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<noinclude>{{short description|Wikimedia project behavioral guidelines regarding conflicts of interest}} | |||
{{hatnote|If you want advice about a potential conflict of interest, see ]}} | |||
{{hatnote|If you want to report a problematic conflict of interest editor, see ].}} | |||
{{hatnote|For practical advice for editors who might have a conflict of interest, see ]}} | {{hatnote|For practical advice for editors who might have a conflict of interest, see ]}} | ||
{{redirect| |
{{redirect|Misplaced Pages:Conflict}} | ||
{{pp-move-indef}} | |||
{{subcat guideline|behavioral guideline|Conflict of interest|WP:COI|WP:CONFLICT}} | {{subcat guideline|behavioral guideline|Conflict of interest|WP:COI|WP:CONFLICT}} | ||
{{nutshell|Editors should not edit where they have a conflict of interest, as such involvement may undermine the project’s neutrality. If paid or otherwise connected to the subject, disclosure and following the proper edit request process is required to maintain credibility.}}</noinclude> | |||
{{guideline list}} | {{guideline list}} | ||
{{nutshell|Do not edit Misplaced Pages in your own interests or in the interests of your external relationships.}} | |||
A Misplaced Pages ''']''' ('''COI''') is an incompatibility between the aim of Misplaced Pages, which is to produce a ], ] encyclopedia, and the aims of an individual editor. COI editing involves contributing to Misplaced Pages to promote your own interests, including your business or financial interests, or those of your external relationships, such as with family, friends or employers.<ref>Note: the word ''interest'' is used here to refer to benefit or gain, not to something you are merely interested in, such as a hobby or area of expertise.</ref> When an external relationship undermines, or could reasonably be said to undermine, your role as a Wikipedian, you have a conflict of interest. This is often expressed as: '''when advancing outside interests is more important to an editor than advancing the aims of Misplaced Pages, that editor stands in a conflict of interest.''' | |||
'''Conflict of interest''' ('''COI''') '''editing''' involves contributing to ] about yourself, family, friends, clients, employers, or your financial and other relationships. Any ] can trigger a ]. Someone having a conflict of interest is a description of a ''situation'', not a judgment about that person's opinions, integrity, or ]. | |||
COI editing is strongly discouraged. It risks causing public embarrassment to the individuals and groups being promoted (see ]), and if it causes disruption to the encyclopedia, accounts may be blocked. "isrepresenting your affiliation with any individual or entity" is a violation of the ].<ref>The Foundation's terms of use are Misplaced Pages policy, see ].</ref> | |||
COI editing is strongly discouraged on Misplaced Pages. It undermines public confidence and risks causing ] to the individuals and companies being promoted. Editors with a COI are sometimes ] it has influenced their editing. If COI editing causes disruption, an administrator may opt to place blocks on the involved accounts. | |||
Paid advocacy is a category of COI editing that involves receiving financial compensation from a person or organization to use Misplaced Pages to promote the interests of that person or organization. Advocacy of any sort within articles is prohibited by our policies on ] and what ], and paid advocacy is regarded as an especially egregious form of advocacy. The Wikimedia Foundation regards it as a ] practice.<ref name=Gardner/> Paid advocates are '''very strongly discouraged''' from direct article editing, and should instead propose changes on the talk page of the article in question. Wikimedia's Terms of Use state that "you must disclose your employer, client, and affiliation with respect to any contribution for which you receive, or expect to receive, compensation." | |||
Editors with a COI, including ], are expected to ] whenever they seek to change an affected article's content. Anyone editing for pay ], who the client is, and any other relevant affiliation; this is a requirement of the ]. COI editors are strongly discouraged from editing affected articles directly, and can propose changes on article talk pages instead. However, our ] allows very obvious errors to be fixed quickly, ]. | |||
When investigating COI editing, be careful not to ] of editors against their wishes. Misplaced Pages's ] takes precedence over this guideline. | |||
When investigating COI editing, ''do not'' ] of editors against their wishes. Misplaced Pages's ], and in particular the prohibition against disclosing personal information, '''takes precedence''' over this guideline. To report COI editing, follow the advice at ], below. Editors making or discussing changes to this guideline or related guidance shall disclose whether they have been paid to edit Misplaced Pages. | |||
Any editor who discusses proposed changes to WP:COI or to any conflict of interest policy or guideline should disclose in that discussion if he or she has been paid to edit on Misplaced Pages. | |||
{{content policies}} | |||
== |
== Misplaced Pages's position == | ||
=== Purpose of Misplaced Pages === | |||
{{Further|Misplaced Pages:Terms of use}} | |||
{{further|Misplaced Pages:What Misplaced Pages is not}} | |||
Wikimedia owns Misplaced Pages and defines the ] for anyone using Misplaced Pages. The WMF Terms of Use as of 2014 contain a section called ] which contains a subsection as follows: | |||
As an encyclopedia, ] is to provide the public with articles that summarize accepted knowledge, written neutrally and sourced reliably. Readers expect to find neutral articles written independently of their subject, not corporate or personal webpages, or platforms for advertising and self-promotion. Articles should contain only material that complies with Misplaced Pages's content policies and best practices, and Wikipedians must place the interests of the encyclopedia and its readers above personal concerns. | |||
<blockquote>'''Paid contributions without disclosure''' | |||
These Terms of Use prohibit engaging in deceptive activities, including misrepresentation of affiliation, impersonation, and fraud. As part of these obligations, you must disclose your employer, client, and affiliation with respect to any contribution for which you receive, or expect to receive, compensation. You must make that disclosure in at least one of the following ways: | |||
*a statement on your user page, | |||
*a statement on the talk page accompanying any paid contributions, or | |||
*a statement in the edit summary accompanying any paid contributions. | |||
Applicable law, or community and Foundation policies and guidelines, such as those addressing conflicts of interest, may further limit paid contributions or require more detailed disclosure.<br/> | |||
A Wikimedia Project community may adopt an alternative paid contribution disclosure policy. If a Project adopts an alternative disclosure policy, you may comply with that policy instead of the requirements in this section when contributing to that Project. An alternative paid contribution policy will only supersede these requirements if it is approved by the relevant Project community and listed in the ] page. | |||
For more information, please read our ].<br/> | |||
We reserve the right to exercise our enforcement discretion with respect to the above terms.</blockquote> | |||
=== COI editing === | |||
==Misplaced Pages's position== | |||
{{see |
{{see also|Misplaced Pages:Plain and simple conflict of interest guide}} | ||
{{Shortcut|WP:COIEDIT}} | |||
Editors with a COI should follow Misplaced Pages policies and best practices scrupulously: | |||
* you should '''] your COI''' when involved with affected articles; | |||
* you are '''strongly discouraged''' from editing affected articles directly; | |||
* you may ''']''' on talk pages (by using the {{tlx|edit COI}} template), so that they can be peer-reviewed; | |||
* you should put new articles through the ] process instead of creating them directly; | |||
* you should '''not act as a reviewer''' of affected article(s) at AfC, ] or elsewhere; | |||
* you should '''respect other editors''' by keeping discussions concise. | |||
Note that no one on Misplaced Pages ]. If Misplaced Pages hosts an article about you or your organization, others may add information that would otherwise remain little known. They may also decide to delete the article or decide to keep it should you later request deletion. The media has several times drawn attention to companies that engage in COI editing on Misplaced Pages (see ]), which has led to embarrassment for the organizations concerned. | |||
Misplaced Pages is an encyclopedia, not a vanity press, or forum for advertising or self-promotion. As such it should contain only material that complies with its content policies, and Wikipedians must place the interests of the encyclopedia first. Any editor who gives priority to outside interests may be subject to a conflict of interest. Adding material that appears to advance the interests or promote the visibility of an article's author, the author's family, employer, clients, associates or business, places the author in a conflict of interest. | |||
{{anchor|Paid editing|Paid advocacy}} | |||
=== Paid editing === | |||
COI editing is strongly discouraged. COI editors causing disruption may be ]. Editors with COIs who wish to edit responsibly are strongly encouraged to follow Misplaced Pages policies and ] scrupulously. They are also encouraged to disclose their interest on their ] and on the ] of the article in question, and to request the views of other editors. If you have a conflict of interest, any changes you would like to propose that might be seen as non-] should be suggested on the relevant ] or ]. | |||
{{Shortcut|WP:PE|WP:PAY|WP:NOPR|WP:NOPAY|WP:FCOI}} | |||
Being paid to contribute to Misplaced Pages is one form of financial COI; it places the paid editor in a conflict between their employer's goals and Misplaced Pages's goals. The kind of paid editing of most concern to the community involves using Misplaced Pages for public relations and marketing purposes. Sometimes called "paid advocacy," this is problematic because it invariably reflects the interests of the client or employer. | |||
Paid advocacy is a subset of COI editing (see ] below). Paid advocates are '''very strongly discouraged''' from direct article editing, and should instead propose changes on the talk page of the article in question, or on a noticeboard such as ]. These changes may or may not be acted upon. Paid advocates are also advised to disclose their conflict of interest, as required by the Terms of Use. | |||
More generally, an editor has a financial conflict of interest whenever they write about a topic with which they have a close financial relationship. This includes being an owner, employee, contractor, investor or other stakeholder. | |||
Note that ] and others may ] them, keep them, or add information that would have remained little-known. While Wikipedians generally avoid naming editors and their paymasters, other media routinely do. This has led at times to embarrassment for the organization concerned. | |||
The ] requires that all paid editing be disclosed. Additionally, ] requires that (if applicable) you '''must''' provide links on your user-page to '''all''' active accounts on external websites through which you advertise, solicit or obtain paid editing. If you receive or expect to receive compensation (money, goods or services) for your contributions to Misplaced Pages, the policy on the English Misplaced Pages is: | |||
==What is conflict of interest?== | |||
===External relationships; primary and secondary roles=== | |||
{{Policy shortcut|WP:EXTERNALREL}} | |||
{{see|Conflict of interest|Self-dealing}} | |||
While editing Misplaced Pages, an editor's primary role is to be a Wikipedian. Any external relationship (any secondary role) may undermine that primary role, and when it does undermine it, or could reasonably be said to undermine it, that person has a conflict of interest. A judge's primary role as an impartial adjudicator would be undermined by her secondary role as the defendant's wife. A journalist's primary role as an unbiased investigator would be undermined by his secondary role as business partner of the subject of his investigation. | |||
* you must ''']''' who is paying you, on whose behalf the edits are made, and any other relevant affiliation; | |||
] describes the "standard view" of conflict of interest: | |||
* you should make the disclosure on your user page, '''on affected talk pages''', and whenever you discuss the topic; | |||
* you are '''strongly discouraged''' from editing affected articles directly; | |||
* you may ''']''' on talk pages by using the {{tlx|edit COI}} template, so that they can be peer-reviewed; | |||
* you should put new articles through the ] process instead of creating them directly; | |||
* you must '''not act as a reviewer''' of affected article(s) at AfC, ] or elsewhere; | |||
* you should '''respect volunteers''' by keeping discussions concise (see ]). | |||
Requested edits are subject to the same standards as any other, and editors may decline to act on them. The ] provides guidance in this area. To find an article's talk page, click the "talk" button at the top of the article. See ] if you have questions about these things. If you are an administrator, you ] (except when related to work as a ], or as someone paid by the Wikimedia Foundation or an affiliate). | |||
<blockquote>A conflict of interest is a situation in which some person P (whether an individual or corporate body) stands in a certain relation to one or more decisions. On the standard view, P has a conflict of interest if, and only if, (1) P is in a relationship with another requiring P to exercise judgment in the other's behalf and (2) P has a (special) interest tending to interfere with the proper exercise of judgment in that relationship.<ref>Michael Davis, "Introduction," in Michael Davis and Andrew Stark (eds.), ''Conflict of Interest in the Professions'', University of Oxford Press, 2001, p. 8.</ref></blockquote> | |||
=== Wikimedia Foundation terms of use<span class="anchor" id="terms"></span> === | |||
Any external relationship – personal, religious, political, academic, financial, and legal – can trigger a conflict of interest. How close the relationship needs to be before it becomes a concern on Misplaced Pages is governed by common sense. For example, an article about a band should not be written by the band's manager, and a biography should not be written by the subject's spouse. But subject-matter experts are welcome to contribute to articles in their areas of expertise, while being careful to make sure that their external relationships in that field do not interfere with their primary role on Misplaced Pages. | |||
{{further|Misplaced Pages:Paid-contribution disclosure }} | |||
The ]'s ] require that editors who are being paid for their contributions disclose their ''employer'' (the person or organization who is paying for the edits); the ''client'' (the person or organization on whose behalf the edits are made); and any other relevant ''affiliation''. This is the policy of the English Misplaced Pages. | |||
{{anchor|howtodisclose|Declaring an interest}} | |||
===Apparent, potential and actual conflict of interest=== | |||
== How to disclose a COI == | |||
{{Policy shortcut|WP:APPARENTCOI|WP:POTENTIALCOI|WP:ACTUALCOI}} | |||
=== General COI === | |||
*An '''apparent conflict of interest''' arises when P does not have a conflict of interest, but someone would be justified in thinking P does. ] writes that apparent conflicts can be as objectionable as potential or actual conflicts, because they cause suspicion, and should therefore be resolved wherever possible.<ref name=Davis2001p18>Davis 2001, p. 18.</ref> | |||
{{shortcut|WP:DISCLOSE|WP:DCOI}} | |||
If you become involved in an article where you have any COI, you should always let other editors know about it, whenever and wherever you discuss the topic. There are three venues to do this. | |||
1. If you want to use a template to do this, place {{tlx|connected contributor}} '''at the top of the affected talk page''', fill it in as follows, and save: | |||
*A '''potential conflict of interest''' occurs when P has a conflict with respect to a certain judgment, but is not yet in a position where that judgment must be exercised.<ref name=Davis2001p15>Davis 2001, p. 15.</ref> | |||
{{cot|bg=#DCDCDC|fc=#555555|width=75%|Connected contributor template}} | |||
*A potential conflict becomes an '''actual conflict of interest''' when P is in a position to exercise that judgment.<ref name=Davis2001p15/> | |||
:<span style="font-size:100%;"><code><nowiki>{{</nowiki>Connected contributor|User1=''Your username''|U1-declared=yes|U1-otherlinks=''(Optional) Insert relevant affiliations, disclosures, article drafts or diffs showing COI contributions.''<nowiki>}}</nowiki></code></span> | |||
{{cob}} | |||
Note that someone else may add this for you. | |||
A Wikipedian who owns a notable business would have a '''potential conflict of interest''' with respect to the exercise of judgment about that business's article. She would have an '''actual conflict''' if placed in a position where the judgment needed to be exercised (for example, by creating or editing the article, or commenting in a deletion debate about it). Another Wikipedian would have an '''apparent conflict''' if there were grounds to believe that she was the business owner when she was not. | |||
2. You can also make a statement in the ] of any COI contribution. | |||
===Biased editing=== | |||
Conflict of interest is not simply bias.<ref>Davis 2001, p. 12.</ref> Beliefs and desires alone do not constitute a conflict of interest. On Misplaced Pages, a person's beliefs and desires may lead to biased editing, but biased editing can occur in the absence of a conflict of interest. | |||
3. If you want to note the COI '''on ]''', you can use the {{tlx|UserboxCOI}} template: | |||
===What is wrong with conflict of interest?=== | |||
Davis writes that, according to the standard view, conflict of interest is like "dirt in a sensitive gauge". He identifies three problems with it. First, a person P with a conflict of interest may fail to exercise good judgment; he writes that people with a conflict often "esteem too highly their own reliability", and fail to realize the extent to which the conflict has affected their judgment. Second, if the people relying on P do not know that she has a conflict of interest, P is betraying their trust by allowing them to believe that her judgment is more reliable than it is. Third, even if P does inform those who rely on her that she has a conflict of interest, thereby removing the moral problem, the technical problem will remain, namely that P will be less competent than she would otherwise be, and in addition may bring the reputation of others, including her profession, into disrepute.<ref>Davis 2001, pp. 11–12.</ref> | |||
{{cot|bg=#DCDCDC|fc=#555555|width=75%|UserboxCOI template}} | |||
===Escape, disclosure or management=== | |||
Edit the source of your user page and type <span style="font-size:100%;"><code><nowiki>{{</nowiki>UserboxCOI|1=''Misplaced Pages article name''<nowiki>}}</nowiki></code></span>, then click "save". | |||
Davis suggests that there are three ways in which a person with a conflict of interest might approach it: | |||
{{cob}} | |||
{{quote box | |||
#it can be ''escaped'' by recusal, whereby P removes herself from one of the competing relationships; | |||
|border=1px | |||
#it can be ''disclosed'' to anyone who relies on P's judgment, so that they can decide whether to remove P, or seek a second opinion wherever P has exercised her judgment; and | |||
|title=Example | |||
#it can be ''managed'', with or without disclosure – for example, P might ask people to watch closely when she does anything where her judgment could be affected by the conflict.<ref name=Davis2001p13>Davis 2001, pp. 13–15.</ref> | |||
|title_fnt=#555555 | |||
|halign=center | |||
|quote=For a COI disclosure, see ''']'''<br><small>In this edit, one editor added a COI declaration for another editor.</small> | |||
|fontsize=95% | |||
|bgcolor= | |||
|bordercolor=#ccc | |||
|width=220px | |||
|align=right | |||
|style=margin–top:1.0em;margin-bottom:1.0em;padding:1.0em}} | |||
Also, if you propose significant or potentially controversial changes to an affected article, you can use the {{tlx|edit COI}} template. Place this at the bottom of the talk page and state your suggestion beneath it (be sure to sign it with four tildes, <nowiki>~~~~</nowiki>). If the proposal is ] and appropriate, it will usually be accepted. If it is declined, the editor declining the request will usually add an explanation below your entry. | |||
Whether to recuse, disclose or manage depends on the alternative courses of action available, how serious the conflict is, the privacy implications of disclosure, and what the consequences would be of exercising compromised judgment.<ref name=Davis2001p13/> | |||
{{clear}} | |||
{{anchor|COIPAYDISCLOSE|COIDISCLOSEPAY}} | |||
=== Paid editors === | |||
==Categories of COI on Misplaced Pages== | |||
{{shortcut|WP:COIPAYDISCLOSE|WP:COIDISCLOSEPAY|WP:UPE}} | |||
===Financial=== | |||
{{further|Misplaced Pages:Paid-contribution disclosure}} | |||
====Paid editing==== | |||
{{redirect-distinguish|WP:UPE|Misplaced Pages:Use plain English}} | |||
{{Policy shortcut|WP:PE|WP:PAY}} | |||
If you are being paid for your contributions to Misplaced Pages, you must declare who is paying you, who the client is, and any other relevant role or relationship. You may do this on your user page, on the talk page of affected articles, or in your edit summaries. As you have a conflict of interest, you must ensure everyone with whom you interact is aware of your paid status, in all discussions on Misplaced Pages pages within any namespace. If you want to use a template to disclose your COI on a talk page, place {{tlx|connected contributor (paid)}} at the top of the page, fill it in as follows, and save: | |||
{{cot|bg=#DCDCDC|fc=#555555|width=75%|Connected contributor (paid) template}} | |||
See Wikimedia Foundation's Terms of Use, described above. What follows is subject to the Terms of Use and if there appear to be any contradictions, the Terms of Use overrule this guideline. | |||
:<span style="font-size:100%;"><code><nowiki>{{</nowiki>Connected contributor (paid)|User1=''Username of the paid editor''|U1-employer=''Name of person/organization that is paying for the edits''|U1-client= ''Name of client''|U1-otherlinks=''Insert ] to disclosure on your User page.''<nowiki>}}</nowiki></code></span> | |||
{{cob}} | |||
The ''employer'' is whoever is paying you to be involved in the article (such as a PR company). The ''client'' is on whose behalf the payment is made (usually the subject of the article). If the employer and client are the same entity—that is, if Acme Corporation is paying you to write about Acme Corporation—the client parameter may be left empty. See {{tlx|connected contributor (paid)}} for more information. Note that other editors may add this template for you. Paid editing without such a declaration is called ''undisclosed paid editing'' ('''UPE'''). | |||
