Talk:Foundation Against Intolerance and Racism/Archive 1
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Notice of reliable sources noticeboard discussion
There is currently a discussion at Wikipedia:Reliable sources/Noticeboard regarding an issue with which you may have been involved. The thread is The Colorado Times Recorder, Passage, and Idavox as sources in the Foundation Against Intolerance and Racism article. Thank you.
TheTranarchist ⚧ Ⓐ (talk) 18:11, 15 February 2023 (UTC)TheTranarchist
Idavox
An even more robust case could be built by including "one people's project" and "daryle lamont jenkins" in the search, but for simplicity's sake these are the results of a google news search for "Idavox".
- Links to their reporting (with attribution)
- SPLC:
Daryle Lamont Jenkins, who reported on the event for independent antifascist news website Idavox, confirmed that Stein attempted to “troll” the crowd.
- The Daily Beast:
The Clark brothers appear to have followed Spencer closely. They posed with him outside the White House at the April rally and the following month, they attended another Spencer rally outside the White House, Idavox previously reported
- SPLC:
- Links to their reporting (without attribution)
- Texas Observer links to two separate Idavox articles to back up their statements. One had originally been linked in another article here
- Virginia Mercury links to their reporting on how far-right activists who'd previously supported Charlottesville distanced themselves from it after
- Refers to their youtube channel/videos/photos
- Philly Magazine Uses Daryle's photos from a KKK rally
- Philly Magazine also uses a video he'd taken of the rally
- Patch Idavox caught Ramos pepper spraying people on video
- Serious coverage of Idavox/Daryle/OPP themselves
- The Progressive:
One People’s Project was launched in 2000 as a platform to disseminate information about fascist and white supremacist figures and groups. ... “One People’s Project was formed because people weren’t talking about the things that we felt were important to talk about,” Jenkins says. “If you see a need that isn’t being tended to, there’s nothing stopping you from tending [to it] yourself.” ... He runs both One People’s Project, which documents the activities of the far right while issuing calls to action, and Idavox, which publishes news articles expanding on that research.
The article goes very in depth into how Idavox has been doing reporting that mainstream sources hadn't been touching and praises their coverage in comparison. - NJ Monthly:
The Black man was Daryle Lamont Jenkins, an Air Force veteran who has spent the past 20 years sniffing out and exposing white supremacists across the nation, but especially here in New Jersey. Jenkins, head of the New Brunswick based One People’s Project, posted the entire November 2021 Princeton confrontation on YouTube and his popular website, Idavox
- Vice:
Daryle Lamont Jenkins, an antifascist researcher who has tracked the far-right for decades and runs One People’s Project, which monitors hate groups.
- The Progressive:
In short, just a quick search of Idavox, not even Jenkins himself or the OPP, reveals that Idavox is considered by reliable sources to be an independent news website with a focus on reporting on fascism. They consider it reliable enough to just link directly to their research to back up claims. I have yet to ever see a reliable source mention Daryle, Idavox, or OPP and call their research/reporting into question. TheTranarchist ⚧ Ⓐ (talk) 15:14, 14 February 2023 (UTC)
- As I noted on RSN, this source neither has an editorial board, any editorial oversight, a corrections policy, nor any other trappings of a reliable source. Merely being one guy's blog doesn't make it reliable, even if that person is a journalist (see: Max Blumenthal's blog, The Grayzone). NJ Monthly is an extremely weak source—it's literally an advertising magazine for restaurants and New Jersey's local businesses—not the sort of thing that offers credence to a source that it's citing. Likewise, WP:VICE is WP:MREL and The Progressive is a publication of opinion content—neither of these plausibly contribute to affirmative WP:UBO in a way that would be able to overcome the critical deficiencies in the site's editorial oversight. — Red-tailed hawk (nest) 21:42, 15 February 2023 (UTC)
Major POV issues with this article
This article has major POVs and lacks a balance of sources.
- The lead states "the board is made up of conservatives who've variously been accused of racism, pushing race science, climate change denial, sexual assault, homophobia, and transphobia" sourced to the Colorado Times Recorder, which is a fringy upstart news site that may not be reliable. That article sources those accusations to a host of other sites that include activist outlets like Climate Nexus and GLAAD. BLP issues here for sure.
- Also included in the lead is a quote from the San Antonio Current describing FAIR as "horribly misnamed". This article only mentioned FAIR in passing, so inclusion of this opinion in the lead is very undue.
- The "Reception" section of body of the article quotes a potentially defamatory claim from Idavox about Ayaan_Hirsi_Ali: "the anti-Muslim activist Hirsi Ali who wants a physical war with Islam."
- The treatment of Meg Smaker and her documentary film in the "Other lawsuits" section is woefully biased; compare to articles about Smaker and Jihad Rehab.
01:46, 10 February 2023 (UTC) Jweiss11 (talk) 01:46, 10 February 2023 (UTC)
- Those are good points.
- I wish to also highlight some specific wording that (it seems to me) is not from a neural POV:
- -- it says "inventing the Critical Race Theory panic" which is not sourced. "Panic" is a loaded POV word. This could be changed to "causing concern about Critical Race Theory."
- -- it says "anti-trans writer Abigail Shrier". Again, this is POV. Her writings are anti-surgery in some cases, not anti-trans. The source for that is Media Matters, which Wiki's perennial source list says is only "marginally reliable" and "as a partisan advocacy group, their statements should be attributed." So either that attack on her needs to be attributed to "the partisan advocacy group Media Matters" or it should be lost.
- -- it calls Chris Rufo as "an anti-civil rights activist", which takes a strong POV. This could be changed to "conservative activist" as it reads on his page. The source for this also appears to be Media Matters, so the same logic applies as above.
- -- This quote: "accused of racism, pushing race science, climate change denial, sexual assault, homophobia, and transphobia" is actually a quote from the "Colorado Times Recorder." If it is included, it should be formatted as a quote and explicitly attributed. Also, the "Colorado Times Recorder" is not listed as a reliable source on Wiki's perennial sources list, and appears to be fringy new site -- so I suggest that this wording should be dropped entirely.
- BonaparteIII (talk) 03:15, 10 February 2023 (UTC)
- Some changes I made:
- Moved SA current from the lead
- Shortened lead's description of the board, added sourced statement to the Colorado Times Recorder in Reception
- I added a ref for Rufo being "credited with inventing", the source links to a lengthy New Yorker article, and switched the text to "conservative activist"
- Some notes:
- If you can find more reliable sources to create a "balance", please do, but I wrote this by compiling all the reliable sources on the topic and only left out things like passing mentions, particularly if they echoed something better covered in a reliable source.
- The Idavox statement is sourced and properly cited, issues of defamation would only be at play if we were stating that in wikivoice
- The MMFA article gives a source for "anti-trans" where it discusses some highlights, such as her book that endorsed the pseudoscientific theory of ROGD and insisted on misgendering trans teens, her comparisons of trans people to anorexia, self-harm, and involvement in witchcraft/demonic possession. GLAAD lists some more of her greatest hits, such as opposing the equality act, describing trans rights as a "war on women", and more misgendering people. For some more anti-trans activities just off the top of my head, she's an advisor to the conversion therapy organization Genspect. So not just "anti-surgery in some cases".
- If the section on Jihad Rehab can be expanded on, please do. But we have reliable sources saying that FAIR and Smaker said the film was being "cancelled" because of her ethnicity and that notable critics insisted that wasn't the case and pointing to their actual criticisms. That seemed to be the relevant bit.
- TheTranarchist ⚧ Ⓐ (talk) 05:34, 12 February 2023 (UTC)
- Some changes I made:
- The lead clearly has issues with IMPARTIAL. It needs to start with factual statements about the group, what is is, what it's stated mission is etc. It is not acceptable to follow every, "the group does X" with "but critics say Y" statements. It also is a problem to have a bunch of subjections with non-neutral headings (Oppose X etc). Given how new this article is, it should probably be draftified until these issues can be sorted out. Springee (talk) 20:48, 12 February 2023 (UTC)
- Lots of problems with this article, and NPOV is one of them. Issues include selective use and overuse of sources (regardless of reliability) that lend undue weight. The lead framing the organization as conservative right off the bat seems to rely heavily on the Colorado Times Recorder characterization, which I think misrepresents several things: it obliquely labels a handful of advisory members (over 50 people per the FAIR website) as "disgraced" including Robert P. George, Steven Pinker, Michael Shermer due to accusations of bad stuff (and the author also cites her own op-ed to justify one of the "has been accused"). Does that seem like something that should be accepted at face value? I won't argue that FAIR lacks conservative members because of course it does, but it is not described first and foremost as a conservative organization by many prominent sources like the New York Times, New York Times again, NBC News, Chicago Tribune, Newsweek, Deseret News, The Telegraph, and I'd be surprised if the majority of sources in this article even frame FAIR as such. While it is true that Washington Post article explicitly calls it a conservative organization, and Spokesman-Review writes FAIR "describes itself as nonpartisan and “pro-human” while also championing a number of conservative causes in education", the sources that try to explicitly pigeonhole the organization into one of 2 sides seem to be in the minority. Even if the Colorado Times Recorder had a spotless record of factual reporting, its voice should not be elevated above all others.
- Another issue: the "but critics have noted" in the lead's paragraph seems to me a bit of synth and false balance (unless "critic" is a stand-in for "any writer"): neither the Lancaster Online or Valley News are acting as critics of FAIR by noting it has conservatives on its board. A neutral statement like "Joe has red hair" should not be massaged into "critics have noted that Joe has red hair". The latter source also states "its backers are all conservative commentators and intellectuals" but are John McWhorter, Daryl Davis, Kmele Foster, Jonathan Haidt, Thomas Chatterton Williams, Faisal Saeed Al Mutar, Lee Fang, Shermer, Pinker, etc. really examples of prominent conservatives? --Animalparty! (talk) 22:05, 15 February 2023 (UTC)
- The first NYT source is a two sentence mention that doesn't describe them, except for preceding their mention with
The pushback against antiracism education has taken on aspects of an ideological uprising
- The second NYT source is a 1 paragraph mention about their involvement, only stating in it's own voice
The organization, founded by Bion Bartning, has filed other lawsuits challenging what it says are forms of discriminatory overreach by organizations trying to implement diversity programs
- The NBC article is 1 sentence and calls it
an advocacy group formed last year to oppose “woke ideology.”
