for a common goal.[/indent]

[indent]Consensus is a partnership between interested parties working positively for a common goal.[/indent]

Note that the emphasis is on process, not the normal definition of “consensus”, which is a general  agreement between a group as a whole.  “Consensus” is deemed to be “Wikipedia's fundamental model for editorial decision-making”, and is also a chief part of the [url=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Five_pillars “Fourth Pillar”] of WP.  The clear emphasis on process is also shown by [url=http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/e/e2/CCC_Flowchart_6.jpg the flow chart] which appears on the policy page.

Note that the emphasis is on process, not the normal definition of “consensus”, which is a general  agreement between a group as a whole.  “Consensus” is deemed to be “Wikipedia's fundamental model for editorial decision-making”, and is also a chief part of the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Five_pillars “Fourth Pillar”] of WP.  The clear emphasis on process is also shown by [http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/e/e2/CCC_Flowchart_6.jpg the flow chart] which appears on the policy page.

The process to determine “consensus”, and in turn content, is but vaguely defined in the policy.  There is an expression that “a limited group of editors” cannot determine “consensus”, but no explanation of how to determine what constitutes “a representative group”, which is empowered to decide “consensus” “on behalf of the community as a whole.”  Mostly, the policy is a mish-mash of several wiki-mutuality concepts (like “neutrality”, “good faith”, and “civility”) that are expected through some wiki-magic to work together to provide the process that in turn provides the content.  This policy was famously satirized in 2006 by the comedian and author Stephen Colbert, who dubbed it [url=http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=wikiality “wikiality”], the [url=http://www.wikiality.com/Wikiality process] by which [url=http://www.wikiality.com/Truthiness “truthiness”] is determined.  This soon thereafter led to the famous [url=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Talk:Elephant/Colbert Tripling Elephants Incident], which in turn led to Colbert being [url=http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Special:Log&type=block&page=User:Stephencolbert “indefblocked” from WP by Jimbo] for his crimes of unmutuality.

The process to determine “consensus”, and in turn content, is but vaguely defined in the policy.  There is an expression that “a limited group of editors” cannot determine “consensus”, but no explanation of how to determine what constitutes “a representative group”, which is empowered to decide “consensus” “on behalf of the community as a whole.”  Mostly, the policy is a mish-mash of several wiki-mutuality concepts (like “neutrality”, “good faith”, and “civility”) that are expected through some wiki-magic to work together to provide the process that in turn provides the content.  This policy was famously satirized in 2006 by the comedian and author Stephen Colbert, who dubbed it [http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=wikiality “wikiality”], the [http://www.wikiality.com/Wikiality process] by which [http://www.wikiality.com/Truthiness “truthiness”] is determined.  This soon thereafter led to the famous [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Talk:Elephant/Colbert Tripling Elephants Incident], which in turn led to Colbert being [http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Special:Log&type=block&page=User:Stephencolbert “indefblocked” from WP by Jimbo] for his crimes of unmutuality.

So how does this affect experts?  Note that the emphasis in the policy is not only upon process, but specifically upon “on-wiki” process.  Note also that although there are a few special exceptions specified, none involve experts.  Accordingly, by official policy, the opinions of experts carry no special weight on WP, nor do any “off-wiki” processes for determining accuracy or reliability of information carry any especial weight.  This would appear to be in conflict with the [url=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:NOR “No Original Research”] policy, which ostensibly seeks to preserve WP as a “tertiary source”.  It is little wonder that so many experts have been disillusioned and even angered by their WP experience.  What WP appears to offer with one hand, it takes away with another.  Their subject matter knowledge and expertise frequently finds itself trumped by the gamesmanship and knowledge of “on-wiki” processes of otherwise ignorant amateurs, who are most often teens and twenty-somethings.  Being a recognized expert in your field means little to nothing to a Teenaged Mutant Wiki-Admin(tm).  It’s all about process and user behavior; more specifically, about catching your opponent “out” and eliminating them from the game.

So how does this affect experts?  Note that the emphasis in the policy is not only upon process, but specifically upon “on-wiki” process.  Note also that although there are a few special exceptions specified, none involve experts.  Accordingly, by official policy, the opinions of experts carry no special weight on WP, nor do any “off-wiki” processes for determining accuracy or reliability of information carry any especial weight.  This would appear to be in conflict with the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:NOR “No Original Research”] policy, which ostensibly seeks to preserve WP as a “tertiary source”.  It is little wonder that so many experts have been disillusioned and even angered by their WP experience.  What WP appears to offer with one hand, it takes away with another.  Their subject matter knowledge and expertise frequently finds itself trumped by the gamesmanship and knowledge of “on-wiki” processes of otherwise ignorant amateurs, who are most often teens and twenty-somethings.  Being a recognized expert in your field means little to nothing to a Teenaged Mutant Wiki-Admin(tm).  It’s all about process and user behavior; more specifically, about catching your opponent “out” and eliminating them from the game.

When it comes to process, it also should be noted that WP lacks any mandatory process to resolve content disputes.  Ultimately, only voluntary mediation [url=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Dispute_resolution is available].  The dispute resolution jurisdiction of ArbCom (WP’s “supreme court”) extends only issues of user behavior.  So what does this mean?  On WP what it most often means is that if a user belongs to a rather determined group (often a “wiki-project”) that is devoted to promoting certain views and holding tough against outsiders with other views, they will usually prevail by wearing down their opponents, or driving them off, through gaming the system.  Ultimately, it is not about what you know, but how you play the game.

When it comes to process, it also should be noted that WP lacks any mandatory process to resolve content disputes.  Ultimately, only voluntary mediation [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Dispute_resolution is available].  The dispute resolution jurisdiction of ArbCom (WP’s “supreme court”) extends only issues of user behavior.  So what does this mean?  On WP what it most often means is that if a user belongs to a rather determined group (often a “wiki-project”) that is devoted to promoting certain views and holding tough against outsiders with other views, they will usually prevail by wearing down their opponents, or driving them off, through gaming the system.  Ultimately, it is not about what you know, but how you play the game.

[img]http://img80.imageshack.us/img80/8710/donttrytoconfusemewithtsi0.jpg[/img]

[img]http://img80.imageshack.us/img80/8710/donttrytoconfusemewithtsi0.jpg[/img]