Paid editing is the practice of accepting money to edit Misplaced Pages. Paid editors who insert material that is promotional in tone into an article may be presumed to be violating our ].<ref>, Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees, 2009 and 2013</ref> Advertising, promotion, public relations, and marketing are prohibited by our policy ]. | |||
You are expected to maintain a clearly visible list on your user page of your paid contributions. If you advertise, solicit or obtain paid editing work via an account on any external website, you must provide links on your user-page to all such accounts. | |||
Paid editors, especially those who are paid by the hour, or who submit "billable hours" to justify their salaries, must respect the volunteer nature of the project and keep discussions concise. No editor should be subjected to long or repetitive discussions by someone who is being paid to argue with them. Any editor who refuses to accept a consensus against his or her position by arguing ] will likely be violating several Misplaced Pages guidelines and policies, e.g. ], ], ], ] or ]. | |||
If you propose changes to an affected article, you can use the {{tlx|edit COI}} template. Post it on the talk page and make your suggestion underneath it. | |||
The act of accepting money or rewards for editing Misplaced Pages is not always problematic. There may be benign examples of editors being paid; for instance, Wikipedians collaborating with mission-aligned organizations such as ]. Another benign example is the ], a place where editors can post financial and other incentives: it is a transparent process, the goal of which is usually to raise articles to featured- or good-article status (but be wary of editors asking you to make edits that challenge your sense of neutrality). If you intend to participate in this kind of paid editing, transparency and neutrality are key. Editing in a way that biases the coverage of Misplaced Pages or that violates our core policies is not acceptable. | |||
The use of administrative tools as part of any paid editing activity, except as a Wikipedian-in-Residence, or when the payment is made by the Wikimedia Foundation or an affiliate of the WMF, is considered a ] and likely to result in sanctions or their removal. | |||
====Paid advocacy, public relations, and marketing==== | |||
{{Policy shortcut|WP:NOPR|WP:NOPAY}} | |||
Paid advocacy – that is, being paid to '''promote''' something or someone on Misplaced Pages – is a subset of paid editing. ], executive director of the ], wrote in October 2013 that the Foundation regards paid advocacy as a "]" practice that "violates the core principles that have made Misplaced Pages so valuable for so many people."<ref name=Gardner>Gardner, Sue. , Wikimedia Foundation, 21 October 2013.</ref> | |||
== What is conflict of interest? == | |||
If the following applies to you: | |||
=== External roles and relationships<span class="anchor" id="External relationships"></span> === | |||
{{Shortcut|WP:EXTERNALREL}} | |||
While editing Misplaced Pages, an editor's primary role is to further the interests of the encyclopedia. When an external role or relationship could reasonably be said to undermine that primary role, the editor has a conflict of interest similar to how a judge's primary role as an impartial adjudicator would be undermined if they were married to one of the parties. | |||
:you are receiving, or expect to receive, monetary or other benefits or considerations from editing Misplaced Pages as a representative of an organization (as an employee or contractor; as an employee or contractor of a firm hired by that organization for public-relations purposes; as owner, officer or other stakeholder; or by having some other form of close financial relationship with a topic you wish to write about), | |||
Any external relationship—personal, religious, political, academic, legal, or financial (including holding a ])—can trigger a COI. How close the relationship needs to be before it becomes a concern on Misplaced Pages is governed by common sense. For example, an article about a band should not be written by the band's manager, and a biography should not be an ] or written by the subject's spouse. There can be a COI when writing on behalf of a competitor or opponent of the page subject, just as there is when writing on behalf of the page subject. | |||
then you are '''very strongly discouraged''' from directly editing Misplaced Pages in areas where those external relationships could reasonably be said to undermine your ability to remain neutral. If you have a financial connection to a topic – including, but not limited to, as an owner, employee, contractor or other stakeholder – you are advised to refrain from editing affected articles directly. | |||
]s (SMEs) are welcome on Misplaced Pages within their areas of expertise, subject to the guidance below on ] and on ]. SMEs are expected to make sure that their external roles and relationships in their field of expertise do not interfere with their primary role on Misplaced Pages. | |||
'''You may''' use the article talk pages (visit the article in question—then click the 'talk' button at the top of the page) to suggest changes, or the {{t|request edit}} template to request edits (see ] if you have questions about these things). '''You should''' provide full disclosure of your connection, when using talkpages, making edit requests, and similar. Requested edits are subject to the same editorial standards as any other edit, and other editors may decline to act on them. | |||
=== COI is not simply bias<span class="anchor" id="notbias"></span> === | |||
The writing of "puff pieces" and advertisements is prohibited. | |||
{{further|WP:ADVOCACY}} | |||
{{shortcut|WP:COINOTBIAS}} | |||
Determining that someone has a COI is a '''description of a situation'''. It is not a judgment about that person's state of mind or integrity. A COI can exist in the absence of bias, and bias regularly exists in the absence of a COI. Beliefs and desires may lead to biased editing, but they do not constitute a COI. COI emerges from an editor's roles and relationships, and the ''tendency to bias'' that we assume exists when those roles and relationships conflict. | |||
=== Why is conflict of interest a problem?<span class="anchor" id="Why is conflict of interest a problem?"></span> === | |||
{{anchor|covert}} | |||
On Misplaced Pages, editors with a conflict of interest who unilaterally add material tend to violate Misplaced Pages's content and behavioral policies and guidelines. The content they add is typically unsourced or poorly sourced and often violates the ] policy by being ] and omitting negative information. They may ] to retain content that serves their external interest. They may overuse ] or ], and they may give too much ] to certain ideas. | |||
=== Actual, potential and apparent COI === | |||
====Laws against covert advertising==== | |||
{{Shortcut|WP:ACTUALCOI|WP:POTENTIALCOI|WP:APPARENTCOI}} | |||
{{Policy shortcut|WP:COVERT|WP:NOHIDDENADS}} | |||
An '''{{vanchor | actualCOI | text=actual COI}}''' exists when an editor has a COI with respect to a certain judgment <em>and</em> is in a position where the judgment must be exercised. | |||
=====United States Federal Trade Commission===== | |||
<div style="margin-left:1.6em;">Example: A business owner has an actual COI if they edit articles and engage in discussions about that business.</div> | |||
All editors are expected to follow United States law on undisclosed advertising, which is described by the ] at and ''''. | |||
A '''{{vanchor | potentialCOI | text=potential COI }}''' exists when an editor has a COI with respect to a certain judgment ''but is not'' in a position where the judgment must be exercised. | |||
<div style="margin-left:1.6em;">Example: A business owner has a potential COI with respect to articles and discussions about that business, but they have no actual COI if they stay away from those pages.</div> | |||
An '''{{vanchor | apparentCOI | text=apparent COI}}''' exists when there is reason to believe that an editor has a COI. | |||
<div style="margin-left:1.6em;">Example: Editors have an apparent COI if they edit an article about a business, and for some reason they appear to be the business owner or in communication with the business owner, although they may actually have no such connection. Apparent COI raises concern within the community and should be resolved through discussion whenever possible.</div> | |||
== Dealing with edit requests from COI or paid editors<span class="anchor" id="Responding"></span> == | |||
=====European fair trading law===== | |||
{{see|Misplaced Pages:Edit requests}} | |||
In May 2012 the Munich ] court ruled that if a company or its agents edit Misplaced Pages with the aim of influencing customers, the edits constitute covert advertising, and as such are a violation of European fair trading law (see the ]). The ruling stated that readers cannot be expected to seek out user and talk pages to find editors' disclosures about their corporate affiliation. The case arose out of a claim against a company by a competitor over edits made to the article ] on the German Misplaced Pages. The judgment can be read . | |||
=== Responding to requests === | |||
{{shortcut|WP:COIRESPONSE}} | |||
Editors responding to edit requests from COI or paid editors are expected to do so carefully, particularly when commercial interests are involved. When large amounts of text are added to an article on behalf of the article subject, the article has, in effect, been ] by the subject without the readers' knowledge. Responding volunteers should therefore carefully check the proposed text and sources. That an article has been expanded does not mean that it is better. | |||
* Make sure the proposed paid text complies with ]. | |||
* Look for unnecessary detail that may have been added to overwhelm something negative. | |||
* Make sure nothing important is missing. Responding editors should do their own search for ]. '''Do not rely on the sources offered by the paid editor.''' | |||
* Look for non-neutral language and unsourced or poorly sourced content. | |||
* Be cautious about accepting content based on ] such as a personal website, or ]s such as a company website or press release. | |||
If the paid text is added to the article, the edit summary should include full attribution. | |||
=== Attribution in edit summaries<span class="anchor" id="Attribution"></span> === | |||
The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) in the UK reached a similar decision in June 2012 in relation to material about Nike on Twitter. The ASA found that the content of certain tweets from two footballers had been "agreed with the help of a member of the Nike marketing team." The tweets were not clearly identified as Nike marketing communications, and were therefore in breach of the ASA's code.<ref>Sweney, Mike. , ''The Guardian'', 20 June 2012.</ref> | |||
{{see|Misplaced Pages:Copying within Misplaced Pages|Misplaced Pages:Copying text from other sources}} | |||
{{shortcut|WP:COIATTRIBUTE|WP:PAIDATTRIBUTE}} | |||
If editors choose to add material to an article on behalf of a COI or paid editor, they must provide ] for the text in the ]. The edit summary should include the name of the COI or paid editor, a link to the draft or edit request, and that the edit contains a COI or paid contribution. For example: | |||
