Wikipedia:Reliable sources/Noticeboard

Editors can post questions here about whether given sources are reliable, and editors interested in sourcing issues will answer. Please post new topics in a new section. If you are satisfied with a response, please tag your thread at the top with {{resolved}}.

The guideline that most directly relates to whether a given source is reliable is Reliable sources. The policies that most directly relate are: Verifiability, No original research, and Neutral point of view. For questions about the sourcing policy, please go to the Verifiability talk page.

If your question is about whether material constitutes original research, please use the No original research notice board. This noticeboard is not a place for general discussion of issues or for disputes about content.

This noticeboard deals specifically with sources, not articles. General questions about articles, including "which sources in Article X are reliable?" may be beyond the scope of this noticeboard and may be better handled on the article talk page or the talk page of an interested WikiProject.

Denial of the Holodomor

-library science is not a reliable source in this respect [1] claims Relata refero regarding
Denial of the Ukrainian famine (1933) according to:

• Evolution in Reference and Information Services By Di Su, Jessica Tan Gudnason, Di Ed; p. 137 ISBN 9780789017239
  
• Legitimacy and Force By Jeane J. Kirkpatric; p. 80 ISBN 9780887386466
  

and keeps removing the fact and the sources from the article. Any thoughts?

Also, once this is here are sources like for example:

• The Soviet Union dismissed all references to the famine as anti-Soviet propaganda. Denial of the famine declined after the Communist Party lost power and the Soviet empire disintegrated @ Encyclopedia of Genocide and Crimes Against Humanity By Dinah Shelton; Page 1055 ISBN 0028658485
• After over half a century of denial, in January 1990 the Communist Party of Ukraine adopted a special resolution admitting that the Ukrainian Famine had indeed occurred, cost millions of lives... Century of Genocide: Critical Essays and Eyewitness Accounts - Page 93

reliable sources that would define the subject unlike Relata refero claims the article is a violation of WP:SYNTH, WP:OR and WP:NPOV?

Thanks!--Termer (talk) 02:00, 15 September 2008 (UTC)

Er, I checked the talk page, and you seem to be mentioning a great deal of things that are unrelated to RR's comment about one specific source being inadequate for this purpose. Broadly speaking, RR's complaint - and it looks reasonable, on a first look, to me - is that the article is written such that it labels any failure to conform to a maximalist, intentionalist vision of the Ukranian famine of 1933 as an orchestrated master plan of genocide as "Holodomor Denial," a concept that does not seem to be well-defined or subject to serious academic study. It is as if someone were to write an article called "Iraq Sanctions Denial" about people who say that the UN sanctions on Iraq did not kill 1/2 million people; yes, the best evidence would seem to indicate that this indeed happened, and two consecutive UN Humanitarian Co-ordinators for Iraq resigned in protest of this "genocide," but that doesn't mean that "Iraq Sanctions Denial" is suddenly a notable topic and that people who say the evidence is unclear or Saddam is mainly to blame can be labeled as "Iraq Sanctions Deniers." <eleland/talkedits> 03:25, 15 September 2008 (UTC)

Basically you're saying the article has notability issues? Please also comment on the question about the sources above. Thanks!--Termer (talk) 03:46, 15 September 2008 (UTC)

Rather than notability per se, I am concerned that there has been some POV-forking, or that there is a potential for POV-forking. It might be better to reabsorb the denial article and the genocide question article back into the main article on the Holodomor. Keeping such articles within a sensible length usually helps with maintaining NPOV and does not detract at all from the importance of the events. Itsmejudith (talk) 09:24, 15 September 2008 (UTC)

Termer, Relata is correct. The first reference above is to a book dealing with library science and more specifically the impact of the internet on information services. This is not a reliable source for a contentious piece of Soviet/Ukrainian history. That much is clear. The second source, which clearly Relata was not directly referring to in his "library science"{ comment, is from a book by Jeane Kirkpatrick, who seems to be well known for her anticommunist polemics. She may have held a PhD but in 1988 when the book was published she had long been entrenched in the front lines of Cold War politics, and should be very hesitantly used to source contentious aspects of Soviet history. That should also be rather obvious.PelleSmith (talk) 11:52, 15 September 2008 (UTC)

I think Itsmejudith might have some valid points and in case WP:Consensus can be reached about it, why not to keep all Holodomor related subjects in one article. I'd be open to that. However, I brought the books here to validate the reliability of the sources in the context, not that much what to do about the article in general. That I think would be a separate discussion that everybody could give their input in the relevant talk page.

Regarding J. Kirkpatric being "in the front lines of Cold War politics" according to PelleSmith, that is a statement that would need some clear sourcing on its own I think. Has Kirkpatric been referred to by any other scholars as not being a reliable author who has promoted fringe theories about Soviet history or anything like that?--Termer (talk) 16:46, 15 September 2008 (UTC)

I linked her entry in the hope that you might actually read it. She was a foreign policy adviser to Ronald Reagan and an outspoken critic of communism as a political figure. In terms of the Soviet Union, as far as I can tell, she was a polemicist and not a scholar. Where are her qualifications as a Russian or Ukrainian historian? We don't need an emphatic statement by another scholar about something that is this obvious. There are several writers who have PhDs and/or have taught at respectable Universities who also should not be used as reliable sources in areas that directly relate to their highly politicized public life - especially without any evidence that they have any academic expertise in these areas.PelleSmith (talk) 17:15, 15 September 2008 (UTC)

Well, in relation to the first two sources, Relata is quite right that the first relates to library science, not to history. Also, the second is not a mainstream historical work. History articles should be sourced from books and articles by qualified and practising historians, published in academic journals or books from academic presses. Their authors will usually have worked directly with the primary sources and will be competent users of the relevant language(s). I doubt whether Kirkpatrick was working in that way. Her writing would probably be a good source for commentary on current affairs or recent foreign policy, but not for unpicking events that happened decades ago and that professional historians are struggling to understand. Itsmejudith (talk) 16:54, 15 September 2008 (UTC)

Fair enough, including PelleSmith' points that Kirkpatric would be more like a primary source that would be valid only for citing a POV on the subject rather than a secondary source that an article on WP should be based on. How about the 3rd and 4th book in the context?--Termer (talk) 17:00, 15 September 2008 (UTC)

3 and 4 are both RS. Only one caveat, that you avoid giving prominence to any points that these sources only mention in passing. Itsmejudith (talk) 08:54, 16 September 2008 (UTC)

Thanks Itsmejudith! It all makes sense. Coming back to your previous points regarding the article in general, please let me know if I got it right. Since no serious mainstream scholar has really denied the occurrence of the famine ever. the subject itself is not considered "serious" subject of study since the 'denial of the famine' is limited to ...the communist Party of SU politics and some of it's supporters opinions. Therefore it's getting mentioned as a fact by those RS-s only in passing. But in general the subject itself is not serious enough or the denial is limited to too marginal political groups and therefore there is no point of studding it really or having a separate article on WP that: like put by someone at the articles talk page: provides a list of "crack-pot fringe-theorists" who deny the occurrence of the famine . Therefore it would be better to keep the subject as a part of the main article Holodomor? --Termer (talk) 16:04, 16 September 2008 (UTC)

It seems that some people are working hard to draw parallels between this famine and the Holocaust, hence the term Holodomor. And hence there is an article on Denial of the Holodomor. But Holocaust denial is a notable phenomenon in its own right. There is an extensive literature on it. There is no real parallel with denial of the Holodomor. Well, morally perhaps there is a parallel but we are looking for verifiability not truth. Itsmejudith (talk) 09:44, 17 September 2008 (UTC)

(Outdent) Hello, as a contributor to this article, I personally find the above entry repuslive. Here's why:

In 1932, soviet authorities started taking away grain from people and by 1933 those people were starving to death. The people in Ukraine who were dieing started using the word "Голодомор" - "Holodomor" which is derived from the word "holod" "голод" (hunger) and "moryty" "морити" (to cause to suffer). "Holodomor" described the situation that they faced - starvation, unless they joined the collective farms. There was a holod, a famine, throughout Ukraine, and people were starving in the streets. The soviet union was exporting grain in record quantities. Hence the idea of "moryty" - using food as a weapon.

More than ten years later, a word started creeping into the English vernacular - holocaust. It was from the greek word for sacrifice by fire - holokauston, and referred to Hitler's extermination policies. This word did not become common in English until it was connected to the word "genocide" in the 1950s, and the whole horror of Nazism sunk in. The word "Holodomor" is now becoming widespread, as the horrible results of communism are starting to sink in.

Although the words "Holodomor" and "Holocaust" may seem similar in modern English, they are in no way related. Although these two events may seem equally horrible in nature, they are in no way related. Although the articles about Holodomor Denial and Holocaust Denial may seem related, they are not. There has been no attempt to link the two. Please do not try to read into any reasons or find any hidden agendas by any editors. Thanks, Horlo (talk) 09:18, 6 October 2008 (UTC)

the similarity between 2 words Holodomor and Holocaust seems to be a concern for some editors. The similarity might be intentional and then again, it might not. (it is actually a good question how the name Holodomor came into use?) The real parallel would be there only if "Holodomor" would be accepted as an act of genocide by the majority in the world. So far it's not, so the name itself might confuse the reader. That's why I've suggested renaming the article to Denial of Ukrainian famine (1932) that would refer clearly to the denial of the occurrence of the famine as such and it would have nothing to do with "Holodomor genocide question".--Termer (talk) 21:10, 17 September 2008 (UTC)

Christ, I had another look, and that article is an atrocity. It perniciously lumps everything together: naive offhand remarks by visting diplomats in 1933, official decrees from Soviet news agencies that Ukraine is an earthly paradise, and mild revisionism criticizing the political use of dubious claims about a Stalinist master plan of genocide is all treated as one phenomenon. Renaming it "Denial of the Ukrainian Famine" would be a silly little diversion. <eleland/talkedits> 01:55, 25 September 2008 (UTC)

(outdent) Allah, Yahweh, and Vishna to you also, my friend. What you may call an atrocity, others may call a work in progress. While it is difficult to organize such a vast topic as Holodomor Denial into one easy article, editors have taken on the task with a steady determination. Please help to improve the article, but please do not use phrases like "silly little". Thanks, Horlo (talk) 09:18, 6 October 2008 (UTC)

I did not realise that the two words were not at all connected. Thank you for enlightening me. Let us please keep civil here, all of us. I am coming new to this topic. I have proposed merging this article into the general one on the Holodomor for reasons I gave on the merge discussion talk page. I hope you will see that I am not doing this to advance any position at all. It is to ensure that we have good quality articles based on reliable sources, i.e. what was hoped for when the question was raised on this page. Although Eleland's wording was harsh I'm sure it was offered for the same reason. All our articles are work in progress. Itsmejudith (talk) 11:17, 6 October 2008 (UTC)

Hello, sorry if I came across gruff, but the great famine is still being denied - believe it or not, a Brazillian senator just came out with a claim that the Holodomor was a nazi invention. I think that that one act just gave a validity and relevance to this article. There are people denying the Holodomor, and people tracking said denial. That's why it should not be merged, but I will surely contribute to the discussion on the merger page.

I understand that you are simply responding to questions here. However, I have learned that editors' motives are as varied as the editors themselves. Therefore, when the first sentence I read starts with God's name, and includes words like atrocity, I think it is natural to challenge said editor. Hopefully, we can keep building. Thanks, Horlo (talk) 07:14, 8 October 2008 (UTC)

Gibnews.net and User:Gibnews

Resolved

 – No, this is not a reliable source. Protonk (talk) 13:54, 7 October 2008 (UTC)

I would appreciate a second opinion on this issue. User:Gibnews runs a Gibraltar-based news website [2], which he has used as reference or primary source in various occasions in the past. At the moment, there is an ongoing content dispute centered on this particular issue, whether he should be allowed to use this website as a reliable source, which he uses to back up his edits (many of the published pieces seem to be official press releases from Gibraltar local government). Link to dispute here. Regards, --Asterion^talk 09:35, 24 September 2008 (UTC)

No way, jose. Not a reliable source at all. check their about us link. they basically say they will run uneditied releases from anyone. Protonk (talk) 22:27, 26 September 2008 (UTC)

In addition, I feel very uncomfortable about the conflict of interest this represents. An editor citing his own website as a source? What is to stop him adding <RANDOM> to his website and then citing that on Wikipedia as evidence of a claim? The website would surely count as a self-published source and wouldn't be usable as a reliable source anyway. -- ChrisO (talk) 22:33, 26 September 2008 (UTC)

IMDb

I'm getting a little tired of this one. We have a whole slew of templates for citing IMDb, and IMDb is cited, probably over a million times, in Wikipedia. Yet I keep running into people asserting (twice with regard to Rudolf Wanderone, for example, once on its talk page, once on its 2nd peer review page) that IMDb isn't a reliable source for Wikipedia purposes. This really needs to get settled. Maybe have a referendum on this issue (WP:RFC?), or whatever it takes, and either declare it a non-reliable source categorically or clarify the guideline that sites like this can be reliable for some things (titles, release dates, other basic information) and non-reliable for others (movie trivia, mostly contributed by readers). If it is deemed wholly unreliable, then we need to immediately TfD the IMDb templates and set up bots to remove (or, as with deleted images, comment out) IMDb citations that use them. This hemming and hawing on the issue, and ensuing general confusion, is making the WP:PR, WP:GA and WP:FA/WP:FL processes much more painful than is necessary. — SMcCandlish [talk] [cont] ‹(-¿-)› 01:28, 27 September 2008 (UTC)

• I think an RFC is a good route to take. I think that there are some serious issues with sourcing imbd. We have a general consensus here on the noticeboards that the bare facts of a movie (but not an actor) can be sourced to imdb most of the time, but that anything beyond that is usually user-driven and so not acceptable. This consensus here doesn't at all translate to general practice which has been (probably not a million times, but thousands of times) to cite imdb for the details it provides on everything except trivia, quotes, errors and obvious fan generated stuff. I don't have a strong enough opinion to force the issue (mass TfD is probably not the right route), but it should be discussed. At the very least if there is some wide community consensus on the issue I can make an FAQ for this page listing past links to it. Maybe I should do that anyways. Protonk (talk) 03:10, 27 September 2008 (UTC)

According to IMDB itself, some guy named Sundar Chakravarthy managed to insert into Julianne Moore's IMDB biography that she was married to him from 1983-1985... AnonMoos (talk) 14:09, 27 September 2008 (UTC)

• I'm a regular at WP:BLP/N and would say that I don't think there is any dispute that IMDb isn't a suitable source when it comes to LP. I would go further and say it isn't suitable for anything about people period. Beyond that I can't say Nil Einne (talk) 18:23, 8 October 2008 (UTC)

There's no way IMDb should be used as a source, other than using ratings to give an impression of a film/show's popularity. Their content is notoriously unreliable and mostly trivial--MartinUK (talk) 10:38, 14 October 2008 (UTC)

• Wouldn't it be better to hash out which portions of IMDB are user-submitted and which are not? I don't want to throw out a good reference material because somebody somewhere saw a mistake in IMDB. For the record, I've seen the site and dont remember seeing any tab to change content except in the "comments" section. Also, is all of this really about people using it to cite trivia, and this is an affort to remove trivia from articles by "disqualifying" a source? You use WP:TRIVIA to remove trivia, not WP:RSN. Squidfryerchef (talk) 12:35, 14 October 2008 (UTC)

Indo-Aryan loanwords in Tamil

I am developing this article and I use an authoritative and comprehensive published lexicon to cite the existence of borrowed words in Tamil language

Some people who dont accept the lexicon's authority are threatening to delete my work and have extensively tagged my article with "citation necessary" tags. Kindly help. ­ Kris (talk) 18:47, 27 September 2008 (UTC)

I think they're "threatening" deletion on the grounds that Wikipedia:Wikipedia is not a dictionary and the article is likely to be of interest to scant few English speakers. It also looks like the article might contain a lot of original research, another reason for deletion. Yilloslime (t) 20:57, 27 September 2008 (UTC)

I can't comment on sourcing issues, but from Lists of etymologies and Category:Lists of words it seems this sort of list is acceptable. At the very least, if it's not it's a wider issue Nil Einne (talk) 18:29, 8 October 2008 (UTC)

Is a bio in a conference program a reliable and independent source?

Resolved

 – Only really a source in terms of WP:SPS. Claims regarding notability or the importance of the subject probably shouldn't be cited to a conference biography. Protonk (talk) 13:52, 7 October 2008 (UTC)

There is some disagreement at Kaveh Farrokh on whether a bio published in a conference program constitutes a reliable independent source. An edit I made in which I called this an "autobiography" was reverted as being "WP:OR, because the bio does not mention by whom it was written. However, nobody will tell you that you're doing OR if you call a bio posted on someones own webpage an autobio, even if the author isn't mentioned. I don't know of any conference (and certainly not one of modest means such as this one seems to be - their website does not even have its own URL, but is hosted on a university server) that will research someone's bio themselves. Conference organizers invariably ask participants to send a short bio themselves (which they then may or may not edit, for instance to fit a page). In the present case, the item cited from this bio constitutes a high school award, hardly something that a conference organizer would go to great lengths to uncover (disregarding the fact that I have not been able to find this award anywhere, except on the original conference site and in Wikipedia and mirror sites). Anyway, the case boils down to whether a biography published in a conference program is a reliable independent source for anything. I would appreciate the opinion of the community on this. Thanks. --Crusio (talk) 21:59, 29 September 2008 (UTC)

These bios appear to be user-submitted, so they are clearly not independent. One of them is even written in the first person. EdJohnston (talk) 22:06, 29 September 2008 (UTC)

• (ec)I think we consider "publisher bios" as reliable, so why not conference bios? Publisher "bios" are usually written by the agent or the publisher (in concert with the author). Those conference bios are normally written by the participant, but I don't really see the problem. It isn't enough of a source to confer notability, but the facts mentioned on there shouldn't be rejected out of hand unless we have some reason to believe that the conference doesn't police its bios. Protonk (talk) 22:08, 29 September 2008 (UTC)

• Comment: I think publishers (and agents) will do some checking, I don't know any conference organizers doing this, so only something glaringly untrue would be caught. BTW, part of the disagreement is about terming this an "autobiography" instead of a biography". --Crusio (talk) 22:20, 29 September 2008 (UTC)

• Followup question: Do you mean "good enough to use in an article" or "good enough to base an article on"? Protonk (talk) 22:09, 29 September 2008 (UTC)

• It's being used to source a highschool award and to support the claim that the subject speaks 4 different languages and has a working understanding of 6 others (4 living and 2 dead). None of this is very important or notable, of course, but the article is weak on notability anyway. --Crusio (talk) 22:17, 29 September 2008 (UTC)

• That high school award should be removed, anyway, as it seems kind of hagiographic to list it. As far as the cite....eh. WP:SPS exemptions apply here. We really shouldn't be using this biography to source the 4 languages claim, but it isn't outside the realm of the guidelines to do so. Protonk (talk) 22:23, 29 September 2008 (UTC)

• I agree completely, but other editors keep reversing me when I remove it, even though I have tried to explain on the article's talkpage that including it is kind of disparaging. --Crusio (talk) 22:28, 29 September 2008 (UTC)

• (edit conflict)PS: In the present case, this bio has been shown to contain some fluff, such as "contributed articles to internationally recognized academic journals such as the International Journal of the Sociology of Language", which turns out to be a single 1-page book review. --Crusio (talk) 22:27, 29 September 2008 (UTC)

I'm also involved in the article and raised the issue on the article's talk page earlier. Anyone who has attended any such conferences (I have) knows that participants submit their own information. And as Crusio says just above, the subject took a one page review and turned it into a claim for journals and articles plural. I believe the award bit (it was removed but replaced, someone thinks it makes him look important I guess), but who knows about the languages? Doug Weller (talk) 05:54, 30 September 2008 (UTC)

Manhattan Institute article and author as source of facts

In Community Reinvestment Act it is being challenged that Howard Husock's article The Trillion-Dollar Bank Shakedown That Bodes Ill for Cities in the Manhattan Institute's City Journal (January 1, 2000) is a reliable source for facts because the author is the Vice President of the Institute, as well as a contributing editor to City Journal. However, the Journal does have an editor and according to his bio, Husock was formerly the director of case studies in public policy and management at Harvard University's Kennedy School of Government. He is a prolific writer on housing and urban policy issues. Husock is most recently the author of The Trillion-Dollar Housing Mistake, a collection of his City Journal essays, and of the Reason Foundation study Repairing the Ladder: Toward a New Housing Policy Paradigm. His work has appeared in periodicals such as the Wall Street Journal, Public Interest, The New York Times, Policy Review, and Reason. In 1999, Husock co-authored the study "Keeping Kalamazoo Competitive" for the City of Portgage, Michigan, an examination of proposed tax-based sharing and urban growth boundaries for the Kalamazoo metro area. Husock has been a speaker at housing and urban policy forums sponsored by the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation, the California Department of Housing and Community Development, the Massachusetts Department of Communities and Development, and the Urban Development Institute. If this isn't good enough ref for a paragraph full of factoids, I don't know what is :-) Carol Moore 15:53, 1 October 2008 (UTC)Carolmooredc

• I would consider that an acceptable source, albeit opinionated. Other opinionated publications such as The Nation have been accepted here as reliable sources. --Metropolitan90 (talk) 16:09, 1 October 2008 (UTC)

Do note that the Manhattan Institute is widely held to be a conservative think tank that receives heavy corporate funding. City Journal is their own internal publication, not an independent newspaper, and Husock is the vice-president of the Manhattan Institute, as well as a contributing editor of City Journal. His article in City Journal is essentially a self-published source WP:SPS. Carolmoore was using it as a Reliable Source, to back statements of fact in the encyclopedic voice. Does no one have a problem with that? Carol has said that if no one raises an objection she will reinsert Husock's writings as plain statements of fact. lk (talk) 15:00, 2 October 2008 (UTC)