This is basically immediately preceded bySome medical professionals have pushed back on the utility of race-conscious policies in health care
. - The Tribune article calls them a
special interest group
and saysThe organization, founded in early 2021 by Bion Bartning, claims on its website to be nonpartisan and a nonprofit. Its goals include supporting fairness and a “pro-human mindset,” described as “one human race, individual civil rights and liberties, and compassionate opposition to racism and intolerance that is rooted in dignity and our common humanity.”
, andThe organization strongly pushes back against those who would call it partisan
- Newsweek says
the Foundation Against Intolerance and Racism, an organization founded by private school parent Bion Bartning earlier this year, whose mission is to oppose critical race theory teachings in schools and promote what it calls a "pro-human" agenda.
- The Deseret article is an interview with a member and only says directly that
He represents the Foundation Against Intolerance and Racism, “a nonpartisan organization dedicated to advancing civil rights and liberties for all Americans, and promoting a common culture based on fairness, understanding, and humanity.”
- The Telegraph states
They included the Foundation Against Intolerance and Racism (FAIR), a civil liberties group that opposes de-platforming.
- The first NYT source is a two sentence mention that doesn't describe them, except for preceding their mention with
- The majority of these are 1 sentence passing mentions, or merely state how FAIR describes itself, and are not WP:SIRS coverage like those that analyze the organization itself in-depth and conclude it's conservative. They barely frame FAIR as anything and aren't particularly due for describing the organization. That being said, some more exposition on the various forms of racial equity measures is due in the lead and these sources could be used for that.
- The Lancaster Online and Valley news aren't the only ones to point out it's heavy conservative backing, and when they mention FAIR they explicitly contrast it's claims to being non-partisan with their board's membership.
- In regards to the members, using just the information already in their wikipedia articles: McWhorter's comments that Black people's attitudes and not white racism are holding them back and equation of anti-racism with racism are not exactly mainstream liberal views. Foster is a libertarian who explicitly opposes anti-capitalism. Haidt labels himself a centrist and is a founder of the Heterodox Academy, who's sole purpose seems to be to increase conservative representation in social psychology and claim that universities have a free speech crisis. Williams wrote the initial draft of the Harper's Letter, an open letter decrying "cancel culture" signed by many people known for their history of biased and inaccurate reporting on trans people. Al Mutar has many connections to the Intellectual Dark Web. Pinker has been criticized for his racist comments and defended the idea that gaps in gender-representation are due to innate biological factors. Shermer is a self-described libertarian who has praised Matt Walsh's What is a Woman? and agreed with most of it's claims (that part was found by a quick google search of his views on trans people since I remembered hearing the name before). Fang seems to be the only left-wing person mentioned, and his position there is somewhat ironic given his previous reporting on the Koch Brothers. Davis's political ideology is not mentioned, and while I think highly of his work with formers his presence does not determine whether the organization is conservative or not. In short, very few of the people listed are not actually conservative or known for their conservative opinions.
- Suffice it to say, reliable sources have commented on the large amount of conservatives on their board, called it conservative, opposed it's self-description as "non-partisan", and said it is known for pushing conservative causes. TheTranarchist ⚧ Ⓐ (talk) 19:20, 16 February 2023 (UTC)
Reliable sources
Idavox, Passage (https://readpassage.com/), and the Colorado Times Record are not reliable sources for contentious material. Idavox is clearly an activist outlet. Passage and Colorado Times Record are a non-notable left-wing opinion/essay sites. None of them should be cited as they are in the article. The onus is on those citing sources like these to show they are reliable, not the other way around. Jweiss11 (talk) 06:10, 12 February 2023 (UTC)
- Idavox is an independent anti-fascist website and the publication wing of the One People's Project, it is biased but that does not mean it can not be used. Also, open anti-fascism is just explicit human decency. Some quick searching finds:
- From The Progressive:
[Daryle Lamont Jenkins] runs both One People’s Project, which documents the activities of the far right while issuing calls to action, and Idavox, which publishes news articles expanding on that research.
The article generally credits Jenkins, OPP, and Idavox with doing reliable in-depth research that mainstream outlets don't cover. - Jenkins and Idavox have been used as a source by the SPLC
- From The Progressive:
- As I don't currently have the time to do a full in depth review of Jenkins, the OPP, and IdaVox, suffice it to say any search will show that Jenkins has been recognized as a Subject Matter Expert in the field of right-wing organizing for decades and him and his organizations have been credited and used as a source by many reliable sources.
- The Colorado Times Record meets all our benchmarks for being a reliable source. They are non-partisan though progressive, have a clear policy on factual errors and misinformation, in addition to retracting such information, and have been linked/named in stories across dozens of reliable sources. The team is made up of established journalists and has a named editor. They clearly delineate between opinion pieces and fact-based reporting. NBC news has praised it's reporting on what other local outlets won't.
- Passage has editorial staff, a clear corrections and fact-checking policy, and issues corrections. They primarily work with freelance journalists, but that is neither here nor there. They are a non-profit and they clearly delineate between opinion and news. They are openly left, but biased does not mean can't be used.
- In short, there is nothing glaringly suggesting these sources are unreliable, and a lot suggesting they are. They are biased, but that is not synonymous with "can not be used". I could not find any mention of any of them publishing incorrect information (barring disclosed corrections on their part). TheTranarchist ⚧ Ⓐ (talk) 06:39, 12 February 2023 (UTC)
- What's the standard for a reliable source then? Any website like Passage that has an editorial masthead? Why would a third-party RS report about them publishing incorrect information? They're too low profile for most anyone to notice. Jweiss11 (talk) 20:48, 12 February 2023 (UTC)
- Any source that declares itself to be an "independent anti-fascist" website should not be assumed to be reliable. I see no reason to think the "One People's Project" would be treated differently than other special interest/advocacy groups. Springee (talk) 20:51, 12 February 2023 (UTC)
- Agreed. Idavox, Passage, and the Colorado Times Record are all marginal activist sources that do not qualify as reliable sources for contentious material. Loksmythe (talk) 21:24, 12 February 2023 (UTC)
- Also per the mention of Idavox's connection to the SPLC, it's worth noting that just a few years ago the SPLC had to retract defamatory content about Hirsi Ali and Maajid Nawaz in concordance with a $3+ million settlement. Jweiss11 (talk) 21:40, 12 February 2023 (UTC)
- The Colorado Times Record meets every standard for a WP:RS and Passage seems to meet most, the only thing to check for them is how established WP:RS have covered them and described their work. Neither are "marginal activist" sources as people keep saying.
- Idavox is indeed biased, but that doesn't mean can't be used. "Anti-fascism", for that matter, is the least biased position towards fascism, since "pro-fascist" websites are hardly going to be reliable for reporting on fascism. Being opposed to fascism is just basic human decency. Additionally, the OPP, Idavox, and Daryle Lamont Jenkins are widely known and respected for reporting on the niche topic of right-wing organizing. Reliable sources tend to use their research, one of the signs they themselves are a reliable source, and none have spoken to any factual innacuracies from them, another sign. With attribution, any lingering doubts about their use as a source disappear. TheTranarchist ⚧ Ⓐ (talk) 16:29, 13 February 2023 (UTC)
- What is a "pro-facists" website? I think Mussolini died in the 1940s. Sure Franco lived on for quiet a while but who are these "facists" that need to be resisted? What groups call themselves pro-fascist? Do you have examples of RSs using their research? We rarely accept citations to the Cato institute yet they are well known and long established. I see no reason why this group should be given so much weight without a third party RS citing them first. Springee (talk) 23:16, 13 February 2023 (UTC)
- Solely off the top of my head: the Proud Boys, Aryan Freedom Network, Goyim Defense League, the National Reformation Party (originally called the "American Blackshirts Party" in the early 2000's), the American Nationalist Initiative, and the National Socialist Movement (United States). Many of these explicitly describe themselves as fascist and have had their own websites and publications where they brag about it and publish articles. If you want even more examples of fascists (no need for scare quotes around the word) that need to be resisted see here or here for a start. Generally speaking, it's hard to miss the worldwide resurgence of the fascist movement unless you have your eyes superglued shut or solely rely on publications which glue their own eyes shut for you. The Cato Institute is a propaganda arm of the Koch brothers, hardly equivalent with an independent news organizations researching the far right. TheTranarchist ⚧ Ⓐ (talk) 15:36, 14 February 2023 (UTC)
- I would have a lot more sympathy for you POV were it not for the fact that 1. CATO is well respected even if their POV is known. They even have a number of Nobel laureates in their ranks over the years. 2. If you treated other "news" sites equally. Here you have an activist news site that you claim is fine yet if the "activists" are Cristian that isn't OK [1]. I can see removing the Cristian site as an iffy source (even though the claims it was being used to support were hardly contentious) but you are defending a very questionable source and using it extensively. Anyway, it doesn't appear there is consensus for it's use. Springee (talk) 19:55, 14 February 2023 (UTC)
- Are they known for serious investigative journalism or just reports? There's a difference between a news agency and a conservative think tank. One reports xyz verifiably happened, the other reports I think xyz should happen because abc, bringing it up is comparing apples to oranges. While these pieces are being discussed here and have not been previously, past discussion of the Daily Signal found it unreliable. Current discussion of the Catholic News Agency is inconclusive, and those who find it reliable seem to find so solely on facts regarding to Catholic affairs. I have in good faith defending the limited use of a source and defended it by citing relevant details and wikipolicy- you have not cited relevant wikipolicy once and seem to think by continuously saying you think it's an "activist" source and bringing up inapplicable comparisons the discussion is over. TheTranarchist ⚧ Ⓐ (talk) 00:30, 15 February 2023 (UTC)
- I said nothing about the Daily Signal and wasn't referencing it. Since it was in the edit I indicated I should have made that explicitly clear. Springee (talk) 00:48, 15 February 2023 (UTC)