<p><code><nowiki>Text inserted on behalf of paid editor User:X; copied from ].</nowiki></code></p> | |||
or you can also use the following format, from text requested in a talk page, | |||
<p><code><nowiki>Edit made due to ] edit request by User:SVeatch; copied or adapted from "Revisions to Infobox, Introduction and History" at ]</nowiki></code></p> | |||
<small>The ] helps avoid broken links when sections are archived.</small> | |||
This transparency helps editors and readers to determine the extent of COI influence on the article. It also complies with copyright requirements. | |||
====Copyrights, licensing and paid editing==== | |||
Unless specified otherwise, content created for an employer is typically considered ] and the copyright is assigned to that employer. Editors in the employ of a third party are reminded that any material they contribute to Misplaced Pages in this capacity becomes irrevocably licensed under the terms of a ] 3.0 license and the ], and are encouraged to make sure their employers are fully aware of this. Any contribution, including talk-page comments, can be freely copied, modified, deleted, reproduced, altered and quoted by third parties for both commercial and non-commercial use, with the sole requirement that the contribution be attributed to Misplaced Pages. | |||
=== Paid editors on talk pages<span class="anchor" id="talk"></span> === | |||
===Legal=== | |||
{{Shortcut|WP:COITALK|WP:PAYTALK}} | |||
If you are involved in a court case, or you are close to one of the litigants, you should not write about the case, or about a party or law firm associated with the case. | |||
Paid editors must respect the volunteer nature of the project and keep discussions concise. When proposing changes to an article, they should describe the suggested modifications and explain why the changes should be made. Any changes that may be contentious, such as removal of negative text, should be highlighted. | |||
Before being drawn into long exchanges with paid editors, volunteers should be aware that paid editors may be submitting evidence of their talk-page posts to justify their salaries or fees. No editor should be expected to engage in long or repetitive discussions with someone who is being paid to argue with them. | |||
===Political=== | |||
Editors should not edit articles in which they have a political conflict of interest. Examples: | |||
Editors who refuse to accept a consensus by arguing '']'' may find themselves in violation of the ]. | |||
* Government employees should not edit articles about their agencies, government, or political party, or articles about their political opponents, opposition groups, or controversial political topics, with the intent to slant or ] an article in a manner that is politically advantageous to their employer. | |||
== Copyright of paid contributions<span class="anchor" id="Copyright"></span> == | |||
* Political candidates or their staff should not edit articles about their electoral opponents. | |||
{{See also|Work for hire}} | |||
{{shortcut|WP:COICOPYRIGHT|WP:PAIDCOPYRIGHT}} | |||
Editors are reminded that any text they contribute to Misplaced Pages, assuming they own the copyright, is irrevocably licensed under a ] license and the ]. Content on Misplaced Pages, including article drafts and talk-page comments, can be freely copied and modified by third parties for commercial and non-commercial use, with the sole requirement that it be attributed to Misplaced Pages contributors. | |||
Paid editors must ensure that they own the copyright of text they have been paid to add to Misplaced Pages; otherwise, they are unable to release it. A text's author is normally assumed to be the copyright holder. Companies sometimes provide paid editors with text written by someone else. Alternatively, a paid editor might write text for Misplaced Pages within the scope of their employment (a "]"), in which case copyright resides with the employer. | |||
* Reliably-sourced, notable material written in a neutral point of view should not be deleted from articles with the intent of protecting the political interests of a party, agency, or government. | |||
Where there is doubt that the paid editor owns the copyright, they (or the employer or author) are advised to forward a release from the copyright holder to the ] (<kbd>{{No spam|permissions-en|wikimedia.org}}</kbd>). See ] for how to do this and ] for a sample letter. | |||
===Campaigning=== | |||
Activities regarded by insiders as simply "getting the word out" may appear promotional or propagandistic to the outside world. If you edit articles while involved with campaigns that engage in advocacy in the same area, you may have a conflict of interest. | |||
If editors choose to add material to an article on behalf of a paid editor, they must provide ] for the text in the ]. See ] for how to do this. | |||
===Writing about yourself and your work=== | |||
====You and your circle==== | |||
{{redirect|WP:COS|the essay that discusses the "claim of significance" criteria as it relates to ]|Misplaced Pages:Credible claim of significance}} | |||
{{see|Misplaced Pages:Autobiography}} | |||
{{Policy shortcut|WP:COS|WP:COISELF|WP:SELFPROMOTE|WP:SELFPROMOTION}} | |||
You should not create or edit articles about yourself, your family, or friends. If you or they are notable enough, someone else will create the article. You should also avoid writing about yourself or people you know in articles on other topics. This includes people with whom you could reasonably be said to have an antagonistic relationship in real life. If you have a personal connection to a topic or person, you are advised to refrain from editing those articles directly, from adding related advertising links, links to personal websites and similar, and to provide full disclosure of the connection if you comment about the article on talk pages or in other discussions. | |||
== Covert advertising<span class="anchor" id="covert"></span> == | |||
An exception to editing an article about yourself or someone you know is made if the article contains defamation or a serious error that needs to be corrected quickly. If you do make such an edit, follow it up with an email to ], Misplaced Pages's volunteer response team, or ask for help on ], our noticeboard for articles about living persons. | |||
{{see also|Misplaced Pages:Reliable sources#Sponsored content}} | |||
{{nutshell|title=This section|Avoid hidden advertising.|shortcut1=WP:COVERT|shortcut2=WP:NOHIDDENADS}} | |||
=== US: Federal Trade Commission, state law, and native advertising === | |||
====Citing yourself==== | |||
{{seealso|Native advertising|Consumer protection|Direct-to-consumer advertising}} | |||
{{Policy shortcut|WP:SELFCITE|WP:SELFCITING}} | |||
All editors are expected to follow United States law on undisclosed advertising, which is described by the ] (FTC) at and ''''. The FTC regards advertising as deceptive if it mimics a content format, such as a news report, that appears to come from an independent, impartial source: | |||
Using material you have written or published is allowed within reason, but only if it is relevant, conforms to the content policies, including ], and is not excessive. Citations should be in the third person and should not place ] on your work. When in doubt, defer to the community's opinion. | |||
{{quotes|] | |||
====Wikipedians in residence==== | |||
Marketers and publishers are using innovative methods to create, format, and deliver digital advertising. One form is "native advertising", content that bears a similarity to the news, feature articles, product reviews, entertainment, and other material that surrounds it online. ...{{pb}}In digital media, native ads often resemble the design, style, and functionality of the media in which they are disseminated. ... The more a native ad is similar in format and topic to content on the publisher's site, the more likely that a disclosure will be necessary to prevent deception. —Federal Trade Commission, 2015}} | |||
] (WiRs) are editors who work with organizations that are aligned with our mission: | |||
:''to empower and engage people around the world to collect and develop educational content under a free license or in the public domain, and to disseminate it effectively and globally.''<ref></ref> | |||
WiRs serve as a liaison between the Misplaced Pages community and members of the mission-aligned organization. They must not engage in public relations or marketing for that organization and they must operate within the bounds defined by ] at Outreach. They must work closely with a Misplaced Pages project or the general Misplaced Pages community. Whether or not they are paid by the organization, they must identify their WiR status on their user page and on talk pages related to their organization when they edit them. We encourage WIRs and the members of their organizations to participate in building Misplaced Pages. | |||
To judge whether an ad is deceptive under the ], the FTC considers "both what the ad says and the format it uses to convey that information ... Advertisements or promotional messages are deceptive if they convey to consumers expressly or by implication that they’re independent, impartial, or from a source other than the sponsoring advertiser ...". | |||
==Advice for editors who may have a conflict of interest== | |||
{{policy shortcut|WP:COIADVICE|WP:COIU|WP:LUC}} | |||
:{| style="border:black solid 1px" width="80%" | |||
| style="background-color:#c8ffc8" | <center>'''Misplaced Pages's Law of Unintended Consequences'''</center>If you write about yourself, your group or your company, once the article is created, ] to control its content, or to delete it outside the ]. Content is '''irrevocably added''' with every edit. If there is anything publicly available on a topic that you would ''not'' want to have included in an article, it will probably find its way there eventually. | |||
|} | |||
State law may have similar prohibitions. While the FTC law may apply only to interstate and foreign commerce, state law applies to intrastate commerce and must be obeyed. At least one state court case found liability for an ad disguised as editorial content.{{Citation needed}} | |||
===Non-controversial edits=== | |||
Editors who may have a general conflict of interest are allowed to make certain kinds of non-controversial edits (but note ] above). They may: | |||
=== European fair-trading law === | |||
# remove ] and revert unambiguous ], | |||
] | |||
# remove content that unambiguously violates the ] policy, | |||
{{See also|Unfair Commercial Practices Directive}} | |||
# fix spelling and grammatical errors, | |||
In 2012 the Munich ] court ruled that if a company or its agents edit Misplaced Pages with the aim of influencing customers, the edits constitute covert advertising, and as such are a violation of European fair-trading law. The ruling stated that readers cannot be expected to seek out user and talk pages to find editors' disclosures about their corporate affiliation. | |||
# revert or remove their own COI edits, | |||
# make edits where there is clear consensus on the talk page (though it is better to let someone else do it), and | |||
# add ], especially when another editor has requested them (but note the advice above about the importance of using independent sources). | |||
=== UK Advertising Standards Authority === | |||
If the article you want to edit has few involved editors, consider asking someone at the talk page of a related ] for someone to make the change. | |||
The ] (ASA) in the UK found in 2012 that the content of ] from two footballers had been "agreed with the help of a member of the Nike marketing team". The tweets were not clearly identified as Nike marketing communications and were therefore in breach of the ASA's code. | |||