It's a reliable source and not to be treated as self-published. City Journal a magazine of political comment with a pronounced viewpoint, like so many others around the world. Since the piece is an essay rather than news reporting, statements from it should be attributed. I'd prefer it if they were attributed to both the author and magazine. I also think it is appropriate to use an epithet such as "conservative" or "market-oriented" (but not both) to describe the magazine. It is an interesting point of view and a notable addition to the article. It would be good if it could be balanced by some very different points of view. Itsmejudith (talk) 15:40, 2 October 2008 (UTC)

It's not an epithet, necessarily. But we shouldn't treat a work of opinion there as though it were the same as a work of opinion in the NYT op-ed page. SPS can (I'm not sure that it does, some evidence will have to be discussed) apply to things that look nothing like someone's livejournal. Protonk (talk) 15:43, 2 October 2008 (UTC)

Being an employee of a conservative or liberal or progressive think tank doesn't per se mean you are either biased or self-published. City Journal has an editor and it is WP:OR to state that Husock can override his judgment. The guy is an expert in his field. Do we have to go through all the wiki articles now and delete all factual statements by all employees of think tanks - or label them as opinions? I can see I'll have to at least make it clear that the "facts" a couple liberals put forth were obtained from their self-published blogs on their liberal think tank web pages, evidently with no evidence of editing at all?? Carol Moore 15:51, 2 October 2008 (UTC)Carolmooredc

WP:OR applies to statements made in articles. Editors here and anywhere outside of article spaces are encouraged to use their heads when examining sources. lk's examination of the source argues that the manhattan institute has an incentive to only publish a certain kind of material. Don't make this about "conservative" or liberal. Protonk (talk) 15:57, 2 October 2008 (UTC)

• We can, however, argue that the material in the city journal is probably about the same as the material in his book. It's probably fine, just as long as we accept that he is pretty conservative. Protonk (talk) 16:00, 2 October 2008 (UTC)

It seems to me that the first thing to decide is the status in principle of City Journal, which is likely to crop up as a source in various parts of the encyclopedia. I haven't heard an argument yet why it is different from other political magazines such as The Economist. NYT is not a reasonable comparison, as daily papers are mainly there to carry news and naturally have greater fact-checking facilities than weeklies or monthlies. Itsmejudith (talk) 16:07, 2 October 2008 (UTC)

Well, for starters there is no way to compare it to the economist, period. MI is a conservative think tank and City Journal is their pet publication. This is less an RS issue than a NPOV issue. They have PhD's and what not on there but I would cite it about as much as I would cite Mother Jones in a wikipedia article where there was a right/left split in opinion--never. Protonk (talk) 16:22, 2 October 2008 (UTC)

If I can paraphrase the above, City Journal should be viewed as a biased source. At best it as reliable as an opinion piece in the New York Times, and if used as a source, the source of the information should be noted in line. Is that essentially correct? lk (talk) 16:32, 2 October 2008 (UTC)

Yes, and to be fair to Carol, she does that in the CRA article. Protonk (talk) 16:33, 2 October 2008 (UTC)

Actually, I did that. It was previously used to source statements of fact in the encyclopedic voice. Carol has stated that she intended to revert back to the previous version since the people here didn't have a problem with City Journal.lk (talk) 16:36, 2 October 2008 (UTC)

OIC. Well in that case your revision should definitely stay. I took that article off my watchlist a few days ago because I hate "partisan" wiki articles and it was filling up the page (otherwise anything from WP:ECON that I assessed is on there), and at the time of the watchlisting it was just carol and some IP's editing the article. Protonk (talk) 16:39, 2 October 2008 (UTC)

[User:Lawrencekhoo|lk] mistates my intention! I have no problem with stating where either facts or opinions come from. My issue is can I use facts from his article in the factual section. Of course now that I've realized he has a book - and it's searchable online - the issue is any problem with using the book for facts. And I have no problem mentioning where the book comes from. Carol Moore 17:27, 2 October 2008 (UTC)Carolmooredc

Well, your intent is probably noble, but is unimportant (to me). I think that in this case, the source and his leanings should be stated and that facts from him might be treated with suspicion, just as facts from Gordon should be treated with suspicion. If you want to use straight facts from either, might I suggest adding the proposed text to the talk page to see if anyone objects first? Protonk (talk) 17:58, 2 October 2008 (UTC)

Note to answer above: exact text has been in article for a while and is very relevant to history of the Act.

Of course now that I've found the exact book pages and am ready to put back material in the factual section, I'm wondering how much I have to write to describe the author, since this is the only book ref'd. I know [User:Lawrencekhoo|lk] wants me to write

Howard Husock, vice-president of the market-oriented conservative Manhattan Institute for Policy Research, author of America's Trillion-Dollar Housing Mistake: The Failure of American Housing Policy (ETC existing 3 sentences.) [REF: Howard Husock, America's Trillion-Dollar Housing Mistake: The Failure of American Housing Policy, Ivran R. Dee publisher], 2003, 66-67, ISBN-10: 1566635314]

How much of that is necessary in the text?? Carol Moore 18:24, 2 October 2008 (UTC)Carolmooredc

So I take it that you were not being entirely truthful when you said, I have no problem with stating where either facts or opinions come from? lk (talk) 18:58, 2 October 2008 (UTC)

May I suggest, "Howard Husock, vice-president of the Manhattan Institute, a conservative think tank, writes ..." lk (talk) 19:02, 2 October 2008 (UTC)

Did I not ask an honest question? I don't know how much is asked or what others might think is too much or most appropriate. Assume Good Fait.

Also, since such a tadoo made about not using his articles in factual section, seems like I should mention he's the author of a book in the factual section, even I don't mention name of book. Carol Moore 19:11, 2 October 2008 (UTC)Carolmooredc

I have no general problem with the use of this article (elsewhere it's cited as a book) or author.

I have a specific problem: Husock asserts that the US Senate Banking Committee found in 2000 that various left-wing advocacy groups had made, as of 2000, $9.5 billion in fees out of a law called the Community Reinvestment Act (won't go into CRA specifics here). Suffice it to say, that is an absolutely stunning amount of money. That of course does not mean that it's not true. But I can find no other mention of this, can't find the senate banking committee finding, etc...

Extraordinary claims demand extraordinary proof, so I don't think Husock's assertion about this finding is sufficient. As far as i can tell, he does not provide a citation in his book for this information (if he does, i invite the guy who cites the book and presumably has a copy to furnish it) and i can find no information to this effect anywhere on the interwebs that is not sourced to Mr. Husock. On this specific matter, i think a citation to the "Senate Banking Committee finding" is required to make the claim.

The Preceding unsigned comment evidently was added by Bali ultimate (talk • contribs) at some point who brought this up at the talk page.

This probably was put together in 1998 or 1999 by Sen Gramm staffers and haven't yet found out if it's in a hearing. The fact that Husock doesn't include better references and probably got the year wrong doesn't help. I must not let myself get too turned against theInstitute, however, because another author wrote some anti-Palestinian screed for it. ;-) Carol Moore 00:54, 9 October 2008 (UTC)Carolmooredc

The Smoking Gun

Would Thesmokinggun.com be considered reliable, particularly with regard to their supposed speciality, the legal troubles of celebrities?

If not, two further questions.

Would it be fair to include information from the web site if is confirmed by the copies they have of court and arrests records?

Would it be fair to include information from an accepted reliable source such as the Associated Press if AP article was based on what appeared on Thesmokinggun.com? BaldPete (talk) 16:29, 1 October 2008 (UTC)

The Smoking Gun appears to be a reliable publisher of primary sources. However primary sources like court documents should only be used with great care. See WP:PSTS We have to avoid making mistakes of interpreting primary sources, or assuming that they tell the complete story, or that they are even accurate. For example, we may see an indictment but we may not see the motion that tossed out the indictment. Or we may be looking at the wrong "Liz Smith". Affadavits in divorce fcases are notorious for being exaggerated. If an event hasn't been mentioned in secondary sources then we shouldn't use a primary source about it. Where primary sources are useful is in providing details that might not have been mentioned in the secondary source, like the exact date. Also, it's important to avoid giving excess weight to salacious material that is not part of the subject's notability. That's tricky with celebrities, who may become known as much for their arrests as for their performances. ·:· Will Beback ·:· 21:14, 1 October 2008 (UTC)

I agree with Will Beback, with one caveat. The Smoking Gun usually provides a synopsis of what the person in question was busted for. So looking at the synopsis would be using a secondary source. Trying to draw inferences that can at all be controversial from the documents from TSG would be original research with primary sources. That being said, I would say TSG is reliable. Ngchen (talk) 21:21, 1 October 2008 (UTC)

• I would consider The Smoking Gun a reliable source, at least to the extent that their coverage is backed up by the original documents which are typical of their web site. TSG has been owned by Court TV (now truTV) since 2000, meaning it is now part of Time Warner Inc. (Note, however, that the original documents shown on TSG may include items filed in lawsuits which contain unconfirmed allegations. Thus, TSG could serve as a reliable source to establish that the allegations were made in those documents, but not necessarily to establish that the allegations are true.) --Metropolitan90 (talk) 21:30, 1 October 2008 (UTC)

• That kinds of leaves us in a bind with respect to BLP's. What hypothetical situation can you envision where we would want to source the existence of an allegation that had not been covered in secondary sources just in order to note the allegation? I agree w/ you and will that TSG has a good record vetting primary documents and displaying them unaltered. I just can't think of a case where we would need them to summarize a primary document that wasn't otherwise made available to the public. Thoughts? Protonk (talk) 22:21, 1 October 2008 (UTC)

• I don't know that we'd really want to use the synopses as secondary sources for the purpose of establishing the notability of an incident. In that context it should at least be a source independent of TSG. ·:· Will Beback ·:· 22:50, 1 October 2008 (UTC)

• WP:BLP specifies questionable sources as, "Self-published books, zines, websites, webforums, and blogs." The primary documents on TSG don't fall under this definition. A copy of a court transcript, arrest record, court filing, or other legal document which is what often appears on TSG appears to meet the definition of a reliable source which can be used in a BLP. Cla68 (talk) 23:47, 1 October 2008 (UTC)

• I think that's missing the forest for the trees. BLP is there to help ensure that we only use sources with a clear and sound editorial policy for citing claims about living persons. The primary documents at TSG are there because they are leaked and not otherwise publicly available (as appellate briefs, summary decisions, etc. are). So we could cite those sources only in very limited places, even more limited than in places where we could cite "publicly available" primary documents. My question above was "What situation can we envision where we would cite TSG's copy of primary sources where we wouldn't just cite the secondary source discussing the event? Because we wouldn't note the event in the article simply because it is in TSG." I'm not trying to be combative, but I can't envision a scenario like that. Protonk (talk) 15:22, 2 October 2008 (UTC)

• Two points: First, once a document is on TSG it is publicly available. Second, there are several scenarios when a primary source might be used to supplement a secondary source. A primary source may list details of an episode, such as the exact date or a verbatim quote, that don't appear in the secondary sources. Protonk is right that primary sources, especially of the type found on TSG, need to be handled with great care, but their use is not totally prohibited. ·:· Will Beback ·:· 18:24, 2 October 2008 (UTC)

With respect to Protonk's comment that "the primary documents at TSG are there because they are leaked and not otherwise publicly available": that may be true for the occassional document, but the vast majority of the documents on TSG are documents that are publically available (in the sense that members of the public could obtain them, if they were willing to undertake the effort and expense), but not very accessible. TSG gets most of its materials by just getting copies from their publically accessible repositories (court clerks, etc.) or via FOIA requests. There may be a few leaked documents, but those are exceptions. TJRC (talk) 19:47, 2 October 2008 (UTC)

I guess I was including the tour notes and other stuff. Yes, the court documents are mostly available to anyone. Protonk (talk) 16:01, 3 October 2008 (UTC)

The question is how do you confirm that what it's publishing is authentic? That's the point of the line in WP:V about using sources that have a reputation for fact-checking and accuracy. Does TSG have such a reputation? -- ChrisO (talk) 10:53, 4 October 2008 (UTC)

Yes, it has a reputation for accuracy. The Smoking Gun is part of CourtTV (now renamed truTV), owned by Time Warner. It's not just some guy getting documents. TJRC (talk) 16:11, 4 October 2008 (UTC)

Debito Arudou and Japanreview.net

Now, I understand that the website Japanreview.net has significant connections to Debito Arudou. I have the feeling that citing it is appropriate in Arudou's case because Arudou let an editor from the website look at his rough draft; another editor from the site gave a negative review his final book. Also I read C S and JReadings rationale. Anyway, I just want to triple check that the source can be used, so please look at the talk page and confirm or deny the rationale here. Thanks WhisperToMe (talk) 04:16, 2 October 2008 (UTC)

To further this explanation, Debito Arudou himself is involved in the discussion. He believes that JapanReview.net is not a reliable source and should be deleted from the article. Several other editors have attempted to show that the website is not only reliable, but that it is linked to Debit Arudou himself. Arudou continues to insist that his article is unfairly biased because of this existence of these references, and has even called into question the neutrality or possibly even conflicts of interest of other editors who disagree with his position.

It would be appreciated if outside views can determine if the source of JapanReview.net is reliable, possibly to calm Mr. Arudou's beliefs that his article is biased and that Wikipedians are trying to "troll" his biography. I realize this goes a little beyond a Reliable Source problem, but it is the heart of the matter it seems. The359 (talk) 05:51, 2 October 2008 (UTC)

Arudou Debito here. Hello. The issue, as I see it, is not whether Scalise, Honjo, and I have any relations or connections. (We did; I was interviewed by them, and Scalise did proof an MS of the book. We were friends, but had a falling out.) The issue is whether the source itself, Japanreview.net, counts a "reliable source" suitable for Wikipedia under its guidelines. My arguments for why it is not:

It is a website, not a publication. It is run by two people (Honjo and Scalise) who are not established, authoritative, or professional editors. The website has nothing anything approaching established practices of vetting or peer review. Moreover, it has been defunct since July 2005. Further, it has (in my view) shown unprofessionality and bias in its reviewing style, particularly in regards to this author's work. And the website has become a source for lifting quotes (as purported Letters to the Editor, but essentially no more than posts to a website nonetheless) from non-authorities in the field for inclusion on the WP as "criticisms", while editorial bents remained disinclined towards including any established sources that were positive towards the person being biographied. (For example, there was for years a large section containing Criticisms only, with no balancing out with positive reviews or appraisals, and it was, for the most part, edited for years by a "J Readings", who, not coincidentally, I believe is Honjo and/or Scalise, especially since almost all that "Criticisms" section, again mainly maintained by J Readings, sourced Japanreview.net.)

There are many other issues about sourcing (not just Japanreview.net, but for now that is the topic under discussion here) which I brought up to the Talk page last August, and many were remedied by conscientious editors. However, as weeks have passed and attention drifted, we have editors trying to smuggle back in deleted and unreliably-sourced content all over again. Such as the Japanreview.net website. And when I brought the issue back up yesterday on the Talk pages, I was accused by editors, in spite of the primary assumption of good faith, of trying to make the WP entry into an "advertisement" and a "micro-managed resume" (by none other than J Readings), moreover of trying to "edit" my own site (when in fact all I did was ask other people to edit it, after re-raising the concerns I had last August with an NPOV tag).

Putting up material critical of me is fine, properly sourced. But for the sake of balance, I have also asked for properly-sourced material that is NOT critical of me also to be considered. It has not been (even my most recent book, which came out way back in March, was not included until I demanded it be), even after years of waiting and finally pointing it out. Then my character is publicly impugned for doing so by Wikipedians. Given the attitudes of the current editors on the Talk pages, I do not feel as though the biography is approaching the standards for neutrality that Wikipedia aims to have.

To repeat, I can live with criticisms. As long as they are from established, reputable, authoritative, and genuinely published sources. Places like Japanreview.net are not -- they are essentially blogs. And if (as editors have claimed) the primary criteria for how good a source is is whether the information stands up to consensus regarding content and content alone, then information gleaned from website Debito.org (my site, with copious archives of materials not written by me but published in major newspapers and journals) should also be citable at Wikipedia. However, the systemic presumption of COI just because I happen to the one being biographied (understandible, but unproven), used as a means of accusation by hostile-sounding editors, in my view an automatic bias. In sum, if Japanreview.net is considered a "reputable" source, so should Debito.org be.

There are many issues here entangled, and for that I apologize. But they still aren't being resolved, and part of the problem I believe is that the smaller pond of editors there have predispositions towards the person being biographied. We need arbitration. Thanks for your consideration of this article. Arudoudebito (talk) 07:35, 2 October 2008 (UTC)

It is not an appropriate source for a biography of a living person. Some of the authors are scholars publishing elsewhere, and it can be treated as a self-published source of such a scholar. If articles are published somewhere else as well as on this website, then they may well be RS and both sources can be given. But material published only here cannot be used in a biography. You could get further opinions at the biography of living persons noticeboard. Itsmejudith (talk) 11:12, 2 October 2008 (UTC)

I would go further, and say that it is perhaps a questionable source (WP:QS), as it relies heavily on personal opinion.

But the source is used merely in a review of a book, rather than discussing the subject. I realize that this article is a biography, but if we had a separate article on "Japan Only", would this source not be useful? If we cannot a negative book review because it relies heavily on opinion, then should we not also remove the positive book review from The Japan Times? The359 (talk) 17:20, 2 October 2008 (UTC)

It is not a reliable source, and is a self published website by an energy analyst. It also applies to the biography above this dispute, and I would assume this outcome applies to that as well. 220.253.144.103 (talk) 20:23, 2 October 2008 (UTC)

No, the Hibari Misora issue is unrelated. The book review of John Lie's Multiethnic Japan was a re-publication from the Asian Wall Street Journal. You can see it clearly at the bottom of the page. J Readings (talk) 21:02, 2 October 2008 (UTC)

(I should probably take this up to the next section, but whatever...) The issue really with the Hibari Misora article is that we should be citing Lie's book for facts because it's an academic book. If we wanted reactions, then we could obviously cite reviews. So, in that sense, I agree with you: the Scalise review at JapanReview is technically inappropriate and should be replaced with the cited passage from John Lie's Multiethnic Japan, but that issue has absolutely nothing to do with citing JapanReview overall as a reliable source. J Readings (talk) 21:13, 2 October 2008 (UTC)

How is a self-published book review from a credible author any worse than a book review from an equally credible author published in a newspaper? If we can't allow something because it is someone's stated opinion, then does the article not have undue weight by having only book reviews which praise? If there is no criticism, there shouldn't necessarily be any praise in the article either, even if that source is deemed reliable. The359 (talk) 20:27, 2 October 2008 (UTC)

The notability of the source hangs on the subject it deals with. "Japanese Only" is a book about how discrimination in Japan affects the lives of foreigners there. While JapanReview in itself may not be 'reliable' - although this is up for debate as it has been cited a number of times by third parties and has itself been covered by a major English daily in Japan - Yuki Honjo's review of the book attracted a significant response from well-known expatriates in Japan who have themselves published material on the subject relevant to "Japanese Only". Even Debito himself wrote a response. This, if nothing else, shows that the review has entered into the discourse on the subject in Japan and is notable.--Anarmac (talk) 20:32, 2 October 2008 (UTC)

Japanreview.net is not a real source under Wikipedia rules, no matter how you try to dress it up (it's a website, and a defunct one at that). The Japan Times is a real source (it's a major newspaper in Japan that's been around for more than a century). Let's stop trying to put lipstick on a pig.

Moreover, are we arguing with a straight face that we cannot allow praise unless criticism exists? This also falls foul of Wikipedia rules. Arudoudebito (talk) 22:14, 2 October 2008 (UTC)

For the record, I am not arguing and I have not argued that anything published in the Japan Times is not a 'real source'. But aside from merely stating over and over again that it is not reliable or notable, you have not answered the points above about Honjo's review, specifically that it attracted a fair amount of attention from several well known expatriate commentators in Japan. What is more they are commentators who have written non fiction titles on Japanese society in either Japanese or English, or both (Clark, Tasker and, might I add, yourself), or have commented on Japanese nationalism in the domestic and international media as 'experts' (Dujarric). If Honjo's review were really just a trashy piece of blog-hackery, do you think it would have generated such a response? --Anarmac (talk) 23:56, 2 October 2008 (UTC)

Further, websites do not have to be up to date or currently maintained to be reliable sources. In fact, we use the Internet Archive to find sources from web pages which no longer even exist. The359 (talk) 00:36, 3 October 2008 (UTC)

Also, (Arudou) please read the point about the Japan Times above. Nobody is suggesting that we get rid of the Japan Times quotes because they are from the Japan Times. The suggestion was that perhaps reviews of the subject do not have as much authority as the subject matter itself, so if you get rid of Honjo's review on that basis, the JT reviews would have to go too on the same basis. It is about consistency. Two reliable sources - until you show us otherwise by addressing the reasons why many editors here believe JapanReview.net is unreliable - have offered reviews. If they are irrelevant, then they both go. If they are relevant, then they both stay. Even editors who have toned down the Honjo quotes believe that her review is a reliable source.

Finally, you are not getting anywhere by claiming on your own authority that the source is not notable. It also doesn't help that there are a few others who similarly have not offered convincing rebuttal of the arguments for the source's reliability. I think many of the editors here have been incredibly patient in the last little while and would probably appreciate a reason as to why a source that generated ample attention from prominent expatriates in Japan who have written on the topic should be dismissed out of hand.

