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Editors can post questions here about whether article content is compliant with the Neutral Point of View (NPOV) policy, and editors interested in neutrality issues will give their opinion. If you are satisfied with a response, please tag your thread at the top with {{resolved}}.

For general questions about the NPOV policy, please go to the Neutral Point of View talk page.

Guidance on how to make articles conform to Wikipedia's neutrality policy can be found on pages listed in Category:Wikipedia neutral point of view, primarily the policy pages Wikipedia:Neutral point of view and Wikipedia:Neutral point of view/FAQ. For a list of articles that have been marked as potentially containing a NPOV problem, see Category:NPOV disputes

If your question is about whether material constitutes original research, please use the No original research noticeboard. For review of whether a source is reliable, go to the Reliable sources noticeboard.

See also Wikipedia:WikiProject Neutrality and Wikipedia:WikiProject Countering systemic bias whether these would be better venues for the issues you're trying to address.

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Post what is wrong with what content where, what you think it should say, and why.
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Cinema Rex fire needs POV checking

It seems like many of the previous authors of the Cinema Rex fire article wrote it in the point of view that Islamic fundamentalists started the fire. In many reports I read the Iranian public believed, and believes that the Shah did it. We should review the POV and sourcing of this article. WhisperToMe (talk) 13:00, 13 November 2008 (UTC)

Heckler & Koch MP5

German terrorist group, the Red Army Faction, depicted a Heckler & Koch MP5 in their insignia.

The addition of this simple, referenced statement has been summarily reverted repeatedly by User:Koalorka without appropriate explanation and he and several members of WP:GUN opposed the addition at the article talk page first as "violating WP:GUN#Criminal use", then later as being "trivia" and as violating WP:UNDUE. It was then proposed to hide (for all practical purposes) this "[promotion of] a criminal Marxist terror organization and their actions in an article free of politics"[1] in the article's section on Users. But the RAF never did actually use the gun, and imho the "compromise" to put it there was suggested out of the same underlying POV motivation. Barring a reorganisation of the article to create a better place for this sentence, I believe the end of the article's lead is the only place and perfectly appropriate for this statement, especially considering the fact that the RAF logo is easily the most notable depiction of the MP5 ever. Yes or no? Everyme 02:25, 16 October 2008 (UTC)

I think this fact belongs in the article about Red Army Faction, but not in the article about the firearm. It does seem like trivia, and placing it in the lead would probably be undue weight in my opinion. Jehochman Talk 03:31, 16 October 2008 (UTC)
Ok thanks, I'll defer to your judgement. Everyme 05:09, 16 October 2008 (UTC)
My take on this: most communist organizations that used a firearm on their emblems used the AK-47, so it's worth mentioning that RAF used something else (and what that something else was) in the article on RAF. Mentioning RAF in the article on MP5 seems very marginal; are there any references association with RAF significantly affected the gun's visibility/notoriety? If so, then mention it, otherwise don't. By analogy, MP5 is mentioned in the article on Half-Life_(video_game) as plot device, but Half-life is not mentioned in the article about the gun. What I'm trying to say here is that "X is worth mentioning in the article on Y" is not a symmetric relation. VG ☎ 09:42, 18 October 2008 (UTC)
Addendum: to younger generations Half-life is/was way, way more notable than RAF, so it's reasonable to presume that for them Half-life was "easily the most notable depiction of the MP5 ever". In the absence of sources to support the claim, I wouldn't add it to the article on MP5 because it's WP:OR. VG ☎ 09:54, 18 October 2008 (UTC)
Note that I didn't and don't propose to add that into the article literally. But consider e.g. this NYTimes article from 2007: "Ransom pictures of Mr. Schleyer posed in front of the Red Army Faction’s crude symbol, a star bisected by a Heckler & Koch MP5 machine gun, came to symbolize the scourge of 1970s terrorism." It's fair to say that —all recentism and other systemic bias aside— it is indeed the far more notable depiction. I mean, come on. Half-Life? Everyme 20:05, 18 October 2008 (UTC)
Just "Half-life 2" has two orders of magnitude more ghits than "red army faction", so come on. VG ☎ 17:34, 21 October 2008 (UTC)
I agree with Everyme that the use of the MP5 in the RAF logo is notable, for the reasons summarized in the NY Times quote. The RAF, together with other terrorist organizations, violently influenced the lives of many in Western Europe and the Middle East throughout the 1970s, 1980s, and to some extent 1990s. Furthermore I feel it is a notable use of the MP5, since the MP5 was mostly used by police forces and armies that the RAF vehmently opposed as "imperialist". Nevertheless they used the gun in their logo, which became a symbol of terrorism. The gun in the logo is also often mistakenly identified as a Kalashnikov. — I would say Half Life is not such an influential symbol, but since I'm not that familiar with Half Life 2 I'm not qualified to judge whether it's worth mentioning. Stevo2001 (talk) 21:13, 8 November 2008 (UTC)
Not in most of Western Europe. Danny Morrison's statement "with a ballot paper in this hand and an Armalite in the other," (to which he could of added 'and semtex in the car') was more symbolic in those parts of western Europe where a much larger war took place. --PBS (talk) 18:53, 29 November 2008 (UTC)

Not Notable

I added some information in the Names of God in Judaism article, under Tetragrammaton in the relevant section about Bibles. I found that although the context was about YHWH, and Yahweh, Bibles about Jehovah were being discussed. I decided to add perhaps one of the most well-read, known Bible in the sacred Name Movement, the SSBE, Sacred Scriptures Bethel Edition which uses the Name Yahweh both in the Old Testament and New, and it is removed [2][3][4].

When I asked for an explanation from the user who did so, he/she said: "Not notable", hence the subject of this article [5][6]

Would someone please help to get across a clearly acceptable source in to this section of the article. Jehovah Witnesses are entitled to have their say, but not to the point of UNDUE weight: [7]

Discuss: Skywriter.