=== Advertising Standards Canada === | |||
'''If another editor objects for any reason, then it's a controversial edit'''. Such edits should be discussed on the article's talk page. | |||
The ], administered by ], states: "No advertisement shall be presented in a format or style that conceals the fact that it is an advertisement." | |||
== Other categories of COI == | |||
====Photographs and media files==== | |||
=== Legal and other disputes<span class="anchor" id="disputes"></span> === | |||
Those with a potential conflict of interest are encouraged to upload good-quality digital media files that are appropriately licensed for Misplaced Pages and that improve our coverage of a subject. For more information, follow the ]. In some cases, the addition of digital media files to an article may be a non-controversial edit that editors with a conflict of interest can make directly; however editors should exercise discretion and rely on Talk pages when images may be controversial or promotional. If the addition of an image is challenged by another editor, it was not uncontroversial. | |||
{{further|WP:BLPCOI}} | |||
{{shortcut|WP:COIBLP|WP:COILEGAL}} | |||
The ] says: "n editor who is involved in a significant controversy or dispute with another individual – whether on- or off-wiki – or who is an avowed rival of that individual, should not edit that person's biography or other material about that person, given the ]." | |||
Similarly, editors should not write about court cases in which they or those close to them have been involved, nor about parties or law firms associated with the cases. | |||
====Cultural-sector professionals==== | |||
{{Policy shortcut|WP:CURATOR}} | |||
Museum curators, librarians, archivists, and similar are encouraged to help improve Misplaced Pages, or to share their information in the form of links to their resources. If a link cannot be used as a reliable source, it may be placed under further reading or external links if it complies with the ]. Bear in mind that ]. For more information, see ]. | |||
=== Campaigning, political<span class="anchor" id="Campaign"></span> === | |||
====Shared accounts==== | |||
{{shortcut|WP:COICAMPAIGN|WP:COIPOLITICAL}} | |||
Do not create a ] or use the ] as the account name. The account is yours, not your employer's. It is recommended that such editors declare their affiliation on their user pages. | |||
{{seealso|WP:ADVOCACY}} | |||
Activities regarded by insiders as simply "getting the word out" may appear promotional or propagandistic to the outside world. If you edit articles while involved with campaigns in the same area, you may have a conflict of interest. Political candidates and their staff should not edit articles about themselves, their supporters, or their opponents. Government employees should not edit articles about their agencies, government, political party, political opponents, or controversial political topics. | |||
=== Writing about yourself, family, friends === | |||
===Declaring an interest=== | |||
{{redirect|WP:COS|the "credible claim of significance" essay|Misplaced Pages:Credible claim of significance}} | |||
{{shortcut|WP:DECLARECOI|WP:DCOI}} | |||
{{further|Misplaced Pages:Autobiography|WP:BLPCOI}} | |||
Some editors declare an interest in a particular topic area. The benefits of this are that most editors will appreciate your honesty and may try to help you; you lay the basis for requesting help from others to post material for you, or to review material you wish to post yourself, and public relations professionals may be required to abide by code of ethics, such as the or . The disadvantage of declaring your interest is that people outside Misplaced Pages, such as reporters, may identify you and generate negative publicity for you, your group or your company. Some COI declarations have the effect of announcing your real name (see ]). Do not publicly declare an interest if this could put you at harm in the real world, e.g., from stalkers. | |||
{{Shortcut|WP:COISELF|WP:SELFPROMOTE}} | |||
You should generally refrain from creating articles about yourself, or anyone you know, living or dead, unless through the ] process. If you have a personal connection to a topic or person with an existing article, you are advised to refrain from editing that article directly and to provide full disclosure of the connection if you comment about the article on talk pages or in other discussions. Requests for updates to an article about yourself or someone with whom you have a personal connection can be made on the article's talk page by following the instructions at ]. | |||
An exception to not editing an article about yourself or someone you know is made if the article contains defamation or a serious error that needs to be corrected quickly. If you do make such an edit, please follow it up with an email to ], Misplaced Pages's volunteer response team, or ask for help on ], our noticeboard for articles about living persons, or the talk page of the article in question. | |||
*See this . | |||
=== Citing yourself === | |||
==How to handle conflicts of interest== | |||
{{Shortcut|WP:SELFCITE}} | |||
If an editor directly discloses information that clearly demonstrates that he or she has a COI as defined in this guideline or has made one or more paid contributions as per the Terms of Use, raise the issue with the editor in a civil manner on the editor's Talk page, citing this guideline. If the editor does not change his or her behavior to comply with this guideline and/or the Terms of use, create a posting on ], following the instructions there. Relevant article talk pages may be tagged with {{Tl|Connected contributor}}, and the article itself may be tagged with {{Tl|COI}}. COI allegations should not be used as a "trump card" in disputes over article content. | |||
{{redirect|WP:SELFCITE|Misplaced Pages citing itself|WP:CIRCULAR}} | |||
{{See also|WP:MEDCOI}} | |||
Using material you have written or published is allowed within reason, but only if it is relevant, conforms to the content policies, including ], and is not excessive. Citations should be in the third person and should not place ] on your work. You will be permanently identified in the ] as the person who added the citation to your own work. When in doubt, defer to the community's opinion: propose the edit on the article's talk page and allow others to review it. However, adding numerous references to work published by yourself and none by other researchers is considered ]. | |||
{{anchor|Culture sector|Culture-sector}} | |||
=== Cultural sector === | |||
If an editor edits in a way that leads you to believe that he or she ''might'' have a conflict of interest or ''might'' have made one or more paid contributions, remember to ]. Consider whether the editor's use of sources complies with ] and sourcing guidelines, and whether the issue may be ]. The appropriate forum for concerns about sources is ]. The appropriate forum for concerns about advocacy is ]. If there are concerns about sock- or meatpuppets, please bring that concern to ]. | |||
{{Redirect|WP:CURATOR|the tool used by ]|Misplaced Pages:Page Curation}} | |||
{{further|Misplaced Pages:GLAM|Misplaced Pages:Advice for the cultural sector|Misplaced Pages:The Misplaced Pages Library/Cultural Professionals}} | |||
{{Shortcut|WP:CURATOR}} | |||
Museum curators, librarians, archivists, and similar are encouraged to help improve Misplaced Pages, or to share their information in the form of links to their resources. If a link cannot be used as a reliable source, it may be placed under further reading or external links if it complies with the ]. Bear in mind that ] of links, images, or media files. | |||
See also ]. | |||
===Avoid outing=== | |||
{{anchor|Wikipedians in residence}} | |||
{{see|WP:OUTING}} | |||
=== Wikipedians in residence === | |||
Misplaced Pages places importance on the ability of editors to edit pseudonymously. When investigating COI editing, the ] takes precedence and requires that Wikipedians must take care not to ] of editors against their wishes. Instead, examine ] and refer to ]. | |||
{{shortcut|WP:WIRCOI}} | |||
There are forms of paid editing that the Wikimedia community regards as acceptable. These include ] (WiRs)—Wikipedians who may be paid to collaborate with mission-aligned organizations, such as ]. WiRs must not engage in public relations or marketing for their organization in Misplaced Pages, and they should operate within the bounds defined by ] at ]. They must work closely with a Misplaced Pages project or the general Misplaced Pages community, and are expected to identify their WiR status on their user page and on talk pages related to their organization when they post there. | |||
=== |
===Reward board=== | ||
Another example of acceptable paid editing is the ], where editors can post incentives, usually to raise articles to featured-article or good-article status. If you participate in this, transparency and neutrality are key. | |||
During discussions on articles' talk pages and at ], disparaging comments are sometimes made about the subject of the article, its author, or the author's motives. Such comments should be avoided, since they may be seen as forbidden ], and may discourage the article's creator from making future valuable contributions. Remember not to ]. | |||
== Miscellaneous == | |||
===Dealing with single-purpose accounts=== | |||
===Solicitations by paid editors=== | |||
{{see|Misplaced Pages:Blocking policy#Disruption-only|Misplaced Pages:Single-purpose account}} | |||
In any solicitation sent to a prospective client, paid editors should disclose the following information: | |||
Accounts that appear to be ] that exist for the sole or primary purpose of promotion or denigration of a person, company, product, service, website, organization, etc., and whose postings are in apparent violation of this guideline, should be made aware of this guideline and warned not to continue their problematic posting. If the same pattern of editing continues after the warning, the account may be blocked. | |||
* Paid editors do not represent the Wikimedia Foundation nor the Misplaced Pages editing community, and they have no authority beyond that of any volunteer editor. | |||
* Paid editors must disclose their employer, client, and affiliations on Misplaced Pages. There is no confidentiality for the client. | |||
* Paid edits may be reviewed and revised in the normal course of work on Misplaced Pages. Neither the client nor the paid editor own the article. | |||
* Paid editors cannot guarantee any outcome for an article on Misplaced Pages. It can be revised or deleted by other editors at any time. | |||
Providing a client with a link to this section is appropriate disclosure if it is done in a neutral and non-deceptive manner. | |||
==See also== | |||
* Paid editors must also provide a link to their user page which includes a ]. If an external website claims that a particular Misplaced Pages editor works for them, but that editor's user page has no such declaration, this is likely to indicate that the website is impersonating that editor. | |||
{{columns-list|2| | |||
;Article | |||
* ] | |||
If you received a solicitation from a paid editor that does not include this information, we recommend that you not do business with them. They are not following our policies and guidelines. | |||
;Policies, guidelines and official pages | |||
* ] (policy) | |||
* ] (guideline) | |||
* ] | |||
* ] (lists edits for review where proposer has a conflict of interest) | |||