If I and others have merely dressed up the Honjo review or smeared lipstick on it, it should be fairly easy for you to undress it or wipe the lipstick off with your own arguments. Please do so. Don't just stand there calling "lipstick! lipstick!" That's not how you convince people. --Anarmac (talk) 01:48, 3 October 2008 (UTC)

I have added a request for comment section about this: Talk:Debito_Arudou#Request_for_Comment:_Should_Japanreview.net_be_used_as_a_source.3F - After this, if there is a consensus, it will stick. WhisperToMe (talk) 19:55, 6 October 2008 (UTC)

Mainstream article that evidently used Wiki article as sources

This Sept 29 Business week article] evidently used an earlier version of Community Reinvestment Act for it's four of six of its most prominent links. One of those sources has been kicked off the wiki article because it is a law firm serving clients who profit off the Act and its statistics were obviously biased. The Business week article is just being used in external links right now, which I'd like to delete. But more importantly I have a problem with it being used as an opinion source or even worse to back up credibility of the law firm's piece. Anyway, I haven't noticed this issue before so I thought I'd bring it up and let people chew on it. Carol Moore 15:39, 2 October 2008 (UTC)Carolmooredc

Just to explain. The white paper by the law firm Traiger & Hinckley has been repeatedly removed from Community Reinvestment Act by Carolmooredc, because she claims (without evidence) that it serves clients who profit from the CRA. There is no evidence that the writer for the BusinessWeek article used Wikipedia for a source apart from the fact that it is addresses the same topic and quotes other (well known) sources on the subject, some of whom are also quoted in the Wikipedia article. Note that the BusinessWeek article is not being used as a source for any statements of fact. It would only be used as a source to observe that the viewpoint expressed in it does exist in the community. She also repeatedly removes links to other articles that dispute her position, this BusinessWeek article being an example. Sources that conform to her views are given more leeway. Please also see the entry on the Manhattan Institute above on this page. lk (talk) 15:47, 2 October 2008 (UTC)

Turns out this very issue is being discussed right now at WT:V#Self-fulfilling verifiability. Carol Moore 16:06, 2 October 2008 (UTC)Carolmooredc

• Remind me, again, what is so wrong with the business week article/blog post? Because they link to a source you don't want to include in wikipedia? Really? The NYT links to wikipedia all the time, that isn't a reason to remove their blog posts or news articles. As a blanket summary of facts, the BW post seems to get it right. The liberal bogeyman of Glass-Steagal repeal didn't cause the crisis nor did the conservative bogeyman of the CRA. CDS law changes and changed requirements on leveraging both probably had a much greater affect, but neither were a singular cause. As I read the CRA article now, it seems to be ok up until the last segment where it balloons into absurdity listing criticism after criticsm without much restraint or balance. That article has to incorporate the fact that there is a political dimension to the CRA criticism that is plain as day (just like the Glass Steagal article should). We don't need to conduct OR to do that, just find sources which make that claim and note them in the criticism section. Protonk (talk) 16:15, 2 October 2008 (UTC)

First, most of it repeats sources already in the article, which is why I had question that in name of this Section. Perhaps the general solution is to say: "Business week used these sources above to come to same conclusion" it would be ok, though a bit redundant -'and isn't the redundancy of criticism in the article something you have a problem with above? :_).

Second it shouldn't be used to validate something which two wiki editors have already rejected on other Bias and factual grounds. It's just an ad hoc opinion piece and we can't assume the guy has read and would defend Traiger's statistics, which another wiki editor picked apart.

Third, I am trying to get the best sources to do this article, but we need someone besides government employees and liberal think tanks as sources! I'm not sure which political dimension to the CRA criticism you mean. Identifying people as pro-govt policies or anti-govt policies would make most sense to me since liberal and conservative don't neatly describe those any more. (Or should I say the spectrum is liberals and most conservatives on the more statist regulation side and libertarians and lots of independents on less statist side.) Carol Moore 18:44, 2 October 2008 (UTC)Carolmooredc

Just jumping in here (having added the link in question once and then restoring it after Carolmooredc took it out). I'm afraid that I have no idea what the rationale could possible be for removing a BusinessWeek article from the External Links section. What does it mean to say that the article uses an old Wikipedia version of the article for four out of its six links? If true, it hardly seems a disqualification, but I don't even see how such a claim can be made. The bulk of the BW article is commentary by the author, in any case. The links are just included at the end. Are you claiming that BW is not a reliable source? I don't see anyone making anything close to a case for that. If a source meets Wikipedia's standards for WP:RS, and is being cited properly, it should stay in. The standards for External Links are even looser, and I don't see any serious claim that the BW article should be excluded here. As to your other point, two Wiki editors don't get to veto sources they don't like. In my experience dealing with hot topics, it's better to be more inclusive rather than less.Notmyrealname (talk) 22:11, 2 October 2008 (UTC)

The other problem is the redundancy factor. In fact I found about four articles from WP:RS that were just repeating stuff from three other sources already in the article and didn't bother to use them. Isn't it common sense on wikipedia not to pack the sources redundantly in controversial articles? Carol Moore 00:56, 9 October 2008 (UTC)Carolmooredc

Citing old encyclopedias

I have noticed that a lot of articles refer to the old Catholic Encyclopedia (published, I think, around 1913). Like the 1911 ed of the Encyclopedia Britanica, the old CE is noted for its high scholarship and depth of coveage on topics. However, like the 1911 EB, it is dated. This leads to a problem... In many cases the old CE is being used as a citation for statements about modern Catholic scholarship or opinion. I think we need some discussion about how reliable such old encyclopediae are. My personal view is that, while they can be reliable, their reliability is limited. We need to develop a consensus about when they should, and when they should not be used. Blueboar (talk) 18:06, 2 October 2008 (UTC)

The one case I've run into which didn't bother me was an entry allegedly written by Proudhon about contemporary anarchism, something you wouldln't find in something more recent. So there are specific cases where it will work. But accept for very specific contemporary sources like that, I think using them very problematic. Even most historical facts have been re-written one or more times since then. Carol Moore 18:27, 2 October 2008 (UTC)Carolmooredc

There was an archived discussion on this noticeboard about using a ca 1910 encyclopedia. The basic feel was: if you are trying to source how people felt about a subject in 1910, good. If you are trying to provide a reader in 2008 a factually correct rendition of a subject, it might be better to identify the source (and time) rather than present it as fact. I don't know that we have a "policy" on this per se, but the Britannica 1911 guidance suggests that we should replace material sourced to those encyclopedias ASAP. In your exact example, it would be totally unacceptable to use CE to talk about modern catholic opinion, if only because of Vatican II. Protonk (talk) 18:46, 3 October 2008 (UTC)

OK... The article that propmted my question is Catholicism and Freemasonry. I am going to have to ask for additional help here, as there is a history of conflict between me and another editor that means any challenge I make as to the use of the CE will be seen as POV (the other editor is a stauch Catholic and I am a Freemason). I realize that the Catholic Church has had serious issues with Freemasonry since the 1700s... I also realize that it still does. I have no problem with the article discussing these issues, whether historical or current. My concern here is purely with the heavy use of the old CE to back statements that seem to reflect the Church's current objections. I would appreciate it if a few non-involved editors took a look at this. Blueboar (talk) 13:42, 6 October 2008 (UTC)

Are IMDB and personal websites reliable sources

So I've encountered a user who has argued that an IMDB page, a myspace page and a personal website are reliable/verifiable sources for a living person biography Kristen Aldridge. I had been citing WP:SPS and WP:SELFPUB # 3 as why they don't apply I have this guy and an admin who seems to know the other saying they don't apply. I've reached my 3 edit limit for the article but was hoping some more experienced editors could chime in. Are these sources considered reliable? Tmore3 (talk) 23:31, 2 October 2008 (UTC)

personal websites are by definition self-published and so all the restrictions of self-published apply. IMDB is a mixed bag and frankly I personally would not use it for a living person biography. Better sources should be out there and those should be used.--BruceGrubb (talk) 03:38, 3 October 2008 (UTC)

Personal websites are definitely self-published. The non-user contributed parts of IMDB are probably OK. lk (talk) 09:57, 3 October 2008 (UTC)

I've taken the position that such sources are usable under WP:SELFPUB with use of inline citations.--Wehwalt (talk) 17:01, 7 October 2008 (UTC)

WikiPilipinas

Is WikiPilipinas considered a reliable source for a) in-text references, or b) External Links sections? I noticed a lot of links to various pages on it, and such a large collection needs some community input rather than one editor making any potentially damaging decisions. Orpheus (talk) 06:20, 3 October 2008 (UTC)

For in-text references, it should not be used at all, since it's a wiki. See WP:SPS. Wikis are not reliable sources. As an external link, it might be usable, but WP:ELNO discourages the use of open wikis as external links unless they are stable and have a large number of users. I don't know whether WikiPilipinas meets those criteria. --Metropolitan90 (talk) 14:31, 3 October 2008 (UTC)

Exactly right. I agree. It may be usable as a general external link (that is, linking to the website's home page rather than a specific subpage), but as you rightly say, it needs to meet the WP:ELNO criteria first. -- ChrisO (talk) 18:35, 3 October 2008 (UTC)

That seems pretty clear. Any volunteers to help with the cleanup then? :) Orpheus (talk) 09:41, 4 October 2008 (UTC)

Savepasargad.com as a source?

There's a dispute on Cyrus cylinder about the use of http://www.savepasargad.com, the website of the "International Committee to Save the Archeological Sites of Pasarga", as a source. It sticks out like a sore thumb, as literally every one of the other 59 sources used in the article is an academic work. Specifically, two pieces by a Canadian-Iranian linguist are being cited (see [3] and [4]). The problems I perceive with the website are:

• WP:V requires the use of "reliable, third-party published sources with a reputation for fact-checking and accuracy." I see no evidence that savepasargad.com has any reputation for fact-checking and accuracy, or even that it checks facts and accuracy in the first place. It's wholly unclear whether they have any kind of editorial process.

• The website itself is clearly an advocacy website and the two pieces being cited are very much advocacy pieces on behalf of a particular Iranian nationalist viewpoint ("Retort to the Daily Telegraph’s article against Cyrus the Great Attack on the Legacy of Cyrus the Great", "Response to Spiegel Magazine's Attack on the Legacy of Cyrus the Great"). This would have to count as a questionable source, I think ("promotional in nature" - WP:QS). As far as I can see, it's a rather amateurish website that's been put together by a group of ad hoc campaigners.

• It is unclear whether the source is a third-party one; it appears that the author of the cited pieces is a member of the Committee on whose website they are published. I am not sure whether this meets the requirement for a source to be independent of the author. It is certainly not the same kind of relationship as between, say, an author and a mainstream book publisher. If you can e-mail a piece to a colleague and say "please put this on your website", that strikes me as being self-publishing by proxy.

• Finally, the reliability of the two pieces is questionable as well. It's about an historical issue relating to ancient Mesopotamia. As already mentioned, it's by a Canadian-Iranian linguist; he has no qualifications as an historian but has a sideline as an amateur historian. Osprey Publishing, a reputable publisher, has published two books by him on ancient Persian history. Note that despite the title of the first piece the author is not a professor - there seems to be some degree of self-promotion going on here. He doesn't appear to have any sort of reputation as an historian; I've been unable to find any references to his books by any other academic sources, other than a handful of (very mixed) reviews. The claims being made in the two pieces are contradicted by the prevailing view within the academic community, which raises a WP:REDFLAG for me. As WP:V puts it, "exceptional claims require high-quality sources". I'm not sure this counts.

Any thoughts? -- ChrisO (talk) 08:31, 3 October 2008 (UTC)

• Your analysis seems spot on. An advocacy site without any evidence of a reputation for fact checking and accuracy. I note also that the entry we have for the linguist in question, Kaveh Farrokh sources its claim that he is an "expert in the field of Iranian history" to Radio Free Europe. Hardly a reliable source for those credentials. Kaveh appears also to be a psycho-linguist by training, and he appears to have absolutely no academic qualifications as a historian. I do not think you can use his writings from this advocacy site, and be cautious in using his books within a field he has no training.PelleSmith (talk) 14:00, 3 October 2008 (UTC)

• It turns out that his specific area of work is as a student counsellor at Langara College in Vancouver [5], so your caution seems to be a good idea. I certainly think it would be inadvisable to quote him as if he was the equivalent of the professional historians cited everywhere else in the article. We would never, for instance, quote an unqualified amateur theorist alongside Stephen Hawking in an article about black holes; I'd sincerely hope that we take the integrity of our historical articles as seriously. -- ChrisO (talk) 02:10, 4 October 2008 (UTC)

According to Khoikhoi, he is using the site merely for verifiability to attribute the statement to the author. The issue of whether Karrokh or this site is reliable or not is another one altogether, and not in question. If Noam Chomsky chooses to put an article on an obscure blog or website, we cite the blog or website on the grounds that it is Noam Chomsky, not refuse to put it up unless we have some reason to believe that it is a Noam Chomsky impersonation. The discussion is not over whether you believe, shall we say, Tom Holland (a writer of fiction and history, who has written about vampires )-- or Kaveh Farrokh (who has written two history books about ancient Persia) nor over the question of who is "credentialed" and who is not. This does not belong on this board, but on the talk page. Tundrabuggy (talk) 03:46, 4 October 2008 (UTC)

Is thepunksite.com a reliable source for punk bands?

This site [6] is one of the biggest punk rock webzines with constant news updates and hundreds of album reviews and interviews. Can this be regarded as a reliable source when determining the notability of a punk rock band?

Strummer25 (talk) 10:03, 3 October 2008 (UTC)

A quick scan of the webpage at thepunksite shows about 99% of the articles as being authored by the same person: Bobby Gorman; that alone should send up a red flag. Furthermore, the format of the thepunksite site practically screams "blog". I don't see how this could qualify is a "Reliable" source except in an article on thepunksite.--BruceGrubb (talk) 10:02, 9 October 2008 (UTC)

Bibliographic articles

We have very stringent policies and guidelines related to reliable sources, but how these apply to Bibliographic articles? Is the threshold for including a source in a bibliographic article any different than for any other article in Wikipedia? Some examples: Bibliography_of_work_on_Objectivism, Richard_Nixon_bibliography. And how we do apply standards for inclusion in bibliographies about living people? ≈ jossi ≈ (talk) 17:55, 3 October 2008 (UTC)

The logical sourcing issue with bibliographic articles concerns things like title, author, etc. In most cases a book, etc, is a sufficient source for its own existence and for the name of its author, etc. In all kinds of articles we mention the existence of books, magazines, TV shows, songs, court documents etc, that would not meet one or another definition of "reliable source" for Wikipedia articles. We don't require that a source meet all standards for reliability before mentioning its existence. ·:· Will Beback ·:· 18:13, 3 October 2008 (UTC)

So, you are saying that in a Bibliography of Sarah Palin, we can list a series of books, magazines, blogs, TV shows, irregardless of the provenance, reliability, and other such criteria? I would argue that that type of rationale is incompatible with WP:BLP, and WP:V/WP:RS. ≈ jossi ≈ (talk) 20:42, 3 October 2008 (UTC)

Let's use another example. Say we have an article on a famous fringe scientist who has self-published many books. Even though those books are not reliable sources, it is still appropriate to list them in a bibliographic section or article. Likewise, Orson Welles' Macbeth is not a reliable source for anything except itself, yet we include it in both Orson Welles and Macbeth. Just because we list the existence of books, magazines, radio interviews, etc, in an article doesn't mean we vouch for the accuracy or reliability of those works. If that were the case we'd have to make huge deletions from this encyclopedia. The Protocol of the Elders of Zion isn't a reliable source, so should we delete that article or any mentions of the book, including Protocols of the Elders of Zion (versions)? I don't think so. The guideline on reliable sources concern using publications as sources. It doesn't deal with which publications we can mention. ·:· Will Beback ·:· 20:56, 3 October 2008 (UTC)

It doesn't deal with which publications we can mention. ... but then, what about BLPs? Are you asserting that we can add whatever we want to a bibliography about a living person? Maybe this thread needs to be moved to WP:BLP/N ≈ jossi ≈ (talk) 21:00, 3 October 2008 (UTC)

Well, you asserted that it is a reliable sourcing issue. What policy basis are you asserting now? Can you give a reason why we should exclude some publications? (and let's "play it where it lies", as they say in golf). ·:· Will Beback ·:· 21:12, 3 October 2008 (UTC)

Ah, golf... I have not played in months... My question is: what are the standards for bibliographical articles on living persons? Which sources should be listed and which ones should be avoided? ≈ jossi ≈ (talk) 22:05, 3 October 2008 (UTC)

The obvious reasons for excluding an item item would be when it either isn't about the topic or isn't by the subject. For example, Primary Colors. That's an anonymously published roman a clef which is widely acknowledged to be about Bill Clinton. On the one hand Joe Klein has now admitted writing it so it could be included in a list of books by him. On the other hand, there is a dispute over how much of it is fictionalized so it probably wouldn't be in a list of book about Bill Clinton. Those are simple WP:V issues. Including items where the connection is marginal is an editing decision. Those would be things like cases where the topic is only mentioned in passing, or where the subject made only a slight contribution to the effort, such as a walk on part in a movie. Other issues are libels and hoaxes. We mention the fake Irving biography in the Howard Hughes article, so even significant hoaxes can be included. If a work has been found by a court of law to be libellous then it is proven to be false but the court case probably made it notable. Including the name of the title of a work is not the same as including its contents and it is not an endorsement either. The responsible thing would be to list the work and describe, at least briefly, the controversy. ·:· Will Beback ·:· 23:42, 3 October 2008 (UTC)

The objective of a bibliography section/article if to present a balanced collection of as many relevant sources as is reasonable for a single section/article. In case of Nixon there is a wealth of thoroughly researched books, popular and academic, in case of Palin you just don't have as much choice and cannot practice as much discretion/censorship/etc. Excluding outward hate sites or proven libel, use the relevance test: if it's relevant, inclusion is ok. I'd take an opportunistic stance on this: my primary concern is that the bibliography must stand usable after she loses the bid. Thus ephemeral web sources that would soon, quite likely, vanish should be excluded. NVO (talk) 05:05, 4 October 2008 (UTC)

Good points. To expand on my previous remark, I'd also say that self-published works about a subject should generally be excluded. I can't see a good reason for including a blog entry, for example. Of course, self-published works by a subject should be included. ·:· Will Beback ·:· 07:45, 4 October 2008 (UTC)

I'm not sure that there is much latitude in the policies of Wikipedia. Jossi's question, "What are the standards for bibliographical articles on living persons?" seems to be pretty well answered in WP:BLP, WP:V and WP:RS. There may be some newspaper articles about a person, but these generally are variable both in the research and in the argument. A critical book (an "academic" text for want of a better term) generally has followed a process of collecting evidence, which may include newspaper articles, testing the claims made in newspaper articles and elsewhere against the evidence, and drawing conclusions about the subject. Other books may critique that position, using a different set of evidentiary frameworks and coming to a different conclusion. In both cases though, the process is thorough and uses the process of dialectic to arrive at positions. Newspaper articles may not do that. Whilst some journalists are impeccable in their research, others are not so and the history of journalism is littered with the detritus of these weapons of mass delusion.

So I don't see the objective of a bibliography as "to present a balanced collection of as many relevant sources as is reasonable for a single section/article", as NVO claims above. That statement contains two words which would only add to debate: "balanced" and "relevant". These are selections an editor will make. As I see it, Wikpedia presents information and arguments made by others who have spent some time and effort in their work. It's not an archive; it doesn't fulfill the role a presidential library would. At the same time, the WP:BLP overrides the argument that everything can be included in a bibliography. A really close reading of those policies does clarify most of the issues. Errol V (talk) 11:18, 6 October 2008 (UTC)

Have you had a chance to read this thread? It'd help if you could respond to the points already raised. As for newspapers and magazines, they are generally considered reliable sources for Wikipedia articles, except for fringe or self-published publications. There's no reason to exclude them from bibliographies. ·:· Will Beback ·:· 11:37, 6 October 2008 (UTC)

Silly question. I wrote answers to the original questions at the top of the thread. I made the points about newspapers and magazines, but it seem you did not read those points. Newspapers and magazines come down the list in terms of Wikiepedia policy. Statements like "they are generally considered..." are weasel statements; because they are not generally considered. Making statements like that shows that you are not interested in a discussion; rather, you just like to pretend that your speak for the authorities, whoever that might be. But you don't. There are great reasons to exclude them from bibliographies; I've elaborated on those reasons above. Errol V (talk) 11:28, 9 October 2008 (UTC)

Question about unpublished sources and interviews for Carmen Rodriguez

Resolved

--jbmurray (talk • contribs) 08:54, 5 October 2008 (UTC)

Hi. I'm coordinating an educational project (North of the Río Grande), and for one of the articles, on the Chilean-Canadian writer Carmen Rodriguez, my students have shown the immense initiative of getting in touch with the author herself. They therefore met her, and interviewed her at length (three hours), an interview which they recorded. Thanks to that interview, they therefore have a number of sources that we want to ask about. They include:

• the taped interview itself
• her CV
• the manuscript of an unpublished talk given by a Chilean academic at the launch of one of her books

These sources are not needed to establish the author's notability, but as the intent is to take this article to GAN, and hopefully even FAC, we would like the article to be as comprehensive as possible. Obviously, these unconventional sources are a goldmine. Can the students use them, and if so how? Or if not, are there any precedents or workarounds? Many thanks. --jbmurray (talk • contribs) 22:10, 3 October 2008 (UTC)

WP:PSTS: Unsourced material obtained from a Wikipedian's personal experience, such as an unpublished eyewitness account, should not be added to articles. It would violate both this policy and Verifiability, and would cause Wikipedia to become a primary source for that material. SandyGeorgia (Talk) 22:30, 3 October 2008 (UTC)

In part due to my article I wrote about Ann Bannon, I also established contact with the subject, and it has, to my utter humility and astonishment, turned into a friendship. We have visited on several occasions, and we have a wonderful email correspondence. I am unable to use any information not published by a reliable 3rd party source in her article, including her thoughts on her books, publishers, and other things. Her hairdresser witnessed the Stonewall riots, and she told me about them, but I can't use that for that article. Her daughter was emerged from the San Francisco Opera House in the middle of the White Night riots, when Dan White got off virtually free for murdering Harvey Milk, but I can't use her description for Milk's article. Your students should cherish the relationship they just struck, maybe see if they can get the interview published (you could help with that?) and use it then, but they can't use anything until it's published by a 3rd party reliable source. --Moni3 (talk) 22:33, 3 October 2008 (UTC)

While admirable work, this is not appropriate research for Wikipedia. Wikipedia cannot be based on primary research, as outlined in WP:V and WP:NOR. Wikipedia is an encyclopedia - it is based on previously vetted material. Perhaps your students should work the material up for an undergraduate journal article instead. Awadewit (talk) 22:35, 3 October 2008 (UTC)

@-jbmurray: See if you can get that published in your college newspaper or website. Once published there it may be possible to cite it in the article. ≈ jossi ≈ (talk) 23:15, 3 October 2008 (UTC)

@Moni3, Awadewit, and jossi... Hmm, yes, let's see if they can write up the interview and get it published. --jbmurray (talk • contribs) 01:27, 4 October 2008 (UTC)

(outdent, copied over from User talk:SandyGeorgia:) Yes, I feared as much. In fact, mind you, I think the taboo that's being broken here is less WP:V than WP:OR. After all, research (particularly historical and scientific research) for instance, relies precisely on primary sources: letters, interviews, diaries, as well as experiments, lab notes, and so on. It's not that the students are drawing on personal experience--per the example of an eyewitness report of an accident--let alone a waking dream. In fact, they are being suitably scholarly in searching out primary and unpublished sources. It's just that when scholars do this, their reputation and training is what provides verifiability. Here on Wikipedia, because these are sources that nobody else can access, they are regarded on unreliable.

