[WikiEn-l] Another BLP deletion... Why? - WikiEN-l

20 Apr 2008

There is yet another deletion debate ongoing about a BLP article, but I
think this is by far the highest profile BLP anyone has tried to delete
simply because the subject is upset about the content. So far, the hyperbole
has focused on how Wikipedia is theoretically causing harm to this
individual. I can't see it. This is a high profile guy who seems to
consistently angle for an ever higher profile, with a great deal of coverage
in the press and a very significant talkpage presence aimed entirely at
keeping the article in line with the BLP policy. If we don't report anything
that hasn't already been written by a few very mainstream newspapers, how
are we causing harm? All of the information is readily available, and anyone
who searches for his name will find both the Wikipedia article and every
critical article every written about him.

So he's a very wealthy lawyer and today he posted a document that purports
to be a letter to the WMF auditing firm, and the letter claims that he has
filed cases against a group of editors, the individual members of the Board,
Wikimedia Foundation and even Wikia. Let me ask, then. No one who has been
editing the article is unaware of the risk in this case, so for whose
benefit do we capitulate to his threats? Do we really want to get in the
habit of deleting articles of fairly famous individuals based on a threat?
You'll note that the current complaint is pretty baseless. He was happy with
the article a few weeks back, and hardly a single thing has changed about it
since then. It is only the risk of having a group of editors on the page who
aim to create a truly representative article that has caused him to step up
the pace of intimidation. I think that is what we ought to want, but
apparently others disagree. So if there is a new consensus about this, I'd
like to see someone add it to WP:BLP.

Nathan