* ] | |||
* ] | |||
* ] | |||
====Beware of scams==== | |||
;Templates | |||
{{shortcut|WP:BEWARESCAM}} | |||
* ] (for warning editors who may have a conflict of interest) | |||
{{further|Misplaced Pages:Articles for creation/Scam warning}} | |||
* ] (for warning editors whose username violates the ] policy]) | |||
Some solicitations from paid editors have been linked to ]; see for example ]. A ] claim to offer editing services, but some of these are scams. If someone claims that experienced editors work for them, ask them for the user names of those editors and check the corresponding editor user pages for a ]; its absence likely indicates that the claim is false. Offers to guarantee that a page will be saved from deletion, in return for significant sums of money, are always fraudulent, as are offers to use special privileges on Misplaced Pages. | |||
* ] (for tagging articles affected by conflict of interest) | |||
* ] (for article Talk pages, provides instructions for conflicted editors to use Edit Requests) | |||
* ] (for article Talk pages) | |||
* ] (for article Talk pages) | |||
If you think you've received a fraudulent solicitation, please forward it to {{Nospam|paid-en-wp|wikipedia.org}} for investigation. | |||
;Categories | |||
* ] | |||
=== Law of unintended consequences<span class="anchor" id="LUC"></span> === | |||
;Information page | |||
{{further|Misplaced Pages:Misplaced Pages is in the real world}} | |||
* ] | |||
{{shortcut|WP:LUC}} | |||
Once an article is created about yourself, your group, or your company, ] to control its content, or to delete it outside the ]. If there is anything publicly available on a topic that you would ''not'' want to have included in an article, it will probably find its way there eventually. | |||
=== No shared accounts, no company accounts === | |||
;Wikiprojects | |||
{{further|WP:NOSHARE|WP:ORGNAME}} | |||
* ] | |||
Do not create a shared organizational account, or use the name of an organization as the account name. The account is yours, not your employer's. | |||
* ] | |||
=== Making uncontroversial edits<span class="anchor" id="COIADVICE"></span> === | |||
;Essays | |||
{{Shortcut|WP:COIADVICE|WP:COIU}} | |||
These represent the opinions of individual editors: | |||
Editors who have a general conflict of interest may make unambiguously uncontroversial edits (but see ]). They may: | |||
# remove ] and unambiguous ], | |||
# remove unambiguous violations of the ] policy, | |||
# fix spelling, grammatical, or markup errors, | |||
# repair ], | |||
# remove their own COI edits, and | |||
# add independent ] when another editor has requested them, although it is better to supply them on the talk page for others to add. | |||
If another editor objects for any reason, it is not an uncontroversial edit. Edits not covered by the above should be discussed on the article's talk page. If an article has few uninvolved editors, ask at the talk page of a related ] or at ]. See also ]. | |||
=== Supplying photographs and media files === | |||
Editors with a COI are encouraged to upload high-quality media files that are appropriately licensed for Misplaced Pages and that improve our coverage of a subject. For more information, follow the ]. In some cases, the addition of media files to an article may be an uncontroversial edit that editors with a COI can make directly, but editors should exercise discretion and rely on talk pages when images may be controversial or promotional. If the addition of an image is challenged by another editor, it is controversial. | |||
The use of ] contents are restricted. Generally, using press photos or images provided by client who wish to feature them in the article but unwilling to irrevocably release the copyright under Creative Commons is unacceptable. Editors may not upload images provided by client for "Misplaced Pages article purpose only" and falsely claim they're licensed under CC BY-SA, as such photos are fundamentally incompatible with free content principles. Only the copyright owner or their authorized representatives may grant permission to use a work under a Creative Commons license, not the photographed subject or their public relations agent. If the same image is found copyrighted elsewhere prior to the upload date, it may be removed as a copyright violation. If you are the copyright owner and want to release content to Creative Commons for use on Misplaced Pages, see ]. | |||
== How to handle conflicts of interest == | |||
===Advocacy, noticeboards=== | |||
{{main|Misplaced Pages:Neutral point of view/Noticeboard|Misplaced Pages:Reliable sources/Noticeboard}} | |||
If a user's edits lead you to believe that they might have a COI (that is, if they have an ]), and there has been no COI disclosure, consider first whether the issue may be simple ]. Most advocacy does not involve COI. Whether an editor is engaged in advocacy should first be addressed at the user's talk page, then at ], the neutral-point-of-view noticeboard. The appropriate forum for concerns about sources is ], the reliable-sources noticeboard. If there are concerns about ] or ], please bring that concern to ]. | |||
{{anchor|Opening a COIN|Posting at the conflict of interest noticeboard}} | |||
===Reporting to the conflict of interest noticeboard=== | |||
{{main|Misplaced Pages:Conflict of interest/Noticeboard}} | |||
{{shortcut|WP:COICOIN}} | |||
If you believe an editor has an undisclosed COI and is editing in violation of this guideline, raise the issue in a civil manner on the editor's talk page, which is the first step in resolving user-conduct issues, per the ], citing this guideline. If that fails to resolve the issue, such as when an editor has repeatedly added problematic material over an extended period, then open a discussion at the ]. This also applies to a ] that is causing a problem: for example, an acknowledged BLP subject who is editing their own BLP. | |||
During the COIN discussion, avoid making disparaging remarks about the user in question, their motives or the subject of the article(s). | |||
Post whatever public evidence you have to support that there is a COI, or that it is causing a problem, in the form of edits by that user or information the user has posted about themselves. Do not post private information; see ], which is policy, and the section below, "Avoid outing". | |||
If private information must be shared to resolve a COI issue, it may be emailed to ''{{No spam|paid-en-wp|wikipedia.org}}''. Follow the advice in ]: "Only the minimum information necessary should be conveyed and the minimum number of people contacted." The priority should be to avoid unnecessary privacy violations. | |||
=== Avoid outing === | |||
{{shortcut|WP:AVOIDOUTING}} | |||
{{further|Misplaced Pages:Harassment#Posting of personal information|Misplaced Pages:Wikimedia Foundation statement on paid editing and outing}} | |||
When investigating COI editing, the ] takes precedence. It requires that Wikipedians ] against their wishes. Examine editors' behavior instead and seek advice by email if necessary. Do not ask a user if they ''are'' somebody; instead one can ask if they have an undisclosed connection to that person. If revealing private information is needed to resolve COI editing, and if the issue is serious enough to warrant it, editors can '''email''' ''{{No spam|paid-en-wp|wikipedia.org}}''. Also see the section ] above. | |||
=== Dealing with single-purpose accounts === | |||
{{further|Misplaced Pages:Blocking policy#Disruption-only|Misplaced Pages:Single-purpose account}} | |||
Accounts that appear to be ], existing for the sole or primary purpose of promotion or denigration of a person, company, product, service, website, organization, etc., and whose postings are in apparent violation of this guideline, should be made aware of this guideline and warned not to continue their problematic editing. If the same pattern of editing continues after the warning, the account may be blocked. | |||
=== Templates === | |||
Relevant article talk pages may be tagged with {{tlx|connected contributor}} or {{tlx|connected contributor (paid)}}. The article itself may be tagged with {{tlx|COI}}. A section of an article can be tagged with {{tlx|COI|section}} | |||
Other templates include: | |||
* {{tlx|uw-coi}} (to be placed on user Talk pages to warn editors that they may have a conflict of interest) | |||
* {{tlx|uw-coi-username}} (another Talk page warning, this one for editors whose username appears to violate the ] policy) | |||
* {{tlx|COI editnotice}} (this template goes on article talk pages and gives instructions to COI editors on how to submit edit requests to the article) | |||
* {{tlx|User COI}} (userbox for users to self-declare on their own Userpages those articles with which they have a conflict of interest; userbox can list up to nine articles) | |||
== See also == | |||
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'''Wikimedia Foundation''' | |||
* ] | |||
* ], , Wikimedia Foundation, 21 October 2013. | |||
'''Contact us''' | |||
* ] | |||
'''Article''' | |||
* ] | |||
'''Policies''' | |||
* ] | |||
* ] | |||
* ] | |||
'''Wikiprojects''' | |||
* ] | |||
'''Miscellaneous''' | |||
* ] | |||
* ] | |||
* ] (lists edits for review where proposer has a conflict of interest) | |||
* ] | |||
* ] | |||
* ] | |||
* ] | |||
* (an edit filter) | |||
* ], June 2014 | |||
'''Essays''' | |||
* ] | * ] | ||
* ] | * ] | ||
* ] | |||
* ] | |||
* ] | * ] | ||
* ] | |||
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* ] | * ] | ||
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* ] | * ] | ||
* ] | |||
* ] | * ] | ||
* ] | |||
* ] | |||
* ] | |||
* ] | |||
* ] | |||
'''Historical''' | |||
;Historical items, including failed proposals, former policies, obsolete essays, etc. | |||
* ] (defunct) | |||
These items and the discussions surrounding them may show how Misplaced Pages consensus has changed over time. They may also include "good ideas" for editing behavior that go "above and beyond" official policies. | |||
* ], 2009, sparked by discovery that admin/crat/OTRS editor was editing for pay | |||
* ] <small>(proposed 28 July 2012, failed 21 February 2013)</small> | |||
* ], 2009. | |||
* ], 2012. | * ], 2012. | ||
* ] ( |
* ]<small> (failed proposal, 21 February 2013)</small> | ||
* ]( |
* ] <small>(failed policy proposal turned into an essay, November 2013)</small> | ||
* ]( |
* ] <small>(failed policy proposal, November 2013)</small> | ||
* ] ( |
* ] <small>(failed policy proposal, November 2013)</small> | ||
* ] <small>(failed policy proposal, December 2013)</small> | |||
{{div col end}} | |||
}} | |||
==Notes== | |||
{{reflist}} | |||
==Further reading== | |||
;Articles | |||
*Carson, Thomas L. "Conflicts of Interest and Self-Dealing in the Professions: A Review Essay," ''Business Ethics Quarterly'', Vol. 14, No. 1, January 2004 (pp. 161–182), p. 168. | |||
*Davis, Michael. , ''Business & Professional Ethics Journal'', Vol. 12, No. 4, Winter 1993, pp. 21–41. | |||
*Luebke, Neil R. , ''Business & Professional Ethics Journal'', Vol. 6, 1987, pp. 66–81. | |||
*McDonald, Michael. , The W. Maurice Young Center for Applied Ethics, University of British Columbia. | |||
;Misplaced Pages and Wikimedia links | |||
* (an edit filter) | |||
* of biographies of living people with a close title to their page creator, 10 March 2010 | |||
*], ], 14 May 2012 | |||
*] - June 2014 | |||
== Further reading == | |||
;External links | |||
{{Commons category|Conflict-of-interest editing on Misplaced Pages}} | |||
*, Punch Communications, 31 March 2010 | |||
:''(chronological)'' | |||
{{refbegin}} | |||
