[WikiEN-l] Our content gets *everywhere*

[Ray Saintonge]

David Gerard wrote:
> And, importantly it sets the tone for others. Note the press tone from
> Wikimedia about the WikiScanner - we don't make suggestions that
> companies be burned in effigy, we just suggest ways to set the record
> straight without an apparent conflict of interest. One thing company
> PR people have just learnt is that "conflict of interest" is public
> perception, not just words on a Wikipedia policy page.
>
> There's considerable public good will to be gained from being seen to
> play nice with Wikipedia, and - as the frankly quite boggling wave of
> press coverage of the WikiScanner has just demonstrated - considerable
> public oppobrium to be gained from being seen not to. We don't even
> have to mention sticks, just carrots ;-)
For some, carrots are just another kind of stick.  A bigger carrot will 
more effectively beat someone over the head. ;-)

The tone of what you say above is just as important at the micro-level 
of how Wikipedians get along with each other.  Some just move too 
quickly into an enforcement mode.

This can also apply to articles about companies.  A company that insists 
on believing its own company PR in the face of contradictory public 
information can only harm the perception that the public has of its 
products. It is now much easier to find information that challenges the 
companies.

Ec