NB the use of primary sources would not make Wikipedia a primary source; it would make it a secondary source, along the lines of the sources that Wikipedia itself uses. But Wikipedia's goal is to be a tertiary source, that relies on (usually scholarly or journalistic) secondary sources.

I do wonder, however, how much leeway is provided by the final paragraph at WP:PSTS: "Appropriate sourcing can be a complicated issue, and these are general rules. Deciding whether primary, secondary or tertiary sources are more suitable on any given occasion is a matter of common sense and good editorial judgment, and should be discussed on article talk pages." --jbmurray (talk • contribs) 01:21, 4 October 2008 (UTC)

• The key point is always that editors are not supposed to be interpreting data or evidence for themselves and sharing that interpretation on Wikipedia - the sources are supposed to do that. That is why we stay away from primary sources. While this can be a delicate line, in this case I feel it is clear. I also feel we should try to make this distinction as clear as possible and avoid trying to push its boundary. As you rightly point out, original research is not the purpose of an encyclopedia. No one submits their discovery to the Britannica. :) Awadewit (talk) 09:35, 4 October 2008 (UTC)

• Fair enough, A, about not pushing boundaries.  :) --jbmurray (talk • contribs) 05:55, 5 October 2008 (UTC)

Using the Radio Free Europe web site as a RS for someone's expertise

At Kaveh Farrokh there is an attempt to use a news report on a film World: Oliver Stone's 'Alexander' Stirs Up Controversy by Golnaz Esfandiari as a reliable source to say that the subject is an expert in the fields of history and linguistics. This diff [7] is the one in question. Ignoring the fact that RFE is a private organisation but government funded, I don't see how this specific article is a reliable source for his expertise. Particularly as his PhD is from a Department of Educational and Counselling Psychology, he works as an educational counsellor, his professional writing is about dyslexia and his PhD I think about language acquisition, to call him an expert in linguistics on the basis of newspaper articles doesn't work for me, although it obviously works for other editors. He has no qualfications in history or linguistics, although he has written 2 books on history. I hesitated bringing it here because this is also being discussed at [8] where I posted this morning, but as my edit was reverted on the grounds RFE is a RS for this claim, I've brought it here as the issue is whether this article can be used for these specific claims. Thanks. Doug Weller (talk) 16:57, 4 October 2008 (UTC)

This seems to me to be primarily a problem of undue weight. A major problem with using this piece from RFE is that neither Farrokh's publisher, nor his own books, describe him as an "expert" in history and linguistics (see [9]) - they characterise him as a researcher, author and sometime lecturer. The RFE piece is not even about Farrokh - it just quotes him in passing. I think what we have here is a bit of "journalese", where the writer has used a brief description to explain why Farrokh's views are relevant; it isn't nearly as authoritative as his official published biographical profiles. Authoritative sources like official profiles should be given more weight than passing references in random media articles. -- ChrisO (talk) 18:42, 4 October 2008 (UTC)

I don't think this type of mention is authoritative at all and I'm not quite sure that Radio Free Europe is the most reliable of sources to begin with. We should be looking to the comments of known experts for this kind of credentialing if other criteria cannot be met (proper degrees, university teaching positions, publication in peer-reviewed journals, etc.). Since no reviews can be found I think the publisher looks like the most reliable source here, certainly not RFE.PelleSmith (talk) 12:18, 6 October 2008 (UTC)

Official MTV interview as source?

I'm currently working on HIStory and it's corresponding singles and album tracks that have their own article. I plan to get them all to featured or good states so every detail available is important. Jackson gave a very rare but informative interview to MTV here. Unfortunately it's just the video and I haven't been able to find a transcript of the interview. Could I still use it as a source, since it's an official interview with MTV and if so, how would I go about sourcing it? Cheers. — Realist² 18:28, 4 October 2008 (UTC)

• An interview conducted by MTV seems to be an acceptable source for a music-related topic such as those you are working on, particularly given that it can be accessed at MTV.com so other editors and Wikipedia users can view it as well and confirm that Jackson did say what he is quoted as saying. In regard to how you cite the interview, use the citation template Template:Cite video and fill in as many fields of the template as you can that are relevant. --Metropolitan90 (talk) 00:25, 5 October 2008 (UTC)
  • Thank you. — Realist² 01:08, 5 October 2008 (UTC)

Yes, the interview is considered a published source, and you can include brief quotes and what time they appear in the video, and what the original air date of the television program was. You might also want to look through some newspapers because I'm sure there were news articles about it the day after it aired. Squidfryerchef (talk) 02:54, 7 October 2008 (UTC)

voice-compass.com

http://voice-compass.com/english/main/home.html seems like a "who's who"-type publication for the voice communication industry. So far, we have no idea where the original information for the article, "More Efficiencies in Automated Calls by Adaptive Audio" from Chapter 6: "Summary and Editor´s Recommendations", came from, nor to what degree it has been edited for publication in this book. See discussion: Talk:Adaptive_Audio#Establishing_WP:N_and_WP:V. --Ronz (talk) 00:58, 5 October 2008 (UTC)

The voice compass is definite not a "who's who"-type publication it is book about the voice market from a netral point of view which explains to non voice and non teckie people the benefit of using speech technology in many different market areas. Only a 15% are company informations and all this is free of charge. The book gives the world wide market a clear structure. It is writen mainly by the author detlev artelt (me) and by 3 other international voice experts (see http://voice-compass.com/english/main/the-voice-compass/further-information/co-authors.html). On 640 pages there are different sections who explain different technologies and a huge section with recommonidations. The voice compass list beneath this all companies who are acting in this market in more than 45 different tables to give the reader a fair chance to ompare products. --User:Talkingweb

Note that the comment above is the sole contribution by the editor to Wikipedia to date. --Ronz (talk) 19:09, 8 October 2008 (UTC)

I would say - and this is an impression because there is not much to go on - it comes under the category of "trade press", i.e. it is there to keep professionals in the field up to date with developments. As such it will be rather uncritical as to what it includes but also fairly reliable for factual information. The Adaptive Audio article seems to have multiple problems, as you say on the article talk page. It remains to be demonstrated if the topic is notable. If it is, the article should make clear whether this is a generic name or a brand name. If it is generic, how many companies offer this technology? And how widely is applied at present? You are quite right to be alert to the possibilities of spamming. Itsmejudith (talk) 18:24, 12 October 2008 (UTC)

I searched for "Adaptive Audio" on the Voice Compass home page and it came up with no results. Hmmm. Itsmejudith (talk) 18:27, 12 October 2008 (UTC)

The reason you found no results is that the book is over 600 pages and they only make a small sample available online. Otherwise, there would be no market at the $160 list price for the book. I have seen the hardcopy text and there are several pages devoted to Adaptive Audio in it. The exact page numbers are listed in the article discussion page.D3innovation (talk) 04:10, 14 October 2008 (UTC)

The technology has been in use at several call centers for many years. There are about 5 - 6 different technology companies offering the technology today. D3innovation (talk) 04:24, 14 October 2008 (UTC)

Using Wiki as a source?

This diff here is what I'm referencing. A blog has been cited previously, and now the editor is citing another article on Wiki after I informed him that the blog wasn't reliable. I have objections to including the information about how Colby Donaldson should have been kicked off of the show based on these rules (that so far haven't been properly sourced) when it seems to be original research and we don't know what went on behind the scenes. Any thoughts on this from users or admins more experienced? Atlantabravz (talk) 01:11, 5 October 2008 (UTC)

Wikipedia should not be used as a source. He should be given warnings for adding information that is sourced by unreliable sources. If he is a good faith editor he will stop. — Realist² 01:13, 5 October 2008 (UTC)

Edits reverted and notice given to user. I'm not an admin so can't do much more to help myself, sorry. — Realist² 01:21, 5 October 2008 (UTC)

Thanks, I think it is pretty cleaned up now. Oddly enough, the editor hasn't answered the talk page comments and proceeded to make that last questionable edit after I had explained on their talk page about original research and proper sourcing. I wanted to list the issue on this board to show the editor the concensus on proper sourcing in case he or she tried to re-add it. Atlantabravz (talk) 01:45, 5 October 2008 (UTC)

Are Ad hominem quotes reliable?

Resolved

One of the issues I have in articles is Ad hominem quotes like this one in the Jesus myth article: "No reputable scholar today questions that a Jew named Jesus son of Joseph lived; most readily admit that we now know a considerable amount about his actions and basic teachings ..." (Charlesworth, James H. (ed.) (2006). Jesus and Archaeology. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans.) There are several problems with this quote in particular: possible Wikipedia:Libel as it basically states that anyone that questions the idea "Jew named Jesus son of Joseph lived" is not reputable scholar (even among the Historical Jesus group there are those who dispute the 'son of Joseph' part so are they somehow unreliable scholars? The logic here is circular in any case: anyone who supports this theory is not a "reputable scholar" because no "reputable scholar" would support this theory), Wikipedia:Neutral point of view issues as the statement is an Ad hominem attack and doesn't really add anything to an encyclopedia article, WP:V issues as Charlesworth is the editor of the very book in which his comment appears and Eerdmans presents themselves as "Publisher of religious books, from academic works in theology, biblical studies, religious history and reference to popular titles in spirituality, social and cultural criticism, and literature." creating COI concerns. The quote has been put back in with claims that Charlesworth is an "expert in biblical archaeology" failing to explain what supports this and later that Eerdmans is "reputable academic publisher" something not even claimed at Eerdmans' own web site. More troubling is this review by Jonathan Reed from University of La Verne in Review of Biblical Literature 10/2007: "One minor criticism must be raised: scattered throughout the book are numerous illustrations, mostly from Charlesworth’s collection, which, although at times helpful, at other times seem misplaced or could be replaced with something more appropriate. So we see, for example, a bichrome Canaanite decanter in Klassen’s article on Sidonian Greek-inscribed glass, or the excavations at Cana in Kloppenborg’s article, but none at all of the Theodotos inscription whose letters are analyzed in a way that is hard to visualize without a picture. Of course by using his own photos, Charlesworth was able to keep the cost down, so that at $50.00 for over seven hundred pages, we should be thankful." When an editor is given this kind of free reign one has a right to call the work "self published" especially when you have things like a Canaanite decanter picture being used in a Sidonian Greek-inscribed glass article. Good grief, that is insane as even a courtesy investigation by John Q Surfer shows the Canaanite culture extending a far greater range in both time and region than the Sidonian culture. That is almost akin to using a picture of an Olmec artifact in an article on the Zapotecs and makes one again wonder about the "reputable academic publisher" claim.

On a more general level I would like to see Ad hominem quotes forbidden regardless of subject matter or source as I can not see any reasonable use for one in any article. They don't really add anything to an article, they serve as a lightning rod preventing article improvement, and they may have other issues as well. The fact you don't see such quotes in articles on other fringe theories like Flat Earth, Creationism, or New Chronology (Fomenko-Nosovsky) raises the question of why are Ad hominem quotes in the Jesus myth article and why editors are fighting to keep them in when better quotes exist. Even in the heated issue of Holocaust denial you have "reputable historian" used in the context of methodology rather than regarding people who hold to Holocaust denial itself.--BruceGrubb (talk) 08:16, 5 October 2008 (UTC)

I have no idea what you mean by an "ad hominem quote." But there's no problem with the quotation as given. James Charlesworth may or may not be right in his assertion; but he can surely be quoted as an eminently reliable source. --jbmurray (talk • contribs) 08:45, 5 October 2008 (UTC)

By "ad hominem quote." I mean a quote that attacks the people who support a theory rather than the theory itself. Compare Charlesworth's quote to this one: "Today nearly all historians, whether Christians or not, accept that Jesus existed and that the gospels contain plenty of valuable evidence which has to be weighed and assessed critically. There is general agreement that, with the possible exception of Paul, we know far more about Jesus of Nazareth than about any first- or second century Jewish or pagan religious teacher." (Stanton, Graham. The Gospels and Jesus Oxford University Press, 2nd ed., 2002), p. 145.). Notice the more neutral tone and wording of the Stanton quote. That is what Wikipedia should be striving for not quotes like Charlesworth's. Furthermore, as a possible self-published source per Wikipedia:Verifiability: "Self-published material may, in some circumstances, be acceptable when produced by an established expert on the topic of the article whose work in the relevant field has previously been published by reliable third-party publications." But we have a whole host of relevant fields (ethnology, anthropology, archeology, linguistics, theology, etc) involved. By Charlesworth's statement Robert M. Price (a Professor of Theology and Scriptural Studies), Alvar Ellegard (former Dean of the Faculty of Art University of Goteborg, Sweden), Frank R. Zindler (a professor though admittedly of biology and geology), and Thomas "Tom" Harpur (former New Testament professor of University of Toronto) are not "reputable scholars" simply because they support the Jesus Theory. Given that most of these people are alive I see some serious Wikipedia:Libel issues here.

On a related note Eerdmans demonstrated they had problems with their fact checking with Jesus Now and Then By Richard A. Burridge, Graham Gould because on page 37 they let this little gem pass: "Jesus is also mentioned in the writings of the three main Roman historical writers from the end of the first century CE — Pliny, Tacitus, and Suetonus." While the authors do spend a couple paragraphs qualifying that sentence be basic fact is that the sentence as it stands is blatantly not true; of those three only Tacitus expressly mentions Jesus, Suetonus is hotly debated and Pliny only mentions the Christian movement. When sources allow statements like that it is red flag time. The "eminently reliable source" idea is put into question by the idea to save a few bucks on the cost of the book Charlesworth was editing he put pictures with articles in such a manner that they seemed misplaced or inappropriate.--BruceGrubb (talk) 12:36, 6 October 2008 (UTC)

Ah, so your notion of "ad hominem quotes" is a reference to the content of the quotation, not the reliability of the source. As such, it's irrelevant to any attempt to determine reliability. We can and should quote sources regardless of what they say about other sources, in order to reflect and represent the views and debate among such reliable sources. (Issues of libel are a matter for the original publisher, not for us, and you're massively overstating the case.) You can't only quote people you like, or whose style you prefer. Meanwhile, again, this is evidently a reliable source. --jbmurray (talk • contribs) 15:54, 6 October 2008 (UTC)

I think you need to go back and reread Wikipedia:Libel: "The goal of Wikipedia is to create an encyclopedic information source adhering to a neutral point of view, with all information being referenced through the citation of reliable published sources, so as to maintain a standard of verifiability. For this reason, all contributors should recognize that it is their responsibility to ensure that material posted on Wikipedia is not defamatory." Wikipedia:Biographies of living persons is even more blunt about the matter: "The burden of evidence for any edit on Wikipedia, but especially for edits about living persons, rests firmly on the shoulders of the person who adds or restores the material." [...] "Editors should avoid repeating gossip. Ask yourself whether the source is reliable; whether the material is being presented as true; and whether, even if true, it is relevant to an encyclopedia article about the subject." Wikipedia:Libel makes it painfully clear that repeating any potentially defamatory claim is the responsibility of the editor that either puts it in or restores is and NOT the publication it comes from. Also there is the issue of is a personal opinion regarding the people who hold to a theory with no apparent backing to support that opinion really relevant to an encyclopedia article on that theory? I have yet to see on valid argument of when this would be a good idea.--BruceGrubb (talk) 23:19, 6 October 2008 (UTC)

This is a matter of style, but not about the reliability of the source. Charlesworth is a notable source competent in the field. As long as his opinion is properly attributed, there is not RS problem here. Any libel problem would be Charlesworth's. I also think that you misread him a bit. You should probably parse "a Jew named Jesus son of Joseph" as "a Jew named 'Yeshua ben Yosep'", i.e. the "son of Josef" bit is not a claim of actual parentage, but just a more precise rendering of the common name. --Stephan Schulz (talk) 13:27, 6 October 2008 (UTC)

The problem is that Wikipedia is encyclopedia and using an option implied as fact that attacks people who hold to a certain belief rather than criticizing the belief itself does nothing to serve that goal. On a related note, I keep seeing "notable" being brought up but there is nothing about someone having to be "notable" to be a Reliable source. Roland Fischer may not be "notable" but until the quote above his "There is not a shred of evidence that a historical character Jesus lived, to give an example, and Christianity is based on narrative fiction of high literary and cathartic quality. On the other hand Christianity is concerned with the narration of things that actually take place in human life." (abstract) "It is not possible to compare the above with what we have, namely, that there is not a shred of evidence that a historical character Jesus lived."(body text) quote appears in the peer reviewed article "On The Story-Telling Imperative That We Have In Mind" in Anthropology of Consciousness. Dec 1994, Vol. 5, No. 4: 16 published by no less than the American Anthropological Association. You wouldn't believe the trouble I am having having with regards to one editor to getting that quote in the Jesus Myth article.--BruceGrubb (talk) 23:19, 6 October 2008 (UTC)

I think you've misunderstood how it works. The point is not to edit-war with another editor by trying to keep a reliable source out of the article. And especially when it comes to controversial topics, citing someone is not the same as ascribing to their point of view. The point is to provide a sense of the range of views that are given by reputable and reliable sources. It really doesn't matter whether or not those sources attack others or not. To take another instance, there's no problem citing (say) Christopher Hitchens on Mother Teresa, though his criticism of her is often vituperative, and indeed I see he's prominently featured in the article about her. But he's not the only source cited, either.