- Are they known for serious investigative journalism or just reports? There's a difference between a news agency and a conservative think tank. One reports xyz verifiably happened, the other reports I think xyz should happen because abc, bringing it up is comparing apples to oranges. While these pieces are being discussed here and have not been previously, past discussion of the Daily Signal found it unreliable. Current discussion of the Catholic News Agency is inconclusive, and those who find it reliable seem to find so solely on facts regarding to Catholic affairs. I have in good faith defending the limited use of a source and defended it by citing relevant details and wikipolicy- you have not cited relevant wikipolicy once and seem to think by continuously saying you think it's an "activist" source and bringing up inapplicable comparisons the discussion is over. TheTranarchist ⚧ Ⓐ (talk) 00:30, 15 February 2023 (UTC)
- I would have a lot more sympathy for you POV were it not for the fact that 1. CATO is well respected even if their POV is known. They even have a number of Nobel laureates in their ranks over the years. 2. If you treated other "news" sites equally. Here you have an activist news site that you claim is fine yet if the "activists" are Cristian that isn't OK [1]. I can see removing the Cristian site as an iffy source (even though the claims it was being used to support were hardly contentious) but you are defending a very questionable source and using it extensively. Anyway, it doesn't appear there is consensus for it's use. Springee (talk) 19:55, 14 February 2023 (UTC)
- Solely off the top of my head: the Proud Boys, Aryan Freedom Network, Goyim Defense League, the National Reformation Party (originally called the "American Blackshirts Party" in the early 2000's), the American Nationalist Initiative, and the National Socialist Movement (United States). Many of these explicitly describe themselves as fascist and have had their own websites and publications where they brag about it and publish articles. If you want even more examples of fascists (no need for scare quotes around the word) that need to be resisted see here or here for a start. Generally speaking, it's hard to miss the worldwide resurgence of the fascist movement unless you have your eyes superglued shut or solely rely on publications which glue their own eyes shut for you. The Cato Institute is a propaganda arm of the Koch brothers, hardly equivalent with an independent news organizations researching the far right. TheTranarchist ⚧ Ⓐ (talk) 15:36, 14 February 2023 (UTC)
- What is a "pro-facists" website? I think Mussolini died in the 1940s. Sure Franco lived on for quiet a while but who are these "facists" that need to be resisted? What groups call themselves pro-fascist? Do you have examples of RSs using their research? We rarely accept citations to the Cato institute yet they are well known and long established. I see no reason why this group should be given so much weight without a third party RS citing them first. Springee (talk) 23:16, 13 February 2023 (UTC)
- Agreed. Idavox, Passage, and the Colorado Times Record are all marginal activist sources that do not qualify as reliable sources for contentious material. Loksmythe (talk) 21:24, 12 February 2023 (UTC)
- Just as a general point of reference, I did a quick Google News search for this organization. The first two hits don't do anything to make people suspect this is such a controversial organization [2], [3]. Not an extensive search but hardly a case of asking an extremist group to lunch. Springee (talk) 22:37, 12 February 2023 (UTC)
- What is basically an advertisement for an event they're hosting and an interview with the founder are not representative of the sources or even due for inclusion in the article. WP:SIRS tend to be a lot more critical. Sources that describe them according to their PR and just copy their mission statement tend to have only a passing mention, while significant coverage tends to point out their mission statement and explicitly contrast it with their conservative leanings and actions. TheTranarchist ⚧ Ⓐ (talk) 16:34, 13 February 2023 (UTC)
- Idavox may be marginally reliable in certain cases, but there is no compelling reason to give them an entire paragraph block quote, nor "the final word", as this article does. They are not a mainstream source, regardless of reliability (and the anonymous Idavox piece cited is not a straight news piece). WP:NPOV means we summarize view in proportion to their prominence: we don't give undue weight to the views of small groups, even if we agree with them. What Idavox thinks of Quillette, for instance, has little relevance to this article. --Animalparty! (talk) 03:02, 13 February 2023 (UTC)
- The first part of their commentary in Reception could indeed be shortened to just say they objected to them describing themselves as a "civil rights group" to their board members and their histories. The second could be shortened as well to contain less of their true but run-on descriptors and highlight their analysis the board skews right and far-right, with a large number of Quilette contributors, Koch employees, and transphobes.
- How does this version work?
Idavox described FAIR as "Wolves in Sheep’s Clothing" and said "it's not a civil-rights organization". They stated that their analysis of FAIR's board of advisors revealed a large number of Koch employees, Quillete contributors, and transphobes
. TheTranarchist ⚧ Ⓐ (talk) 16:59, 13 February 2023 (UTC)- Why should we include Idavox's description at all? It seems like an activist site. If their opinion on this subject is due shouldn't we find it in third party RS? Springee (talk) 23:10, 13 February 2023 (UTC)
- It's an independent news website, see the section added below. TheTranarchist ⚧ Ⓐ (talk) 15:15, 14 February 2023 (UTC)
- I don't think Idavox's commentary is due here. With al due respect, TheTranarchist, your tendency to seemingly squeeze everything ever published on a subject into a Wikipedia article, from student newspapers to anarchist newsletters, aught to be tempered. Your articles are often highly over-detailed, regardless of who gets cited. --Animalparty! (talk) 09:19, 14 February 2023 (UTC)
- I actually leave out 1-sentence passing mentions and for any article about 1/3 - 1/2 of sources. My rule of thumb is an source should have a who-what-when-where-why to merit inclusion in an article - discuss concrete things they've done that are considered noteworthy. Anarchist newsletters and student newspapers aren't in and of themselves inherently unreliable. For the former I've yet to hear anyone complain an article relies on neo-liberal and corporate sources, only anarchist/left-wing sources have their politics explicitly name-dropped as somehow damning while corporate media somehow exists in an apolitical ether. For the latter, those only tend to be relevant when it comes to things directly involving a school, in which case they're reporting is usually in-depth and very directly relevant. I'd prefer a thorough / over-detailed article to an under-detailed slipshod one any day of the week, it's easier to try and summarize and trim down an article that mentions everything than to try and squeeze more things in piecemeal.
- In regards to Idavox specifically, see my section below. Additionally, Idavox's article was not some passing mention, but a WP:SIRS source that devoted an article to analyzing their actions, their board, and their funding. Their weight and how much we should use from them and how is debateable, but they should certainly be included. TheTranarchist ⚧ Ⓐ (talk) 15:24, 14 February 2023 (UTC)
- Why should we include Idavox's description at all? It seems like an activist site. If their opinion on this subject is due shouldn't we find it in third party RS? Springee (talk) 23:10, 13 February 2023 (UTC)
- @Jweiss11 There is no local consensus that the Colorado Times Recorder is not a reliable source. You said
Colorado Times Record are a non-notable left-wing opinion/essay sites
and @Loksmythe called it amarginal activist source
, the only two to have objected. Neither of you have responded to my citations of the relevant wiki-policy or the fact that established RS laud them for their coverage and consider them to be reliable. Them being "marginal" and "non-notable" has been proven false. "Activist" is a meaningless buzzword reeking of WP:IDONTLIKEIT. Their article is a WP:SIRS source and definitely merits inclusion. Per WP:CON,The quality of an argument is more important than whether it represents a minority or a majority view. The arguments "I just don't like it" and "I just like it" usually carry no weight whatsoever.
Please self-revert. TheTranarchist ⚧ Ⓐ (talk) 19:31, 15 February 2023 (UTC)- In everyone else's view here, everyone else's arguments are better. That's a consensus. Jweiss11 (talk) 19:42, 15 February 2023 (UTC)
- Not on Wikipedia. Or anywhere for that matter. Relevant text in bold,
the quality of an argument is more important than whether it represents a minority or a majority view.
And here,everyone else
is two people who have directly objected to the CTR with one sentence each, and not provided any detailed arguments as to why, or contradicted evidence given proving it is a reliable source and not as "marginal" and "non-notable" as suggested. Repeating you don't like it or you think it's "activist" carriesno weight whatsoever
. TheTranarchist ⚧ Ⓐ (talk) 19:54, 15 February 2023 (UTC)
- Not on Wikipedia. Or anywhere for that matter. Relevant text in bold,
- In everyone else's view here, everyone else's arguments are better. That's a consensus. Jweiss11 (talk) 19:42, 15 February 2023 (UTC)
- For reasons that I have stated on WP:RSN, I also object to the use of these three sources for citing contentious facts, as they have been cited here. If there are reliable secondary sources that give this information, providing them and citing them would be much more productive than back-and-forth reverts over the use of subpar sources.
- I am also generally concerned about the lack of ideological attribution given to some of the partisan sources in the article; WP:BIASED offers as examples
According to the Marxist economist Harry Magdoff...
andThe conservative Republican presidential candidate Barry Goldwater believed that...
but we're omitting a note regarding the political affiliations of several sources that get addressed with in-text attribution, such as the explicitly partisan Media Matters for America, and this is an issue in terms of how we're representing the sourcing in the article. — Red-tailed hawk (nest) 23:00, 15 February 2023 (UTC) - I've commented on the RSP noticeboard about these sources, but I just want to add here as well that the Colorado Springs Reporter appears to be an excellent source, and nobody has provided a single valid argument for its exclusion. It has an editorial board with stellar credentials. Opinion is clearly separated from news. Furthermore, the specific article was republished by *another* Colorado Springs institution with editorial oversight, the Colorado Springs Independent [4]. I see absolutely no reason this source should be considered unreliable. Sativa Inflorescence (talk) 21:35, 19 February 2023 (UTC)
POV page by avowedly POV editor
Through the use of activist non-WP:RS, WP:UNDUE WP:Cherrypicking, and more this page fundamentally violates the core Wikipedia policy of WP:NPOV: "representing fairly, proportionately, and, as far as possible, without editorial bias, all the significant views that have been published by reliable sources on a topic."
Furthermore, the creator of the page, TheTranarchist, has publicly stated they are here to create a certain biased version of the page to advance their own POV https://kolektiva.social/@TheTranarchist/109785532925140650 (the link to their social media account is publicly shared on their userpage):
Just published a #wikipedia article on the #FoundationAgainstIntoleranceAndRacism, AKA #FAIR. An organization with a name that screams double-speak and a tale of #racism, #transphobia, and #rightwing astro-turfing and culture warring...
