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Talk:Istanbul#RFC2: Istanbul Infobox_Image

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Talk:Killing of_Travis_Alexander

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Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Skinshift,Talk:Skinshift

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Law of value

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Lists of tropical cyclone names

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neurofeedback

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Jane Davidson

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neurofeedback

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Lift (force)

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Concerns and controversies over Confucius Institutes

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See below

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Copernican principle

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Beta Upsilon Delta

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Istanbul

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List of Power Rangers Megaforce episodes

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Mehmed the Conqueror

– This request has been open for some time and must be reviewed.

Have you discussed this on a talk page?

Yes, I have discussed this issue on a talk page already.

Location of dispute

Users involved

Dispute overview

A 15th century Ottoman ruler, the dispute is about adding stories according to some sources who describe him raping little boys. These events are disputed by various historians, so my idea was to have one sentence which summarizes these claims instead of adding detailed text and then mildly refuting them. I have explained on the talk page why these stories are unlikely by using sources. But the other user Contaldo80 insist on adding, he adds a text based on a combination of different sources, some used in the wrong place, which imply these raping as facts. He claims these stories are properly sourced and should be included. He also accuses me of being pro-Turkish/Ottoman nationalist, he tries to discredit me. He also undid all my contribution to other LGBT people, by claiming they were not sourced, they were, I had only edited on those pages to see if he would be hypocritical and he was. On those pages he immediately reverted everything by saying weak source but on this page he insists on adding "weak sources". He seems to have developed a personal vendetta against my user and edits.

There is also one person involved who for a long time uses different IP's to mostly remove my contributions without discussing and makes personal attacks against me.

Have you tried to resolve this previously?

This dispute was already viewed by other admins. The version I want to remain was accepted and the page was protected for a while. After the protection the same IP's came and changed it, without explanation. Afterwards Contaldo80 wrote an entire new section with detailed information with weak criticism.

How do you think we can help?

I think my version is sufficient, because it is short and doesn't discuss all these controversial stories in detail. There is also a lot of criticism from Turkish historians and if I would add all of these then the page would turn into one huge chunk of text about these controversial stories. That will put the article completely out of proportion and I don't think that is necessary. I want this page to be indefinitely protected from IPs because the IPs are constantly vandalizing.

Opening comments by Contaldo80

Please limit to 2000 characters - longer statements may be deleted in their entirety or asked to be shortened. This is so a volunteer can review the dispute in a timely manner. Thanks.

Mehmed II was a 15th century military leader. A number of contemporary sources claim Mehmed sexually exploited the sons of vanquished nobles. Some editors, including myself, have tried to refer to this in the article in a relatively brief way and using mainstream academic sources. The complainant above has a problem because they argue the primary sources were written by hostile observers (whereas local - Ottoman - observers do seemingly not cover the issue). My argument is that the sources cited are good ones and we do not know for sure that the primary sources are incorrect in their claims. Nevertheless I have also made sure theat text has remained in place citing the counter-argument - ie that the primary sources are potentially open to bias. That seems a good balance to me. The complainant continues to insist this is a LGBT issue" (the term is anachronistic here). Despite their protests they are clearly pushing a pro-Turkish/ Ottoman polemic which is skewing the balance of the article. The complainant has also been personally abusive on several occasions. I have explained I am happy for them to challenge the robustness of the secondary sources, or to include mroe secondary sources which support the claim of bias; but I am not prepared to leave the whole section out on a personal whim. The complainant is also mistaken if they think I have been operating under different IPs. Separately, the claim of my hypocrisy relating to LGBT coverage on other articles doesn't warrant any serious response as it's utterly silly. Thanks.

Opening comments by DragonTiger23

Please limit to 2000 characters - longer statements may be deleted in their entirety or asked to be shortened. This is so a volunteer can review the dispute in a timely manner. Thanks.