Anyhow, I'm going to mark this "resolved." The source in question is clearly reliable. --jbmurray (talk • contribs) 23:51, 6 October 2008 (UTC)

Reliablity of Gothamist and it's sister sites

Considering it's gained awards, reputation and is editored. Is there a point where a serious professional blog site becomes reliable? Are these sites any less reliable than a newspaper? --neon white talk 10:17, 5 October 2008 (UTC)

You're saying that rather than a blog it is actually a local news magazine. You may be right. If so the authored main items may be reliable; of course the responses by the general public will not be. Itsmejudith (talk) 14:26, 5 October 2008 (UTC)

Use of blog as a source over news media

Resolved

Several dozen rugby league articles, such as Gareth Ellis, have been edited to include a blog source from this site. Other reliable third party sources such as this from a news outlet are available to support the same information for the same player. Is the user-generated blog acceptable when other sources are available? Thanks, •Florrie•leave a note• 12:54, 5 October 2008 (UTC)

For some reason, the first link is a dead one. I agree that it is preferable to use reliable sources and favour the removal of the former if the latter becomes available. I guess it also depends whose blog it acutally is as well, is it a published or notable author? Cheers, Casliber (talk · contribs) 04:32, 6 October 2008 (UTC)

Hmm, even more reason not to use it, I suppose. As far as I could gather when I visited the site it was a personal blog thing with members posting about player transfers/movements and the blog owner updating a list. •Florrie•leave a note• 05:13, 6 October 2008 (UTC)

Talk:List of new religious movements

Could use some more eyes on this whole page, but of course the most recent stuff is at the bottom. Questions regarding usage of primary vs. secondary sources for sourcing in the article, as well as other issues. Cirt (talk) 13:47, 5 October 2008 (UTC)

Histrionic personality disorder

there are no citations for putting this disorder in gender categories or links that show any symptom differentiality in patients due to gender

In females Women with HPD are described as self-centered, self-indulgent, and intensely dependent on others. They are emotionally labile and cling to others in the context of immature relationships. As well, they over-identify with others; they project their own unrealistic, fantasized intentions onto people with whom they are involved. They are emotionally shallow to avoid distress and have difficulty understanding themselves or others in any depth. Selection of marital or sexual partners is often highly inappropriate. The majority of the time their partners will have symptoms of personality disorders, equal to, or far worse than their own. Women with HPD often tend to enter into abusive relationships with partners who increase the abuse as time wears on. Pathology increases with the level of intimacy in relationships, which is exactly the same for males. Women may show inappropriate and intense anger masking their internal battle between the quest for intimacy and avoiding pathology. Women with borderline tendencies often form entirely negative convictions towards the male gender and treat them like pawns as a defense mechanism concealing their own inadequacies. They may engage in self-mutilation and/or manipulative suicide threats as one aspect of general manipulative interpersonal behavior.[2]

In males Males with HPD usually present problems of identity crisis, disturbed relationships, and lack of impulse control. They have antisocial tendencies and are inclined to exploit physical symptoms as a method of false control. These men are emotionally immature (although they tend to believe the exact opposite), dramatic (although many are adept at covering it up), and shallow (although they tend to believe their feelings are so deep that no other single person could ever understand). Men with HPD may dwell on their own emotions and create a false sense of reality, effectively convincing themselves of whatever they need to believe to feel comfortable in their relationships. HPD males with antisocial tendencies shift between periods of isolation and those of extreme social conquest (each shift can last a matter of days to periods lasting several years). They may require isolated retreats in order to obtain a comfortable level of understanding and acceptable functioning. HPD antisocial males are dependent upon no one in particular, but crave the dependence of others. Although males often have chameleon-like social skills (similar to HPD females), they tend to have trouble keeping lengthy friendships afloat as their paranoia (real and imagined) may eventually lead to a near complete and permanent disposal of all interpersonal relationships at a given time, effectively eliminating any emotional responsibility and accountability. They tend to genuinely search for intimacy (many believe in "the one") while remaining unable to regulate their perceived level of intimacy for any given interpersonal relationship, making it very difficult to build anything other than turbulent relations. Males with HPD may believe in the supernatural, such as fortune telling or telepathy, including the belief that there are many hidden messages and notions in public works that are specifically meant for them. When HPD antisocial males believe they are being manipulated, they may morph into sociopathic relations with their perceived enemies, yet remain overtly loyal to perceived friends. HPD men are oftentimes intensely driven by their quest to conquer life, despite having no real sense of direction or control, resulting in frequent changes of overly passionate interests. [2] Both men and women with HPD engage in disinhibited behavior, such as promiscuity and substance abuse.[3]

You are right; this lengthy distinction between male and female sufferers is not found in the source (2) cited. And that does not seem to be a reliable source anyway - at least to me it seemed to be just an authorless web page. Best to delete and then see if anyone wants to restore any gender-related distinction based on better sourcing. Itsmejudith (talk) 21:32, 5 October 2008 (UTC)

Publisher in Pakistan: Dar-ut-tazkeer

In one of the articles, it has been questioned by another editor whether a book published by Dar-ut-Tazkeer is verifiable or not. Since the book is in Urdu, how can be claim be considered 'verifiable'? The book is by Khalid Masud, titled Hayat-e-Rasool-e-Ummi published in 2003 by Dar-ut-Tazkeer, and he has disputed on page 560 that the age of Aisha (wife of Prophet Muhammad was 6 or 9 at the time of marriage on the basis of unreliability of a primary source. This is not the only such work, but one published in print that I know of that comes closest to being verifiable. Thanks. Omer (talk) 01:45, 6 October 2008 (UTC)

• I would like to make sure that I understand what the dispute is about. Is the dispute about what the book says about Aisha's age at marriage, or whether the book is accurate about that? We have a number of editors here on the English Wikipedia who know Urdu; see Category:User ur for those who have identified themselves as knowing Urdu. --Metropolitan90 (talk) 06:27, 6 October 2008 (UTC)

  In case this is about the language, see WP:NONENG. English language sources are preferred if available. Being in a foreign language does not disqualify a source. It is considered reliable under the same criteria as an English language book - i.e. if it is published by a reputable academic publisher, or written by an recognized expert in the domain, or if it has received favourable reviews from other competent scholars. --Stephan Schulz (talk) 12:36, 6 October 2008 (UTC)

  The dispute is about if the source is reliable or not. Its statement about Aisha's age (evidently) directly contradicts what is said in all the reliable sources already used and thus it is suspect. And as for sources in Urdu, they don't need to be used here, as we have a large number of English-language sources of quality.--Cúchullain ^t/c 00:09, 7 October 2008 (UTC)

  It does not contradict what is said in all the reliable sources already used. Asma Barlas's book published by University of Texas Press says the same thing. Other sources are not talking about what modern Muslims think about Aisha, but assert their own opinion from the primary sources. Thus no contradiction as the context is different. --AAA765 (talk) 07:01, 7 October 2008 (UTC)

http://www.newsmakingnews.com

This site is being used as a reference source on a WP:BLP. The majority of the sites content is self published work and the site provides no publisher oversite or verification of material. Because of the nature of the content, I would go so far as to say it should be blacklisted as a source for any article on WP because of its lack of reliability. Please see it's sourcing use at Michael Riconosciuto and the open AN/I.--JavierMC 07:06, 6 October 2008 (UTC)

Looks like the issue solved itself as the site doesn't have anything on it.--BruceGrubb (talk) 12:43, 6 October 2008 (UTC)

The site was incorrectly addressed as http://www.newsmaking.com. It is actually http://www.newsmakingnews.com. I have corrected the title to reflect this. Hope this helps, Gazimoff 15:24, 6 October 2008 (UTC)

Doh. Thanks Gazimoff, it was so late last night I was almost falling asleep at my keyboard. Sorry for mislinking it. But the orginal point remains if someone could take a look.--JavierMC 18:56, 6 October 2008 (UTC)

Not a reliable source. But looks like it is being dealt with on the article. JoshuaZ (talk) 22:16, 6 October 2008 (UTC)

Not quite dealt with

Please see this on the article talk page. This was left by one of the major contributors to the article.[10] --JavierMC 17:51, 8 October 2008 (UTC)

Putin reported as gay icon

This was reported by a News Corporation news portal about Putin emerging as a gay icon, so I added it to the relevant section in the Vladimir Putin article, but User:Setraspdopaduegedfa keeps removing this [11],[12] claiming that it is "not a reliable source". Martintg (talk) 07:36, 6 October 2008 (UTC)

Not really a sourcing issue. It seems to be silly gossip and not worth including in an encyclopedia. Itsmejudith (talk) 11:07, 6 October 2008 (UTC)

I believe it is a sourcing issue. Gay icons can be heterosexual, according to Wikipedia's own article, which states gay icons can be historical, celebrity or public figures who are embraced by the LGBT community for their glamour, flamboyance or strength. Certainly there is much news about Putin being considered a gay icon here. Whether or not it is fit for inclusion into an encyclopedia is not the question being asked here. Vladimir_Putin#Anecdotes already states that pictures of his muscled torso had "Women, .... screaming with delight", so it would be NPOV to also note that gays also apparently admire him too. Now is the news portal www.news.com.au considered a reliable source or not? Martintg (talk) 19:06, 6 October 2008 (UTC)

I agree with Itsmejudith. It's one-day-fluff. There are exactly zero hits for Putin "gay icon" on Google News, and the only hits on plain Google seem to refer to that one article. If someone still talks about the topic in six months, it might be worse adding. However, this is a WP:BLP, and I would expect better sourcing than 2.5 sentences in a single filler article. --Stephan Schulz (talk) 19:15, 6 October 2008 (UTC)

Zero hits on Google News means nothing, since old news articles are aged out and this is from 2007. Martintg (talk) 19:22, 6 October 2008 (UTC)

Marting, try changing the query so that articles from all dates are shown. Also try using Lexis-Nexis and other academic search databases. WhisperToMe (talk) 20:13, 6 October 2008 (UTC)

Speaking as a member of WP:LGBT, this has to be one of the funniest things I have ever seen. However, I will search some gay news sites to see what there is to see about Mr. Putin and his pectorals. --Moni3 (talk) 19:27, 6 October 2008 (UTC)

• Exhibit A that it may be true, but many more stories about how government oppression of homosexuals in Russia is condoned by Putin: example. --Moni3 (talk) 19:36, 6 October 2008 (UTC)

Yes, but note that the text in Exhibit A is, to a large part, identical with the news.com.au story. These are not an independent sources, its just gossip making the rounds. However, the original source seems to be the AP, which is a plus. --Stephan Schulz (talk) 19:54, 6 October 2008 (UTC)

(Outdent) after reading the article, all I see that should matter is this "Some claimed that Mr Putin, by stripping to his waist, was pleading for more tolerance of homosexuality in Russia - where gays and lesbians are for the most part forced to remain closeted.". There's nothing to support this assertion anywhere. So, you have to choose. Is the fact that a major news story repeats this unverifiable fact enough to include it in the article, despite the fact that most of the anti-gay laws in the country were put in PLACE by Putin? Or is the fact that it's a mere rumor and some people's completely unsupported suggestion simply indicative that LGBT people in Russia are so oppressed that they try to make anything into a pro-LGBT lifestyle statement? Either way...it looks like it should go in, no matter how much the logical part of me rejects the idea. Icon status by the LGBT community isn't conveyed by facts but by assertion, unless we're going to write up a policy on when someone can be called a gay icon. -- Logical Premise ^Ergo? 19:59, 6 October 2008 (UTC)

Note that Anita Bryant's anti gay stance didn't disqualify her from becoming a gay icon. Martintg (talk) 20:05, 6 October 2008 (UTC)

That is a very good point. If gay people are saying "he's a gay icon", doesn't that make him a gay icon? :D -- Logical Premise ^Ergo? 20:44, 6 October 2008 (UTC)

Looks like an invention of very bored anonymous "journalists". August 24, no war, no murders, must fill 1,000 words... NVO (talk) 20:50, 6 October 2008 (UTC)

I don't think being a gay icon is any concern BLP wise, as others have pointed out it says absolutely nothing about ther person's sexuality. On the other hand, we've had the problem before where absolutely everyone is called a gay icon and so it's better if we have something more then one source saying it Nil Einne (talk) 18:03, 8 October 2008 (UTC)

Question about old ref

Hi. I'm working on Casu marzu, and there's a ref left over from another editor here. Is it reliable? It's from the The Ohio Naturalist, from 1914. Thanks. Intothewoods29 (talk) 03:25, 7 October 2008 (UTC)

Also, is CRS Press reliable? It looks like a good medicinal website. Thanks again. Intothewoods29 (talk) 03:36, 7 October 2008 (UTC)

I think you mean CRC press, and yes it's very reliable. The Ohio Naturalist could qualify as a reliable source depending on how it's used. How is being used? Yilloslime (t) 04:10, 7 October 2008 (UTC)

Thanks. The Ohio source talks about how high fly larvae can jump, and that's what I'm using it to back up. Intothewoods29 (talk) 04:23, 7 October 2008 (UTC)

I'd be reluctant to use a 1914 article as a source on anything scientific, or, in fact, on anything but what the people thought back then. Fly larvae seem to be a harmless enough topic, but even there you should be able to find something more recent. --Stephan Schulz (talk) 06:50, 7 October 2008 (UTC)

Sources quoted in other sources

Let's say one book quotes and sources another book to which I don't have access. May that quoted information be presumed to be reliable and if so, should it be sourced to the original book, sourced to the book by way of the source that quotes it or sourced to the RS to which I have access? I relaize that reads a bit confusing; I've confused myself just writing it. For example, Smith page 50 quotes Jones page 10. Can I include the information and if so should the cite be <ref>Jones p. 10</ref>, <ref>Jones p. 10 quoted on Smith p. 50</ref>, <ref>Smith p. 50</ref> or something I haven't thought of? And in the bibliography section, should Jones and Smith be listed separately, should Jones be mentioned as included in Smith or should it just be Smith? Otto4711 (talk) 08:38, 7 October 2008 (UTC)

For this to be considered reliable, I would require both Smith and Jones to be independently reliable, and both to directly discuss the issue at hand (otherwise Smith may omit context irrelevant for his argument, but not for another argument). Also, I would expect the full attribution, i.e. <ref>Jones p. 10 as quoted by Smith p. 50</ref>. In general, it would be better to get a copy of Smith directly. You might be able to get it via Interlibrary Loan, or someone at Wikipedia:WikiProject Resource Exchange may be able to help. --Stephan Schulz (talk) 08:48, 7 October 2008 (UTC)

• The specific instance that I have in mind involves information on the critical reception to and production of a TV show, in which one researcher in one instance quotes with attribution another researcher and in another instance quotes with attribution a book written by someone associated with the production. Ideally yes it would be best to get the originals and I am pursuing that course (I have to pay my library fines first!). In the first instance if I say "Smith quotes Jones as describing the series as 'symbolic of an entirely new approach to tree sloths'."<ref>Jones, p. 72, quoted in Smith, p. 19</ref> would that be acceptable under RS? In the second if I say "Smith quotes director Brown's account of filming the episode as being 'more fun than a sock full of lemurs'."<ref>Brown, p. 113, quoted in Smith, p. 36</ref> does that pass RS muster? Otto4711 (talk) 10:27, 7 October 2008 (UTC)

That seems fine to me. It is common enough to cite direct quotes in this fashion (where one published work is quoting another). In both of those instances it is expected that the intermediate work be cited per WP:CITE#SAYWHEREYOUGOTIT. Both the original and the intermediate work are expected to be reliable (or the original is a primary work that the intermediate work interprets). The APA style guide mentions basically how to do it. That can easily be adapted for WP footnote style. Protonk (talk) 13:47, 7 October 2008 (UTC)

Osho Rajneesh - selective sourcing

Not relevant to this noticeboard

There seems to be an issue with the dependence upon Judith M. Fox's book in this article. I question why of the 350 odd citations, 100 (including ibidem's) are taken from one 54 paged "booklet". Some sections in the Osho article depend almost entirely on Fox. This would appear problematic considering the abundance of material available on the subject.

In light of this observation, I am seeking an opinion as to whether or not this issue warrants the placement of an appropriate tag, or tags, to highlight this concern.It is essentially one editor, Jayen, who is responsible for the weighting issue arising from the use of this source.

Notable also, in terms of questioning the quality and reliability of the source, is the fact that the book in question is published in conjunction with an Italian organisation called CESNUR, owned by one Massimo Introvigne; who seems to have a reputation for his stance against so called anti-cultists, or cult-apologists.

Generally, I have found that there is resistance to the inclusion of material that questions offically endorsed appraisals of Osho Rajneesh; despite numerous valid sources being offered, for example Talk:Osho#Review_of_sources_covering_the_move_to_America & Talk:Osho#Medical_condition_as_possible_pretext_to_enter_America__-__source_review.

The officical view, that endorsed by individuals sympathetic to the Osho movement, is always presented as the primary version of events, with all other perspectives sidelined as secondary. This is not a neutral presentation of verifiable sources.

Another observation is that the weighting of Fox's assessment of Osho's teachings gives it primacy over the views of other scholars, such as Carter, Metha, Urban, Mullan, etc. all of whom have written on the nature of the subject's teachings. Instead some of their views are relegated to one small section entitled Assessments by scholars of religion. This simply adds to the imbalance.

Semitransgenic (talk) 14:08, 7 October 2008 (UTC)

According to my analysis, the article lists 201 different source locations. Of these, 35 (not 93) are pages in Fox. However, it is true that some of these pages have multiple citations. Overall, the article has, according to my reckoning, 347 individual source citations. Of those, 98 are to Fox. So there would seem to be some potential justification in raising the question of undue weight. To check if this is borne out by the facts, let us look at what is actually cited to Fox, taking each citation in turn, from the beginning.

• Fox p. 9 (3 cites) is used for the number of Osho's siblings and the occupation of his father, his going back to live with his parents aged 7, and his youthful flirtations with politics.

• Fox p. 10 (2 cites) is used to source Osho's criticising Gandhi and socialism, and his speaking against Brahminism.

• Fox p. 12 (1 cite) is used to source that sannyasins wore a locket with his picture.

• Fox p. 11 (1 cite) is used to source that his sannyasins did not live an ascetic lifestyle.

• Fox p. 15 (1 cite) is used to source that the number of Western visitors increased.

• Fox p. 16 (1 cite): the arrival of Western therapists in the ashram.

• Fox p. 17 (6 cites): the Ashram beginning to offer therapy groups, these becoming a major source of income, there being Dynamic Meditation at 6 a.m., Osho holding a spontaneous morning discourse, the way therapies were chosen, the fact that therapies allowed violence and sexual contact between participants.

• Fox p. 18 (3 cites): daily meditation and therapy programme in the so-called "buddhafield", visitors having darshans, "madhouse" carnival atmosphere in the ashram.

• Fox p. 20 (1 cite): some individual sannyasins engaging in drug running and prostitution.

• Fox p. 47 (1 cite): sannyasins discussing planned drug runs or prostitution activities with Osho and Osho giving his blessing.

• Fox p. 21 (4 cites): alternative commune locations in India sought, Saswad castle commune started, tensions with the Desai government, Osho entering a period of silence.

• Fox p. 22 (4 cites): Sheela becoming the new secretary, back problem and move to US, Sheela claiming it was for health reasons, Sheela being keen to go to the US.

• Fox p. 26 (1 cite): Osho's AIDS warning.

• Fox p. 27 (1 cite): Osho ending his period of public silence.

• Fox p. 50 (1 cite): lack of evidence linking Osho to Sheela's crimes.

• Fox p. 48 (1 cite): allegations that Osho was addicted to nitrous oxide.

• Fox p. 29 (1 cite): Osho returning to his ashram in Pune in 1987.

This covers the first 33 citations to Fox. As the article grew, I used Fox as a convenience cite for several reasons: Her book is short and contains the essential outline of Osho's life. Second, it is, unlike FitzGerald or Carter, strictly choronological, making it easy to find things. Third, having been written quite recently, it is one of the few books that covers all of Osho's life, from his birth to his death. Fourth, along with FitzGerald, Fox was one of the first sources I bought for working on this article.

There is nothing cited to Fox in the above that could not just as easily be cited to Carter, FitzGerald, Joshi, or Gordon.

CESNUR is an organisation of mainstream scholars of religion. According to this Oxford University Press publication, CESNUR is a recommended source of objective information on new religious movements. The same publication also mentions that Massimo Introvigne lectures at the Pontifical University of the Holy Cross in Rome.

"Judith Fox (= Judith Thompson, = Judith Coney) holds a doctorate in the sociology of religion from the London School of Economics, University of London. For more than twenty years, she has researched new religions, culminating in such books as The Way of the Heart: A Study of Rajneeshism and Sahaja Yoga. She edits a series on new religions from Curzon Press." [13] Cheers, Jayen466 16:41, 7 October 2008 (UTC)

This is misleading, count the total number of individual cites attributable to Fox (include the ibidem's).

Cites in the teachings section are almost entirely from Fox, particulary the first sub-section, and it is mostly Fox that is being paraphrased.

Her work The Way of the Heart: A Study of Rajneeshism was not a culmination of 20 years research, as claimed above, it was written in 1986.

Fox is not a practicing academic and does not currently hold a research position at a university.

Fox's Osho Rajneesh publication appears to hold many biases and is not a neutral source, I would point to the first paragraph of page 9 as a good example: where she essentially states that Rajneesh was the reincarnation of a man who lived 700 years ago.

Semitransgenic (talk) 17:03, 7 October 2008 (UTC)

• This is misleading, count the total number of individual cites attributable to Fox. I did count them. It is 35 out of the 201 numbered notes, or just under 100 individual citations out of the roughly 350 individual citations overall. It is not 93 out of 201, as you claimed.
• There are indeed many cites to Fox in the teaching section. This partly reflects the fact that she devotes a whole chapter to a complete outline of his teachings and gives the best overview. Other sources tend to have scattered references to various aspects of his teaching here and there, and to focus on particular points. But the various aspects that Fox describes of his teachings can be found in accounts by others as well. (For the record, the Teaching section has 76 citations, of which 48 are to Fox. Note that every sentence sourced to Fox has a separate citation, even where these are 3-sentence units, and that each primary source quote that is given in Fox and is reproduced in this article has a separate, double citation to both Fox and the primary source.)
• Bromley disagrees with you about the neutrality and objectivity of CESNUR, and he is a leading scholar of religion. It is true that Fox reproduces a legend about Osho's former incarnation; I did not think (and still don't think) that section is encyclopedically relevant to our article. Jayen466 17:10, 7 October 2008 (UTC)

• I am not sure whether a scholar working at a university or not is necessarily relevant to this discussion, but according to this page, relating to an Oxford University Press publication of hers, Judith Fox taught at the University of London in 2000 at the time her book on Rajneesh was written (the copyright is 2000). (She married or divorced or something, hence the name change. But she is also generally known as the leading scholar on Sahaja Yoga.) Jayen466 17:27, 7 October 2008 (UTC)

This is misleading, count the total number of individual cites attributable to Fox. I did count them. It is 35 out of the 201 numbered notes, or just under 100 individual citations out of the roughly 350 individual citations overall. It is not 93 out of 201, as you claimed.

go to the reference section, look at the cites, count the ibidem's. Semitransgenic (talk) 17:13, 7 October 2008 (UTC)

Well, Fox is not the only source with ibidems. If you count her ibidems, you also have to count the ibidems for the other sources. Jayen466 18:36, 7 October 2008 (UTC)

I believe she was cited here as an academic at one point or another; that is generally someone with a track record of peer reviewed, university endorsed, research.