So who are these guys? Simply put, a crew of #racist and #transphobic / #antitrans conservative intellectuals (think #quilette and the #kochbrothers) who helped push the #CRT panic into the American mainstream by aiding legal battles and infiltrating school boards across the country...
They're also incredibly transphobic, which is how I found out about them originally...
I wanted to clear up for the record that FAIR have been transphobic and racist from the start...
So this page violates core WP:NPOV, WP:NOTADVOCACY, and WP:Tendentious editing.
TheTranarchist is arguably WP:NOTHERE to build an NPOV encyclopedia. Therefore, I would argue that this page either needs a fundamental re-write or should even be deleted and recreated in a more neutral fashion. Loksmythe (talk) 21:32, 14 February 2023 (UTC)
- This is spurious on multiple accounts.
- I have provided the evidence that Idavox, Passage, and the Colorado Times Recorder and their usage in the article are in line with our reliable sources guidelines. It's interesting and hard to assume good faith that instead of responding to those points raised, you unilaterally cast it as not a RS and call for the page's deletion here. Even if consensus was not obtained here, the appropriate place is the RS noticeboard, not to call for the pages deletion. The 3 sources that some have raised issues with are not magically outweighing the other ~40 sources cited and are by no means the backbone of the article. "Activist" is a meaningless word in this case, for Idavox, which no reliable sources have described in such terms, but especially for the other two.
- That I am
here to create a certain biased version of the page to advance [my] own POV
is bullshit and putting words in my mouth. I don't have to like a group to objectively list what they've done, what they're known for, and their history. I created a page after I learned about them, a general per-requisite to writing about any topic. Then I collected all the RS, and wrote the article based on those, and nothing I said in that summary listed there (published after the article) is false. They are incredibly transphobic and they have pushed against measures that address systemic racism, that's not a POV that's just a statement of fact. It's not my fault the RS are overwhelmingly critical, and I welcome you to find the mythical WP:SIRS sources I did not include that will make this page suddenly WP:NPOV. - In terms of WP:NPOV, I followed the sources, and have even worked to make the article more neutral with others suggestions. I included everything they did and supported, whether I agreed with it or not, broken clock is right twice a day and all that. I have added no WP:ADVOCACY, as I've only listed what the group is known for and does. I did not say anything they do or say is incorrect, unless reliable sources said so. It's not my fault they've barely done anything good. In terms of WP:Tendentious editing, I created the page, and every single comment raised I have addressed and endeavored to fix. When there has been disagreement, I have given all my sources and reasoning and explanation of the relevant wikipolicy.
- This is a sickeningly cheap attempt to trash the article by citing a discussion about the reliability of 3/41 sources as evidence the whole article should go, without actually contributing to the discussion or trying to achieve consensus. This article represents
fairly, proportionately, and, as far as possible, without editorial bias, all the significant views that have been published by reliable sources on a topic
. Prove me wrong by showing the sources that disagree. I'll wait TheTranarchist ⚧ Ⓐ (talk) 00:16, 15 February 2023 (UTC)
- TheTranarchist, on Loksmythe's claim of "Tendentious editing", I agree that you have been civil and very responsive when challenged on content. But Wikipedia:Tendentious editing also includes elements of POV and intention/purpose. It's pretty obvious that this article was created its initial form in order to make FAIR look as bad as possible, as a part of what appears to be a larger effort of very left-wing political advocacy. Jweiss11 (talk) 01:39, 15 February 2023 (UTC)
- It was not created to make FAIR look as bad as possible, it was to fairly represent what the reliable sources have to say about them. As I have challenged above, if anyone can find WP:SIRS that do not generally have the same format (FAIR claims to be non-partisan, here is a review of their activities and people involved, we conclude they are a conservative organization/ one primarily stacked with conservatives who oppose what they call CRT, which often isn't and is a catch-all buzzword), they are free to do so. However I am extremely confident in my statement none exist, as I methodologically compiled every reliable source on them I could find by year and month.
- In terms of
a larger effort of very left-wing political advocacy
, I must note that only one of my articles, Boots theory has been informed by me being a leftist, and is hardly non neutral, merely a straightforward description of an economic theory and it's reception. Even then, one could argue that is more informed by me being a Terry Pratchett fan. The rest are informed by the fact I am a trans person, and there are numerous people and organizations who's sole purpose is the restriction of trans peoples' rights, who I find it prudent to objectively document, as the facts speak for themselves. If I was a right-wing trans person, I could still write the same articles, as my interest in doing so is the fact I am trans, not a leftist. TheTranarchist ⚧ Ⓐ (talk) 02:25, 15 February 2023 (UTC)- I can see the legitimate concerns here. That same sort of bias is clear in other pages recently created by TheTransarchist. While they might try to argue their intent was to create an IMPARTIAL article, their social media page (is it safe to assume that is their page?) would suggest otherwise. Springee (talk) 11:34, 15 February 2023 (UTC)
- You can't see any "legitimate concerns" and you know it, otherwise you'd legitimately point them out. I responded to what you filed at the BLPN, and it's touching how glaringly obvious it is you decided to complain without bothering to read the history or talk page, where I explicitly object to the content you are trying to lay the blame on me for... Are you ready to respond with wikipolicy (instead of your opinion) to the question of whether the sources count as reliable? Or are you going to continue tangents and thinly veiled personal attacks on my editing? TheTranarchist ⚧ Ⓐ (talk) 13:53, 15 February 2023 (UTC)
- Please see RS and CON. Those are the relevant pages. The BLPN discussion is not related to this source or this article. Springee (talk) 14:56, 15 February 2023 (UTC)
- That's rich. I have brought up WP:RS repeatedly, discussing the requirements to consider a source reliable while providing evidence my sources meet those. You have only gone off on tangents and expressed your own opinion and not once mentioned actual policy. Per WP:CON:
In determining consensus, consider the quality of the arguments, the history of how they came about, the objections of those who disagree, and existing policies and guidelines. The quality of an argument is more important than whether it represents a minority or a majority view. The arguments "I just don't like it" and "I just like it" usually carry no weight whatsoever.
Considering the quality of your arguments, they seem to be entirely predicated on "I don't like it" rather than any serious discussion of policy. - You are the one who called my editing impartial, then said my other articles were biased and brought that up to attack me as an editor here (of course, as I repeat, not actually bothering to respond to any of my arguments), then started a BLPN discussion to try and prove it - but suddenly pointing out the claim is false and those allegations of bias are spurious is
not related
? Something tells me your next reply will once again fail to respond to any of my points raised or cite any relevant policy and just attack me or go off on a tangent again... TheTranarchist ⚧ Ⓐ (talk) 15:07, 15 February 2023 (UTC)- With respect, each of the three sources that got brought to RSN have truly significant issues with their suitability for citing contentious facts. WP:NPOV asks us to fairly and proportionately represent the views
published by reliable sources
, so including unreliable sources here and giving them undue weight would cause the article's content to have a fairly substantial WP:NPOV issue. — Red-tailed hawk (nest) 22:53, 15 February 2023 (UTC)
- With respect, each of the three sources that got brought to RSN have truly significant issues with their suitability for citing contentious facts. WP:NPOV asks us to fairly and proportionately represent the views
- That's rich. I have brought up WP:RS repeatedly, discussing the requirements to consider a source reliable while providing evidence my sources meet those. You have only gone off on tangents and expressed your own opinion and not once mentioned actual policy. Per WP:CON:
- Please see RS and CON. Those are the relevant pages. The BLPN discussion is not related to this source or this article. Springee (talk) 14:56, 15 February 2023 (UTC)
- You can't see any "legitimate concerns" and you know it, otherwise you'd legitimately point them out. I responded to what you filed at the BLPN, and it's touching how glaringly obvious it is you decided to complain without bothering to read the history or talk page, where I explicitly object to the content you are trying to lay the blame on me for... Are you ready to respond with wikipolicy (instead of your opinion) to the question of whether the sources count as reliable? Or are you going to continue tangents and thinly veiled personal attacks on my editing? TheTranarchist ⚧ Ⓐ (talk) 13:53, 15 February 2023 (UTC)
- I can see the legitimate concerns here. That same sort of bias is clear in other pages recently created by TheTransarchist. While they might try to argue their intent was to create an IMPARTIAL article, their social media page (is it safe to assume that is their page?) would suggest otherwise. Springee (talk) 11:34, 15 February 2023 (UTC)
- TheTranarchist, on Loksmythe's claim of "Tendentious editing", I agree that you have been civil and very responsive when challenged on content. But Wikipedia:Tendentious editing also includes elements of POV and intention/purpose. It's pretty obvious that this article was created its initial form in order to make FAIR look as bad as possible, as a part of what appears to be a larger effort of very left-wing political advocacy. Jweiss11 (talk) 01:39, 15 February 2023 (UTC)
- This is completely inappropriate, and nothing more than a personal attack on @TheTranarchist. Even if there was something wrong with her edits, this is not the way to discuss it. This whole section should get deleted as off-topic. Sativa Inflorescence (talk) 19:42, 18 February 2023 (UTC)
I concur with Loksmythe's assessment above that this article needs a fundamental re-write or deletion/recreation. Drmies has just added more tags to this article, which reflect the pervasive problems with it. Jweiss11 (talk) 01:54, 17 February 2023 (UTC)
- I concur as well.
- Just to note some more. In here:
- Critics have likened their approach to an All Lives Matter mentality, which was a response to the Black Lives Matter movement that sought to delegitimize the notion that Black people have been systematically discriminated against in the United States.[1]
- "sought to delegitimize the notion that Black people have been systematically discriminated against in the United States" is actually a direct quote from the Chalkbeat, and yet it is put in Wikipedia's own voice. This either needs to be attributed as a quote, or lost. I recommend losing it.