Kiddish.K (talk) 18:27, 29 October 2008 (UTC)

perhaps one of the most well-read, known Bible in the sacred Name Movement - Prove it, and then demonstrate that it's significant. Someguy1221 (talk) 19:11, 29 October 2008 (UTC)

Well I've had a look on the web and found a few interesting sites:

PLEASE NOTE -- Kiddish.K has been banned as yet another of the Mod_Objective Sock Puppets. This thread can be archived. Thanks. SkyWriter (Tim) (talk) 08:09, 9 November 2008 (UTC)

Treaty of Trianon

The article about Trianon is clearly onesided (!!!), focus at lost a lot of territorry and people, but Austria-Hungary 1916 and Hungary 1921 were two absolute different countries, Hungary is not successor, not heritage, de jure and in reality it is a complete new startup. And Trianon is still in force and valid. In article abot Saint Germain is this balancing act successful, this article it is a clear falsification of history and the trample at Wikipedia:Neutral point of view. Please give your position after comparing with Treaty of Saint-Germain-en-Laye (1919) and another article. --Nina.Charousek (talk) 17:05, 9 November 2008 (UTC)

I think deleting four(!) English language, academic sources and a New York Times article will not further your case here. Squash Racket (talk) 17:14, 9 November 2008 (UTC)
no because, deleted statement is untrue and has to be deleted. --Nina.Charousek (talk) 18:22, 9 November 2008 (UTC)

I think you too realize that is a weak "explanation". Squash Racket (talk) 18:37, 9 November 2008 (UTC)

If you ignore text of treaty, you surely reailze, that you don't have any explanation, not a weak one. --Nina.Charousek (talk) 18:41, 9 November 2008 (UTC)
As I have already shown you on the talk page you misunderstood the text of the treaty. The parties who concluded the treaty are very clearly listed. You just don't accept that.
BTW I didn't "ignore" anything, you removed several English language academic sources. Squash Racket (talk) 18:45, 9 November 2008 (UTC)
Once again, statement Hungary seen as a successor of Austria-Hungary is a clear falsification of history and a violation of Treaty of Trianon and the trample at Wikipedia:Neutral point of view.--Nina.Charousek (talk) 18:57, 9 November 2008 (UTC)

What is your problem with that? Hungary is a successor of Austria-Hungary - that is true. Two states, Austria and Hungary lived in a dual monarchy for a few decades after the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of 1867. Then at the end of WWI (1918) this was over.
I don't see how on Earth that would "violate" the Treaty of Trianon of 1920. Squash Racket (talk) 19:06, 9 November 2008 (UTC) Ich habe überhaupt keine Lust mich zu wiederholen,aber leider muss ich es tun, ich sehe dass sie gut deutsch sprechen, also nochmal Text des Vertrages: in Anbetracht, daß die ehemalige Österreichisch-ungarische Monarchie heute aufgehört hat zu existieren und daß an ihre Stelle in Ungarn eine ungarische Nationalregierung getreten ist - und dann die Bestimming der Grenzen, also Der Friedensvertrag von Trianon hat Oesterreich-Ungarn aufgeloest und für Ungarn neue Grenzen bestimmt, sprich es gibt keien Kontinuität zwischen Oesterreich-Ungarn 1916 und Ungarn 1920, es ist eine komplette Neugründung. --Nina.Charousek (talk) 20:25, 9 November 2008 (UTC)

Yes, I understand German, but others here do not, so let's just keep it English. The German translation of the text slightly differs from the English one (for example "heute" - "by now"). Would you add a link for it?
The Treaty of St. Germain dissolved Austria-Hungary way before the Treaty of Trianon.
One more important thing: the text of the treaty is a primary source, and Wikipedia prefers secondary (or tertiary) sources, the ones that you can already find in the article. The text was heavily influenced by Eduard Benes, the French etc., while Hungary had not much influence on it for obvious reasons.
We prefer neutral scholarly view of the subject. Squash Racket (talk) 11:56, 10 November 2008 (UTC)
I would ask Charousek to stop the disruption along these lines. Things like this "no because, deleted statement is untrue and has to be deleted." are clearly troubling. We do not go by your word on what is true or not true against multiple citations. Just for your information there was no Austria-Hungary in 1920 it simply did not exist since 1918, so your main point and argument is moot and void anyway, but still your word does not overrule the sources in any case. Hobartimus (talk) 23:16, 11 November 2008 (UTC)
it is only one aspect, this article is clear violation of NPOV and need a deep revision, full of half-truths and did not cover important aspects of mutter.--Nina.Charousek (talk) 11:00, 12 November 2008 (UTC)

Schismatic dioceses = POV forks

Due to disagreements over theology and social issues, two dioceses in Episcopal Church (United States) have decided to change their allegiance to other "provinces" or hierarchies. In both cases, some churches decided to stay within the U.S. hierarchy, effectively splitting the dioceses. The problem we have is that now we have articles on both sets of dioceses that are POV forks:

The problem is worse for Pittsburgh, where the articles(s) include a long history dating back to 1755. Both dioceses now claim to be the "true" dioceses, and so both claim the history, etc. One suggested solution is to have one article on the pre-schism dioceses and one each on the new bodies. Any other ideas? ·:· Will Beback ·:· 02:23, 10 November 2008 (UTC)

There are two separate kinds of content forks going on here. In the case of San Joaquin, the duplicated content is basically limited to recounting the history of the split. The current case of Diocese of Quincy and soon-to-be case of Episcopal Diocese of Fort Worth will probably be similar in scope. In the case of Pittsburgh, the fork is worse because of the superiority of the older article, which had a long and excellent history written. Leaving aside Pittsburgh for the moment, because of the additional complexity, I think that in the case of San Joaquin, Quincy, and Fort Worth, the best course of action is to document the detailed history over on Anglican realignment where it mostly is anyhow, (and just expand that piece), and then prune all that history from the separate diocesan articles and have pointers to Anglican realignment. In the case of the Diocese of Pittsburgh this solution isn't adequate, because the longer history does not belong in Anglican realignment. But if we create "history of the Episcopal Diocese of Pittsburgh" it won't be limited to the pre-schism history by title, and so it will simply invite continued editing for current events, and likely conflict. So to implement this for the Pittsburgh case, we will need a good title, and I'm not sure yet what that should be. In addition, we need agreed language in the lead for the post-schism bodies that avoids thumb-on-the-scale stuff. Tb (talk) 06:51, 10 November 2008 (UTC)