The question relates more to the neutrality of the Signature publication - it's usability as a reliable source, and the degree to which it is being depended upon, in light of the fact that it is essentially a 54 page booklet, and that other sources are largely ignored, relative to the disproportionate coverage given to Fox's views - than to her academic credentials Semitransgenic (talk) 17:48, 7 October 2008 (UTC)

I mentioned above that her book on Sahaja Yoga was published by Oxford University Press. Judith Fox/Coney/Thompson has a twenty-five-year history of contributing to peer-reviewed journals, including on this specific topic. Jayen466 18:36, 7 October 2008 (UTC)

But this is not an article about Sahaja Yoga. Semitransgenic (talk) 18:49, 7 October 2008 (UTC)

I have hidden the above discussion. Please continue this discussion on the NPOV noticeboard (where I notice it is cross-posted) or else rephrase your question to be about source reliability. Undue weight and NPOV are not issues for this board.PelleSmith (talk) 20:22, 7 October 2008 (UTC)

Yes, sorry, it does stray off topic, the NPOV board is better suited. Semitransgenic (talk) 01:27, 8 October 2008 (UTC)

Published author posting information through a blog

Resolved

 – Nail, meet head. This is a textbook example of the exception from WP:SPS. Protonk (talk) 01:35, 9 October 2008 (UTC)

The site is http://www.greatesthockeylegends.com ; the author is Joe Pelletier, a published author. I'm thinking of using this post as a reference, because of the fact that it's a published author writing about the subject in question. Does this blog/author pass as reliable? Thanks, Maxim_(talk) 20:15, 7 October 2008 (UTC)

I'd say fine for non-controversial material. Don't use any negative comments about living people and watch out for minor errors because this isn't fact-checked in the way a book should be. Itsmejudith (talk) 21:54, 7 October 2008 (UTC)

Practically Edible

Is Practically Edible a RS? I want to use this page. According to its page, it's the World's Biggest Food Encyclopedia with over 10,000 "detailed" entries. The sources page is here. I'm pretty sure it is, but I thought I'd get a second opinion. Thanks ahead of time. Intothewoods29 (talk) 22:23, 7 October 2008 (UTC)

It seems like a reliable source to me. Of course, like all reliable sources, it may not be reliable for a specific statement in a specific article in Wikipedia. Context is everything. To fully answer your question we would need to know how you are useing it.Blueboar (talk) 16:24, 8 October 2008 (UTC)

I have no comment on the website itself but for food articles, I would just check out On Food and Cooking from the library. Protonk (talk) 18:18, 8 October 2008 (UTC)

I don't expect you're going to find a single word about Casu marzu in On Food and Cooking; since that website is derived from The Wall Street Journal article that you already have, what other information do you need from the website? Part of the FAC process is not only whether a sources is reliable, but whether it's the best source. What does that source offer that the WSJ doesn't offer? We can discuss whether that specific text can be reliably sourced to that website on article talk. For example, if it's the translations of the Sicilian terms, better sources can possibly be found. SandyGeorgia (Talk) 20:50, 9 October 2008 (UTC)

I found this JOP article that mentions the cheese in the section on "Botflies and other insects." Don't know if that is any help. Tim Vickers (talk) 21:10, 9 October 2008 (UTC)

Thanks, Tim ! Into is already citing that source in the article, so I assume he has access to it; I don't :-) SandyGeorgia (Talk) 19:49, 10 October 2008 (UTC)

Airlinerlist.com and Airfleets.net

The article Singapore Airlines fleet contains sprawling lists cataloguing the registration numbers, dates of delivery and first flights, and other info about every aircraft in Singapore Airlines' fleet. Setting aside the issue of whether wikipedia should be hosting this type of stuff, I'd like opinions on the sources of this information. It's not obvious from the citations in the article, but the editor who supports the inclusion of this material says that the data on individual airlines comes from http://airlinerlist.com/ and http://www.airfleets.net/flottecie/Singapore%20Airlines.htm. These look like self-published fan sites to me. What do people here think? Do these sources meet the requirements of WP:RS, and can they be used as citations for the detailed info these tables: Singapore_Airlines_fleet#Full_fleet_by_delivery_date, Singapore_Airlines_fleet#Current_fleet_by_aircraft_registration_number, Singapore_Airlines_fleet#Aircraft_to_be_delivered_by_registration_number? Yilloslime (t) 16:48, 8 October 2008 (UTC)

Sites such as airlinerlist.com, airfleets.net, ch-aviation.ch, airliners.net, jetphotos.net, etc are not reliable sources as they are indeed fan sites produced by enthusiasts. If one is wanting aircraft registrations, there are other sources, such as the aircraft registry of the civil aviation authority, and other sources, such as airclaims.com (unfortunately a subscription service). Fansites have no expectation of fact checking (and this shows in a lot of areas), and hence, they can not be considered reliable sources for encyclopaedic articles on WP. --Russavia ^{Dialogue Stalk me} 17:05, 8 October 2008 (UTC)

Thanks for your input Russavia. I am especially curious to hear the opinions of editors who, unlike Russavia and me, have not been involved with the article in question. ProtonK?—I know you're out there. Yilloslime (t) 17:25, 8 October 2008 (UTC)

• Uh, oh. I've been mentioned by name. :) Ok. Planelist.net (which Airlinerlist.com links to for spreadsheets and photos) is registered to a Thomas Noack from Germany. He also runs planespotters.net, another self published collection of airline photos. Airlinerlist.com appears to be linked to Noack but not run by Noack, though much of their content comes from him. It appears as though Airlinerlist is registered to a Servaas Verbrugge, another airplane photo afficionado. One news story gives a photo credit to Noack, but that is all I can see as far as any indication that he is some expert on the subject (the exception needed for WP:SPS). The "about editors" link on the airlinerlist site gives an indication that this is probably a fansite. As for http://www.airfleets.net/, I can't seem to get anything but a blank page (in safari and firefox), so I can't tell. My guess is that airlinerlist is probably not a reliable source for data on airlines. Protonk (talk) 18:16, 8 October 2008 (UTC)

Thanks for the outside opinion, ProtonK. I would still appreciate input from additional uninvolved users who frequent this page. <humor>DON'T MAKE ME NAME NAMES!</humor> Yilloslime (t) 20:47, 8 October 2008 (UTC)

Both are self-published websites by people who are not recognized as professional authorities in the field. These are therefore not reliable sources and any information sourced to these websites should be tagged and then removed if reliable sources are not forthcoming. Tim Vickers (talk) 15:59, 9 October 2008 (UTC)

I have also had trouble with http://www.airfleets.net/ in the past—the site might not be 100% stable. Anyways, it appears to be working now (in Safari at least) if you want to try again. Yilloslime (t) 02:16, 10 October 2008 (UTC)

Meh.. Sounds like "academic standards disease" to me. I don't think there's any requirement that the selfpub-by-experts exception requires that the experts be professionals in the field. You could also check news articles, etc, to see if those cites as qouted as sources, that's another way to argue selfpub-by-expert. Remember this isn't an article about evolution or global warming. It's an article about airplanes, and we should be able to source noncontroversial facts from communities of spotters. I think the real issues are undue weight/directory/trivia. Squidfryerchef (talk) 02:40, 14 October 2008 (UTC)

Finnish source

Does anyone know if seiska.fi is a reliable source? I don't read Finnish and don't know much about that site, but an editor recently used this as a reference. The "Hot or not" at the top of the page makes me question it. -- SatyrTN (talk / contribs) 17:27, 8 October 2008 (UTC)

The picture at the top of the main page [14] (permanent link) isn't particularly inspiring either. Nor their overuse of exclamation marks and question marks in titles and choice of stories. It looks a lot like some sort of tabloid/gossip mag Nil Einne (talk) 18:37, 8 October 2008 (UTC)

Common sense and interviews

Many of the Wikipedia guidelines are worded as such that they disallow print interviews, including bios and other promotional/publicity materials, where someone is, in a sense, talking about themselves, but allow an interview if the subject "Has been the subject of a half hour or longer broadcast across a national radio or TV network". In other words, not only it that more notable, but more reliable. My question is at what point should common sense kick in and an editor be able to cite an interview with the subject of an article as a reliable source no matter what the media? Example - An article on an actor has a "claim" that the actor wanted to be like another actor. Now to back this up an editor needs to cite a reliable source. To me the best source would be an interview with that actor - irregardless of the format. And by "interview" I mean the person in question is talking about themselves, something that the current guidelines seem to frown upon. I can understand why the guidelines are there in this case - "hype" provided by a studio, label, publicist or even the subject of an article is not always reliable. However if it something "common sense" such as "Who influenced you?" or "What is your favorite song?" why would the actual person not be a reliable source? Soundvisions1 (talk) 00:03, 9 October 2008 (UTC)

• that seems like a misreading of policies. We tend to discourage the use of interviews for interpretive claims about what was said in the interview--in other words, if Actor X is asked if he dated Actress Y and pauses for a long time before answering inconclusively, we are not allowed to interpret that pause and inconclusive answer. However if the actor gives an interview to a reliable source we can cite the things said in there as "actor X said he wants to be like Person A". If the actor gives an interview to a blog or otherwise self-published source, we are to be very cautious about citing claims from there, even if the actor said them (or the source put the words in print as the actor saying them). So if Brad Pitt talks to 60 Minutes about how he really likes Clark Gable, that is fine. If Jonah Hill gives some blog an interview, then we have to be really careful even deciding to cite it at all (remember, they could just be making it up or editing the responses). Protonk (talk) 00:43, 9 October 2008 (UTC)

• I am not asking about "interpretive claims". Two examples: Q: "What do you think about the film?" A: "It was the most fun making the film. It is the best film ever made". If the interview was done during a press junket, no matter what the media source for that was, it might not be anything more than opinion and "hype". However asking a question like that 20 years after the fact: Q: "What was it like working on that film?" A: "I was one of the most fun films I have ever worked on. I still believe it was one one the best films ever made" Now the comments take on a slightly different meaning. In both case we see and/or hear a direct interview and a direct answer. In either case an Editor could write "Even the actor has said the film was their favorite film to work on" and then cite the interview. However I have noticed that Editors will either remove such a sentence, or question it, because it came from an interview and, as such, it is not a "Reliable source" or "only an opinion and not NPOV". And that is part of my question that maybe was not made clear. Again - none of what I am asking is about anyone making "interpretive claims" of an article, only using an actual interview from any media. And I will go one step further - An Editor sees an interview on a television special. The subject of the article talks about a location where an event happened that is not in the article so an Editor uses that, and cites the source as being an interview with the subject. Another editor says that the interview does not mean anything as it is just an "opinion" and that the person doing the interview has been known to "not tell the truth". So now the first Editor finds interviews with other people as well as more interviews/quotes form the same person and they all say the same basic thing. Now all those interviews are cited, and they all come from various sources and periods over the last 30 years. The challenging Editor comes back and says that none of those are "reliable facts", they are all only "opinions". To further back up their claims the challenging Editor says the cited sources themselves are not valid and uses Wikipedia guidelines such as NPOV, Notability and Reliable Sources. Or is that what you mean when you said "misreading of policies"? In the example given the challenging Editor would be misreading the Wikipedia Policies/Guidelines? Soundvisions1 (talk) 13:12, 9 October 2008 (UTC)

• Maybe I dont' understand. If a claim is made in an interview, say "I thought X was a good movie", then the best way to source it is to say "Actor A thought X was "good"" or "in a 1990 interview, actor A said movie X was good". Or something like that. The actor is (obviously) a reliable source of fact on his opinions about the movie or his observations from filming the movie. He isn't a reliable source (normally) for all claims of fact about the movie, so it is best to identify the source when using information from an interview. If this interview is given to a reliable source, then there should be no problems. If editors are removing material sourced to that interview and you are attributing and citing it properly, then you should try to get some outside opinions on your precise problem. If the interview is given to an unreliable source (blogs, podcasts, etc.), then you need to be more careful and it can be a reasonable position to say "I don't think this is a good enough source for the claim".

• In your case, using an interview to describe some objective fact is usually not done unless the interviewee is some expert on that subject. Even if it is some run of the mill fact (like the movie went over budget), it is still best to cite the interview as the interviewee's opinion. What, exactly, is the article and dispute in question? This noticeboard doesn't work to give broad advice for narrowly worded hypothetical questions because context is very, very important. Protonk (talk) 23:01, 9 October 2008 (UTC)

• Sorry Protonk, I try to keep everything NPOV anymore so as to not have anyone say I am Canvassing.If you want me to list something specific I will though. Soundvisions1 (talk) 23:19, 9 October 2008 (UTC)

• Bringing a discussion to this noticeboard isn't canvassing. And telling me what the article is just basically to save me time. I could look through your contributions and find an article that you added or removed material from an interview, but it might not be you and it might take a while. Again, if you are looking for a strong "Yes you can add the content" from here (which really has no power except that most of the editors here are not involved in the articles), then you won't get it without a look at the source and the article. Protonk (talk) 23:22, 9 October 2008 (UTC)

• 1. Talk:Heart (band)#Facts with Citations from the main page concerning Disputed/Questioned items. Dispute about about the year 1974, band members and move to Canada. 20:37, 4 October 2008 (UTC)

• Any other feedback on this? Soundvisions1 (talk) 15:12, 12 October 2008 (UTC)

Picture of a memorial raised by the Slovak government about a controversial issue as a source

Should this picture be accepted without a confirming third party source? I never heard of "tens of thousands of Slovak children deported to Hungary for denationalization". Very controversial claim and this memorial raised by a government often linked to anti-Hungarian views is the only reference for this right now. Squash Racket (talk) 06:28, 9 October 2008 (UTC)

The photo is an adequate source, IMO, for the existence of the memorial and for the existence of the claim if makes. However plaques and memorials are poor sources for facts. They are typically erected by partisans and cannot be corrected easily if there is an error. Further, the text is not attributed. ·:· Will Beback ·:· 21:26, 9 October 2008 (UTC)

Should it remain without a neutral reference confirming it or should it be removed? We are talking about tens of thousands of allegedly deported children. Squash Racket (talk) 04:24, 10 October 2008 (UTC)

My instinct is that the view of a national government is notable and worth mentioning. But there should be no implication that the events actually happened. Itsmejudith (talk) 11:02, 10 October 2008 (UTC)

What article does this concern? ·:· Will Beback ·:· 03:53, 11 October 2008 (UTC)

Thank you for weighing in. Squash Racket (talk) 06:33, 11 October 2008 (UTC)

To my mind, images should not be included in an article unless they illustrate something discussed in the article. So, the question is... Is this memorial discussed in the article? If so, then it is appropriate to have a picture of it. If not, it is inappropriate. Simple. Blueboar (talk) 17:14, 12 October 2008 (UTC)

The American Thinker

Kauffner (talk · contribs) has been inserting material into Dreams from My Father, sourced to The American Thinker. I think that despite its vaguely scholarly air, this source is questionable: I don't see evidence of fact-checking on that site, and I'd certainly say that the claim being promoted (that Barack Obama did not in fact write his acclaimed memoir) falls into the category of an exceptional claim, thus requiring an exceptional source — which this isn't. If this claim gets picked up by mainstream media, then it can be included as a "controversy" — but the views of one writer on a highly partisan website don't constitute a controversy. —Josiah Rowe (talk • contribs) 10:05, 10 October 2008 (UTC)

The writer of the article in question admits that he has no positive evidence, bases his conclusions on nothing more than a few similarities in style and vocabulary, and makes no attempt to consider any alternative views - it is a feeble argument from an obviously partisan source, and certainly unsuitable to support such an exceptional claim. --Adelphoi En Kardia Dios Bous (talk) 10:33, 10 October 2008 (UTC)

Kauffner seems unwilling or unable to accept that this view reflects Wikipedia policy. Any interested parties are welcome to join the discussion at Talk:Dreams from My Father. —Josiah Rowe (talk • contribs) 05:48, 11 October 2008 (UTC)

• Comment - I'm an editor who has become heavily involved in Obama-related articles, so weigh this accordingly... I have concerns whenever an avowedly biased magazine or website is used as a source for statements of fact. Regardless of the direction of that bias, I'm of the opinion that content from such sources should be regarded as editorial in nature, even when labeled as news. --GoodDamon 15:13, 14 October 2008 (UTC)

I agree with GoodDamon and Josiah Rowe--it's not a reliable source for facts, but maybe for opinions--maybe. I'll add that extraordinary claims need extraordinary sourcing, and until this claim gets picked up by some real news sources, we should not be mentioning in WP articles. Yilloslime (t) 15:36, 14 October 2008 (UTC)

Rice

I tried to verify the following material from the rice article.

The Encyclopedia Britannica—on the subject of the first certain cultivated rice—holds that:<ref>''rice''. Encyclopaedia Britannica 2008.</ref>

The origin of rice culture has been traced to India in about 3000 BC. Rice culture gradually spread westward and was introduced to southern Europe in medieval times. With the exception of the type called upland rice, the plant is grown on submerged land in the coastal plains, tidal deltas, and river basins of tropical, semitropical, and temperate regions. The seeds are sown in prepared beds, and when the seedlings are 25 to 50 days old, they are transplanted to a field, or paddy, that has been enclosed by levees and submerged under 5 to 10 cm (2 to 4 inches) of water, remaining submerged during the growing season.

However, when I consulted Encyclopedia Britannica, this quote was nowhere to be found.

I also tried to verify the following text:

Bruce Smith of the Smithsonian Institution advises caution on the Chinese rice hypothesis.<ref name=Harrington>"Earliest Rice" by Spencer P.M. Harrington in ''Archaeology'' June 11, 1997. Archaeological Institute of America (1997).</ref> No morphological studies have been done to determine whether the grain was domesticated.<ref name=Harrington/> According to Smith such a rice would have larger seeds compared to the wild varieties, and would have a strong rachis or spine for holding grain.<ref name=Harrington/>

However, when I checked the source in question I couldn't find any mention of Bruce Smith or his statements.

Is this allowed? Exactly what is the user who made these edits trying to pull?

Also, this PDF is cited as a source for Indian consumption of rice by 8000 BCE.

This source strikes me as fringe, not only because the 8000 BCE Indian rice date is an outlier well outside of the mainstream, but also because it gives a 3700–2000 BC date for the Vedas, an antedating associated with fringe nationalist claims. Satyam E. Jayate (talk) 12:34, 10 October 2008 (UTC)

I know only too well how easy it is to insert misleading claims about the first dates of rice cultivation because I added material to paddy field that claimed an early date for Vietnam; this was reverted and correctly so. Let us, for the time being at least, assume good faith on the part of editors and see what needs to be done to improve the article. You raise questions about three sources. The first is Encyclopedia Britannica. The most likely reason for the discrepancy is that Britannica has changed its text. Well, we should not be using Britannica as a source anyway for such an important article. I believe there are a number of scholarly books and articles devoted to the question of when rice cultivation (and wet rice cultivation) emerged, and where. The debate is by no means settled, as new archaeological discoveries are being made and they can be interpreted in different ways. So this scholarly debate needs to be represented properly in the encyclopedia and that must be done by referring directly to the work of those scholars. Which brings me to the second source you mention, Harrington. This is a poor source because it is from the Online News section of Archaeology. I found the WP sentence word-for-word at the end of the second paragraph of Harrington. That doesn't matter: the important thing is to make use of the scholarly sources instead of this. And your third source. It seems like a good and relevant article. The problem is not that it is fringe, but that it is being used for purposes other than the ones it was written for. The original research that it presents is mainly on the first millenium BCE, when it is agreed that rice was being cultivated in India. It uses literary sources to find out some more detail about that cultivation. The fact that it gives early dates of the Vedas might ring alarm bells but the article does not insist on these dates and the point does not really affect the paper's main line of argument. So I would say that this paper is OK as a source for the article generally, but not for the point in question: the first date of rice cultivation. Itsmejudith (talk) 13:20, 10 October 2008 (UTC)

Joe Baugher

I've been writing aviation-related articles for about a decade now. During that time I've come to rely on Joe Baugher's extensive list of American Military Aircraft. This list consists mostly of articles created by collecting information from other sources, essentially identical to the process used to create articles for the Wikipedia. They tend to be much longer than suitable for a Wikipedia article, but the creation process is similar, and the results excellent.

On several occasions I have been able to check his references after the fact. I have yet to find a single error that isn't in the original source. The simple fact that he includes his references in the articles is a good indicator of their quality, IMHO. Further, when I conducted a straw poll over on the Aviation project, every one of the "known suspects" agreed that JB was a good source.

So why am I here? Well during an FA on the F-20, the article was failed because it used JB as a source. I pointed out that he is well known, so much so that he even has his own wiki article. That resulted in a more focused counterclaim, that no one has referenced his aircraft articles, and therefore they fail the SPS requirement. I have never seen this before, generally when someone is a well known and trusted author you are free to use their works for references in spite of the fact that not every single thing they have written has not been mentioned by someone else. This entire point seemed, well, nuts.

To add to my confusion, it seems that the source is being failed for all the wrong reasons. As I see it, SPS is an attempt to weed out low-quality references, for the simple reason that many SPS's fall into the low-quality category. But JB's writings absolutely do not. And the criterion right above SPS is "Reliable sources", which states "Articles should rely on reliable, third-party published sources with a reputation for fact-checking and accuracy.", a label that his works fit to a T.

Soooo, which is it? In my opinion, Reliable trumps SPS. Further, IMHO, that SPS's primary concern is weeding out low-quality sources like moon-hoax conspiracy sites, which are generally SPS, and not to weed out high-quality sources just because they are SPS.

Am I interpreting this correctly?

Maury Markowitz (talk) 18:01, 10 October 2008 (UTC)

You'll appreciate that FA have to have impeccable sources. You say his work has "a reputation for fact-checking and accuracy". OK, so apart from you, who says that? Can you find any mentions of the quality of his website? You say he is trusted; who trusts him? At this stage you'll find it is worth tracking down as much as you can about how his work is put to use. Otherwise, all we have to go on is that you personally have never found an error. Good luck. Itsmejudith (talk) 18:19, 10 October 2008 (UTC)

1) who besides me? I said above; everyone that weighed in on the topic in the Aviation Wikiproject.i Colletively the group likely edited 10% of the entire body of aviation articles here.

2) find any mentions? Meaning what, exactly? This is what I'm asking YOU!