- In:
- According to experts and educators interviewed by Lancaster Online, what FAIR calls CRT is not CRT, but a catch-all term for anything race-related. CRT is a legal study of the ways in which race has been created, defined, and embedded into law throughout American history that is not taught outside of graduate and law school.[1][2]
- This is actually a hotly-debated issue, and the above gives undue weight to Lancaster Online. See here for several RS sources that dispute this claim as currently stated:
- https://reason.com/2022/01/31/critical-race-theory-taught-in-classroom-california/
- https://www.uclalawreview.org/yes-critical-race-theory-should-be-taught-in-your-school-undoing-racism-in-k-12-schooling-and-classrooms-through-crt/
- Either the Lancaster Online claim should be recommended, or it should be kept but the counter-argument as presented in the Reason source should also be given.
- The page continues to have many other major issues. I am in favor of a full re-write, or perhaps we can slowly get consensus on (I hope, pretty clear-cut) things like the above piece by piece. BonaparteIII (talk) 18:45, 19 February 2023 (UTC) BonaparteIII (talk) 18:45, 19 February 2023 (UTC)
- Yeah, I think a new article Critical Race Theory (Conspiracy theory) would solve that. There's certainly enough academic and even popular media pointing out the differences between the legal theory and the conspiracy theory. Sativa Inflorescence (talk) 18:54, 19 February 2023 (UTC)
- Very much agreed, some starting material is in Critical Race Theory#Criticism and 2020s controversies around critical race theory. Relatedly, it's interesting how Rufo's outsized involvement in pushing the CRT panic, which has been commented on by numerous reliable sources in regards to FAIR, has been removed from the article... TheTranarchist ⚧ Ⓐ (talk) 18:58, 19 February 2023 (UTC)
- Friends, it is not a conspiracy theory, please see the two RS's I cited above. BonaparteIII (talk) 19:14, 19 February 2023 (UTC)
- Very much agreed, some starting material is in Critical Race Theory#Criticism and 2020s controversies around critical race theory. Relatedly, it's interesting how Rufo's outsized involvement in pushing the CRT panic, which has been commented on by numerous reliable sources in regards to FAIR, has been removed from the article... TheTranarchist ⚧ Ⓐ (talk) 18:58, 19 February 2023 (UTC)
- Removing criticism of them is blatant whitewashing, but I can support putting that in a quote.
- The Lancaster Online interviewed uninvolved experts for their opinion - you feeling the need to counter it with articles that never mentioned FAIR is blatant WP:OR.
- Additionally, since this user has made only 16 edits, most of which are small grammar fixes but two of which, their only talk page comments, are disproportionately lengthy comments here (the first of which was left on the same day as the account was created after making only two mainspace grammar fixes), they should probably be tagged as an SPA. TheTranarchist ⚧ Ⓐ (talk) 18:55, 19 February 2023 (UTC)
- I am not an "SPA". This page had more issues than the others that I was reading after I decided to make an account, sorry. BonaparteIII (talk) 19:03, 19 February 2023 (UTC)
- Re:
sought to delegitimize the notion that Black people have been systematically discriminated against in the United States
- I get that we have to paraphrase to avoid COPYVIO, but I am not aware of any RS that characterize the objectives of "All lives matter" that conflict with this. Newimpartial (talk) 19:00, 19 February 2023 (UTC)- Agreed. BonaparteIII (talk) 19:13, 19 February 2023 (UTC)
- The talk of "conspiracy theory" here is absurd. There's a difference between a conspiracy theory and some people potentially misusing a nebulous, abstract term like critical race theory when perhaps a similar, related term might be more apt. It's a veritable fact that under the banner of anti-racism, race essentialism, racial segregation, and notions like the idea that valuing precision, objective truth, and the scientific method are racist tools of "whiteness" have popped up all over the academic landscape in the US and other western nations, particularly in the last decades with acceleration after the summer of 2020. Left-wing advocacy and far-left advocacy exists, just as right-wing and far-right advocacy exists. It's not a "conspiracy theory" to acknowledge their existence. Jweiss11 (talk) 22:32, 19 February 2023 (UTC)
- Agreed. BonaparteIII (talk) 19:13, 19 February 2023 (UTC)
- Yeah, I think a new article Critical Race Theory (Conspiracy theory) would solve that. There's certainly enough academic and even popular media pointing out the differences between the legal theory and the conspiracy theory. Sativa Inflorescence (talk) 18:54, 19 February 2023 (UTC)
- I don't think we need to lend undue weight to what the Lancaster Online in particular says about CRT. While it may well be true that CRT "is not taught in any Lancaster County public school, nor is it mentioned in the Pennsylvania school curriculum", I think it's pretty established that "Critical Race Theory" both is a loose catchall that conservatives conflate with various anti-racism and social justice initiatives (largely due to Christopher Rufo)[3][4] and is also being taught in some primary schools, or at least influencing school curricula as a framework, regardless of whether it's specifically called CRT.[5][6][7] Whatever we do, we should not imply that critics of "CRT" are totally off-base even if they use the term imprecisely. --Animalparty! (talk) 22:09, 19 February 2023 (UTC)
References
- ^ a b Salhotra, Pooja (2021-07-13). "Critical race theory debate hits New York City public schools". Chalkbeat. Retrieved 2023-01-31.
- ^ Geli, Alex (October 3, 2021). "Are Lancaster County schools 'indoctrinating' children with critical race theory? Educators, experts say no". Lancaster Online. Retrieved 2023-01-31.
- ^ Waxman, Olivia B. (July 5, 2021). "'Critical Race Theory Is Simply the Latest Bogeyman.' Inside the Fight Over What Kids Learn About America's History". Time.
It [the debate over how to teach the history of race in America] has also galvanized those who worry applying that lens will teach children to hate America or divide the nation by emphasizing our differences. This viewpoint has come to the fore amid a surge of controversy over critical race theory (CRT), a decades-old academic framework that scholars use to interrogate how legal systems—as well as other elements of society—perpetuate racism and exclusion. Opponents of CRT now invoke it as a catchall term for any discussion of systemic racism.
- ^ McCausland, Phil (July 1, 2021). "The teaching of critical race theory isn't happening in classrooms, teachers say". NBC News.
Critical race theory is an academic study at the undergraduate and graduate level that aims to examine the role of racism in the modern era and the ways it has become woven into the social fabric. Academics in the field argue the U.S. has institutionalized a racial caste system. Increasingly it has also become an amorphous, catch-all term used by the conservative movement as fodder for political debate.
- ^ Kaplan, Leslie S.; Owings, William A. (September 2021). "Countering the Furor Around Critical Race Theory". NASSP Bulletin. 105 (3): 200–218. doi:10.1177/01926365211045457.
So, while it is accurate to say that American high schools do not teach CRT, the initiative to include diverse voices and stories in retelling American history in a more complete, accurate, and balanced way reflects the many of the same societal influences.
- ^ Severns, Maggie (July 26, 2021). "'People are scared': Democrats lose ground on school equity plans". Politico.
And she's alarmed over her state's new model ethnic studies curriculum, which cites critical race theory as a "key theoretical framework and pedagogy."
- ^ Anderson, Bryan (2 November 2021). "Critical race theory is a flashpoint for conservatives, but what does it mean?". PBS NewsHour.
There is little to no evidence that critical race theory itself is being taught to K-12 public school students, though some ideas central to it, such as lingering consequences of slavery, have been. In Greenwich, Connecticut, some middle school students were given a "white bias" survey that parents viewed as being part of the theory.
New lead proposal
WP:NOTADVERT. The lead just containing their mission statement serves to make this page seem like a blatant advert on so many levels. The lead should follow the body, and summarize how reliable sources describe them and their activities. Additionally, "Founding and advisors" has been advertified as well, with scare quotes around various words, a puffy description that fails to mention how numerous reliable sources have commented on the large conservative bent of their board, a weird and irrelevant tidbit about how Pinker voted Democrat, and no mention of Rufo's outsized role in pushing the CRT panic. Not to mention the removal of WP:RS. Links occasionally included as well.
Since I'm still here despite the best efforts of some, here's a list of how every source describes them and their activities. Bolding and italics added.
List of FAIR's reception in reliable sources
|
---|
|
So for a proposed lead in accordance with WP:RS, WP:DUE, and WP:PROFRINGE, how's this?
The Foundation Against Intolerance and Racism (FAIR) is a New-York based conservative advocacy group that campaigns against what it calls "woke ideology". FAIR has campaigned against diversity and inclusion programs, ethnic studies curricula, and anti-racist initiatives, which they falsely characterize as "Critical Race Theory" (CRT), an academic movement whose core tenet is that racism is a systemic social construct that is not taught below the graduate level. The organization also campaigns against policies which would prohibit the deadnaming or misgendering of transgender students by their peers or faculty. The organization was founded in 2021 by Brion Bartning, after learning that his son's private school had developed anti-racist initiatives.
Christopher Rufo, one of the largest figures in the CRT controversy and director of the Manhattan Institute's initiative on CRT, was formerly on the advisory board. Other notable members include former Fox News host Megyn Kelly, conservative columnist Barry Weiss, fellow of the American Enterprise Institute Ian Rowe, venture capitalist Alexander Lloyd, author Abigail Shrier, psychologist Steven Pinker, linguist John McWhorter, economist Glenn Loury, and activists Daryl Davis and Ayaan Hirsi Ali.
