Re: Paid Editing on WP is permissible

[ericbarbour]

This person likes the companies Avant, JetSmarter and Zeta Global, and seems to hate TransPerfect.
Former employee, taking potshots at his ex-employer while being paid to say nice things about others? Dunno but that is how it looks.

https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?ti ... irlysimple

[disembodiedcathead]

A circular link to this thread via Helen of desTroy.
A follow-up piece and another. Footnotes inside... she's done a lot of work.

The first essay is general and gets some things wrong. (she shouldn't say Wikimedia owns WikiTribune to pick one example... or radicalize the things I've written into accusations against the mighty mighty Clintons. )

The second and third are particularly concerned with quackwatch.com (specifically Stephen Barrett) and nutritional supplements respectively. Any thoughts?

My ears are burning...where's the circular link? i wrote a few pieces for PRN & linked to them from my personal website - i think one footnote in "Wikipedia: Rotten to the Core" references a previous article in the PRN series, but only to avoid putting 20+ footnotes in a row at the end of a sentence. No circularity there. that's more of a Stephen Barrett technique

& yes i know now that WMF doesn't own WikiTribune, wasn't immediately clear when i wrote that piece. didn't mean to put a target on your back regarding the Clintons comment used it more as basis for my own theorizing. Eric what is your email? i can't locate the PM function, browser compatibility issue or do newborn users have to prove themselves not-bots to break out of quarantine? sashi i wouldn't mind asking you a few questions too, tried to message you on Medium but to no avail...you can email me through this form or my name at gmail (that goes for anyone who has info of interest, either relating to that story or my latest article - thought i was done with Wikipedia for a while but i guess no one is ever really done with Wikipedia)
(btw the original piece is not down, it moved to here & grew in length. bc clearly it wasn't long enough)

[ericbarbour]

I will email you, Helen.

One thing you can't deny: Mykel Board unquestionably created his own Wikipedia bio in 2005.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:C ... s/Canapkin

And as usual, the Wiki-Bungholes cannot bring themselves to completely destroy it OR to fix it. So they just cut it down to one useless sentence.

[ericbarbour]

The Mykel Board story was posted on a Facebook group he participates in, and he responded. Which triggered an ongoing discussion, which is getting longer and longer as I watch.

mylekboardonFB.jpg (124.17 KiB) Viewed 6219 times

[sashi]

Oops, sorry disembodied one, I've been busy and I missed this thread. By circular link, I meant I was adding a link to your piece, which linked to this thread.

Your work has really been quite impressive, and it's not really a big deal... you just took a couple shortcuts that are not allowed us in policed speech. ^^ I heard another installment on prn recently calling for submissions. I imagine you've seen that Bbb23 took action against Sagecandor/CIRT after an SPI was filed. I'll try to track down your email before the weekend is over in 36 minutes. ^^ Thanks for popping in!

[ericbarbour]

I imagine you've seen that Bbb23 took action against Sagecandor/CIRT after an SPI was filed.

Hah, one fool blocking another. Cirt will be back (and probably is already).
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia ... rt/Archive

And for today's bullshit:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:C ... /Small2fry
creator of
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Wolf-Sisters
That novel must have been a massive flop -- it's not even listed on Amazon. Extreme obscurity.

PLUS A BONUS:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Craig_Safan

06:33, 12 May 2012‎ Sjscoml (talk | contribs)‎ . . (11,399 bytes) (+9,595)‎ . . ((Updated and expanded bio at request of Craig Safan and with his approval.)) (undo)

[sashi]

My ears are burning...
[...]
WMF doesn't own WikiTribune
[...]
my latest article
[...]
(btw the original piece is not down, it moved to here & grew in length. bc clearly it wasn't long enough)

I finally have a little time, and it's always encouraging to catch a glimpse of the Cathead through the mirror.

You know, there's a Helen involved in Wikitribune who has helped create promo material for the WMF before. She works for the Union, which seems like it has good public health advocacy goals. She has been the global communications director since 2017 (§) and does not hide her close association with the WMF (§). I would have to assume some of her pocket money comes from the WMF (§) (probably via Minassian Media), so... make of that what you will.

Two more selected NY "communications specialists for the good":

Jove Oliver / Clinton Foundation / The Union (§) / Oliver Global (consulting for WMF)
Craig Minassian / Clinton Foundation / Minassian Media / WMF / Comedy Central

For Gary I should mention that it's probably pronounced Minassian... §.

With regard to the last point you mention, thanks for adding the footnotes and toning down a bit. BullRangifer isn't an admin, btw, just a quintessential insider (§). Co-cabalist JzG, on the other hand, *is* an admin . (§)

[ericbarbour]

An unnoticed account that works on very little other than creating hagiographic bios of tech startups and people associated: Chwagen.

[ericbarbour]

Ever heard of a vlogger called Winston Sterzel? He's "moderately popular" on YT, specializes in making interesting videos about China, where he lives.
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCl7mAG ... s8rhhh8XZg
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Winston_Sterzel

It's undeniable: he's been editing his own article. it was originally started in March 2017 by a student in a WikiEdu program--then these accounts started massaging it. Accounts that could only be Sterzel himself or a friend. Most were blocked. So despite his relative obscurity, his WP content has been editwarred quite a bit.....
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/User:Serpentza
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/User:Hikidikihiki
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:C ... ovelyCamel
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:C ... on_Sonic2k
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:C ... :903A:801B
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/User:%E5% ... 2%E9%BE%99

Two AFDs so far, both failed badly.....
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia ... on_Sterzel
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia ... nomination)

This was my favorite part. Many idiots here and I don't think Sterzel is one of them.

NOTE There has been off-Wiki canvassing by the subject on Twitter: If anyone of you has knowledge of how Wikipedia works, could you please help me as my wikipedia page has been under serious vandalism and revision and nominated for Deletion again by the trolls, it's very frustrating as they have...

[ericbarbour]

From a private email exchange.

> and whatever dipshits were in charge of your institution thought that building their identity around Co'lege Foo'ball would help them.

Very conservative Mormons dominated that place. Still do today. And the football angle was a joke and still is. Do you ever see the NAU Lumberjacks mentioned in the sports section? Nope. In the 1960s NAU leaders were CONVINCED NAU would be a "Big 10" football powerhouse real soon. Despite spending literally billions over a 50 year period, their athletic department is still a sad little joke. Most of it went for magnificent buildings, like their domed stadium.

And I still think it's ultimately because the admins hired other devout Mormons and not competent people. A constant refrain with the LDS crowd. BYU is still regarded as an absurdity by the academic mainstream, and Univ. of Utah is a significant research institution mostly because of a guy you've never heard of--Ray Olpin. In the 1950s he put an end to the usual campus "Mormon mafia/hire your relatives if they're good Mormons" crap, and started bringing in really smart outsiders, some of whom he met while working on the Manhattan Project.

Olpin's WP article is pathetic. Mostly written by a Utes alumnus. Olpin was a very important figure, and UofU would be nothing without him, but very few Mormons participate on Wikipedia and they mostly obsess over the ongoing sanctification of Mormon articles. They didn't like Olpin, ooh he was a "troublemaker". Upshot: never let religious nuts run a general educational institution. Especially the really paranoid ones. You have already realized that but it's a lesson our society keeps forgetting.

Another "great" Mormon "institution" is the Marriott family......
http://fortune.com/2018/12/04/starwood- ... passports/

Guess what.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marriott_International
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:C ... oteljargon
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:C ... Mrtemphelp
And yes, Vegaswikian watched it for many years.

I should post this on the forum. Not that it matters.....