I'm not really certain if I am posting this in the right place, but the article "Conservative Christian" is being used by user N0nr3s to put forth his opinion of Catholic Teaching (on Biblical inerrancy) rather than the Catholic Church's stated position. The page has been subject to repeated edits and undos.Catholic monarchist (talk) 09:06, 12 November 2008 (UTC)

American Family Association‎

Heyo. We could use some more eyes over at American Family Association‎. The article is included in some questionable categories and editors are warring over whether to include some user-generated content about the organization as a "reliable source". I've been watching this page for awhile and really don’t have the energy to push back that the moment. Cheers, HiDrNick! 17:04, 12 November 2008 (UTC)

Conservative Christianity

I'm not really certain if I am posting this in the right place, but the article Conservative Christianity is being used by user N0nr3s to put forth his opinion of Catholic Teaching (on Biblical inerrancy) rather than the Catholic Church's stated position. The page has been subject to repeated edits and undos.Catholic monarchist (talk) 00:34, 14 November 2008 (UTC)

The term is ambiguous and there is no evidence that it clearly identifies any group of people or set of beliefs, it overlaps with other identified groups, and there are no references to prove otherwise. Compare this with the article on Conservative Judaism, which is well-understood and refers to a specific group of people. This article should be deleted. The Four Deuces (talk) 23:33, 14 November 2008 (UTC)

Any interest in actually addressing my concern? Catholic monarchist (talk) 23:12, 27 November 2008 (UTC)

Conservatism in the United States

This article was written from a modern American conservative point of view, presents history in a way that is not generally accepted by scholars, and has attracted numerous edits and comments. I have described how this article could be re-written. In the meantime, could the article be labelled POV? The Four Deuces (talk) 20:26, 14 November 2008 (UTC)

Right-wing politics and Conservatism

For some time now, these articles have been passionately defended by libertarian editors trying to make right-wing/conservative = free markets and limited government and deleting any other aspect posted. Bobisbob2 (talk) 20:57, 14 November 2008 (UTC)

I don't think protecting the article is the way to go -- it is apt to get "protected" in its current awful state. Also, I've found that discussions of an article are best held on the article's talk page, rather than a noticeboard. So, back to talk. Rick Norwood (talk) 13:15, 15 November 2008 (UTC)

Oklahoma Christian School

In addition to the question of notability, this article is written in a way that does not conform to Wikipedia's neutrality standards. The author's biases emerge loud and clear. It also reads like promotional literature in places. See here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oklahoma_Christian_School —Preceding unsigned comment added by Cymbaline69 (talk • contribs) 02:02, 15 November 2008 (UTC)

Template:BBL sidebar

Not sure this is the best board to ask for input but ... does anyone see Template:BBL sidebar as being a bit POV-ish? The "BBL Controversy" also known as the "Autogynephilia Controversy" is an ongoing and heated line of discussion in the transgender community. We might have a content fork here as well. -- Banjeboi 02:42, 16 November 2008 (UTC)

Six-Day War Article

see Talk:Six-Day War#Section Break This Dispute is over Censorship and Talk:Six-Day War#"Disputed", Israel's refusal to host UNEF

A dispute has arisen over a series of deletions of material from scholarly WP:V secondary sources, i.e. The Making of Resolution 242, by Sydney Dawson Bailey; International History of the Twentieth Century, by Anthony Best; Peacekeeping Fiascoes, by Frederick H. Fleitz; The Evolution of UN Peacekeeping, By William Durch; and The UN Yearbook (a reference work published by the United Nations Information Service. Those secondary sources also happen to be supported by a published primary source document -UN Secretary General U Thant's report on the situation in the Middle East. One of the editors has selectively picked WP:V sources which support his master narrative, and is acting as a gatekeeper to exclude any other published views. I appears to be a violation WP:NPOV policy.

After a lengthy discussion on the talk page these well-sourced quotations from WP:V secondary sources were added, but they were immediately deleted by the same editor:

After the war Yitzhak Rabin, who had served as the Chief of the General Staff for Israel during the war stated: "I do not believe that Nasser wanted war. The two divisions he sent into Sinai on May 14 would not have been enough to unleash an offensive against Israel. He knew it and we knew it." Menachem Begin stated that "The Egyptian army concentrations in the Sinai approaches did not prove that Nasser was really about to attack us. We must be honest with ourselves. We decided to attack him." [61] both men quoted in One Land, Two Peoples: The Conflict Over Palestine, By Deborah J. Gerner PhD, Westview Press, 1994, ISBN 0813321808, Page 112

Former Chief of Staff of the armed forces, Haim Bar-Lev (a deputy chief during the war) had stated: "the entrance of the Egyptians into Sinai was not a casus belli." Major General Mattityahu Peled, the Chief of Logistics for the Armed Forces during the war, claimed the survival argument was "a bluff which was born and developed only after the war... ..."When we spoke of the war in the General Staff, we talked of the political ramifications if we didn't go to war —what would happen to Israel in the next 25 years. Never of survival today." [62] both men were quoted in "Was the War Necessary?", Time Magazine. Peled also stated that "To pretend that the Egyptian forces massed on our frontiers were in a position to threaten the existence of Israel constitutes an insult not only to the intelligence of anyone capable of analyzing this sort of situation, but above all an insult to the Zahal (Israeli military)[63] quoted from 'The Terrorist Conjunction: The United States, the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict, by Alfred G. Gerteiny, and Jean Ziegler, Greenwood Publishing Group, 2007, ISBN 0275996433, page 142 harlan (talk) 16:53, 16 November 2008 (UTC)

If Harlan were really interested in neutrality, rather than just finding secondary sources that included the specific quotes he was so keen on inserting into the article, he would instead have actually reproduced the thrust of the arguments the sources were using. Deborah J. Gerner, for example, suggests that it is unlikely that Nasser was actually going to attack Israel. However, she also points out that Nasser was engaged in brinkmanship in an "attempt to improve its standing in the Arab world and to humiliate Israel by forcing it to accept what it said it would not accept—the renewed closure of the Strait of Tiran". Someone interested in NPOV would have edited to include that view. Jayjg (talk) 17:56, 16 November 2008 (UTC)

Stefan Uroš II Milutin of Serbia

A new account, Humormekill (talk · contribs), has been adding some "See Also" stuff, in bad English, that is surely intended to push some sort of point: a couple of sentences like "North Kosovo 1420km2 with Stprce area and Titova Mitrovica, its 13% of Kosovo under Serbian Beograd control!" I reverted once but he put it back. Since I'm not really up on Balkans issues, I should probably let somebody else take charge of this. looie496 (talk) 06:02, 18 November 2008 (UTC)

NPOV at Grossmont Union High School District article.