TheTranarchist ⚧ Ⓐ (talk) 21:52, 19 February 2023 (UTC)
- While the lead in current state less than ideal, I certainly object to this proposal. FAIR is not a conservative group. It's an alliance of conservatives, centrists, and liberals. And the part about CRT is loaded POV pushing that advances a word game to whitewash far-left ideological excesses in education and academia and attempt to delegitimize anyone who complains about it. Jweiss11 (talk) 22:37, 19 February 2023 (UTC)
- Any specific parts you object to? The individual self-described positions of a few members does not outweigh how this source is described in reliable sources, conservative and filled with outspoken conservatives. The part about CRT is due to WP:PROFRINGE. Multiple reliable sources confirmed that CRT was not being taught and they were using it as a thought-terminating cliche. One of their members, Rufo, has openly spoken about his attempts to manufacture the panic.
whitewash far-left ideological excesses in education and academia and attempt to delegitimize anyone who complains about it
is a ridiculous rant, particularly the idea that education is far-left in the slightest at any level... Please do not confuse your opinion with productive discussion or evidence. TheTranarchist ⚧ Ⓐ (talk) 22:54, 19 February 2023 (UTC)- My "rant" is backed up by sources cited in the article like https://archive.is/QLsde and https://archive.is/Ec0jA. Yes, no one steps in front a third-grade classroom and tells the kids to put away their spelling lessons now that it's time to read some Richard Delgado or Kimberlé Crenshaw. But what is happening is that kids are being racially segregated and asked by consultants if they are having "white feelings". Students are told they are "members of a privileged class" and "should advance the interests of an oppressed group and amplify those voices in place of their own" and "check each other's words and actions". Students are "exhausted with being reduced to...race". The insights and assumptions from critical race theory and related postmodern streams of thought can influence the pedagogy, culture, and disciplinary apparatus of a school even if the children aren't explicitly instructed in critical race theory. Jweiss11 (talk) 23:15, 19 February 2023 (UTC)
- That comment may or may be accurate, but it doesn't provide any evidence behind your actual accusation, which was
loaded POV pushing that advances a word game to whitewash far-left ideological excesses in education and academia and attempt to delegitimize anyone who complains about it
. If you want other editors to read that as something other than a "rant", you really ought to point to sources that suggest such a thing, which your links in the immediately preceding comment do not. Newimpartial (talk) 01:18, 20 February 2023 (UTC)
- That comment may or may be accurate, but it doesn't provide any evidence behind your actual accusation, which was
- My "rant" is backed up by sources cited in the article like https://archive.is/QLsde and https://archive.is/Ec0jA. Yes, no one steps in front a third-grade classroom and tells the kids to put away their spelling lessons now that it's time to read some Richard Delgado or Kimberlé Crenshaw. But what is happening is that kids are being racially segregated and asked by consultants if they are having "white feelings". Students are told they are "members of a privileged class" and "should advance the interests of an oppressed group and amplify those voices in place of their own" and "check each other's words and actions". Students are "exhausted with being reduced to...race". The insights and assumptions from critical race theory and related postmodern streams of thought can influence the pedagogy, culture, and disciplinary apparatus of a school even if the children aren't explicitly instructed in critical race theory. Jweiss11 (talk) 23:15, 19 February 2023 (UTC)
- Any specific parts you object to? The individual self-described positions of a few members does not outweigh how this source is described in reliable sources, conservative and filled with outspoken conservatives. The part about CRT is due to WP:PROFRINGE. Multiple reliable sources confirmed that CRT was not being taught and they were using it as a thought-terminating cliche. One of their members, Rufo, has openly spoken about his attempts to manufacture the panic.
- Thanks for compiling this list. I agree the lead needs work, and it's helpful to have the diversity of statements on hand to accurately characterize the organization. I've added a few additional sources to the bottom of your list. I will add comments on the proposed lead in a bit.--Animalparty! (talk) 22:58, 19 February 2023 (UTC)
- The Foundation Against Intolerance and Racism (FAIR) is a New-York based conservative advocacy group that campaigns against what it calls "woke ideology". - I share Jweiss11's disagreement about labeling this as conservative right off the bat, as I've already argued above. Most sources state it self-identifies as non-partisan, has conservatives on the board, is involved in conservative issues and/or has been lauded by conservative pundits. Only a minority of sources flatly call it conservative. An organization that has conservative members or is popular among conservatives =/= a conservative organization. And I think "woke ideology" is a bit vague, although this may be fine for now.
- FAIR has campaigned against diversity and inclusion programs, ethnic studies curricula, and anti-racist initiatives, which they falsely characterize as "Critical Race Theory" (CRT), an academic movement whose core tenet is that racism is a systemic social construct that is not taught below the graduate level. "Falsely" is stronger language than is found in any of the sources. And simply saying "CRT is not taught below the graduate level" is another thought-terminating cliche that ignores the nuance, e.g. "Critical race theory... is not taught in K-12 classrooms, though the underlying ideas are part of lessons and policies in many places. Reliable sources themselves don't always define what they mean by using "Critical Race Theory". Counter proposal: FAIR has campaigned against diversity and inclusion programs, ethnic studies curricula, and antiracism initiatives which they characterize as "Critical Race Theory" (CRT), an academic movement whose core tenet is that racism is a systemic social construct.
- The organization also campaigns against policies which would prohibit the deadnaming or misgendering of transgender students: the language of this seems out of line with how most sources describe FAIR's actions regarding gender, even if that's a result some policies may have. For instance, a person widely described a civil-rights activist should not be described as "opposes policies that would prohibit name-calling". I believe the Passage article (unestablished reliability, little weight) is the only one that explicitly mention deadnaming, although deadnaming might be inferred. Beware of guilt by association: note that in this case neither Young or Flora are named as being part of FAIR. We should not use language that is absent from most sources, especially not in the lead. Gender related activities should be in mentioned in the lead, and I'm not yet sure how, but this is not neutrally worded.
- The organization was founded in 2021 by Brion Bartning, after learning that his son's private school had developed anti-racist initiatives. Son should be children, and it should be clear that he opposed the type of anti-racist initiatives the school provided, not simply the presence of them.("his children’s school started an anti-racist curriculum that he believed caused more harm than good.", "pulled his children out of Riverdale and created a foundation to argue against this sort of antiracist education", "Bartning started the organization ... after he disagreed with the curriculum on race being introduced into his children’s private school and found school leaders unreceptive to his criticisms." "because he objected to the school's anti-racism curriculum". Counter proposal: The organization was founded in 2021 by Brion Bartning, after opposing the anti-racism curriculum of his children's private school. I'm also not convinced this much detail needs to be in the lead at all, for the sake of conciseness it might be better to just have The organization was founded in 2021 by Bion Bartning: his children's school isn't central to what FAIR does or is known for, but it's an important bit of backstory that should be in the body.
- Christopher Rufo, one of the largest figures in the CRT controversy and director of the Manhattan Institute's initiative on CRT, was formerly on the advisory board. I think this gives disproportionate emphasis to Rufo and the Manhattan Institute, and I don't think Rufo is as crucial to FAIR as this implies. This is an article first and foremost about FAIR, not a who's who of everyone involved nor an explainer on CRT and the broader broader culture wars. While he was pivotal in larger conservative efforts to vilify "CRT", relatively few sources comment on his involvement with FAIR in particular, and many articles on FAIR do not mention Rufo at all. By my count only 6 sources of the list above mention Rufo at all, and the sources that connect Rufo to FAIR include the most opinionated/agenda-based sources of the bunch, and so due weight needs to be considered. The Guardian discusses Rufo, but does not note his involvement with FAIR (merely suggesting FAIR spreads the fear of CRT that Rufo generated). Time, Lancaster Online and Colorado Times Recorder correctly note Rufo was a leading voices behind the manufactured outrage over critical race theory, and also note he is a (former) advisor. Passage is of unestablished reliability, but even if it's 100% reliable, it's a partisan source. MMfA is considered marginally reliable and a partisan advocacy group. AJ Eckert at SBM is an opinionated source that doesn't mention the Manhattan Institute, and simply calls Rufo an opponent of CRT, which is unsurprising given an FAIR is considered an anti-"CRT" organization. I think it is fair to mention Rufo's connection to Manhattan Institute and larger "CRT" panic in the body, but in the totality of sources, this doesn't stick out as lead-worthy. I have no qualms about naming Rufo in the lead, nor describing him as a conservative activist. Also, Ian Rowe does not yet appear Wikinotable, so probably doesn't warrant mention in the lead as a "notable member", but he should be named and identified with the AEI in the body. But as there are some 50 advisors (and they may change over time), we need not reach to include any but the ones most frequently discussed.
- With regards to a weird and irrelevant tidbit about how Pinker voted Democrat: Politico made this explicit connection, and even suggested more Democrats are on the board: "Bartning avoids discussion of politics, and FAIR's board of advisers purposefully includes Democrats such as Harvard University professor Steven Pinker, a donor to Biden's presidential campaign." And since Time makes an explicit mention of Alexander Lloyd being a Republican donor, I figured both seemed worthy of mention. --Animalparty! (talk) 03:15, 20 February 2023 (UTC)
- I just wanted to address the passage,
The organization also campaigns against policies which would prohibit the deadnaming or misgendering of transgender students
. To the best of my knowledge, this actually is how most HQRS denote the policies in question, which FAIR opposes. What other sources and other characterizations would you propose? In characterizing these policies, by the way, NPOV language needs to be based on what high quality sources say about the policies, and not only on what sources that mention FAIR happen to say about them. Otherwise enwiki can get into very strange situations... Newimpartial (talk) 13:16, 20 February 2023 (UTC)- We need to be careful even in cases where RS are summarizing their position in a way that is inconsistent with the groups public statements and published letters. If the group's letters say they support X and RSs say they actually support XY&Z then we need those sources to show the receipts for Y&Z. If they don't have evidence then we shouldn't assume they are accurate for that claim. In cases where the article subject has limited public statements I can see just assuming the RSs are accurate. However, in this case we are dealing with shades of gray and this group has quite a few published statements that clearly delineate between the obligations of the school's employees who can be compelled to say/do things as part of their job and those of the students who, even in school have their own first amendment rights. Springee (talk) 13:54, 20 February 2023 (UTC)
- Newimpartial, I think your edit to the lead is mixed. It's good to include the summary of what they do however, I don't think the summary quite passes IMPARTIAL. In particular I think this may over emphasize the trans aspects (it appears they are more focused on the CRT type content and DEI). We shouldn't put a negative spin on their gendering/deadnaming stance vs they argue its a first amendment violation of other students (do they include faculty?). So I agree that content should be in there but it needs to be IMPARTIAL in it's presentation. Springee (talk) 14:01, 20 February 2023 (UTC)
- I understand that FAIR takes the position that students (among others?) have a first-amendment right to deadname and misgender other students (and others?), though it isn't clear to me that they apply the same first-amendent principle to the use of racial epithets or other forms of taunting. But in any case, what matters most is what is stated in the best available sources - if FAIR opposed these policies about pronouns and names, and if RS typically characterize those policies as being about deadnames and misgendering, then those sources must be followed here. Newimpartial (talk) 17:13, 20 February 2023 (UTC)
- @Animalparty Thank you for the in-depth reply! Responding to your points:
Most sources state it self-identifies as non-partisan
. Stating how they describe itself has no weight, we are supposed to turn to sources that independently label them in their own voice.is involved in conservative issues
also speaks to it being conservative, as how reliable sources describe their activities is representative of themselves as a group, I don't believe I've many sources describe them/their activities as "non-partisan". "Woke ideology" is indeed incredibly vague lol, but as it's attributed to them and many have commented on their "anti-woke" positions and board it seems relevant. That being said, I'm not 100% in support keeping it as generally I prefer factual statements about an organizations activities to quotes from them- Falsely is a bit strong, and the graduate level caveat misplaced, I have to agree with you there. However, I think it's important to note multiple WP:RS and experts have said in their own words that CRT is not actually taught/implemented in places they said it is. How that should be worked into the lead though? I'm not sure.
