FAIR is a non-profit organization dedicated to providing well-documented answers to criticisms of the doctrine, practice, and history of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Array
Mormonism and Wikipedia: Difference between revisions
GregSmithBot (talk | contribs) m (GLSBot: Adding headers to all articles) |
GregSmithBot (talk | contribs) m (GLSBot: Adding footers to all articles) |
||
| Line 39: | Line 39: | ||
{{Suggestions}} | {{Suggestions}} | ||
{{Articles Footer 1}} {{Articles Footer 2}} {{Articles Footer 3}} {{Articles Footer 4}} {{Articles Footer 5}} {{Articles Footer 6}} {{Articles Footer 7}} {{Articles Footer 8}} {{Articles Footer 9}} {{Articles Footer 10}} | |||
[[fr:Mormonism and Wikipedia]] | [[fr:Mormonism and Wikipedia]] | ||
Revision as of 02:48, 24 May 2010
Mormonism and Wikipedia
It's also a little disingenuous for FAIR to be complaining about John Foxe's alleged affiliation with a certain evangelical university. How many FAIR people are affiliated with BYU? All of us have biases and preconceptions, and for FAIR (the "A" in its name standing for "apologetic") to be complaining about biases is crazy. This Wikipedia article should be neither anti-Mormon nor apologetic, and as a whole it isn't. As a whole, Foxe's edits are not really much different from what is found in Bushman's RSR, which is an apologetic work. I think the problem is that FAIR has an issue with New Mormon History and would rather see this article become a hagiography than a mainstream historical article.
—LDS editor COgden, 5 December 2009 referring to the Joseph Smith, Jr. Wikipedia article. off-site
If for one second you believe that I care a whit for what a gang of 'tbm' disciples repeatedly spout here at WP then you are even simpler than I imagined; as far as 'guffaws' go, look in the mirror ... your lds church is more often the subject of ridicule here, by many WP editors.
—Wikipedia editor Duke53, 15 January 2010
FAIR's approach to Wikipedia articles
FAIR regularly receives queries about specific LDS-themed Wikipedia articles with requests that we somehow "fix" them. Although some individual members of FAIR may choose to edit Wikipedia articles, FAIR as an organization does not. Controversial Wikipedia articles require constant maintenance and a significant amount of time. We prefer instead to respond to claims in the FAIR Wiki rather than fight the ongoing battle that LDS Wikipedia articles sometimes invite. From FAIR’s perspective, assertions made in LDS-themed Wikipedia articles are therefore treated just like any other critical (or, if one prefers, "anti-Mormon") work.
Given the fluid nature of LDS Wikipedia articles, it is pointless to perform a detailed review and analysis of many of them. There is a specific subset of LDS Wikipedia articles which contain a significant amount of what Wikipedia terms "Original Research," or direct interpretation by the wiki editors of primary sources in order to form their own conclusions. These articles have been "stabilized" to a certain extent due to a collaboration between editor "COgden" who is writing what he calls "New Mormon History," and editor, "John Foxe" who is extremely critical of LDS views. This has both positive and negative effects. One one hand, vandals (both believers and critics) tend to be kept at bay. On the other hand, these article tend to be closed to any sort of significant revision. Thus, any editors who attempt to modify the structure of these articles in any significant way will be reverted by one of these two editors, who thus tend to become the arbiters of what is ultimately allowed into the article. This stabilization thus allows FAIR to perform a more detailed analysis on those articles. As those articles are revised and updated, we will periodically update our reviews to match.
Background
Several months prior to posting our first Wikipedia article review, FAIR attempted to contact a number of Wikipedia administrators in order to seek advice on how to proceed. The primary reason for the contact was to seek advice regarding John Foxe's use of his secondary Hi540 account in an edit war on the Joseph Smith, Jr. article. Detailed data and links were provided demonstrating the connection between the two accounts. In addition, FAIR also informed each of these administrators of our intent to post detailed reviews of selected Wikipedia articles. Unfortunately, we found that there was very little interest. The half of the administrators that responded to FAIR agreed with our assessment of the data regarding Foxe's use of Hi540 as a sockpuppet. The other half of the administrators contacted (one of whom was LDS administrator COgden, as noted in the epigraph) did not respond to our inquiry and were therefore never provided with any additional data. FAIR then completed preparation of the initial reviews in July 2009, but did not post them until September 2009.