The Grossmont Union High School District article had edits made after the recent election [11][12][13][14][15] may contain possible problems. Some of them I reverted, but they were placed back. After a brief discussion, I decided to allow him to keep the information for now, as long as he cleaned it up a bit, but I made it clear that I was still not in favor of the information and would seek an outside opinion. Could someone take a look and explain it to the other editor or if I am wrong, explain it to me. The more editors that we get in on this the better. The page has been changing so much in the past two weeks, I can't even keep up.--Jojhutton (talk) 02:13, 20 November 2008 (UTC)

The Kings College

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_King%27s_College

Most of this article was clearly written from the perspective of a student or employee trying to further this school's agenda. I attended this school, so I clearly do not have an "objective" opinion. However, the article is not at all written in an objective way, particularly in the sections entitled, "Degree Programs", "Student Housing and Activities", "Houses" and "Criticism and Response".

I find the article entirely misleading, particularly concerning the fact that the school is only made up of several hundred students and the programs are small and limited. This article makes the programs sound enticing and full of opportunity. I suppose all I have to say is that I experienced the exact opposite in my year at this college. Perhaps I am not able to express myself very well due to my bias, however, I feel the article is rather biased and misleading if you look over it carefully. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Mcgill lass (talk • contribs) 07:42, 20 November 2008 (UTC)

Do you believe that the article is missing important facts about the school? If so, give us the general idea. It is hard to respond to such a general complaint. EdJohnston (talk) 22:32, 21 November 2008 (UTC)

Rick Ross (consultant)

I would appreciate wider community input on the above article, notably the sections on (1) the Jason Scott case and (2) the Branch Davidians.

The article subject, Mr Ross, as well as editors Cirt (talk · contribs) and Ohconfucius (talk · contribs), feel that these sections are too unkind to Mr Ross:

  1. in the first case, for reporting too many details relating to the Jason Scott case, and
  2. in the second case, i.e. the Branch Davidians section, for reporting scholarly criticism of Mr Ross's involvement in the Waco siege.

The article shouldn't be a hatchet job, but on the other hand, such notable criticism as there has been should be fairly represented. The Jason Scott case was a landmark case that set an important legal precedent (it ended the North American practice of forcibly abducting adult "cult" members in order to change their beliefs).

Also, I feel unduly pressurised by the subject, Mr Ross, on the talk page; for example to portray events in a light flattering to him, based solely on his own assertions made on the talk page, when this flattering interpretation of events is flatly contradicted by a statement reported in a reliable source – which Mr Ross says is "of little value here".

As I see it, the article has for many years suffered from the inclusion of many statements that were either unsourced, or sourced to Mr Ross's writings on his website, thus failing to reflect significant published views on this subject in proportion to their prominence in reliable sources. Here, for reference, is an old version of the article, which Mr Ross prefers – it has multiple clear violations of Wikipedia:Blp#Using_the_subject_as_a_self-published_source. I was also concerned to find that around a quarter of all edits that the article had received over the past five years were made by single-purpose IP accounts that seem reasonably attributable to Mr Ross himself, as they are all consistent with a New Jersey location, use the same diction and lines of argument as Mr Ross's (recently-established) account on the talk page, do not cite published sources but personal knowledge, seek to attach a "cult apologist" label to any academic that has been critical of Mr Ross, etc.

I'd appreciate uninvolved editors' input on how to find the right balance. Jayen466 11:21, 21 November 2008 (UTC)


Both my bio and the article about the Jason Scott case have become dominated by single editor Jayen466, who seems to be either a volunteer or staffer working for a guru group often called a "cult" founded by Osho/Shree Rajneesh, now deceased. Anyone interested should also see the article about Osho/Rajneesh, which Jayen466 has sought to turn into promotional advertising for the guru.

However, Osho/Rajneesh was most well-known historically as a notorious "cult leader" that was deported from the United States after being jailed by authorities.

I am pointing this out because Jayen466 seems to be an editor at Wikipedia because of such personal interests and his participation at my bio and the Jason Scott article reflect his unhappiness that the Ross Institute Internet Archives contains a subsection with critical information about Osho/Rajneesh.

See http://www.rickross.com/groups/rajneesh.html

Jayen466 bias is reflected by his work here at Wikipedia and there are specific problems with his editing of my bio and the Jason Scott article, which I have noted specifically at the talk/discussion pages attached to those articles.

Jayen466 has used various quotes from unreliable and biased sources, edited/parsed language and inserted opinions in an effort to mislead readers and generally promote his POV. For example, he has relied heavily upon the writings of Anson Shupe, who was paid by Scientology lawyers to become their "expert." Shupe worked very closely with Scientology lawyer Kendrick Moxon.