* ] (1982). , ''Business and Professional Ethics Journal'', 1(4), pp. 17–27 (influential). {{doi|10.5840/bpej1982149}} | |||
* Luebke, Neil R. (1987). "Conflict of Interest as a Moral Category," ''Business & Professional Ethics Journal'', 6, pp. 66–81. {{jstor|27799930}} (influential) | |||
* Davis, Michael (Winter 1993). "Conflict of Interest Revisited," ''Business & Professional Ethics Journal'', 12(4), pp. 21–41. {{jstor|27800924}} | |||
* Stark, Andrew (2003). , Harvard University Press. | |||
* Carson, Thomas L. (January 2004). "Conflicts of Interest and Self-Dealing in the Professions: A Review Essay," ''Business Ethics Quarterly'', 14(1), pp. 161–182. {{jstor|3857777}} | |||
* ] (2006). , in Trudo Lemmings and Duff R. Waring (eds.), ''Law and Ethics in Biomedical Research: Regulation, Conflict of Interest, and Liability'', University of Toronto Press. | |||
* McDonald, Michael (23 April 2006). , The W. Maurice Young Center for Applied Ethics, University of British Columbia. | |||
{{refend}} | |||
{{Misplaced Pages policies and guidelines}} | {{Misplaced Pages policies and guidelines}} | ||
{{conflict of interest|state=uncollapsed}} | |||
] | ] |
Latest revision as of 14:47, 22 December 2024
Wikimedia project behavioral guidelines regarding conflicts of interest If you want to report a problematic conflict of interest editor, see Misplaced Pages:Conflict of interest/Noticeboard. For practical advice for editors who might have a conflict of interest, see Misplaced Pages:Plain and simple conflict of interest guide "Misplaced Pages:Conflict" redirects here. For other uses, see Misplaced Pages:Conflict (disambiguation).This page documents an English Misplaced Pages behavioral guideline. Editors should generally follow it, though exceptions may apply. Substantive edits to this page should reflect consensus. When in doubt, discuss first on this guideline's talk page. | Shortcuts |
This page in a nutshell: Editors should not edit where they have a conflict of interest, as such involvement may undermine the project’s neutrality. If paid or otherwise connected to the subject, disclosure and following the proper edit request process is required to maintain credibility. |
Misplaced Pages guidelines | |||
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Conflict of interest (COI) editing involves contributing to Misplaced Pages about yourself, family, friends, clients, employers, or your financial and other relationships. Any external relationship can trigger a conflict of interest. Someone having a conflict of interest is a description of a situation, not a judgment about that person's opinions, integrity, or good faith.
COI editing is strongly discouraged on Misplaced Pages. It undermines public confidence and risks causing public embarrassment to the individuals and companies being promoted. Editors with a COI are sometimes unaware of whether or how much it has influenced their editing. If COI editing causes disruption, an administrator may opt to place blocks on the involved accounts.
Editors with a COI, including paid editors, are expected to disclose it whenever they seek to change an affected article's content. Anyone editing for pay must disclose who is paying them, who the client is, and any other relevant affiliation; this is a requirement of the Wikimedia Foundation. COI editors are strongly discouraged from editing affected articles directly, and can propose changes on article talk pages instead. However, our policy on matters relating to living people allows very obvious errors to be fixed quickly, including by the subject.
When investigating COI editing, do not reveal the identity of editors against their wishes. Misplaced Pages's policy against harassment, and in particular the prohibition against disclosing personal information, takes precedence over this guideline. To report COI editing, follow the advice at How to handle conflicts of interest, below. Editors making or discussing changes to this guideline or related guidance shall disclose whether they have been paid to edit Misplaced Pages.
Misplaced Pages's position
Purpose of Misplaced Pages
Further information: Misplaced Pages:What Misplaced Pages is notAs an encyclopedia, Misplaced Pages's mission is to provide the public with articles that summarize accepted knowledge, written neutrally and sourced reliably. Readers expect to find neutral articles written independently of their subject, not corporate or personal webpages, or platforms for advertising and self-promotion. Articles should contain only material that complies with Misplaced Pages's content policies and best practices, and Wikipedians must place the interests of the encyclopedia and its readers above personal concerns.
COI editing
See also: Misplaced Pages:Plain and simple conflict of interest guide ShortcutEditors with a COI should follow Misplaced Pages policies and best practices scrupulously:
- you should disclose your COI when involved with affected articles;
- you are strongly discouraged from editing affected articles directly;
- you may propose changes on talk pages (by using the
{{edit COI}}
template), so that they can be peer-reviewed; - you should put new articles through the Articles for Creation (AfC) process instead of creating them directly;
- you should not act as a reviewer of affected article(s) at AfC, new pages patrol or elsewhere;
- you should respect other editors by keeping discussions concise.
Note that no one on Misplaced Pages controls articles. If Misplaced Pages hosts an article about you or your organization, others may add information that would otherwise remain little known. They may also decide to delete the article or decide to keep it should you later request deletion. The media has several times drawn attention to companies that engage in COI editing on Misplaced Pages (see Conflict-of-interest editing on Misplaced Pages), which has led to embarrassment for the organizations concerned.
Paid editing
ShortcutsBeing paid to contribute to Misplaced Pages is one form of financial COI; it places the paid editor in a conflict between their employer's goals and Misplaced Pages's goals. The kind of paid editing of most concern to the community involves using Misplaced Pages for public relations and marketing purposes. Sometimes called "paid advocacy," this is problematic because it invariably reflects the interests of the client or employer.
More generally, an editor has a financial conflict of interest whenever they write about a topic with which they have a close financial relationship. This includes being an owner, employee, contractor, investor or other stakeholder.
The Wikimedia Foundation requires that all paid editing be disclosed. Additionally, global policy requires that (if applicable) you must provide links on your user-page to all active accounts on external websites through which you advertise, solicit or obtain paid editing. If you receive or expect to receive compensation (money, goods or services) for your contributions to Misplaced Pages, the policy on the English Misplaced Pages is:
- you must disclose who is paying you, on whose behalf the edits are made, and any other relevant affiliation;
- you should make the disclosure on your user page, on affected talk pages, and whenever you discuss the topic;
- you are strongly discouraged from editing affected articles directly;
- you may propose changes on talk pages by using the
{{edit COI}}
template, so that they can be peer-reviewed; - you should put new articles through the Articles for Creation (AfC) process instead of creating them directly;
- you must not act as a reviewer of affected article(s) at AfC, new pages patrol or elsewhere;
- you should respect volunteers by keeping discussions concise (see WP:PAYTALK).
Requested edits are subject to the same standards as any other, and editors may decline to act on them. The guide to effective COI edit requests provides guidance in this area. To find an article's talk page, click the "talk" button at the top of the article. See WP:TEAHOUSE if you have questions about these things. If you are an administrator, you must not use administrative tools for any paid-editing activity (except when related to work as a Wikipedian-in-residence, or as someone paid by the Wikimedia Foundation or an affiliate).
Wikimedia Foundation terms of use
Further information: Misplaced Pages:Paid-contribution disclosureThe Wikimedia Foundation's terms of use require that editors who are being paid for their contributions disclose their employer (the person or organization who is paying for the edits); the client (the person or organization on whose behalf the edits are made); and any other relevant affiliation. This is the policy of the English Misplaced Pages.
How to disclose a COI
General COI
ShortcutsIf you become involved in an article where you have any COI, you should always let other editors know about it, whenever and wherever you discuss the topic. There are three venues to do this.
1. If you want to use a template to do this, place {{connected contributor}}
at the top of the affected talk page, fill it in as follows, and save:
Connected contributor template |
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Note that someone else may add this for you.
2. You can also make a statement in the edit summary of any COI contribution.
3. If you want to note the COI on your user page, you can use the {{UserboxCOI}}
template:
UserboxCOI template |
---|
Edit the source of your user page and type |
For a COI disclosure, see Talk:Steve Jobs
In this edit, one editor added a COI declaration for another editor.
Also, if you propose significant or potentially controversial changes to an affected article, you can use the {{edit COI}}
template. Place this at the bottom of the talk page and state your suggestion beneath it (be sure to sign it with four tildes, ~~~~). If the proposal is verifiable and appropriate, it will usually be accepted. If it is declined, the editor declining the request will usually add an explanation below your entry.
Paid editors
Shortcuts Further information: Misplaced Pages:Paid-contribution disclosure "WP:UPE" redirects here. Not to be confused with Misplaced Pages:Use plain English.If you are being paid for your contributions to Misplaced Pages, you must declare who is paying you, who the client is, and any other relevant role or relationship. You may do this on your user page, on the talk page of affected articles, or in your edit summaries. As you have a conflict of interest, you must ensure everyone with whom you interact is aware of your paid status, in all discussions on Misplaced Pages pages within any namespace. If you want to use a template to disclose your COI on a talk page, place {{connected contributor (paid)}}
at the top of the page, fill it in as follows, and save:
Connected contributor (paid) template |
---|
|
The employer is whoever is paying you to be involved in the article (such as a PR company). The client is on whose behalf the payment is made (usually the subject of the article). If the employer and client are the same entity—that is, if Acme Corporation is paying you to write about Acme Corporation—the client parameter may be left empty. See {{connected contributor (paid)}}
for more information. Note that other editors may add this template for you. Paid editing without such a declaration is called undisclosed paid editing (UPE).
You are expected to maintain a clearly visible list on your user page of your paid contributions. If you advertise, solicit or obtain paid editing work via an account on any external website, you must provide links on your user-page to all such accounts.