- I'm fine with removing "deadnaming", as misgendering already covers it. I also have to double check whether the faculty are explicitly included in their advocacy. However,
The organization also campaigns against policies which would prohibit the misgendering of transgender students
is neutral whether you agree with those positions or not. Even they say they in their letter referenced earlierrequiring students to use the preferred pronouns of others, under threat of harassment charges, violates their First Amendment rights.
However, I would support adding..., which they characterize as infringing on the rights to religious freedom and free speech
. - Your counter-proposal,
The organization was founded in 2021 by Brion Bartning, after opposing the anti-racism curriculum of his children's private school
looks good. I would say since Bartning has apparently no notability outside of FAIR,The organization was founded in 2021 by Bion Bartning
would probably be undue without that exposition in your longer version. - In regards to Rufo, his outsized role in the CRT controversy has been noted by many RS, in such a way that other members haven't been, so it seems due in the lead. But I agree that more exposition than that is best left for the body. I also agree lead-worthy mentions of notable members should be predicated on the coverage they've received with regards to FAIR (and I was originally going to compile them and list them in this discussion but thought one thing at a time was best)
- With regards to the Pinker being a democratic donor mention, that is probably due, my bigger issue is that we fail to mention of how he has been criticized for his positions on race and gender, which has been noted in sources. While the overton window in this country is incredibly shifted compared to the rest of the world, I want to note that being a democrat does not preclude one from being conservative. The Time mention has more exposition on FAIR, saying
Both FAIR and Parents Defending Education are structuring themselves as a type of nonprofit that is not required to publicly disclose its donors. Because they were formed only recently, there are no tax returns available. But an analysis of public documents does provide some insight into the power behind the scenes. Former Fox News host Megyn Kelly, who has blasted her kids’ elite Manhattan schools as “far left,” and Alexander Lloyd, a venture capitalist and Republican donor, sit with Rufo on FAIR’s board of advisers.
- TheTranarchist ⚧ Ⓐ (talk) 17:27, 20 February 2023 (UTC)
- The fact that several sources emphasize the self-declared non-partisanship gives this claim weight: it's not just a primary sourced claim we're taking from the FAIR website, and so can't be dismissed. If an accused arsonist is consistently quoted as denying the accusation, we don't label them an arsonist in the first sentence. If sources consistently/predominantly said "the conservative organization FAIR...", that would be different, but this is far from the case: every source that mentions the organization in any light, even if they add no adjectives at all, gives weight to that light. I agree that several sources comment on the presence of conservatives on the board, and we should note that. I agree that several articles mention FAIR working with (or being endorsed by) conservative groups and people, and we should note that (though maybe not in the lead). I disagree that such sources are explicitly claiming the organization as a whole is conservative (though some may subtly suggest this), and certaily not enough to make it a declarative first sentence statement. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences is largely liberal in membership, and Hollywood has no shortage of prominent liberal activists, but that doesn't make it first and foremost a liberal organization. An extreme minority of sources go as far as flatly calling FAIR a conservative organization, thus Wikipedia should reflect such nuance, not frame the issue according to a minority. And we can't interpret every instance of anti-"woke" or anti-CRT or anti-pronoun-asking activity as inherently conservative unless other sources do: there are certainly anti-woke liberals and centrists. I appreciate you compiling the many sources on this org, but my reading and summation of them simply doesn't coincide with yours (you see a rabbit, I see a duck). I feel my reading invokes less external factors or implicit subtext. This doesn't mean I'm more correct or you're more correct, it just means we need to get more opinions on what they sources really say to achieve a consensus. I'm not going to go into a back and forth right now or comment on the other comments. I'll wait for more input. --Animalparty! (talk) 20:20, 20 February 2023 (UTC)
- I just wanted to address the passage,
- With regards to a weird and irrelevant tidbit about how Pinker voted Democrat: Politico made this explicit connection, and even suggested more Democrats are on the board: "Bartning avoids discussion of politics, and FAIR's board of advisers purposefully includes Democrats such as Harvard University professor Steven Pinker, a donor to Biden's presidential campaign." And since Time makes an explicit mention of Alexander Lloyd being a Republican donor, I figured both seemed worthy of mention. --Animalparty! (talk) 03:15, 20 February 2023 (UTC)
Alternate proposal
I just boldly edited the opening of the lead to read:
The Foundation Against Intolerance and Racism (FAIR) is an American nonprofit civil rights organization. It was founded in 2021 by Bion Bartning in response to an acceleration of antiracist programming in American schools. FAIR has advocated and filed lawsuits on issues of racial disclination and free speech rights in education, medicine, and the arts. FAIR had often opposed diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) measures.
This was quickly reverted by Newimpartial. I believe this is far more neutral than Newimpartial's version and gets us away from the word games about what is and isn't CRT. Newimpartial's version uses the phrase "that it calls" with respect to CRT which unduly implies in wikivoice that FAIR doesn't know what CRT is. This rests on the canard that CRT isn't in the schools because elementary school kids aren't assigned to read Delgado and Crenshaw. Of course we have teacher, adminss, and outside consultants who were trained in CRT in grad school infusing the culture and pedagogy of schools with notions from CRT. As the WaPo reports: "Critical race theory... is not taught in K-12 classrooms, though the underlying ideas are part of lessons and policies in many places." London Times and NYT: Students are told they are "members of a privileged class" and "should advance the interests of an oppressed group and amplify those voices in place of their own" and "check each other's words and actions". Students are "exhausted with being reduced to...race". Jweiss11 (talk) 04:57, 21 February 2023 (UTC)
- Jweiss, why do you expect editors to he convinced by your unsupported rants that say
CRT isn't in the schools
is acanard
? Do you have sources for "canard", or is that original to you? - Your BOLD proposal puts in Wikivoice the supposition that antiracist
programming
in schools isaccelerating
to which FAIR offers acivil rights
response. Really? Do you have any independent sources to ground that alternative reality? It certainly isn't the situation depicted in the sources in the body of this article. Newimpartial (talk) 05:03, 21 February 2023 (UTC)
- Yes, I expect the editors here that actually honor the notion of neutral POV to be convinced of my arguments, as they follow directly from the quotes I pulled from cited sources. The body of the article, dominated by the "Activism and positions" section, is still a trainwreck badly in need of a rewrite. Jweiss11 (talk) 05:16, 21 February 2023 (UTC)
- Your proposed lead seems to depend on your original interptetation of a few pull-quotes from sources you can't be bothered to link. I would encourage you to find reliable sources that actually support your interpretation of social reality. Newimpartial (talk) 05:20, 21 February 2023 (UTC)
- Yes, I expect the editors here that actually honor the notion of neutral POV to be convinced of my arguments, as they follow directly from the quotes I pulled from cited sources. The body of the article, dominated by the "Activism and positions" section, is still a trainwreck badly in need of a rewrite. Jweiss11 (talk) 05:16, 21 February 2023 (UTC)
- I think Jweiss11's version is good in that it avoids discussing views in a way that casts doubt right up front. It's possible their views should have doubt cast on them and that could still be part of the lead. Still, per IMPARTIAL we shouldn't use phrasing that casts things in a negative light first. That said, NewImpartial, on a different page you did a good job of pulling myself and another editor out of a locked horns situation by proposing a good, alternative suggestion. Can you think of changes to Jweiss11's suggestion that would satisfy your concerns? Springee (talk) 05:32, 21 February 2023 (UTC)
- The current version of the lead still has the organization's explanation of its own avowed goals in the second paragraph, which is the correct location since the independent RS support the characterization in the first paragraph more than they do the group's own declarations. But it might be possible to trim both paragraphs and integrate them into one, which might help with the perception that the lead is more skeptical than the sources as a whole. Newimpartial (talk) 05:39, 21 February 2023 (UTC)
- I think Jweiss11's version is good in that it avoids discussing views in a way that casts doubt right up front. It's possible their views should have doubt cast on them and that could still be part of the lead. Still, per IMPARTIAL we shouldn't use phrasing that casts things in a negative light first. That said, NewImpartial, on a different page you did a good job of pulling myself and another editor out of a locked horns situation by proposing a good, alternative suggestion. Can you think of changes to Jweiss11's suggestion that would satisfy your concerns? Springee (talk) 05:32, 21 February 2023 (UTC)
- JFC this is the most blatantly advertified and nonsense lead I've ever seen.
civil-rights organization
is, as far as I can tell, only supported by 1 source, which contains no exposition on FAIR's general activities and is not WP:SIRS coveragean acceleration of antiracist programming in American schools
is not supported by any sources, at allFAIR has advocated and filed lawsuits on issues of racial disclination and free speech rights in education, medicine, and the arts.
For a start, I'm assumingdisclination
is supposed to bediscrimination
. This is wholly unsupported by sources, which do not in their own voice suggest that racial discrimination is what they oppose. Notably, you cut out all mention of their policies on trans kids, which are commented on by multiple sources, to include their not that noteworthy and usually just 1-case advocacy inmedicine
andarts
. Disgusting WP:SYNTHFAIR had often opposed diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) measures.
- FAIR is, if anything, primarily known for that.