If Wikipedia is to be a credible and reliable source for objective information editors like Jayen466, who wish to use this site as a platform for propaganda, need to reigned in and held accountable.Rick Alan Ross (talk) 13:47, 21 November 2008 (UTC)

Mr Ross, as has been pointed out to you before by others, these are personal attacks. Please cease them forthwith – you have made essentially the same attack ten times now, on multiple talk pages: [16] [17] [18] [19] [20] [21] [22] [23] [24] [25]. As for Anson Shupe, he is widely considered a leading scholar in his field, your unpublished opinion of him notwithstanding. Cheers, Jayen466 13:57, 21 November 2008 (UTC)
The point remains the same, which is your conflict of interest as an Osho/Rajneesh devotee with an ax to grind. This is something you have notably never denied per the ten examples you offer and it is the motivation for your editing work at Wikipedia. Attempting to portray this conflict of interest as a "personal attack" doesn't change the facts. Are you a full-time staffer or volunteer for the Osho community? It is also a matter of record historically and evident to anyone that does serious research regarding Anson Shupe, that he has worked professionally closely with Scientology and Scientologist lawyer Kendrick Moxon specifically. The writings you have quoted are evidence of that.Rick Alan Ross (talk) 21:39, 21 November 2008 (UTC)
So, Obama supporters cannot edit articles about Mccain's or vice-versa? What about Islamists editing State of Israel? Or Israelis and Palestinians editing Israeli–Palestinian conflict? Each and every WP editor have their biases, but in this project we have the help of three content policies: WP:NPOV, WP:V, WP:NOR, and additional constrains when we write about living people. So, rather than use argumenta ad hominem or poisoning the well in these dicussions, contributors are asked to collaborate with each other within the framework provided by these policies. ≈ jossi ≈ (talk) 00:52, 22 November 2008 (UTC)
If employees of the McCain campaign were editing the Obama article, and were not being scrupulously neutral, that would indeed be a problem. There's a difference between folks who simply have sympathies with a subject, and those that are paid by the subject. That's why we have a WP:COI guideline, which is largely self-enforced on the honor system. Unfortunately, self-enforcement doesn't always work well. ·:· Will Beback ·:· 00:57, 22 November 2008 (UTC)
I don't see any evidence of Jayen not being scrupulously neutral in this case, quite the contrary. I wish other editors would be as conscious as he/she is in this regard. If you or anyone has concerns about Jayen's edits in this regard, the forum for that is WP:COI/N and not here. ≈ jossi ≈ (talk) 01:08, 22 November 2008 (UTC)
The section on the subject's criminal trial has grown substantially since Jayen has been working on it. Are you of the opinion that adding material on a negative incident like that is a neutral activity? ·:· Will Beback ·:· 04:45, 22 November 2008 (UTC)
Is the criminal trial an important trial? According to Jayen, it is. Maybe you could help in researching if this is as significant trial as Jayen reports it to be, and if it is not, you may have a case. Good luck with your research. ≈ jossi ≈ (talk) 06:31, 22 November 2008 (UTC)
I think the question is, "Is the criminal trial an important part of his notability?" If it is, then the article needs to acknowledge and reflect that. Rumiton (talk) 14:01, 22 November 2008 (UTC)
As I recall Jossi has the same conflict of interest as Jayen466. He is connected to a guru group led by Prem Rewat/Guru Mahariji of "Divine Light Mission"/Elan Vital. Like Jayen466, Jossi seems to be a staffer or volunteer working for his guru by editing at Wikipedia. This is similar to Scientologists, who apparently have done the same. Like Jayen466, Jossi has also edited my bio, it seems because he is unhappy with the Ross Institute subsection about his guru. See http://www.rickross.com/groups/vital.html This is a serious problem for Wikipedia. Editors that use Wikipedia in this way should be reigned in.Rick Alan Ross (talk) 14:03, 22 November 2008 (UTC)
Mr Ross, please rest assured that I am not a "full-time staffer or volunteer for the Osho community" and do not have a conflict of interest in relation to either your article or any other that I work on in Wikipedia. FWIW, I have in the past also been accused of being a Rawat follower in these pages. My actual work has no relation to Wikipedia whatever (except that it serves me as a reference source on a daily basis), or to the WP topics I usually work in.
You have been advised by an admin on your talk page as to the proper way to bring up any further concerns you may have, so please let the matter go.
You yourself do have a conflict of interest here, and have wisely stopped editing your own article. That being so, can we please return to discussing content rather than editors. Cheers, Jayen466 14:59, 22 November 2008 (UTC)
Wikipedia:Words of wisdom, may be useful... ≈ jossi ≈ (talk)
No one has any way of verifying anything Jayen466 claims about his background and purpose here at Wikipedia. He/she remains an anonymous editor. The way Wikiepdia is set up anyone can come in and edit anonymously. It is very hard to believe that Jayen466 has no vested interest or agenda given (1) the narrow scope of his/her editing at Wikipedia (2) the time required to pursue the editing. Jayen466 seems to be deeply, if not obsessively concerned with Osho/Rajaneesh, a notorious cult leader once jailed and then deported from the US. Jossi turned out to be a Rawat associate. There is a problem with cult members coming to Wikipedia to work for their group, rather than simply due to some general and genuine interest in open source editing.Rick Alan Ross (talk) 13:59, 27 November 2008 (UTC)

17:53, 22 November 2008 (UTC)

