Utilisateur:InProgress/Mormonism and Wikipedia

Mormonism and Wikipedia

It is easy enough to spin webs of speculation...
—Dr. John Matzko, Professor of History, Bob Jones University.
"The Encounter of the Young Joseph Smith with Presbyterianism," Dialogue 40/3 (2007), p. 77

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...every time you start citing Wikipedia rules, I tune them out as Mormon smokescreen.
—Wikipedia editor John "Foxe" (23 July 2007) off-site

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FAIR's approach to Wikipedia articles

FAIR regularly receives queries about specific LDS-themed Wikipedia articles with requests that we somehow "fix" them. Although some individual members of FAIR may choose to edit Wikipedia articles, FAIR as an organization does not. Controversial Wikipedia articles require constant maintenance and a significant amount of time. We prefer instead to respond to claims in the FAIR Wiki rather than fight the ongoing battle that LDS Wikipedia articles sometimes invite. From FAIR’s perspective, assertions made in LDS-themed Wikipedia articles are therefore treated just like any other critical (or, if one prefers, "anti-Mormon") work.

Given the fluid nature of LDS Wikipedia articles, it is pointless to perform a detailed review and analysis of many of them. There is a specific subset of LDS articles, however, that has been "stabilized" by one editor critical of LDS views, thus allowing us to perform a more detailed analysis.

Editors who wish to participate in editing LDS-themed Wikipedia articles can access the project page here: Wikipedia:WikiProject Latter Day Saint movement. You are not required to be LDS in order to participate--there are a number of good non-LDS editors who have made valuable contributions to these articles.

The following sub-articles discuss various aspects of editing LDS-themed articles on Wikipedia. In addition, we analyze certain selected Wikipedia articles for accuracy and fairness.

Who edits LDS Wikipedia articles?

Who edits LDS Wikipedia articles? We introduce you to a few of the critical editors who have caught our attention that you are most likely to encounter.

The perils of editing LDS Wikipedia articles

What happens when a "real world" academic attempts to improve Wikipedia articles and make them reflect his version of "truth?" We discuss the issue in detail here.

FAIR's analysis of LDS Wikipedia articles

We examine selected Wikipedia articles and examine them on a "claim-by-claim" basis, with links to responses in the FAIR Wiki.

Wikipedia article "First Vision"

This is one of the more "stable" LDS articles on Wikipedia. We analyze this article claim by claim. The article has been a literal Wikipedia editing battleground, and the bodies of the fallen litter the landscape.

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We welcome your suggestions for improving the content of this FAIR Wiki article.

Sites we recommend: Mormon Scholars Testify: Messages of faith from scholars who belong to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints