This is an
essay. It contains the advice or opinions of one or more Wikipedia contributors. This page is not an encyclopedia article, nor is it one of
Wikipedia's policies or guidelines, as it has not been
thoroughly vetted by the community. Some essays represent widespread norms; others only represent minority viewpoints. |
This page in a nutshell: Knowing how to respond to tendentious editing, being able to correctly identify the cause and knowing how to properly engage without creating disruption can sometimes be a daunting task, especially if it's you creating the disruption. This essay will help guide editors down the road to resolution with guidance tips to help identify certain behavioral characteristics peculiar to advocacy in an effort to avoid edit warring, battleground behavior and overall disruption that impedes productivity. |
This essay is about advocacy ducks and was created to help editors identify and properly respond to aggressive or overzealous editors who advocate for certain causes, and display certain behavioral characteristics that disrupt productive editing. The duck metaphor is a good analogy because not all disruption is hatched from a paid or unpaid advocacy. Paid advocacies or conflicts of interest are subject to the policies set forth for paid editing as well as Wikipedia's Terms of Use. There are associated behaviors that are recognizable so if it acts, looks and sounds like an advocacy duck, it could be one; therefore, editors need to know how best to respond.
It is easy to spot disruptive editing, but somewhat difficult to ascertain whether it was caused by advocacy (paid or unpaid) or a new editor with a strong opinion who is simply not yet familiar with Wikipedia's policies and guidelines. There are basic procedures that editors should follow when seeking dispute resolution (DR) for disruptive editing, beginning with polite discussion on the article's talk page (TP). If discussions fail to resolve a content dispute it may prove beneficial to request a third opinion or seek a wider range of input to achieve community consensus by initiating a request for comments (RfC). If disruption continues after a consensus has been reached and it escalates into disruptive behavior, it may be necessary to file a case at the dispute resolution noticeboard (DRN). If after all of the earliest attempts at DR have failed and the disruptive conduct continues, it is probably time to invite an uninvolved administrator to review the disruption or you can open a case at the administrator's noticeboard/incidents (ANI) where administrators provide input and will take necessary action to stop the disruption, especially if the article is subject to discretionary sanctions. Incidents involving disruptive behavior are usually resolved at ANI, and rarely elevate to Wikipedia:Arbitration which is a long arduous process at the highest level of conduct DR.
Certain articles in Wikipedia are more likely than others to attract disruptive advocates which can leave editors with the impression that one or more advocates have assumed ownership control of an article. Such behavior may also be associated with and reinforced by tag team behavior as a way to avoid 3RRV or gain advantage over community consensus. The best advice when first encountering a perceived advocacy is to assume good faith because things aren't always what they seem. Unwarranted accusations are considered a personal attack and may result in a block in much the same way as it does for edit warring. However, if the disruption prevents article improvement, you will need to collect evidence to establish whether your suspicions are correct, and if they are, to make your case.
Advocacy tips the scales of balance either for or against something. Learning to recognize advocacy ducks is not an easy task because they may nest in a broad range of topics and articles. You might see them in a controversial article, or on any article whose subject has a following. Advocates often have a bias they cannot set aside which prevents them from editing in compliance with neutral point of view (NPOV). They often engage in long-term tendentious editing by attempting to impose and maintain their point of view in an article or related articles that serve to further their cause.
At first glance, coots look like ducks but upon closer observation they don't have webbed feet and they don't quack. Coots live on the water, and they are birds but not ducks. What you might think is advocacy editing could be a case of stewardship, not ownership. Remember, AGF. Stewardship is commonly seen in the stable waters of WP:Good articles and WP:Featured articles to help protect those articles against vandalism, POV pushing and/or advocacy ducks. If you see a GA symbol or FA symbol ( ) in the top right margin of an article, it is good etiquette to propose changes, other than correcting grammatical or link errors, on the article talk page first. Medical and health articles require a special degree of sourcing, and wise to seek input from members of WT:WikiProject Medicine prior to making any changes.
If your edits were reverted or challenged by other editors, you should examine your edits more closely and listen to editors who disagree with you.
If, however, you are certain that the problem is not you, then you may be at a fork in the road. If you suspect you've encountered a conflict of interest, which is a special type of advocacy, it is best to follow the road to the COIN. On the other hand, if you are certain you encountered POV warriors or advocacy ducks, take the road to resolution.
If your edits were reverted or challenged, do not automatically assume it was the result of advocacy. Even if other editors appear to be working together as a tag team, keep in mind that they may be working together to prevent advocacy ducks from pushing their POV. Unsubstantiated allegations of tendentious editing or advocacy may be considered violations of the WP:Civility policy and can result in you being blocked, so the utmost care should be taken to properly identify such behavior. Remember, he who quacks loudest may be you.
If you followed all the above suggestions and still think you have come across an advocacy duck, stay calm, AGF and remember:
Now you follow the dispute resolution process. The idiom "keep your ducks in a row" applies here with regards to putting forth a substantive argument. Assertions must be backed up with evidence (usually in the form of "diffs"). Keep in mind that there is always a good chance that—rightly or wrongly—discussion at a noticeboard will lead you to be warned, blocked or sanctioned instead of the reported duck.
Don't be a vigilante; bring problems to the community at noticeboards.