Jayen, do you think that people with acknowledged conflicts of interest should avoiding editing the article related to their conflicts? ·:· Will Beback ·:· 02:00, 23 November 2008 (UTC)
I haven't got a problem with Jossi's editing, Will. Jossi sticks to sources. I don't perceive him as any more POV-driven than other editors on the pages where all of us have met. If anything rather less so, in fact. Jayen466 02:18, 23 November 2008 (UTC)
So you wouldn't have a problem with Rick Alan Ross editing the article where he has a conflict so long as he sticks to sources? One issue I've often seen is where an editor will seek to declare that some sources aren't reliable, and it's always the sources that are contrary to their apparent POV. Jayen, is Ross out of line for questioning the reliability of cult-related writers? Or is any source that meets the standards of WP:V sufficient? ·:· Will Beback ·:· 03:05, 23 November 2008 (UTC)
No, I wouldn't. But at the moment, Ross is very, very far away from that. He has no knowledge of Wikipedia policies and guidelines, and in fact appears to treat them with utter contempt. He seems to feel they don't apply to him or his article. When asked to provide sources, he has usually failed to do so, and instead argued that his personal opinion, especially his opinion of his critics, is the only one that matters and should inform the editorial voice in his article. And that it does not need any other authority than his stating it on the talk page. Where is WP:V or WP:NPOV, let alone WP:ENEMY in that? Where he does provide sources, these are usually links to his own website, which is just not good enough on anything remotely contentious. It's simply not how Wikipedia articles are built. I'd be delighted if he got the point, but I shall be very greatly (and pleasantly) surprised if he does. Cheers, Jayen466 14:56, 23 November 2008 (UTC)
(e/c) WP:V does not stand alone. You need to avoid cherry picking from sources, and avoid other forms of original research. You also need to be sure you treat significant viewpoints correctly. And finally, in biographies of living people you need to be very selective with your sources: use only sources of utmost quality. As all these are editorial judgments, you need to work in collaboration with other editors to find common ground in making these judgments. ≈ jossi ≈ (talk) 15:01, 23 November 2008 (UTC)
Jayen: WP:SPS allows for using self-published sources to assert the author's opinion within some caveats. This of course, alongside other significant opinions. ≈ jossi ≈ (talk) 15:04, 23 November 2008 (UTC)
Yes, and I think that the present use of WP:SPS in the article is okay. But the caveats in Wikipedia:Blp#Using_the_subject_as_a_self-published_source do apply, and are very specific. For example, an SPS characterising an academic who's been critical of the subject as a "cult apologist" would by any reading of this WP:BLP section fall foul of it. It is contentious, unduly self-serving, makes claims about a third party, as well as claims about events not directly related to the subject. Or do you read WP:BLP differently? Jayen466 16:49, 23 November 2008 (UTC)
There was one more point I did not address. Will asked, "is Ross out of line for questioning the reliability of cult-related writers?" Even the question is wrong. The writers whose reliability Ross questions are university-related (and government-related) writers. Eugene V. Gallagher is on the board of the American Academy of Religion, the most prestigious such academic body in the world. Ammerman, another academic, was commissioned by the government to write a report on what went wrong at Waco. Anson Shupe is, together with David Bromley, widely recognised as the leading social science authority on the anti-cult movement. Ross would like to present such writers as "cult-related writers". But that is not their standing in the real world, where they are widely respected and influential academics, writing for the world's top university presses, their works required reading in university syllabuses, etc. Jayen466 16:49, 23 November 2008 (UTC)
Jayen466 certainly prefers academics that reflect his POV, which he then cites as his chosen authorities. However, as brought out in other discussion, Ammerman actually represents a minority point of view concerning Waco. The other experts commissioned to report to the Justice Department didn't even mention me by name, my supposedly highly negative role or influence. They simply didn't concur with Ammerman in any opinion she expressed specifically about me. Ammerman, Shupe, Bromley, Melton and a few other academics have historically associated themselves closely with groups called "cults," e.g. Scientology. Shupe and Melton have been paid by cults for their time and "expert" opinions, which ultimately have been used to defend or apologize for groups called "cults." It is this specific behavior that categorizes them then as cult apologists. For example, Anson Shupe worked for Scientology lawyer Kendrick Moxon and was paid to testify as an "authority on the anti-cult movement" in the Scott case. But academics like Shupe and Bromley actually don't represent the mainstream, as evidenced by their failed effort to substitute the label "new religious movements" for "cults." Instead, other academics such as Stephen Kent, Benjamin Zablocki, Philip Zimbardo, Margaret Singer, Louis Jolly West, Robert Jay Lifton represent a more widely held consensus of opinion regarding cults, which opposes these apologists. And regarding Waco historically, Ammerman and the other academics Jayen466 has quoted such as Tabor, Wright, Lewis, are relatively obscure and virtually incoherent, when compared to the historical record, which was well-established through numerous investigations, court records and eyewitness testimony.21:42, 2 December 2008 (UTC)
The traditional smokescreen produced by anti-cult activists, who are not interested in the academic discourse. Of all the above authors Ross cites in his favor, only Stephen Kent and Zablocki contribute significantly to the current academic discourse. They usuaully voice the minority opinion. Who "pays" Bromley, Shupe, Zablocki, etc. is of no interest here, as long this is not an issue raised w/i academic discourse as well w/ regards to the credibility of the empirical research results. It could be satan himself with Melton on his payroll, as long as Melton publishes in peer-reviewed journals, and manages to get his pro-devil view behind the editors of scientific journals, that's it. It's up to Rick Ross to publish his criticism in academich journals, but I guess, he doesn't even manage to publish his bogus research on Wikipedia. Fossa?! 00:31, 3 December 2008 (UTC)
J. Gordon Melton was paid $10,000 by a front organization for the notorious "Children of God" cult to study that group. He has also been paid by J.Z. Knight to research her claim that she speaks for the spirit of a 35,000 dead general from Atlantis named "Ramtha." Subsequently, Melton apologized for both. Melton and James Lewis received an all expenses paid trip to Japan courtesy of Aum, after that cult gassed the Tokyo Subway murdering 12 people. Melton and Lewis proclaimed the cult "innocent." Needless to say they were wrong and this discredited their standing as supposedly objective researchers and academics. Melton was also eventually put in charge of the Cult Awareness Network files, after that organization went bankrupt. He was given the files after Scientology's paid expert Anson Shupe and his counterpart Scientology lawyer Kendrick Moxon went through them. What Stephen Kent, Zablocki and others have pointed out is that such paid arrangements between cults and supposed "scholars" represents a conflict of interest. As one cult tragedy after another is reported in the mainstream news, cult apologists like Melton and Shupe have failed to convince the general public that their apologies hold water. And presently, the mainstream media is covering the prosecutions of purported cult leaders and cultists across the US such as Tony Alamo in Arkansas, Phil Aguilar in California, the House of Yahweh in Texas, Strong City/Wayne Bent in New Mexico, Followers of Christ in Oregon, 1 Mind Ministries in Maryland, Polygamists in Utah, Arizona and Texas and Rama Behera/SIST and Alan Bushey in Wisconsin. This is why the apologists are not heard from often in mainstream news reports, because their spin falls flat in the face of hard facts regarding criminal prosecutions. So cult apologists publish books through whatever university or college press they can, which are usually very small book runs. Meanwhile books about cults written by former members such as "Not Without My Sister" about Children of God and "Stolen Innocence" about polygamists become best-sellers. Mental health professionals and academics in psychology and psychiatry that have studied cults specifically, have long-standing disagreements concerning the positions taken by cult apologists within the fields of religious studies and sociology.Rick Alan Ross (talk) 14:05, 3 December 2008 (UTC)
"This is why the apologists are not heard from often in mainstream news reports, because their spin falls flat in the face of hard facts ..."
Thanks Jayen466. What can be seen from the links you have posted is that Melton isn't consulted much by the mainstream media and rarely appears on network news programs. Melton's most notable appearance lately (this century) is on background regarding vampires. In fact, he has largely disappeared from the mainstream public scene during this century. IMO--This is because Melton's views are no longer considered credible by hard news in the area of cults and cult-like groups. And anyone that does just a little bit of digging can easily see why, i.e. he has been paid off by groups called "cults" and thus compromised his academic integrity as an objective scholar/researcher.Rick Alan Ross (talk) 17:45, 3 December 2008 (UTC)
As far as I know, Melton was quoted in the Wall Street Journal just a couple of weeks ago. There are 292 google news hits from the seventies through to 1999, and 186 hits from 2000 onwards, including LA Times, NY Times, SF Chronicle, National Public Radio, USA Today, Washington Post, Philadelphia Inquirer, etc.. It does not really matter, we are not citing Melton anyway. Jayen466 21:20, 3 December 2008 (UTC)