I have been editing Wikipedia for years and I am not pushing a pro Turkish/neo-Ottoman/Islamic agenda, where did I do this, why is this user the whole time allowed to discredit me with false accusations? If I wrote one accusation against him he would use this to report me non stop. This article is about an Ottoman ruler, first it was presented that it was a fact he was raping boys, later I added criticism which was first not accepted and only after admins watched it was accepted, then an IP removes the criticism, then Contaldo80 adds more stories where boys are raped in detail but he adds at the end the criticism I added. But I say this detailed amount of controversial stories is not necessary to the article, it is controversial and will always invite further edits challenging this. These stories are controversial claimed by some( not all) Byzantine authors) and not mentioned at all by contemporary Ottomans, the greatest likelihood seems to be that they are written as anti-Ottoman propaganda so historians dispute this. I don't see why so much disputed content is to be added? I am not saying to remove all negative image but these stories seem to be basically large amounts of personal attacks on a historical person and the camouflage to add this is, "it is sourced", "criticism was added". I don't see on any other rulers page several accounts of how they supposedly raped children. DragonTiger23 (talk) 16:02, 17 April 2013 (UTC)

Mehmed the Conqueror discussion

Please do not use this for discussing the dispute prior to a volunteer opening the thread for comments - continue discussing the issues on the article talk page if necessary.
  • Hi all. I'm Steve Zhang, a volunteer here at the dispute resolution noticeboard. I apologise for the delay in your dispute being attended to. Let me read over the discussions and the article for a bit and I will come back with my thoughts. Steven Zhang Help resolve disputes! 10:57, 19 April 2013 (UTC)
Thanks Zhang, would certainly appreciate your thoughts. Contaldo80 (talk) 08:52, 26 April 2013 (UTC)

Starting the 24 hour "Stale Close" timer. Filing editor has been editing since the initial posting, but has not returned here. I droped a reminder on the filer's page to see if this is still an issue. Hasteur (talk) 15:39, 30 April 2013 (UTC)

Yes I would like to hear Steven Zhang thoughts. Thanks.DragonTiger23 (talk) 13:53, 1 May 2013 (UTC)

Juggalos (gang)

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Gun Control

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Church of Scientology

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Derwick Associates

– This request has been open for some time and must be reviewed.

Have you discussed this on a talk page?

Yes, I have discussed this issue on a talk page already.

Location of dispute

Users involved

Dispute overview

FergusM1970 and I have been going back and forth on the page for Derwick Associates for over a month now. Derwick Associates has been identified as a money laundering operation for the Venezuelan government by a number of highly-credible sources (by Venezuelan standards).

These sources have been discussed here[47], here[48], and here[49]. He is especially critical of information published by the Venezuelan investigative journalist César Batiz who writes for Últimas_Noticias.

FergusM1970 is insistent on removing all negative material—which is all sourced in RSs[50]—and replacing it with self-published PR material about how the company is involved in charity work[51] (although he posted the information without a source, the information can be found here[52] on Derwick's website).

He is also intent on outing me as "Alek"[53]

There is also a dispute over the Spanish word "sobreprecio"[54]. I am fluent in Spanish and I have translated a number of articles for this page. One of the articles is titled "Bariven compro con sobreprecio", which means "[the company] Bariven contracted with surcharge". FergusM1970, who does not speak any Spanish[55], insists on fighting me on this minor semantic issue.

There have been sockpuppet investigations[56], an RfC[57], and an ANI[58]. I was advised by Dennis Brown[59] to take it here. Justiciero1811 (talk) 23:23, 19 April 2013 (UTC)

Have you tried to resolve this previously?

There have been several attempts to use other steps. RS/N[60] and AN/I[61][62]

How do you think we can help?

A third party taking a look at the page - including the Talk discussions and other attempted steps - would be very beneficial. The various Talk discussions and noticeboard posts break down many of the pieces of information and also detail the reliability of the sources used.

Opening comments by FergusM1970

I absolutely agree that a third party examination of the article's history would be useful. The original article was merely a thinly disguised attack piece. Repeated attempts have been made to return it to this state. Frankly the company is not at all notable; it seems to be of interest only to Venezuelan journalist Cesar Batiz, delusional blogger Alek Boyd and Justiciero1811. Practically all the media coverage has been generated by Batiz, and Boyd's blog makes it clear that he is far from rational on the subject. There doesn't seem to be any very compelling reason for Wikipedia to cover this company, but if it does it should be a balanced article and not a crazed rant.--FergusM1970Let's play Freckles 04:36, 20 April 2013 (UTC)