Mr. Baugher has both published several articles on aviation topics, and has been cited by others (see Google Scholar), so at minimum I think he qualifies as an "expert writing in his field". Which would mean that his opinion is notable. Perhaps attribution is the way to go here... as in: "According to aviation expert Joe Baugher, the best feature of the F-14 Tomcat was its modified Greeblefrob recipricating doohicky <cite to his webpage>." Blueboar (talk) 18:40, 10 October 2008 (UTC)

Remove other Baughers (Hugh B., Brigitta B.) from the g-search, and it shrinks down to an unacceptable low number. But I would agree that there are scarcely any more reliable sources in the paramilitary fandom. Yes, the topic is not the subject of refined academic research, and exposing it to the same level of scrutiny as Jupiter or Winston Churchill is pointless. Sourcing from Baugher is not good for FA but it's what's available. Just accept the fact that some topics are not properly researched for a FA, and some will never be. NVO (talk) 06:45, 11 October 2008 (UTC)

NVO, what do you base any of your comments on? Why do you describe this as "paramilitary fandom"? What is paramilitary about an aircraft? What is fandom about a technical article? Have you even looked at the reference in question? The articles are fully referenced. Maury Markowitz (talk) 17:55, 11 October 2008 (UTC)

Sarah Palin e-mail controversy

The sources in this article need a proper fisking, and the unreliable ones removed. the skomorokh 18:33, 10 October 2008 (UTC)

• See the item near the top of the page: This noticeboard deals specifically with sources, not articles. General questions about articles, including "which sources in Article X are reliable?" may be beyond the scope of this noticeboard and may be better handled on the article talk page or the talk page of an interested WikiProject. I think many of the regulars here may be reluctant to get involved unless a specific source is identified as problematic. However, I may take a look at the article myself. --Metropolitan90 (talk) 02:39, 11 October 2008 (UTC)
  • With respect, that is a poor use of this noticeboard. It should be a resource where editors concerned and knowledgeable about reliable sources may be notified of issues. Thank you for offering to take a look. the skomorokh 16:05, 11 October 2008 (UTC)
    • Not in my mind. I would prefer to not wade into article by article controversies, especially those related to american politics in an election year. Protonk (talk) 16:20, 11 October 2008 (UTC)

Is an official site "reliable"?

There is a disagreement with a user over the use of eurovision.tv as a source of information for Yugoslavia in the Eurovision Song Contest. It is the official website of the contest and includes a history section. The other user is claiming that this is a POV violation since we are only using this website to source a fact. He says that it is not the official stance of the contest and that some IT person wrote it so it cannot be trusted. He also claims that the sites disclaimer voids any information from being reliable. There was an error on the site, so I sent an email, they acknowledged the error and corrected it. This did not please the user (even though it was something he complained about) as he now thinks that it cannot be trusted because they change things because of emails. We then tracked down "the official history" book of the contest [15], but the user does not "trust" the author. So are we right to be arguing for these sources? Grk1011/Stephen (talk) 22:56, 10 October 2008 (UTC)

Such a site would normally be considered reliable, as would the book. If there is another source that contradicts it on a specific issue then you could mention both. Itsmejudith (talk) 23:09, 10 October 2008 (UTC)

The only thing that contradicts both is the user's knowledge of Yugoslav politics. He feels that the contest has no right to say and do what they have, so the article should ignore it, but I don't see how you can write an article about the contest not in terms of the contest, get my problem? Grk1011/Stephen (talk) 23:16, 10 October 2008 (UTC)

The organizers of the Song Contest should know what happened in the Song Contest, which is the subject of this article. It could well be the case that they slipped up when they were describing the status of Yugoslavia and its related state entities at any particular time. Can you resolve the problem by adding a text in a footnote, with the UN or similar as a source? Itsmejudith (talk) 23:37, 10 October 2008 (UTC)

Well its known what happened, but this user and now another one don't feel that the EBU and the contest had the right to do what they did claiming that they are "not God". They provide example like the Olympics, etc where other things happened, but that can't change what happened at the contest. In particular, they want to split the page into "Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia in the ESC" and "Federal Republic of Yugoslavia in the ESC" since the 1992 (last entry) was performed by the latter. The contest considers them to both be Yugoslavia, even though they weren't politically the same country, so having two articles would not correctly document the Yugoslavia that participated, especially since it was the same broadcaster as the previous entries, and under the same membership. Grk1011/Stephen (talk) 00:25, 11 October 2008 (UTC)

And people who are interested in knowing more about participation in Eurovision will be able to find the information in a single article. All we can really say about sources is that yes, the song contest's official publications are reliable for what happened in the contest. Not of course for what constituted a particular nation state at a point in time. Itsmejudith (talk) 11:47, 11 October 2008 (UTC)

This is somewhat like my thread above (Common sense and interviews) where I ask if the source of information is direct from the subject of the article is it reliable or should it be disregarded as "just an opinion". While I am speaking about a one on one interview it would apply to "official websites" as well. In my opinion I think that if the information is only about a certain "fact", such as "When was the first Eurovision contest?" or "Yugoslavia first was represented at Eurovision during the 19xx competition" there is no reason why that information could not come from an "official" source. I think the way several of the WP guidelines are currently worded it forces editors to question certain statements, thusly causing a backlash of automatically saying that any information coming from either an "official" source or from someone directly involved with the articles subject is NPOV, thusly not reliable. I strongly feel that common sense should be used and information looked at on a case by case basis rather than making a blanket generalization. Soundvisions1 (talk) 16:05, 11 October 2008 (UTC)

Well, the point of this noticeboard is to discuss sourcing on a case-by-case basis. I'm somewhat alarmed by the idea that any information from an official source is to be disregarded. Would anyone have a problem sourcing information about London Underground lines from the Transport for London website? I don't think so, and so I agree with you that it is fine to use the Eurovision organisation as a source for how the competition was organised. Itsmejudith (talk) 17:26, 12 October 2008 (UTC)

OK, thanks. Grk1011/Stephen (talk) 03:08, 14 October 2008 (UTC)

I explained in details on the YU ECS Talk page that eurovision.tv contains some heavy factual errors. Before going to the Talk page please note: I used many abbreviations and terms which not everyone may be familiar with: "Jugovizija" was the Yugoslav national pre-selection, SFRY is Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, while FRY is Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. Both called themselfes "Yugoslavia", but the international community didnt recognize the latter as a legal succesor, but treated it as a brand new country. Hence, I see no reason why these two different political entities should be merged in a single article. Also, User:Grk1011 mentions that eurovision.tv corrected some of its mistakes. I visited the site today and first I noticed that Extra Nena is not listed under SFRY (maybe thats what Grk was refering to), but I refreshed the page in the browser, and that entry re-appeared. I dont understand what is this, maybe its due to web cache. I cleand the cache from my browser, and Extra Nena appears. Also, the eurovision.tv's "history by country" section contains only "Yugoslavia" without having separate SFRY and FRY entries. What they corrected, I dont understand? Extra Nena is still listed as participant under the SFRY's flag , although on May 9 1992 when that year's ESC took place, that country was definetly dead. --Dzole (talk) 16:20, 15 October 2008 (UTC)

I agree with Dzole that the correction Grk1011/Stephen speaks about was not the correction but a method of deliberate misinformation of the eurovision.tv webmaster. The only thing that changed is what Grk1011 insist: the title (heading) of the table changed from "represented the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia" to "represented Yugoslavia" and also the flag icons were deleted, except on ESC 1992 where you can still see that those eurovision.tv webmasters do not know nothing about who represented what country. That link portrays a flag icon of the SFRY instead of the flag icon of the FRY. And even Grk1011 cannot hide the fact that Ekstra Nena represented FRY (participated under the flag of the FRY).

That flag issue is very important to demonstrate that eurovision.tv webmaster(s) and journalists do not know and do not present definite and precise information, probably in an attempt to hide the fact of irregularities of FRY participating in the contest.

The book he mentioned is not an issue of the EBU but a single (USA) author.

I do not know why Grk1011/Stephen who lives in USA thinks he knows better what happened in ESC 1992 than Dzole, Zvonko and me (editors who live or were born in Yugoslavia). Soundvisions1 clearly supports the position of common sense that we should all agree upon. We simply cannot use information that contradict itself (eurovision.tv) and contradict the FL articles on this Wikipedia.

Imbris (talk) 18:09, 15 October 2008 (UTC)

Is Amazon.com a reliable source?

Hi, wondering whether Amazon.com is usable as an inline citation, such as at I Want You, I Need You, I Love You. I've been going through song stubs to remove copyright violations and obviously unreliable sources (blogspot, tripod, etc.) and a reasonable number of Amazon.com cites keep turning up. I haven't actually removed them because I suppose Amazon.com is fairly accurate about their listing data. Still, it doesn't look very encyclopedic to be citing a sales listing. Seeking additional opinions. Durova^Charge! 10:40, 11 October 2008 (UTC)

• In cases such as this it seems more like a "sales pitch" in that it is not really information on the release but a page selling the release and contains information on the release. While not always a good idea you could use the Elvis '56 (1987) (TV) listing at the internet Movie Database which includes the soundtrack listing. You might even cite a library's listing such as: Skagit Valley College Library/Media Services 781.64 PRES/el Presley, Elvis. Elvis 56 [CD] 1996. I am not against using amazon to easily show quotes in books. For example if I said "Ted Nugent has said living the clean, sober lifestyle is a way to start living like he does". I could cite the book "Ted, White and Blue" and link to Chapter 1, Page 4 which is an excerpt from the book that will show you Chapter 1 and allow you to "turn the page" and read Page 4. Soundvisions1 (talk) 16:32, 11 October 2008 (UTC)

• Actually, IMDB has been specifically disallowed as a reliable source because it's an open edit site. Durova^Charge! 17:39, 11 October 2008 (UTC)

That is not true without qualification. the skomorokh 17:43, 11 October 2008 (UTC)

Where did you obtain such an opinion? A formerly featured list I created years ago when sourcing standards were looser had used IMDB to verify that historic films had existed. All of those citations later had to be removed because IMDB isn't even valid for that much. This was one of the reasons the list is no longer featured. It leaves me doubtful about the value of the advice I did seek, to find that unsolicited opinion repeatedly asserted. Durova^Charge! 18:02, 11 October 2008 (UTC)

We can dig though the archives here but the consensus is that some fuzzy line exists on IMdb separating editorially controlled content from user generated content. We don't know where that line exists but we guess it exists somewhere below the "basic information" level. As a result we tend to reject 100% information sourced to imdb trivia pages, quote pages, etc, but accept (sometimes) information sourced to the main title page (director, creation date, etc.). At no point has this been a clear or rigorous application of a known policy. Many times I have seen articles sourced to imdb which would be fine (imo) for everyday articles but not fine for featured articles/lists, as I would presume that featured articles require not just sources but the best possible sources. So I wouldn't come down too hard on skomorokh for holding an opinion that fits roughly in the set of agreed upon opinions about imdb. Protonk (talk) 18:15, 11 October 2008 (UTC)

Yes, please do. I'm curious where that consensus arose. Put yourself in my shoes for a moment and imagine the surprise: I've earned 152 featured content credits across 5 of the site's 6 featured content types. And in response to an unrelated question, someone calls a source 'great' that had turned out to be completely disallowed (I had used it very conservatively) and that site had been responsible for one of the few featured delistings that has ever happened to my work. Huge double take, there. I really wonder where that came from. Durova^Charge! 18:40, 11 October 2008 (UTC)

Ok. This will mainly just be a link dump because there are lots of conversations. Just search for the string "imdb" to find them. [16], [17], [18], [19], [20], [21], [22], [23], [24], [25], [26], [27]. The links at the end are to wikiproject film, which had some rousing discussions about imdb. the RS/N and WT:RS links don't really feature any great discussions about sourcing coming from first principles. Just a few people chiming in here and there and a basic "no consensus to nope" on the subject. Protonk (talk) 19:00, 11 October 2008 (UTC)

Those links don't come anywhere near to establishing consensus that IMDB is reliable, much less a 'great source'. The only issue under serious debate was whether IMDB user popularity polls would ever be citable, which would fall under the designation of self-published information rather than being any argument for the site's overall reliability. It's mightily disappointing to come to this board with an unrelated question and see such a dubious assertion raised by multiple editors, when there was no actual need to bring IMDB into the discussion at all. If I didn't have years of experience on this project I probably would have have actually come away with the impression that IMDB was a preferred source. Currently I am reviewing thousands of seldom-patrolled song stubs for compliance with copyright and basic sourcing standards. Fellow editors, I ask you to step back and consider what you are asserting here--consider the damage these offhand comments could do. Usually this board has been a good source of feedback, but it it does this forum no credit to encounter these responses, and finally see evidence that rather substantiates the opposite. Durova^Charge! 20:09, 11 October 2008 (UTC)

....excuse me, but what are you talking about? I'm not presenting those sources as a means to claim that imdb is a reliable source. I'm presenting them as a list of discussions where no consensus was reached but where people felt generally that there was some dividing line in imdb somewhere between the obviously unnaceptable user-generated side and a possible portion of imdb that is policed by paid editors. I can't ensure that everyone here offers advice with a full view of past debates and with the appropriate caution. But I really don't understand how this debate somehow brings this noticeboard into disrepute. Protonk (talk) 20:21, 11 October 2008 (UTC)

• Durova, I am confused now. You keep saying someone here said that Internet Movie Database was a "great source" but I have read this thread several times up to this point and I don't see anyone who said that. I know I didn't. I said "While not always a good idea..." and Protonk said "we tend to reject 100% information sourced to IMDB trivia pages, quote pages, etc...". I don't see anyone using the term "great" anywhere in relation to the Internet Movie Database. You bring up a round about question I see as aimed at me with your "...there was no actual need to bring IMDB into the discussion at all" comment, however you asked a question which I answered and gave you options. This thread has drifted away for the original question which was about how to cite the soundtrack to the film Elvis 56. All I said was there are options, and, as Protonk also said, IMDB is a source where items such as "director, creation date, etc." sometimes are accepted. I have used it to cite things such as credits, but it has not been the sole cited source either. Soundvisions1 (talk) 00:18, 12 October 2008 (UTC)

If we are talking about ISBNs, release dates, formats etc., then Amazon is quite reliable. The concern as you say is the commercial nature of the enterprise - I don' t think it's a violation of WP:SPAM, but it's something a free project should seek to avoid. I would say that Amazon cites should be replaced by non-commercial reliable sources where possible - Ottobib and WorldCat are exceptional for books, while Allmusic and IMdB are great for music and film - but if an Amazon source is all that can be found, it should be ok (unless the article is going for WP:QA). the skomorokh 16:24, 11 October 2008 (UTC)

I agree that it depends on what you are trying to source. For basic facts, it can be seen as a source of last resort... use it if you can not find the information anywhere else. Definitely do not use it for reviews or opinions about the book. Blueboar (talk) 16:39, 11 October 2008 (UTC)

That's an interesting issue - if Amazon quotes, in it's editorial reviews section, a review from a reliable sources, can that be used to source a Critical reception section of a Wikipedia article? For example, this Amazon page contains extract from a review of the work in Publisher's Weekly; if that review could not be found online elsewhere, could it be used? Furthermore, what about notable Amazon (user) reviewers who are under WP:SPS considered credible? the skomorokh 16:46, 11 October 2008 (UTC)

The problem there is that they may only quote an excerpt. I'd say you at the very least need the issue number, etc. And although I used a review from Publisher's Weekly, later on I found a review from them that was pretty ropy and that I wouldn't rely on. Doug Weller (talk) 16:55, 11 October 2008 (UTC)

• As far as the "editorial reviews" are concerned, I think the discussion about that hasn't been archived yet. I'm not sure what to do if the excerpt AMazon has is the only available copy. My gut says: "don't cite" because citing excerpts isn't a great idea, but I'm not too sure. I have also notices that Amazon doesn't always get the name and date right for newspaper reviewers. I have had to modify my searches more than a few times to correct for an inaccurate Amazon reported review date in order to find the right review in Lexis-Nexis. Protonk (talk) 17:37, 11 October 2008 (UTC)

Whether A Source Constitutes Original Research

I am engaged in a dispute with another editor on this talk page about the reliability of sources for the article. Although I am not innocent for remaining calm in the discussion, the editor has responded in an aggressive attitude and removed these sources from the article on grounds that they are contentious material about a living person. He has also stated that some of the sources constitute original research, and do not bear direct relevance to the living person in question.

There are a few other editors involved in the dispute, and who have been accused of Meat Puppetry by this editor, of trying to sabotage or defame the article. Because I got involved in trying to reconcile the use of sources for the article, I have also been included in the Meat Puppetry report. Because the other editor appears to be very passionate and accusatory in his responses (despite having a good knowledge of Wikipedia guidelines), I question the neutrality of the article. What we need is a neutral third party to weigh the arguments, to determine the reliability and relevance of sources, and to determine if there is NPOV in the article.

Thank you for your help. Rabicante (talk) 00:29, 12 October 2008 (UTC)

Editors can, but are barred from engaging in original research. External sources don't engage in OR, the question regarding external sources is that of reliability, which is generally determined by publisher, peer review and reputation of the author. The other concern is undue weight; in other words, is excessive detail given to one aspect of the discussion/sourcing/controversy/what have you. Original research doesn't seem to really be a concern unless it is the editor who is doing so. WLU (t) (c) ^{(rules - simple rules)} 00:43, 12 October 2008 (UTC)

Having taken a look at the talk page in question, what is being claimed is that the source is being used improperly, as part of an original synthesis (see WP:SYNT)... and that this is aWP:NOR violation. You need to ask about that at the WP:NOR talk page. Blueboar (talk) 01:02, 12 October 2008 (UTC)

Yes that's right. I never said the source in itself wasn't reliable, but that it was being used for original synthesis. The claims being put forward are not found in the source cited. Matt reltub (talk) 13:11, 12 October 2008 (UTC)

Acclaimedmusic.net

Can acclaimedmusic.net be considered a reliable source for listing an album's awards and accolades? Google Books shows the site is mentioned in The Music Internet Untangled: Using Online Services to Expand Your Musical Horizons, ISBN 1932340025, but I'm not so sure that's enough to make the site a source with a "reputation for fact-checking and accuracy". Any comments would be appreciated. Thanks, Spellcast (talk) 23:14, 12 October 2008 (UTC)

• If you will be saying something such as "Their second album was listed on the (Need list name) critics list for the year 1983" and you needed to find what 1983 critic's list the release made it onto than I think it would be a fine place to start. To me this is not much different than going to a library and looking in their system to find articles that related to something. However you might not cite the library directly, but you would cite the article you found. Thusly while I might use Acclaimed Music's list of lists as a starting point I would not cite that directly but the list you found there (And the link to it if one of given). Soundvisions1 (talk) 23:34, 12 October 2008 (UTC)

Yeah as much as possible, I try sourcing the actual publication. I'm working on Paid in Full (album) and I'm thinking of removing the "Accolades" section until I can find a direct reference to the critic's list. Some accolades are available on the music publication's website (although most aren't). But still, would it be ok to source acclaimedmusic.net to simply say that an album made it on some critic's list? Spellcast (talk) 00:15, 13 October 2008 (UTC)

sfweekly

On the Violet Blue page a section about VB's attempt to file a restraining order against WP editor BenBurch was removed for WP:Note. After the removal, an article was published in sfweekly that covers the issue. So whether the material gets added back in seems to hinge upon whether sfweekly is a reliable source. Editor Tabercil notes on the discussion page for violet blue that sfweekly is used at least 475 times on wikipedia. SFWEEKLY is a well established publication, with significant ad revenues, professional staff, and both RL and Online circulation. Here's the sfweekly page, http://www.sfweekly.com/2008-08-20/news/sex-columnist-violet-blue-tries-to-restrain-online-foes/ Any thoughts?C4VC3 (talk) 02:23, 13 October 2008 (UTC)

For goings-on in SF and the Bay Area, the SF weekly is a reliable source. It is one of 2 Alt weeklies serving SF. It is a "real" newspaper, with significant distribution and readership, an editorial board, professional reporters, etc. Yilloslime (t) 16:55, 13 October 2008 (UTC)

"El Mercurio" Newspaper and Letter to the Editor

Resolved

 – Unacceptable source and statement will be deleted

Regarding the Bicycle Kick article, the following link was added as a source: [28]

• It is a letter to the editor in Spanish, but for those who do not know Spanish you can see that this is a letter to the editor because it starts with: "Señor Director:" (Spanish for "Mr. Editor" or "Mr. Director").
• The person writing this statement is shown to be: "Pedro Leguina Eguía"
• In the Wikipedia bicycle kick article, the user who included this source wrote: "Investigator Eduardo Bustos Alister includes that by Unzaga performing the kick in these early tournaments in front of Argentines, Brazilians, and Uruguayans they in turn learned, practiced, and spread the move around the world.[29]"

I am completely dubious about this statement and the source. Wikipedia does not know whether "El Mercurio" newspaper has its "Letters to the Editor" previously peer-reviewed. Also, the "mentioning" of a certain person named "Eduardo Bustos Alister" as the person to source clearly shows that the Wikipedist that included this "Letter to the Editor" citation did not even take notice of the actual person who wrote the letter: "Pedro Leguina Eguia." In other words, to help both you and me summarize the information:

• "Eduardo Bustos Alister" is not a famous person and is completely unknown. None of his commentaries should be taken as factual.
• The Wikipedist, User: Selecciones de la Vida, who added this information has not even paid attention that the "writer" of this letter is actually "Pedro Leguina Eguia."
• Wikipedia does not know whether "El Mercurio" has reliable "Letters to the Editor."
• The statement: "Investigator Eduardo Bustos Alister includes that by Unzaga performing the kick in these early tournaments in front of Argentines, Brazilians, and Uruguayans they in turn learned, practiced, and spread the move around the world." Seems to be highly POV and not intentioned for "good faith."