Here is the point about editors like Jayen466. It is probable that he/she is either a staffer for Osho or doing specific volunteer work for the group, i.e. to advance a propaganda effort through Wikipedia (e.g. as Jossi has done for Prem Rawat/guru Maharaji). Look at the time expended and the pattern of behavior regarding the control of certain articles. It's a shame to see Wikipedia used this way. The relatively tight knit and small group of academics Jayen466 has selectively chosen to quote are a notably biased group with a POV, which as no surprise coincides with Jayen466 POV. There is no meaningful balance to reflect this or the historical facts that dispute their conclusions. It's a choice, does Wikipedia want to be a place for fringe conspiracy theories, cranks and propaganda, or reflect the facts in a more mainstream and objective manner, in order to be considered a reliable source for research?Rick Alan Ross (talk) 18:32, 23 November 2008 (UTC)

Well, actually, if you read WP:NPOV you will find wikipedia reflects all major viewpoints without prejudice, so that readers have the facts to make up their own minds. They are not spoonfed in the way you seem to be suggesting. Wikipedia represents the POV of the different significant sources and does not make a judgement on them. Therefore your approach is violating policies and you should amend it forthwith, if you want to continue to edit. You are accusing others of controlling articles, but what comes across is that that is exactly what you are trying to do. It would also be extremely helpful if you would stop conjecturing as to the RL (real life) activities of other editors. It is their on-wiki behaviour that matters here. Argumentum ad hominem is no argument. You might like to look at WP:NPA. Jossi's behaviour in relationship to Prem Rawat articles has been examined by ArbCom. They found no fault with it. They noted that he had voluntarily restricted himself to talk pages, rather than editing the article directly, but they observed there was no requirement for him to have that restriction. Ty 19:35, 23 November 2008 (UTC)
Perhaps there isn't much hope of Wikipedia becoming an objective resource for reliable research information then, but rather quite often a place where various editors expressing their group or personal views come to propagandize. And whichever group or person has the most time, staffers or volunteers wins. Kind of Orwellian. I have no "control" over the article. I can only come here and discuss whatever objections I have regarding its accuracy. What you have now is an extremely biased and often almost nonsensical propaganda piece largely dominated by a single editor. Jossi and Jayen466 illustrate what's wrong with Wikipedia and how it can be manipulated by anonymous editors with an agenda.Rick Alan Ross (talk) 14:51, 24 November 2008 (UTC)
[26] Jayen466 19:48, 23 November 2008 (UTC)

ATTENTION ALL: Map of India

I wrote a similar message to Ssolbergj (in Wikimedia Common) who created these retarded maps. I hope you guys here can back me. It's a clear bias and I don't think that being bias is a policy of Wikipedia. It is high time things are straightened out.

(Reference: [27] vs [28])

Dear Ssolbergj, your map of China colors Arunachal Pradesh in light green which implies it is somehow rather a part of China although under Indian administration and claimed as an integral part of India. I agree this is a disputed region by both countries. In that case why doesn't the India map have Aksai Chin (a Chinese administered region claimed by India) be colored light green on the India map? Why double standards apply for Aksai and Arunachal although they are both disputed?

Same goes with Pakistan occupied kashmir. Shouldn't those areas be indicated in light green too? Please maintain neutrality as prescribed under Wikipedia:Neutral point of view. I look forward to you recoloring those maps with a NPOV in mind and not China slanted views. Thank you.

If they don't want to change it, I suggest we change the map of India to its old form (2d one) as it is more accurate.

I look forward to all your replies / opinions / assistance as I am not an established user on Wikipedia. Thank you. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 218.208.245.138 (talk)

