[WikiEN-l] Working towards balance on controversial topics (was: Guardian article about Wikipedia)

[Poor, Edmund W]

From: David Gerard [mailto:dgerard at gmail.com] 
Sent: Monday, October 24, 2005 12:10 PM

> Thank goodness for that. In a Wikipedia with otherwise really
> very good and *useful* computer articles (i.e., I use it as
> my standard reference in real life), [[Linux]] is a POV-
> pushing dog's breakfast of advocacy. This happens with a lot
> of open source-related articles, because too many
> contributors really do not understand NPOV in any context
> whatsoever, only advocacy. I've tried fixing it in the past,
> but the effort of holding back the tide made me wish I was
> working on more peacable areas of the wiki, like Israel-
> Palestine topics.

I have concentrated more on "balance" than on any other aspect of
quality, during my nearly 4 years of volunteer service here at
Wikipedia. Holding back the tide of advocacy is exhausting work, David,
let me tell you!

Fortunately, the editor in chief at EP is an expert in Israeli-Palestine
peace efforts. He drafted the [[Jerusalem Declaration]], for one thing.
And at a small meeting he arranged last Thursday, I got to meet the
Development Director of "Children of Abraham". 

We need more dialogue and understanding. We also need to identify and
celebrate what we have in common. I believe that an encyclopedia can
provide reliable knowledge that helps people realize that "underneath
our differences, we all are one". Anyway as a Unificationist, that's my
dream.

Uncle Ed