Who can edit these articles?
Editors who wish to participate in editing LDS-themed Wikipedia articles can access the project page here: Wikipedia:WikiProject Latter Day Saint movement. You are not required to be LDS in order to participate—there are a number of good non-LDS editors who have made valuable contributions to these articles.
FAIR does not advocate removing any references from Wikipedia articles. The best approach to editing Wikipedia is to locate solid references to back up your position and add them rather than attempting to remove information. Individuals who intend to edit should be aware that posting information related to the real-world identities of Wikipedia editors will result in their being banned from editing Wikipedia. Attacking editors and attempting to "out" them on Wikipedia is considered very bad form. The best approach is to treat all Wikipedia editors, whether or not you agree or disagree with their approach, with respect. An argumentative approach is not constructive to achieving a positive result. Unfortunately, not all Wikipedia editors exhibit good faith toward other editors (see, for example, Duke53).
General information
- Common questions FAIR is asked about LDS Wikipedia articles
- A brief overview of editors who work on LDS-related Wikipedia articles
We examine selected Wikipedia articles and examine them on a "claim-by-claim" basis, with links to responses in the FAIR Wiki. Wikipedia articles are constantly evolving. As a result, the analysis of each article will be updated periodically in order to bring it more into line with the current version of the article. The latest revision date may be viewed at the top of each individual section. The process by which Wikipedia articles are reviewed is the following:
- Update each Wikipedia passage and its associated footnotes.
- Examine the use of sources and determine whether or not the passage accurately represents the source used.
- Provide links to response articles within the FAIR Wiki.
- If violation of Wikipedia rules is discovered, identify which Wikipedia editor (by pseudonym) made the edit, provide a description of the rule violated and a link to the Wikipedia "diff" showing the actual edit.
- If a violated rule is later corrected in a subsequent revision, the violation is removed and a notation is added that the passage is correct per cited sources. This doesn't mean that FAIR necessarily agrees with the passage—only that it is correct based upon the source used.
Mormonism and Wikipedia
It's also a little disingenuous for FAIR to be complaining about John Foxe's alleged affiliation with a certain evangelical university. How many FAIR people are affiliated with BYU? All of us have biases and preconceptions, and for FAIR (the "A" in its name standing for "apologetic") to be complaining about biases is crazy. This Wikipedia article should be neither anti-Mormon nor apologetic, and as a whole it isn't. As a whole, Foxe's edits are not really much different from what is found in Bushman's RSR, which is an apologetic work. I think the problem is that FAIR has an issue with New Mormon History and would rather see this article become a hagiography than a mainstream historical article.
—LDS editor COgden, 5 December 2009 referring to the Joseph Smith, Jr. Wikipedia article. off-site
If for one second you believe that I care a whit for what a gang of 'tbm' disciples repeatedly spout here at WP then you are even simpler than I imagined; as far as 'guffaws' go, look in the mirror ... your lds church is more often the subject of ridicule here, by many WP editors.
—Wikipedia editor Duke53, 15 January 2010
FAIR's approach to Wikipedia articles
FAIR regularly receives queries about specific LDS-themed Wikipedia articles with requests that we somehow "fix" them. Although some individual members of FAIR may choose to edit Wikipedia articles, FAIR as an organization does not. Controversial Wikipedia articles require constant maintenance and a significant amount of time. We prefer instead to respond to claims in the FAIR Wiki rather than fight the ongoing battle that LDS Wikipedia articles sometimes invite. From FAIR’s perspective, assertions made in LDS-themed Wikipedia articles are therefore treated just like any other critical (or, if one prefers, "anti-Mormon") work.
