On 8/22/06, Erik Moeller eloquence@gmail.com wrote:
Simple answer: add a clear disclaimer template at the top of WP:COI articles, and delete them if they are rejected by the community. This is much easier if there's a standard process (there's that evil word again) to follow.
That's the first suggestion that sounds plausible.
"This article has been edited by the company in question or an agent acting on its behalf. It may not conform to the neutral point of view policy or may omit important facts."
It would not be unreasonable to ask a PR company simply to disclose the fact that they've edited the article by stamping it {{pr}} or something (calling it "conflict of interest" is probably going to put them off).
To be honest though, I don't see what the big deal. We have zillions of articles with all kinds of problems all over the place. Since when is the greatest of our problems a sympathetic article which just doesn't mention the fact that Foofoocom Industries got sued in 1983 for poisoning its employees?
I suspect also that any damage to our reputation will be confined to articles about companies. People will quickly learn to take our articles about companies with a grain of salt - hell, I already do. They're already one of our weakest areas.
Steve