Please consider the possibility that there was no intent on the part of the user creating these maps to falsify such information. This may sound facile, but drawing maps isn't easy, especially where territories are disputed. I am sure if you approach the user in a friendly manner, and point out relevant sources clarifying the status of the affected territories according to international law, they'll be quite happy to colour these areas in the appropriate manner. Cheers, Jayen466 18:31, 22 November 2008 (UTC)
I already did so but the user is not responding!! —Preceding unsigned comment added by 218.208.245.15 (talk) 12:19, 23 November 2008 (UTC)
It seems that Nichalp (talk · contribs) has already picked up on the same problem as you: see here. Nichalp is a very capable WP:Bureaucrat, and he is from India; I'm sure he'll be able to sort this out. Suggest you leave a message on his talk page if there's a lack of progress. Cheers, Jayen466 17:00, 23 November 2008 (UTC)
But there looks like no progress!! And Ssolbergj has read my message surely but doesn't reply!! Anyway you are also an Indian so can u please ask NICHAP what is going on? whats the progress? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 60.49.35.137 (talk) 10:05, 24 November 2008 (UTC)
I've left a message for him. Seems he was unwell but is back now. Cheers, Jayen466 15:02, 24 November 2008 (UTC)
Are yaar Jayan Sir, that was the message I left for him! (left a message for him). OK? And he has not replied although he has made other contributions after I left that message. So are you saying he is unwell to reply my message but fine to make all the other edits in the world? I even left a message on his WIKIPEDIA talk page. I don't want to spam his talk pages with messages. He surely isn't an Indian so he doesn't know what he is doing. Either that or he doesn't know his geography well or he is a China sympathiser. Either way, Wikipedia should not nominate such a person to draw maps. So what should I do now? 60.49.35.137 (talk) 18:28, 24 November 2008 (UTC)
Forgive me, I was an idiot. I meant to link this post of mine on Nichalp's talk page above rather than Ssolbergj's talk page ... don't know what happened there. (And it was Nichalp who was unwell, not Ssolbergj.) At any rate, the updated version Nichalp linked to below now has Kashmir and Aksai Chin in light green, just as Arunachal Pradesh is light green on the China map. If I click on the link that you gave above in the post that started off this thread, I get the same image. Please have a look if that is better now. Are there any other images that are wrong? Cheers, Jayen466 22:48, 24 November 2008 (UTC)
It's not fully NPOV. Arunachal Pradesh & Jammu and Kashmir should also be marked correctly on the India locator map. =Nichalp «Talk»= 06:48, 25 November 2008 (UTC)

I did contact Ssolbergj earlier, for another issue on the Wikipedia logo. His responses unfortunately are usually delayed, or he does not respond at all. When drawing up my NPOV map of India (Image:India-locator-map-blank.svg – now a featured picture), I thought about the best possible method of depicting disputed areas would be to have varying levels of transparency. In addition we also have dotted borders where the disputed territory exists. See the map page for a description. This set up should be replicated across all such maps. When I met Jimbo, I raised the issue about maps of India and he agreed that NPOV maps are necessary on Wikipedia. So I then went ahead and created the {{POV-map}} template to tag all such maps. Now, unfortunately for us, wikimedia commons allows POV maps (See Commons:Commons:Project scope/Neutral point of view, so editors there place less of an emphasis on producing NPOV works. The best way to go about it by petitioning the author to modify the image. If 10 people keep pinging him, sooner or later he will have to yield (Note: it's not necessarily directed to Ssolbergj)

Note that an update locator map is now available: Image:India (orthographic projection).svg. =Nichalp «Talk»= 19:11, 24 November 2008 (UTC)

Nevermind Jayan sir, you don't need to call yourself a idiot. everyone makes mistakes. but million thanks for letting Nichap bhai know; now he has fixed things in a NPOV manner. Somebody said that Common allows POV maps so this is our POV and it should be allowed too just like how the Chinese POV is allowed. Thanks again to the both of you!!! 218.111.30.197 (talk) 11:05, 25 November 2008 (UTC)

My pleasure. Unfortunately, another user has reverted it, claiming the edit was not drawn correctly to scale. (It looked alright to me, but hey ...) Let's try this again. Cheers, Jayen466 12:38, 25 November 2008 (UTC)
I've left Shibo77, who'd done the correction yesterday, a message to please have another go at it. Jayen466 12:54, 25 November 2008 (UTC)
Hello Nichalp, Jayen466, Deepak! Dark green for land territories administered by India (Ro India-administered Siachen Glacier; PR China-claimed Southern Tibet Region, Demchok, Kaurik, Nelang, Topidunga), light green for land territories claimed but not administered by India (IR Pakistan-administered Azad Kashmir, Northern Areas, Siachen Glacier; PR China-administered Aksai Chin, Shaksgam Valley). --User:Shibo77 (talk) 15:55, 25 November 2008 (UTC)

OK now this current one looks fine ([29]). At least SHIBO is a better person than Ssolbergj who is actually reading this message but pretending deaf. Good job SHIBO. I have to praise her, although she is a Chinese she is fair and square and acting in the interest of everyone not acting bias.

Everyone please note I am not demanding in any way for Pakistan occupied kashmir and China occupied kashmir to be colored in light green, all i am asking for is consistancy, because Arunachal and Taiwan is marked in light green in China's map. Now it is consistant, thanks to SHIBO. Again well done to her. The new map on the India page looks good. And to Jayan, thanks for your coorperation and bringing this to her attention.218.208.204.181 (talk) 18:37, 25 November 2008 (UTC)

I had earmarked a strategy to resolve disputed territory by using varying levels of transparency, and stroke styles. Please see: Image:India-locator-map-blank.svg#Legend. This needs to be replicated across the maps of all three countries, and the stroke style (ie borders) implemented for all maps that show the Kashmir/Arunachal region. This got community approval on FPC, so the issues seem to be resolved. =Nichalp «Talk»= 05:34, 26 November 2008 (UTC)

OK sounds good. Thank you for resolving the issue! 11:48, 27 November 2008 (UTC) —Preceding unsigned comment added by 118.100.29.171 (talk)

India

Please check this page and the talk page. It's about the infobox, where user:fowler&fowler regularly reverts the WP:NPOV version. --Kalarimaster (talk) 09:34, 23 November 2008 (UTC)

ETA page

ETA is a group that advocates violence, kidnapping and murder by their own publications of the group (zutabes) they have acknowledge killing 821 people so far. A group of editors continuously edit the first paragraph, if the word violence, or similar is used. ETA printed zutabes are illegal and it is difficult to find the full versions in the web to reference as the police decides what or not to release, but many had posted enough references from mayor newspapers quoting them. It has been thoroughly discussed and I find important that the description includes what characterize this group from any other separatist group= they advocate and execute kidnappings, murders, and bombings to promote the independence of a part in the north of spain. thanks in advance lolailando —Preceding unsigned comment added by Lolailando (talk • contribs) 02:55, 24 November 2008 (UTC)

Could you say something more specific about what you would like to see added? At the moment the introduction describes them as "armed" and in the body of the article many different violent attacks are mentioned. Itsmejudith (talk) 18:45, 24 November 2008 (UTC)

Barack Obama - President Elect

Resolved.

There has been an ongoing dispute on this discussion page and in archive about Obama as President-elect.

There seems to be a serious neutrality issue here.