Just to add to my previous comments, I don't think it's appropriate for an article about a company to be created when the sole purpose is to attack that company's integrity. If Wikipedia must have an article on Derwick then it should describe the company's activities with a note that there has been controvery, but when I found the article it was a hatchet piece. I'm particularly concerned in this case because Derwick's coverage on the internet is almost entirely negative, and almost entirely generated by a small number of people (in fact two: Batiz and a blogger, "Alek Boyd.") The article that Justiciero wants to see looks very much like part of a coordinated attack on Derwick. I note that the reporting from Batiz accuses THREE companies of being money-laundering vehicles for Hugo Chavez (who is now dead,) but Justiciero is focused entirely on ONE of them - Derwick. Frankly it smells.--FergusM1970Let's play Freckles 00:38, 27 April 2013 (UTC)
The purpose of the article (as with every other article) is to accurately represent the media coverage of the company. The article that FergusM1970 would propose to create looks like it was written by Derwick's PR company. I have provided the diffs in previous discussions where FergusM1970 removed all negative information (even information from RSs) and replaced it with self-published material from Derwick's website that espouses their donations and involvement in charitable causes.
I'll try to keep my temper as I respond to your accusation that I failed to write entries for all three companies that Batiz accuses of corruption (the other two are OVARB and KCT Cumana). Frankly, I would be happy to do so, however, I don't think the other two companies would pass a notability test, so I'm not going to. Neither of the other two companies received as many contracts as Derwick, nor are they as large as Derwick. This is probably why Batiz focused exclusively on Derwick in his subsequent investigations on the subject.
You're clearly accusing me of something (to quote you above, "Frankly it smells"), but I'm not sure what. What exactly are you accusing me of? Justiciero1811 (talk) 18:36, 1 May 2013 (UTC)
Actually the information you added to the article would seem to contradict you; Derwick's share of the contracts and "surcharges" came to rather less than a third, as you may recall. In fact it was just over a quarter of the total and just over a fifth of the "surcharges." On that basis it would seem that Derwick was not the largest and also levied less "surcharges" than the other two, so why you think they're more notable is a bit of a mystery. Perhaps you could explain it, just so I understand your reasoning? In any case I'm not making an accusation that you failed to dump on the other two companies as you did on this one; I'm stating a fact. It seems to me that if the other two aren't notable Derwick isn't either, so what it smells of is bias against this company.--FergusM1970Let's play Freckles 03:18, 4 May 2013 (UTC)

Derwick Associates discussion

Hello, I'm Merlinme and I'm interested in helping you resolve this. It would be helpful if you could summarise the main content issues. I've had a look at the talk pages and I don't think either deletion of the article or accusations of sock puppetry are positions which are currently sustainable. As far as I can see this is primarily a content dispute. So if you could summarise roughly what content you think the article should contain that would be helpful. Thanks, --Merlinme (talk) 22:59, 24 April 2013 (UTC)