This is an
essay. It contains the advice or opinions of one or more Wikipedia contributors. This page is not an encyclopedia article, nor is it one of
Wikipedia's policies or guidelines, as it has not been
thoroughly vetted by the community. Some essays represent widespread norms; others only represent minority viewpoints. |
This page in a nutshell: Knowing how to respond to tendentious editing, being able to correctly identify the cause and knowing how to properly engage without creating disruption can sometimes be a daunting task, especially if it's you creating the disruption. This essay will help guide editors down the road to resolution with guidance tips to help identify certain behavioral characteristics peculiar to advocacy in an effort to avoid edit warring, battleground behavior and overall disruption that impedes productivity. |
This essay is about advocacy ducks and was created to help editors identify and properly respond to aggressive or overzealous editors who advocate for certain causes, and display certain behavioral characteristics that disrupt productive editing. The duck metaphor is a good analogy because not all disruption is hatched from a paid or unpaid advocacy. Paid advocacies or conflicts of interest are subject to the policies set forth for paid editing as well as Wikipedia's Terms of Use. There are associated behaviors that are recognizable so if it acts, looks and sounds like an advocacy duck, it could be one; therefore, editors need to know how best to respond.
It is easy to spot disruptive editing, but somewhat difficult to ascertain whether it was caused by advocacy (paid or unpaid) or a new editor with a strong opinion who is simply not yet familiar with Wikipedia's policies and guidelines. There are basic procedures that editors should follow when seeking dispute resolution (DR) for disruptive editing, beginning with polite discussion on the article's talk page (TP). If discussions fail to resolve a content dispute it may prove beneficial to request a third opinion or seek a wider range of input to achieve community consensus by initiating a request for comments (RfC). If disruption continues after a consensus has been reached and it escalates into disruptive behavior, it may be necessary to file a case at the dispute resolution noticeboard (DRN). If after all of the earliest attempts at DR have failed and the disruptive conduct continues, it is probably time to invite an uninvolved administrator to review the disruption or you can open a case at the administrator's noticeboard/incidents (ANI) where administrators provide input and will take necessary action to stop the disruption, especially if the article is subject to discretionary sanctions. Incidents involving disruptive behavior are usually resolved at ANI, and rarely elevate to Wikipedia:Arbitration which is a long arduous process at the highest level of conduct DR.
Certain articles in Wikipedia are more likely than others to attract disruptive advocates which can leave editors with the impression that one or more advocates have assumed ownership control of an article. Such behavior may also be associated with and reinforced by tag team behavior as a way to avoid 3RRV or gain advantage over community consensus. The best advice when first encountering a perceived advocacy is to assume good faith because things aren't always what they seem. Unwarranted accusations are considered a personal attack and may result in a block in much the same way as it does for edit warring. However, if the disruption prevents article improvement, you will need to collect evidence to establish whether your suspicions are correct, and if they are, to make your case.
Advocacy tips the scales of balance either for or against something. Learning to recognize advocacy ducks is not an easy task because they may nest in a broad range of topics and articles. You might see them in a controversial article, or on any article whose subject has a following. Advocates often have a bias they cannot set aside which prevents them from editing in compliance with neutral point of view (NPOV). They often engage in long-term tendentious editing by attempting to impose and maintain their point of view in an article or related articles that serve to further their cause.
At first glance, coots look like ducks but upon closer observation they don't have webbed feet and they don't quack. Coots live on the water, and they are birds but not ducks. What you might think is advocacy editing could be a case of stewardship, not ownership. Remember, AGF. Stewardship is commonly seen in the stable waters of WP:Good articles and WP:Featured articles to help protect those articles against vandalism, POV pushing and/or advocacy ducks. If you see a GA symbol or FA symbol ( ) in the top right margin of an article, it is good etiquette to propose changes, other than correcting grammatical or link errors, on the article talk page first. Medical and health articles require a special degree of sourcing, and wise to seek input from members of WT:WikiProject Medicine prior to making any changes.
If your edits were reverted or challenged by other editors, you should examine your edits more closely and listen to editors who disagree with you.
If, however, you are certain that the problem is not you, then you may be at a fork in the road. If you suspect you've encountered a conflict of interest, which is a special type of advocacy, it is best to follow the road to the COIN. On the other hand, if you are certain you encountered POV warriors or advocacy ducks, take the road to resolution.
If your edits were reverted or challenged, do not automatically assume it was the result of advocacy. Even if other editors appear to be working together as a tag team, keep in mind that they may be working together to prevent advocacy ducks from pushing their POV. Unsubstantiated allegations of tendentious editing or advocacy may be considered violations of the WP:Civility policy and can result in you being blocked, so the utmost care should be taken to properly identify such behavior. Remember, he who quacks loudest may be you.
If you followed all the above suggestions and still think you have come across an advocacy duck, stay calm, AGF and remember:
Now you follow the dispute resolution process. The idiom "keep your ducks in a row" applies here with regards to putting forth a substantive argument. Assertions must be backed up with evidence (usually in the form of "diffs"). Keep in mind that there is always a good chance that—rightly or wrongly—discussion at a noticeboard will lead you to be warned, blocked or sanctioned instead of the reported duck.
Don't be a vigilante; bring problems to the community at noticeboards.