- TheTranarchist ⚧ Ⓐ (talk) 05:38, 21 February 2023 (UTC)
- Yes, "disclination" should be "discrimination". Jweiss11 (talk) 06:29, 21 February 2023 (UTC)
- "acceleration of antiracist programming" is a reasonable conclusion to draw from Michael Powell's cited NYT piece. 06:32, 21 February 2023 (UTC) Jweiss11 (talk) 06:36, 21 February 2023 (UTC)
- Giving our own interpretation to primary sources isn't our job, Jweiss. We aren't here as sociologists. Newimpartial (talk) 06:35, 21 February 2023 (UTC)
- What we started off with her was a very biased interpretation of primary sources, both reliable and suspect, by TheTranarchist. As editors, our job is to take sources and weave articles that we think represent the topic well. This process inherently requires the sort of interpretation I suggested above about Powell's piece. Jweiss11 (talk) 06:40, 21 February 2023 (UTC)
- You have an interesting knack for attributing biases to others while ignoring your own. At least other participants in this discussion are making contributions based on sources, and not on our own glosses about sources (which is still OR, but that may be WP:CIR for you). Newimpartial (talk) 06:46, 21 February 2023 (UTC)
- While you have an impressive knack for scolding other editors for alleged misdeeds and then committing your own two minutes later. Jweiss11 (talk) 06:53, 21 February 2023 (UTC)
- You have an interesting knack for attributing biases to others while ignoring your own. At least other participants in this discussion are making contributions based on sources, and not on our own glosses about sources (which is still OR, but that may be WP:CIR for you). Newimpartial (talk) 06:46, 21 February 2023 (UTC)
- What we started off with her was a very biased interpretation of primary sources, both reliable and suspect, by TheTranarchist. As editors, our job is to take sources and weave articles that we think represent the topic well. This process inherently requires the sort of interpretation I suggested above about Powell's piece. Jweiss11 (talk) 06:40, 21 February 2023 (UTC)
- Giving our own interpretation to primary sources isn't our job, Jweiss. We aren't here as sociologists. Newimpartial (talk) 06:35, 21 February 2023 (UTC)
- "acceleration of antiracist programming" is a reasonable conclusion to draw from Michael Powell's cited NYT piece. 06:32, 21 February 2023 (UTC) Jweiss11 (talk) 06:36, 21 February 2023 (UTC)
- Yes, "disclination" should be "discrimination". Jweiss11 (talk) 06:29, 21 February 2023 (UTC)
- @Jweiss11 thisversion just takes the organizations claims about itself at face value. that's not npov. Sativa Inflorescence (talk) 13:35, 21 February 2023 (UTC)
- Yes. In addition, the
acceleration
language is the kind of inference that we cannot include in wiki-voice; the Powell piece only draws a direct connection between Bartning and the actions of one particular school, not a whole climate or accelerating trend. Saying that there is an accelerating social trend, rather than people just noticing something for the first time, requires better support than a single news story that could at most look at a thin slice of the topic. The proposed revision also shifts away from secondary sources and serves as a worse summary of the article text, putting it at odds with the Manual of Style. XOR'easter (talk) 19:21, 22 February 2023 (UTC)- XOR'easter, I think you're correct that none of the sources already introduced into the article here support "acceleration". But it is supported in this piece from the Washington Post: https://archive.is/ZWWKq. The WaPo doesn't discuss FAIR, so we can agree to leave "acceleration" out of the article until this point is made in a source that does discuss FAIR. Jweiss11 (talk) 00:46, 23 February 2023 (UTC)
- Yes. In addition, the
- This ain't it, but neither is the original proposal. We have thesis and antithesis, but there's yet to be a synthesis. Per NPOV the lede can't be the uncompromising character assassination some editors would like it to be, but we also can't be entirely credulous about the organization's stated aims. Sennalen (talk) 15:38, 23 February 2023 (UTC)
- Sennalen, perhaps you'd like to make another proposal for the lead? Note that Adoring nanny has removed the part of the lead regarding misgendering and deadnaming with the edit note "Delete sentence that is supported by only one of the six cited sources, and that source (Passage) is pretty weak". The Passage piece by McCreadie has managed to work its way back into the article, but most everyone here and at the RS noticeboard has agreed that it should not be used as an RS. Jweiss11 (talk) 18:58, 23 February 2023 (UTC)
- I have enough on my plate as it is. Sennalen (talk) 01:44, 24 February 2023 (UTC)
- Sennalen, perhaps you'd like to make another proposal for the lead? Note that Adoring nanny has removed the part of the lead regarding misgendering and deadnaming with the edit note "Delete sentence that is supported by only one of the six cited sources, and that source (Passage) is pretty weak". The Passage piece by McCreadie has managed to work its way back into the article, but most everyone here and at the RS noticeboard has agreed that it should not be used as an RS. Jweiss11 (talk) 18:58, 23 February 2023 (UTC)
NCORP sources?
Are there two? I am only seeing this organization mentioned briefly. Guardian is the longest thing I can find and it's only four sentences. Is there WP:NCORP coverage of FAIR? Levivich (talk) 00:48, 4 March 2023 (UTC)
- Before I go looking, are you sure NCORP is the right SNG? WP:NONPROFIT looks like it would be more applicable here. Sideswipe9th (talk) 01:06, 4 March 2023 (UTC)
- NONPROFIT is a part of NCORP, but yes, I think NONPROFIT applies to FAIR. Really I'm curious what SIGCOV there is, and if it's from independent RS. I don't think, for example, the Guardian I linked above is WP:SIGCOV, and thus wouldn't count for WP:SIRS, or the alternate WP:NONPROFIT, or WP:GNG ... meaning, wouldn't count for any applicable notability criteria. I'm not sure if there is anything better than Guardian out there? From glancing through the sources I didn't see anything. Levivich (talk) 01:11, 4 March 2023 (UTC)
- Only reason I draw attention to NONPROFIT over NCORP, is that NONPROFIT's alternative pathway is somewhat easier to meet than the primary NCORP criteria. I'll take a look at the sources in article and elsewhere tomorrow and see if there's anything we're missing. Sideswipe9th (talk) 05:55, 4 March 2023 (UTC)
- Thanks, no rush! The last time I thought an org in this topic area was not notable, it turned out to have its own entry in the SAGE Encyclopedia of Trans Studies, a book I didn't even know existed. So I'd like to avoid making that mistake again. Levivich (talk) 18:16, 4 March 2023 (UTC)
- Done a source analysis table for the sources in the article, which you can find in my sandbox.
- The TLDR version, there's one source that I think counts towards WP:GNG, an article by Evanston Now. There's one Newsweek article that has significant coverage and deserves closer evaluation per RSP
Many editors have noted that there are several exceptions to this standard, so consensus is to evaluate Newsweek content on a case-by-case basis.
There's one student newspaper article that goes into a significant amount of depth about FAIR, and might be reliable, but the reliability is unclear at this time. There's a couple of other maybe sources, depending on how narrowly you define the cut-off point where content becomes SIGCOV. But most of the articles are short mentions only, useful for "FAIR did X at Y time" or "FAIR released a statement saying Z", but not towards meeting GNG. - Not had a chance yet to look at new/unused sources though. This is just the sources that we already cite. If there's agreement that the Evanston Now article meets GNG, and agreement can be reached on either the Newsweek or student newspaper, then I think this article does pass NONPROFIT and GNG, even if it probably fails the primary NCORP criteria just because of how much stricter we hold NCORP over GNG and other SNGs. Sideswipe9th (talk) 21:25, 4 March 2023 (UTC)
- Wow, thanks! That source analysis table went above and beyond. Yes, I think Evanston Now is a GNG source. I don't know much about it, but I think Emory Wheel might be an WP:RSSM and this story looks like SIGCOV to me. I also think VT Digger and Chalkbeat come pretty close, even if they're not terrible in-depth. WP:NEWSWEEK confuses me (generally unreliable after 2013, but case-by-case because of "exceptions," yet no indication of what those exceptions are?). This Newsweek story looks like SIGCOV to me. It's by a professional reporter, albeit a consumer beat reporter, and frankly I personally think Newsweek is of very marginal reliability (not just since 2013, but that's just me), but I really don't see any reason why that particular story shouldn't "count" unless we're categorically throwing out Newsweek, which it doesn't seem like the community is doing (even if I think it should). Then in addition to that, is the Guardian, and a couple dozen brief mentions.
- Personally, I'm satisfied it meets NCORP, or more specifically, that taking it to AFD would be a waste of time because it'll come back a keep or no consensus. Unless anyone else questions notability, I'm not sure it's worth the time to go to RSP about the Newsweek source or the student newspaper. I consider my question to be answered with "yes, there are two, even if we aren't sure which of several are the two". Levivich (talk) 23:41, 4 March 2023 (UTC)
- No worries. I find those tables pretty helpful when I'm trying to figure out if GNG/SNG has been met, so I would have been doing one anyway if I hadn't sandboxed it just to keep me straight on the sources. Like a related discussion on another talk page, I do wish RSP sometimes went into a little more detail and clarity about what biases sources have or what exceptions apply, because I've seen those sort of entries misused on so many other article talk pages to exclude content that actually looked fine. But that's a discussion for another time and place. Sideswipe9th (talk) 23:45, 4 March 2023 (UTC)
- Thanks, no rush! The last time I thought an org in this topic area was not notable, it turned out to have its own entry in the SAGE Encyclopedia of Trans Studies, a book I didn't even know existed. So I'd like to avoid making that mistake again. Levivich (talk) 18:16, 4 March 2023 (UTC)
- Only reason I draw attention to NONPROFIT over NCORP, is that NONPROFIT's alternative pathway is somewhat easier to meet than the primary NCORP criteria. I'll take a look at the sources in article and elsewhere tomorrow and see if there's anything we're missing. Sideswipe9th (talk) 05:55, 4 March 2023 (UTC)
- NONPROFIT is a part of NCORP, but yes, I think NONPROFIT applies to FAIR. Really I'm curious what SIGCOV there is, and if it's from independent RS. I don't think, for example, the Guardian I linked above is WP:SIGCOV, and thus wouldn't count for WP:SIRS, or the alternate WP:NONPROFIT, or WP:GNG ... meaning, wouldn't count for any applicable notability criteria. I'm not sure if there is anything better than Guardian out there? From glancing through the sources I didn't see anything. Levivich (talk) 01:11, 4 March 2023 (UTC)