Hi there, and thanks for getting involved. Personally I don't think the company is very notable, but if it has to have an article I don't think it's appropriate for it to be an attack piece of the sort it was originally. My main concern is that while the version Justiciero wants to see appears to be well sourced, in fact it almost all comes from one source, that being Batiz. While I'm happy to accept that he's an RS in general it does appear that he has an issue with Derwick that goes beyond objective reporting. I'm also concerned that semantics are being used to further slant the article, for example the "surcharges" thing. Overall I just don't think an article should exist simply to accuse a company of money laundering. That's not my understanding of what Wikipedia is for. If Derwick has an article it should concentrate on facts about the company and not issues like the prices they charge, which at the end of the day are just someone's opinion.--FergusM1970Let's play Freckles 16:16, 25 April 2013 (UTC)
The thing is, Batiz is an investigative journalist who investigates corruption in Venezuela. He's won a number of awards for his efforts and he is about as credible as it gets in South America; he is not, as FergusM1970 fondly refers to him, "some Venezuelan hack."[63] The main content dispute is over Batiz. FergusM1970 does not believe that he is a credible source and thinks we should ignore everything he wrote on this subject. I disagree.
As far as accusing me of using semantics to slant the article, I don't know how I can make it more clear: "Sobreprecio" means "surcharge"[64]. Here is the exact text from Wordreference: "sobreprecio SM (=recargo) surcharge;" There is no distinction between the two words. Anyone native Spanish speaker (from Central or South America) will tell you the same thing.Justiciero1811 (talk) 18:55, 25 April 2013 (UTC)
What "Sobreprecio" means is irrelevant. This is ENGLISH wikipedia and "surcharge" is not an appropriate word to use, because we aren't talking about surcharges; we are talking about prices that a journalist thinks are too high, and that is something completely different. If I used a German-language source to edit the English Wikipedia article on computers would it be OK for me to call PCs calculators, just because the German word Rechner means both computers and calculators? No, of course not. That's what you're trying to do here. A surcharge is an additional charge, not an inflated price. I haven't seen any evidence of surcharges here. As for the rest of the article, it is supposed to tell readers about the company. It is not supposed to deal entirely with Batiz's allegations against it.--FergusM1970Let's play Freckles 19:39, 25 April 2013 (UTC)
Ok, thanks for your responses. Please could we try to keep the discussion as civil as possible. I understand tempers have got heated in the past, but please try to avoid point scoring here. Let's not get sidetracked on the issue of what a particular Spanish word does or does not mean in English; there is almost certainly a different way to phrase the same thing, it seems a very minor issue to me.
The fundamental question is surely whether Derwick Associates is "just a Venezuelan power company". If they were just a power company, then presumably they wouldn't have an article in the English Wikipedia. The main reliable source suggesting otherwise in the article is currently Batiz. I don't have a problem with using Batiz as the major source, but there should be additional reliable sources backing him up, especially if we are making serious allegations, and definitely if we are making serious allegations about living people.
SandyGeorgia has questioned on the Reliable Sources Noticeboard whether www.wikianticorrupcion.org, soberania.org, elvenezolanonews.com, entornointeligente.com and law.com are reliable sources. Unless you are prepared to make an argument defending those sources, I'd suggest that they're removed from the article, and that we then see where we are in terms of sourced content. If you wish to support statements in the article using different (more reliable) sources that's fine. A quick reminder of the guidelines on Reliable Sources: context is important, but in general websites without clear editorial policies (for example, how do you get a correction made?) are not considered reliable sources. We also have to be extremely careful with allegations regarding living people. It's probably fine to report court cases (using Reliable Sources), but please be careful to stick to Neutral Point of View.
Once we've sorted out the sourcing we can discuss the content and any weight issues. Thanks, --Merlinme (talk) 16:38, 27 April 2013 (UTC)
OK, looking at the additional sources seems like a good place to start. My concern with several of them is that while they appear to back up the main allegations by Batiz, many of them in fact are Batiz. The same person saying the same thing on two sites is a single source as far as I'm concerned.--FergusM1970Let's play Freckles 13:59, 1 May 2013 (UTC)

Thank you for your help Merlinme. I happen to agree with SandyGeorgia that sources should not be used for contested facts. Actually, I was the one who asked her for her input[65] because I know first hand how difficult it is to sort out government-funded media from the free press in Venezuela. When I added information from the sources in question, I didn't realize that many of them were non-RS. I asked every user on Wikiproject Venezuela (including SandyGeorgia) for their input and I was fortunate enough to get several responses, all of which supported Batiz, and spoke against soberania.org, entornointeligente, and primicias24.

I should note that Batiz won the IPYS award in 2011[66][67] (The English translation of this organization is "Press and Society Institute") for uncovering the corruption in Venezuela[68], including Derwick Associates. In spite of what FergusM1970 seems to think about Batiz, he is not a "hack"[69] or a "nut"[70]. He is a highly credible investigative journalist in Venezuela who has uncovered numerous cases of corruption in Venezuela. Hell, the guy's Wikipedia page says a lot of it:[71] Justiciero1811 (talk) 18:22, 1 May 2013 (UTC)

However when the potentially unreliable sources are removed the allegations against Derwick look increasingly like they're coming from a single source, and even the best investigative journalists get on hobby horses from time to time. I really don't see the justification for an article that's almost entirely about corruption allegations, especially when it's a) mostly from a single source and b) the targets of these allegations are not just alive but actively fighting the allegations in the courts. Seems like asking for trouble really.--FergusM1970Let's play Freckles 21:21, 2 May 2013 (UTC)

Huizhou University, List of universities and colleges in Guangdong

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Sanctions Against Iran

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Space Ghost

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