----- Original Message ----- From: "David Gerard" dgerard@gmail.com To: "Wikimedia Foundation Mailing List" foundation-l@lists.wikimedia.org Sent: Tuesday, September 28, 2010 12:38 PM Subject: Re: [Foundation-l] Has Wikipedia changed since 2005?
On 27 September 2010 15:17, Nathan nawrich@gmail.com wrote:
A few posts back Peter linked to several philosophy-trained editors who had left Wikipedia, representing them as examples of the problems he has identified. I think it's worth reposting here what one of those editors gave as his reasons for leaving: So what can we learn from these clearly stated objections, and how do they apply to the general problem of articles in the humanities?
This appears to be the objections of someone who thinks an encyclopedia is a journal in the field, or should work like one. As WJohnson has pointed out, Wikipedia is not a venue for academic self-promotion either.
You can hardly move on Wikipedia without tripping over experts in whatever topic you're editing. Why are there any experts on Wikipedia?
- d.
I have already pointed out (and you agreed) that Wikipedia requires a different style and approach from the one of, say, the SEP.
Wikipedia is not a venue for academic self-promotion either.
It is supposed to be a comprehensive and reliable reference source.
You can hardly move on Wikipedia without tripping over experts in whatever topic you're editing.
There are only a handful of experts on philosophy in Wikipedia, and they are pretty demoralized. When are you going to clean up this mess, David?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Islamic_Golden_Age
You said you were going to, some time. Or this one?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Existence
If there are so many experts, why are these articles in such a complete mess? We are not talking about a 'journal in the field'. We are talking about a basic introductory article to a subject which in any comprehensive reference work would be treated with care and respect. Why is there no proper article on Theology? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Theology . And why is this one - a basic subject - such a mess http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Natural_theology ?
Without experts to tell you there is a problem, you aren't going to realise there is one, I suppose.
With every kind wish.
Peter