Given the fluid nature of LDS Wikipedia articles, it is pointless to perform a detailed review and analysis of many of them. There is a specific subset of LDS Wikipedia articles which contain a significant amount of what Wikipedia terms "Original Research," or direct interpretation by the wiki editors of primary sources in order to form their own conclusions. These articles have been "stabilized" to a certain extent due to a collaboration between editor "COgden" who is writing what he calls "New Mormon History," and editor, "John Foxe" who is extremely critical of LDS views. This has both positive and negative effects. One one hand, vandals (both believers and critics) tend to be kept at bay. On the other hand, these article tend to be closed to any sort of significant revision. Thus, any editors who attempt to modify the structure of these articles in any significant way will be reverted by one of these two editors, who thus tend to become the arbiters of what is ultimately allowed into the article. This stabilization thus allows FAIR to perform a more detailed analysis on those articles. As those articles are revised and updated, we will periodically update our reviews to match.
Background
Several months prior to posting our first Wikipedia article review, FAIR attempted to contact a number of Wikipedia administrators in order to seek advice on how to proceed. The primary reason for the contact was to seek advice regarding John Foxe's use of his secondary Hi540 account in an edit war on the Joseph Smith, Jr. article. Detailed data and links were provided demonstrating the connection between the two accounts. In addition, FAIR also informed each of these administrators of our intent to post detailed reviews of selected Wikipedia articles. Unfortunately, we found that there was very little interest. The half of the administrators that responded to FAIR agreed with our assessment of the data regarding Foxe's use of Hi540 as a sockpuppet. The other half of the administrators contacted (one of whom was LDS administrator COgden, as noted in the epigraph) did not respond to our inquiry and were therefore never provided with any additional data. FAIR then completed preparation of the initial reviews in July 2009, but did not post them until September 2009.
Who can edit these articles?
Editors who wish to participate in editing LDS-themed Wikipedia articles can access the project page here: Wikipedia:WikiProject Latter Day Saint movement. You are not required to be LDS in order to participate—there are a number of good non-LDS editors who have made valuable contributions to these articles.
FAIR does not advocate removing any references from Wikipedia articles. The best approach to editing Wikipedia is to locate solid references to back up your position and add them rather than attempting to remove information. Individuals who intend to edit should be aware that posting information related to the real-world identities of Wikipedia editors will result in their being banned from editing Wikipedia. Attacking editors and attempting to "out" them on Wikipedia is considered very bad form. The best approach is to treat all Wikipedia editors, whether or not you agree or disagree with their approach, with respect. An argumentative approach is not constructive to achieving a positive result. Unfortunately, not all Wikipedia editors exhibit good faith toward other editors (see, for example, Duke53).
General information
- Common questions FAIR is asked about LDS Wikipedia articles
- A brief overview of editors who work on LDS-related Wikipedia articles
We examine selected Wikipedia articles and examine them on a "claim-by-claim" basis, with links to responses in the FAIR Wiki. Wikipedia articles are constantly evolving. As a result, the analysis of each article will be updated periodically in order to bring it more into line with the current version of the article. The latest revision date may be viewed at the top of each individual section. The process by which Wikipedia articles are reviewed is the following:
- Update each Wikipedia passage and its associated footnotes.
- Examine the use of sources and determine whether or not the passage accurately represents the source used.
- Provide links to response articles within the FAIR Wiki.
- If violation of Wikipedia rules is discovered, identify which Wikipedia editor (by pseudonym) made the edit, provide a description of the rule violated and a link to the Wikipedia "diff" showing the actual edit.
- If a violated rule is later corrected in a subsequent revision, the violation is removed and a notation is added that the passage is correct per cited sources. This doesn't mean that FAIR necessarily agrees with the passage—only that it is correct based upon the source used.
Template loop detected: Template:MormonismAndWikipedia
Copyright © 2005–2024 FAIR. This is not an official Web site of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The content of this page may not be copied, published, or redistributed without the prior written consent of FAIR.
| We welcome your suggestions for improving the content of this FAIR Wiki article. |
Sites we recommend: |
Copyright © 2005–2024 FAIR. This is not an official Web site of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The content of this page may not be copied, published, or redistributed without the prior written consent of FAIR.
| We welcome your suggestions for improving the content of this FAIR Wiki article. |
Sites we recommend: |