I think these things qualify for this link to be taken out and for the statement that it sourced to be deleted. Nonetheless, I would like to hear the opinions of people here first.--[|!*//MarshalN20\\*!|] (talk) 13:30, 13 October 2008 (UTC)

LTE's are almost never acceptable sources. I can think of exceptions, but this isn't one of them. Yilloslime (t) 15:11, 13 October 2008 (UTC)

Nationalist Polish newspapers

WP:RS is quite clear: Organizations and individuals that express views that are widely acknowledged by reliable sources as fringe, pseudoscience or extremist should be used only as sources about themselves and in articles about themselves or their activities[30]. But sadly this is not the case. Currently Wikipedia is plagued by nationalist Polish newspapers, that are used as a references. So far all discussions to find common ground failed, so broader input is necessary no find out where the community consensus is. So my question is - should or should not whose newspapers used as reliable source:

Głos, currently used as a reference in FA article Józef Piłsudski. It is described as radical right weeklyanti-Semitic weekly This newspaper has been criticized for publishing anti-Semitic hate-speach articles advocating expulsion of the Jews from Israel to Florida, and promoting the Jewish world domination conspiracy theories[31]. I'd say it is obvious WP:FRINGE source, that has no place in Featured Article, but some think otherwise [32]

Gazeta Polska. Another extreme nationalist newspaper. According to The Crosses of Auschwitz: Nationalism and Religion in Post-Communist Poland By Geneviève Zubrzycki published by University of Chicago Press, 2006 page 223 "Gazeta Polska and Nasza Polska are Far-Right weeklies" and "should not be considered mainstream". So WP:RS violation should be obvious. Not to some. It took months of discussion to stop reinsertion of an article [33] from Gazeta Polska written by Marek A. Wojciechowski (under a penname Kordian Krawietz), a representative of the neo-fascist National Revival of Poland and a contributor to the openly anti-Semitic magazine ‘Szczerbiec’. Problem solved? Nope. Gazeta Polska is still used as an reference in Wiki [34][35].

Nasz Dziennik, part of anti-Semitic Radio Maryja broadcasting group is [36] described as far right [37], radical nationalist [38], and ethno-nationalist [39]. I'd say - an obvious case of unreliable source. But again some think that Radio Maryja's antisemitic channel is "just a newspaper" [40]. And when mass blind reverts are used to reinsert this newspaper as a reference to a dozen of Wiki articles, one might feel kind of helpless [41][42]and dozen of other reverts.

So I would really like to know where the community consensus on this question is. M0RD00R (talk) 18:20, 13 October 2008 (UTC)

This needs going into carefully but I have one thing to say straight away. Most of the articles you refer to are history articles. They should be sourced more or less exclusively from works by academic historians. Not from newspapers and magazines, whatever their politics. The case of the article on Lysiak is a bit different as the source is only there to show that he wrote an article in a magazine. Itsmejudith (talk) 12:57, 14 October 2008 (UTC)

In many ways, this is no different from, to use a super-nationalistic example, Soviet sources. Whether or not something happened is one level of reliability. Even Soviet sources are generally reliable to that degree. What the interpretation of an event is, however, is a different level of reliability--non-mainstream interpretations likely should be attributed. Whether or not someone has what others consider an extremist nationalist POV (even the most rabid extremist believes in their own objectivity) is not an implicit judgement on a particular contention.

   Also, in indicating a source is extremist, we need better references than news articles merely saying they are extremist. That is the opinion of one reporter without any specific example provided. I regularly read the most despicable and vile contentions about Latvians reported in mainstream newspapers which are utterly false.

   If a contention--any contention--is viewed as incorrect, then it should be tagged as to why, and the discussion taken from there. —PētersV (talk) 17:21, 14 October 2008 (UTC)

A newspaper that regularly prints despicable and vile contentions about Latvians is ipso facto not mainstream. Itsmejudith (talk) 18:10, 14 October 2008 (UTC)

Peters I really don't know what news articles and reporters you are referring to, because in my post I cite books published by respectable publishing companies. And only news article references connection between Nasz Dziennik and Radio Maryja, but if you will insist I will easily replace it with multiple WP:RS, if you are finding New York Times unreliable for some reason unknown to me. Specific examples are also provided.

I definitely agree with Judith that history related articles should be sourced from works by academic historians, but sadly that is not the case in some Wiki areas, as has been noted by many editors before. But if encyclopedia is build on newspapers, all I hope at least extremist media will not be disseminated here. M0RD00R (talk) 20:23, 14 October 2008 (UTC)

Academic sources would almost always be preferable. But everything should be seen in perspective. The question is: are those newspapers used to cite controversial information that could be affected by their perceived bias (i.e. are they being used to support anti-semitic POV, for example)? In Pilsudski's article, Glos is used only once to support uncontroversial statement about origin of a quote ([43]). A cursory look at the literature verfies its not a hoax. In the case of Piłsudski's Mound, it's just listed as one of the elinks - and considering the fringness of a subject, any "more information about the subject link" is rather welcome (of course, if one can show that the article in question contains anti-semitic claims or other hate mongering, than I'd fully support its removal). I am not familiar with the two other articles, and I certainly agree that care should be taken not to cite some hate mongering "far right" stuff.--_{Piotr Konieczny aka Prokonsul Piotrus| talk} 20:48, 14 October 2008 (UTC)

Policy is very clear - fringe, extremist sources are meant to be used as references only about themselves. Period. For example, Stormfront.org covers many seemingly uncontroversial topics - gardening, cooking, etc, but we still don't use it as a reference in wiki, even if statements themselves are not controversial. M0RD00R (talk) 20:56, 14 October 2008 (UTC)

Christ Church South Cambs on Talk:Sawston

A minor but seemingly intractable dispute has arisen at Talk:Sawston. Although there is some history here, it’s simplest not to bring it up (it’s on the talk page if you feel the need). The question for this board is this: Is Christ Church South Cambs (CCSC) part of the Church of England (COE) (i.e. Anglican Church), or not? The sources provided by each side appear to be contradictory. I thought it best to bring it up here for help in weighing the sources.

I’m filing this on behalf of the two main disputants (if that’s a word). There are other issues involved, but I think it hinges on the relative reliability of the sources, which is why I brought it here. I originally came into the dispute to try to stop an edit war, but have slowly come to agree more with one than with the other, so I no longer consider myself an impartial outside opinion.

The sources below were summarized (IMHO accurately, but I could be wrong) by Petemyers (talk · contribs), who believes CCSC is a part of COE. For what it’s worth, I agree. Cuckoosnest (talk · contribs) believes it is not. I believe both sides’ objections to the others’ references are presented here, but I’m notifying both editors I’ve brought this here, so they can correct me if I am wrong.

• CCSC website which claims to be COE
• St Mary's website, the "parish" church, which claims to be the only COE church in Sawston
• Crosslinks Mission Partner website, an Anglican Mission agency of which Tim Chapman is an Associate. More info
• A church near you website, apparently run by the COE, which says CCSC is COE. Cuckoosnest seems to be saying anyone can edit this site so it isn’t reliable; it’s not clear to me if this is true or not.
• The Ely Diocese Fresh Expressions page, which shows that the diocese recognises "Fresh Expressions of Church" outside of the traditional parish structure - which would explain why CCSC doesn't have a page with the other "parish" churches... as it is one of these new fangled Anglican movement thingies.

So, based on these dueling sources, is either side basing their argument on dubious sources? The article is about Sawston, so I really hesitate to bring up the fact that there is some disagreement about this in the article itself, per WP:UNDUE. And it seems like throwing the baby out with the bathwater to just remove denomination from all the other churches in the list as a compromise.

Finally, this is my first time posting to WP:RSN I didn’t know it existed until a surprisingly short time ago , so if I’ve misunderstood the nature of the board, let me know early and I’ll move it. --barneca (talk) 18:06, 14 October 2008 (UTC)

It's CoE, and you only need to cite its own website for that. But why not take the opportunity to write a just a sentence or two, either in the main article body or in a footnote about this initiative. It's a notable fact about this village that it has a "new-style" church of this new type when other villages do not. Itsmejudith (talk) 18:35, 14 October 2008 (UTC)

Reliable source

This is being used as a ref on a controversial article that has seen a lot of edit wars and am curious if it can be described as a RS, IMO it is an overly long blog. It is claimed it is a word for word account of a book ISBN 9780955806902 I have searched for the book in a few places and can't find it. BigDunc^Talk 18:10, 14 October 2008 (UTC)

I'm not sure that "blog" applies. I'd guess that it has been put onto the web by the "Regimental Association of the UDR" and that it is history of the regiment commissioned from an amateur historian, one of their members perhaps. This is definitely not a mainstream history text as there is no copy in the British Library. It might be OK for non-contentious detail of the regiment - I mean things like what mascots they had - but not for anything that might be challenged. Certainly don't use anything from the chapter "Irish history". Itsmejudith (talk) 18:55, 14 October 2008 (UTC)

AccessMyLibrary.com and Web.archive.org

Is AccessMyLibrary.com an RS? And can Web.archive.org be used as a source when a source turns dead? Shahid • ^Talk2me 18:17, 14 October 2008 (UTC)

The first question is really a category mistake. These aren't really sources, so they can't be reliable or unreliable. It's like asking if an ISP is a reliable source. It is always assumed that ISPs don't fiddle with the bits that they send you, and the same is assumed of accessmylibrary and the webarchive. For your second question, yes, it is good practice and encouraged to restore dead links using the wayback machine.John Z (talk) 22:39, 14 October 2008 (UTC)

OK, thank you for the reply. It's great that I can use web.archive, but I found a good article on AccessMyLibrary.com. Can I use it then or not? Shahid • ^Talk2me 22:58, 14 October 2008 (UTC)

What is the article? Would you mind linking it? Protonk (talk) 05:02, 15 October 2008 (UTC)

But it requires registration. Shahid • ^Talk2me 15:03, 15 October 2008 (UTC)

If you post the link, I'll see if it is hosted on another database. Protonk (talk) 15:13, 15 October 2008 (UTC)

Television Documentary "Islam: Empire of Faith"

This documentary is being used as a source in the Saladin article. It is being used to insert some POV claims and wild phrases into the article such as "the Islamic world had done nothing to start the offensive" (the "offensive" being the First Crusade), and "The Muslim culture lay in ruins for at least one hundred and four years". I tried to remove those phrases but another editor reverted my edit, saying that the source "is reliable". I have not seen the documentary, but the imdb.com reviews of it are not encouraging. Quotes from various reviews: "funded mostly by Iranian state oil and mining companies, this documentary is dazzling in its presentation, but careless about the historical facts"; "tendentious"; "propagandizing"; an "infomercial"; "mostly propaganda"; "pseudo documentary"; "Great cinematography but biased"; "there is a decidedly pro-Islam bias pervading this film"; "don't take the "historical facts" too seriously"; "the director prostituted himself to covert politics", and so on. Using a TV documentary as a source is risky at the best of times, but this production seems decidedly unsuitable to be used as one. Meowy 19:49, 14 October 2008 (UTC)

Saladin is an important history article so sources should all be works by academic historians. Itsmejudith (talk) 19:57, 14 October 2008 (UTC)

Funny thing actually its a documentary by PBS and made in the US. So how can it be biased. Don't pay any attention to the comments - they're just opinions. Have you actually seen the documentary? There are links on the actual page to Google video and you can see it from there. Lord of Moria _Talk ^Contribs 21:17, 14 October 2008 (UTC)

Where are the reviews? I have only seen one user review. The documentary was made back in the year 2000. Lord of Moria _Talk ^Contribs 21:23, 14 October 2008 (UTC)

You click on the word "more". Meowy 23:16, 14 October 2008 (UTC)

Also there are historians in the documentary talking about the history. If I remember correctly there are about 5 Historians from universities, some of them professors. Lord of Moria _Talk ^Contribs 21:23, 14 October 2008 (UTC)

A TV documentary is rarely a reliable source. There simply is not enough space in it for anything but a cursory treatment. I don't know if this one is better or worse than the average, but for a topic as Saladin, which has literally thousands of scholarly books and articles written about it, there is no reason to use sub-par sources. --Stephan Schulz (talk) 21:55, 14 October 2008 (UTC)

They talk about Saladin in episdoe 2 extensively. I think this illustrates his character which I'd think is important to what he was actually like. The documentary is neutral and informative. Lord of Moria _Talk ^Contribs 22:10, 14 October 2008 (UTC)

The solution is to look out the books and articles authored by the academics who appeared in the documentary. That will give you a much richer source of information. Itsmejudith (talk) 12:44, 15 October 2008 (UTC)

Good idea. I'll get to work on it right away. But I want to leave it up there till I'm done gathering sources to prevent deletion. I'll do it in roughly the next 5 days. Lord of Moria _Talk ^Contribs 14:01, 15 October 2008 (UTC)

Reliability of Articles, Commentaries, etc. that appear in a Scientific Journal.

A small group of editors has come to an impasse regarding whether a group of published commentaries meet WP:RS and should therefore be summarized in the article we are working on, or fail to meet WP:RS and therefore should not be included on the page. We are hoping to have the input from otherwise uninvolved editors to help us resolve the issue. (In the interests of disclosure, the editors most involved in the disagreement are user:Dicklyon, user:DarlieB, user:Hfarmer, user:James Cantor, user:Jokestress, user:ProudAGP, and user:WhatamIdoing.)

Agreed upon facts

• The Archives of Sexual Behavior (ASB) is a prominent academic journal on sexology.
• The June 2008 ASB issue is devoted to the controversy surrounding the 2003 book The Man Who Would Be Queen (TMWWBQ).
• The article is by Alice Dreger and the peer commentaries discuss Dreger's article.
• Peer commentaries are written by notable people, including John Bancroft, Ben Barres, Ray Blanchard, John Gagnon, Richard Green, Deirdre McCloskey, Charles Moser, Seth Roberts, Julia Serano, and ASB Editor-in-Chief Ken Zucker. Who are all notable academics and experts on transsexuality.

Arguments for including peer commentaries

• Peer commentaries are verifiable (published and available for purchase in print and online)
• Peer commentaries are in a reliable source (Archives of Sexual Behavior) alongside the article.
• The article and peer commentaries are all listed individually the same way in PubMed, as well as other databases of academic output.

Arguments for excluding peer commentaries

• In Zucker's editorial introducing that issue of the Archives, Zucker wrote the Dreger article underwent peer-review.
• Zucker wrote, "I reviewed all commentaries and, by and large, made very minor editorial changes and, if there was a substantive issue, did so in consultation with the author."
• Zucker wrote that all commentaries submitted were published (except for one which did not pertain to the topic).
• These commentaries should be treated as letters-to-the-editor.

There are basically three options:

• In this case include only the peer reviewed article itself.
• Treat everything in the journal on an equal footing and use anything published in a journal as a reliable source.
• In this case exclude the whole issues of Archives of Sexual Behavior because the editors, who in this case are all arguably experts on this matter, cannot come to a consensus.

I will add that the above was a negotiated question. See the related talk page to see how complicated this has been. We thank you for your help. --Hfarmer (talk) 00:22, 15 October 2008 (UTC)

I do not want to pre-empt input from uninvolved editors, but I would like to clear up two ambiguities:

• The above list of people who are "notable academics and experts on transsexuality" should not be interpreted (in my opinion) to mean that everybody on that list is both a notable academic and an expert on transsexuality. That is, some people are arguably one, but arguably not the other. Moreover, because still more commentaries were also submitted by people who are neither, it would be useful to have some guidance regarding just whose opinion merits mention. (My own opinion is that the commentaries did not undergo peer-review and do not, therefore, meet WP:RS, but I can appreciate exceptions for individual commentaries from people who are experts on the topic, such as individuals who have previously published on it in well-established RS's.)
• "Experts on this matter" should be interpreted (in my opinion) to mean very well-versed on the controversies surrounding the topic, rather than "expert" in the WP sense of having formal credentials or having authored documents in RS's on the topic.
  

— James Cantor (talk) 01:10, 15 October 2008 (UTC)

For related previous discussions, please see Wikipedia:Reliable_sources/Noticeboard/Archive_18#Guidance_on_pseudonymous_authors. While most of these "letters to the editor" are by well-known sexologists or by prominent transsexual activists, one is by an author whose identity is unknown. WhatamIdoing (talk) 02:25, 15 October 2008 (UTC)

See also Dr. Wyndzen's response to the above two editors when they previously attempted to exclude her published peer commentary and other contributions in this debate. She describes why User:James Cantor is "censoring Wikipedia so it only showcases their side as reliable" and why she uses a pen name when dealing with these people, likening it to the famous John E. Fryer case, where the attitudes among mental health "experts" in the generation before User:James Cantor made it necessary for Fryer to use a pen name as well. All of these peer reviews appear in a reliable source, and the reason some editors wish to see them deemed "unreliable" seems less about WP:RS and more about the peer commentaries' criticisms of User:James Cantor's colleagues.Jokestress (talk) 03:19, 15 October 2008 (UTC)

• I will probably echo the past posting about pseudonymous authors, but I feel that discussion was pointed in the right direction. While members of the field using their real names can certainly be quoted in "letters to the editor" (or the equivalent), we would have to be more cautious about using those as sources if we are going to make some direct comparison between claims made in the letters and claims made in the paper. In some cases good science has come out of disputes in letters to editors. Errors have been found that passed peer review. Theories have been advanced. discussions have been had. So there is some fundamental merit to those letters and we should include them. Anonymous and pseudonymous letters should raise red flags, however. In some cases (eg this one), pseudonyms are required. But in most cases, they aren't. Either way, they are to be quoted just like we quote Op-eds today. The source is identified (as well as the place of publication, if desired), and some of the 'weight' of the statement comes from the person speaking. If we can't name that person, where do we stand? Protonk (talk) 05:09, 15 October 2008 (UTC)

Thank you, that is helpful. I certainly agree that there have been letters-to-editors with good information. Of course, there also exist letters-to-editors with misinformation. The problem (to me) is the lack of fact-checking for such sources. Do you have any suggestions about how to distinguish which sources merit mention in WP? In my experience, the solid letters come from people who are themselves recognized authorities in a given field, suggesting (to me, anyway) that WP editors should treat letters (and other non-fact-checked documents such as the commentaries in question here) as self-published sources.

The relevant policies from WP:V are that "Questionable sources include websites and publications that rely heavily on rumors and personal opinions...Because of this, they can be treated similarly to the way self-published sources are treated" and that "Self-published material may, in some circumstances, be acceptable when produced by an established expert on the topic of the article whose work in the relevant field has previously been published by reliable third-party publications."

Do other viable options come to mind, or are you saying that all comments from anyone who sends them in are RS's for WP's purposes?

— James Cantor (talk) 11:52, 15 October 2008 (UTC)

I will add that I too think that we cannot include and give weight to Madeline Wyndzen's commentaries. While she may value her privacy or fear repercussions the trade off is that you can't be anonymous AND use your professional standing and authority in a debate. Unless you know who she is it is not at all clear that she has any such standing or autority. Therefore her comments might as well have been written by the next person you see walking down the street. For the same reasons that her website is not a source her commentary is not a source.

On the other hand. Everyone who commented on the article in ASB was either A psychological professional who works with transsexuals, A historian researching the controversy, A transsexual who had some direct knowledge of the fact and circumstances around the book and controversy, or some combination of all of those. It's not like totally uninitiated fools wrote those commentaries. They, unlike Dr. Wyndzen, are known to us. People can look them up and judge for themselves what weight to give each of their comments. Just like they can for self published sources authored by autorities on the subject of the publication. Therefore I argue that those commentaries should be included. --Hfarmer (talk) 14:54, 15 October 2008 (UTC)

I'm not familiar with the journal or the topic, so I can probably give a sufficiently uninvolved opinion:

• Peer-reviewed paper in the journal issue should be given equal weight in presentation, regardless whether the (Wikipedia) editors consider them experts or not. Otherwise you're second-guessing the journal reviewers, which presumably are more qualified than the Wikipedia editors in this matter.
• Letters to the editor should be given less weight than peer-reviewed papers, but the journal still assumes some responsibility for them (they surely won't publish my opinion on a paper that appeared in their journal).
• The focus of this dispute seems to be whether pseudonymous letters to the editor should be given any coverage. Does the journal indicate that the sender is a professional in the field? If so, I'm inclined to include it (mention of course that's pseudonymous). Otherwise, I'm not sure why they've published it in the first place (former patient?). VG ☎ 15:42, 15 October 2008 (UTC)

VG, in this case, they would have published your comments. They published all comments they received except for one that was off-topic. WhatamIdoing (talk) 17:03, 15 October 2008 (UTC)

• Comment: I just want to clarify that these are peer commentaries, not letters to the editor, as some editors wish to present them here. The same issue contains letters to the editor, which are marked as such. These peer commentaries are considered stand-alone articles and are listed and sold as such. The one author that used a pen name is an added complication-- she is not anonymous (her photo is on her well-known website) but protects her identity because of intimidation tactics used by psychologists who disagree with her. Jokestress (talk) 16:39, 15 October 2008 (UTC)

I have to say that I don't find this clarification very clear. Either someone is anonymous or they are not. David Tennant uses a "stage name", but he is not anonymous. Using a pen-name for publications is perfectly normal (if somewhat unusual in academia), but it is wholly different from hiding ones identity. Anyone who is in fact a professional and also puts their picture on a website will be easily identifiable within a profession, so it seems rather an eccentric way of trying to hide ones identity "because of intimidation tactics used by psychologists who disagree with her". Since the name used for publishing in this field is presumably consistent this also makes no sense if the "intimidation" relates to the fear that her academic work will be rejected - or are her academic works and activist works published under different names? I think we need more background here. It is also unclear whether the "peer commentaries" were simply accepted by the editors if presented as such or whether the authors' scholarly status was taken into consideration. If there is reliable evidence that "Dr. Wyndzen" is a significant professional in this field then the article may be acceptable - with caveats - otherwise not. Paul B (talk) 18:00, 15 October 2008 (UTC)