If you propose changes to an affected article, you can use the {{edit COI}}
template. Post it on the talk page and make your suggestion underneath it.
The use of administrative tools as part of any paid editing activity, except as a Wikipedian-in-Residence, or when the payment is made by the Wikimedia Foundation or an affiliate of the WMF, is considered a serious misuse and likely to result in sanctions or their removal.
What is conflict of interest?
External roles and relationships
ShortcutWhile editing Misplaced Pages, an editor's primary role is to further the interests of the encyclopedia. When an external role or relationship could reasonably be said to undermine that primary role, the editor has a conflict of interest similar to how a judge's primary role as an impartial adjudicator would be undermined if they were married to one of the parties.
Any external relationship—personal, religious, political, academic, legal, or financial (including holding a cryptocurrency)—can trigger a COI. How close the relationship needs to be before it becomes a concern on Misplaced Pages is governed by common sense. For example, an article about a band should not be written by the band's manager, and a biography should not be an autobiography or written by the subject's spouse. There can be a COI when writing on behalf of a competitor or opponent of the page subject, just as there is when writing on behalf of the page subject.
Subject-matter experts (SMEs) are welcome on Misplaced Pages within their areas of expertise, subject to the guidance below on financial conflict of interest and on citing your work. SMEs are expected to make sure that their external roles and relationships in their field of expertise do not interfere with their primary role on Misplaced Pages.
COI is not simply bias
Further information: WP:ADVOCACY ShortcutDetermining that someone has a COI is a description of a situation. It is not a judgment about that person's state of mind or integrity. A COI can exist in the absence of bias, and bias regularly exists in the absence of a COI. Beliefs and desires may lead to biased editing, but they do not constitute a COI. COI emerges from an editor's roles and relationships, and the tendency to bias that we assume exists when those roles and relationships conflict.
Why is conflict of interest a problem?
On Misplaced Pages, editors with a conflict of interest who unilaterally add material tend to violate Misplaced Pages's content and behavioral policies and guidelines. The content they add is typically unsourced or poorly sourced and often violates the neutral point of view policy by being promotional and omitting negative information. They may edit war to retain content that serves their external interest. They may overuse primary sources or non-independent sources, and they may give too much weight to certain ideas.
Actual, potential and apparent COI
ShortcutsAn actual COI exists when an editor has a COI with respect to a certain judgment and is in a position where the judgment must be exercised.
Example: A business owner has an actual COI if they edit articles and engage in discussions about that business.A potential COI exists when an editor has a COI with respect to a certain judgment but is not in a position where the judgment must be exercised.
Example: A business owner has a potential COI with respect to articles and discussions about that business, but they have no actual COI if they stay away from those pages.An apparent COI exists when there is reason to believe that an editor has a COI.
Example: Editors have an apparent COI if they edit an article about a business, and for some reason they appear to be the business owner or in communication with the business owner, although they may actually have no such connection. Apparent COI raises concern within the community and should be resolved through discussion whenever possible.Dealing with edit requests from COI or paid editors
Further information: Misplaced Pages:Edit requestsResponding to requests
ShortcutEditors responding to edit requests from COI or paid editors are expected to do so carefully, particularly when commercial interests are involved. When large amounts of text are added to an article on behalf of the article subject, the article has, in effect, been ghostwritten by the subject without the readers' knowledge. Responding volunteers should therefore carefully check the proposed text and sources. That an article has been expanded does not mean that it is better.
- Make sure the proposed paid text complies with WP:WEIGHT.
- Look for unnecessary detail that may have been added to overwhelm something negative.
- Make sure nothing important is missing. Responding editors should do their own search for independent sources. Do not rely on the sources offered by the paid editor.
- Look for non-neutral language and unsourced or poorly sourced content.
- Be cautious about accepting content based on self-published sources such as a personal website, or primary sources such as a company website or press release.
If the paid text is added to the article, the edit summary should include full attribution.
Attribution in edit summaries
Further information: Misplaced Pages:Copying within Misplaced Pages and Misplaced Pages:Copying text from other sources ShortcutsIf editors choose to add material to an article on behalf of a COI or paid editor, they must provide attribution for the text in the edit summary. The edit summary should include the name of the COI or paid editor, a link to the draft or edit request, and that the edit contains a COI or paid contribution. For example:
Text inserted on behalf of paid editor User:X; copied from ].
or you can also use the following format, from text requested in a talk page,
Edit made due to ] edit request by User:SVeatch; copied or adapted from "Revisions to Infobox, Introduction and History" at ]
The permalink helps avoid broken links when sections are archived.
This transparency helps editors and readers to determine the extent of COI influence on the article. It also complies with copyright requirements.
Paid editors on talk pages
ShortcutsPaid editors must respect the volunteer nature of the project and keep discussions concise. When proposing changes to an article, they should describe the suggested modifications and explain why the changes should be made. Any changes that may be contentious, such as removal of negative text, should be highlighted.
Before being drawn into long exchanges with paid editors, volunteers should be aware that paid editors may be submitting evidence of their talk-page posts to justify their salaries or fees. No editor should be expected to engage in long or repetitive discussions with someone who is being paid to argue with them.
Editors who refuse to accept a consensus by arguing ad nauseam may find themselves in violation of the guideline against disruptive editing.
Copyright of paid contributions
See also: Work for hire ShortcutsEditors are reminded that any text they contribute to Misplaced Pages, assuming they own the copyright, is irrevocably licensed under a Creative Commons-Attribution-Sharealike license and the GNU Free Documentation License. Content on Misplaced Pages, including article drafts and talk-page comments, can be freely copied and modified by third parties for commercial and non-commercial use, with the sole requirement that it be attributed to Misplaced Pages contributors.
Paid editors must ensure that they own the copyright of text they have been paid to add to Misplaced Pages; otherwise, they are unable to release it. A text's author is normally assumed to be the copyright holder. Companies sometimes provide paid editors with text written by someone else. Alternatively, a paid editor might write text for Misplaced Pages within the scope of their employment (a "work for hire"), in which case copyright resides with the employer.
Where there is doubt that the paid editor owns the copyright, they (or the employer or author) are advised to forward a release from the copyright holder to the Volunteer Response Team (permissions-enwikimedia.org). See WP:PERMISSION for how to do this and Misplaced Pages:Declaration of consent for all enquiries for a sample letter.
If editors choose to add material to an article on behalf of a paid editor, they must provide attribution for the text in the edit summary. See WP:COIATTRIBUTE for how to do this.
Covert advertising
See also: Misplaced Pages:Reliable sources § Sponsored contentThis section in a nutshell: Avoid hidden advertising. | Shortcuts |
US: Federal Trade Commission, state law, and native advertising
See also: Native advertising, Consumer protection, and Direct-to-consumer advertisingAll editors are expected to follow United States law on undisclosed advertising, which is described by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) at Endorsement Guidelines and Dot Com Disclosures. The FTC regards advertising as deceptive if it mimics a content format, such as a news report, that appears to come from an independent, impartial source:
Marketers and publishers are using innovative methods to create, format, and deliver digital advertising. One form is "native advertising", content that bears a similarity to the news, feature articles, product reviews, entertainment, and other material that surrounds it online. ...
In digital media, native ads often resemble the design, style, and functionality of the media in which they are disseminated. ... The more a native ad is similar in format and topic to content on the publisher's site, the more likely that a disclosure will be necessary to prevent deception. —Federal Trade Commission, 2015
To judge whether an ad is deceptive under the Federal Trade Commission Act of 1914, the FTC considers "both what the ad says and the format it uses to convey that information ... Advertisements or promotional messages are deceptive if they convey to consumers expressly or by implication that they’re independent, impartial, or from a source other than the sponsoring advertiser ...".
State law may have similar prohibitions. While the FTC law may apply only to interstate and foreign commerce, state law applies to intrastate commerce and must be obeyed. At least one state court case found liability for an ad disguised as editorial content.
European fair-trading law
See also: Unfair Commercial Practices DirectiveIn 2012 the Munich Oberlandesgericht court ruled that if a company or its agents edit Misplaced Pages with the aim of influencing customers, the edits constitute covert advertising, and as such are a violation of European fair-trading law. The ruling stated that readers cannot be expected to seek out user and talk pages to find editors' disclosures about their corporate affiliation.
UK Advertising Standards Authority
The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) in the UK found in 2012 that the content of tweets from two footballers had been "agreed with the help of a member of the Nike marketing team". The tweets were not clearly identified as Nike marketing communications and were therefore in breach of the ASA's code.
Advertising Standards Canada
The Canadian Code of Advertising Standards, administered by Advertising Standards Canada, states: "No advertisement shall be presented in a format or style that conceals the fact that it is an advertisement."
Other categories of COI
Legal and other disputes
Further information: WP:BLPCOI ShortcutsThe biographies of living persons policy says: "n editor who is involved in a significant controversy or dispute with another individual – whether on- or off-wiki – or who is an avowed rival of that individual, should not edit that person's biography or other material about that person, given the potential conflict of interest."
Similarly, editors should not write about court cases in which they or those close to them have been involved, nor about parties or law firms associated with the cases.
Campaigning, political
Shortcuts See also: WP:ADVOCACYActivities regarded by insiders as simply "getting the word out" may appear promotional or propagandistic to the outside world. If you edit articles while involved with campaigns in the same area, you may have a conflict of interest. Political candidates and their staff should not edit articles about themselves, their supporters, or their opponents. Government employees should not edit articles about their agencies, government, political party, political opponents, or controversial political topics.
Writing about yourself, family, friends
"WP:COS" redirects here. For the "credible claim of significance" essay, see Misplaced Pages:Credible claim of significance. Further information: Misplaced Pages:Autobiography and WP:BLPCOI ShortcutsYou should generally refrain from creating articles about yourself, or anyone you know, living or dead, unless through the Articles for Creation process. If you have a personal connection to a topic or person with an existing article, you are advised to refrain from editing that article directly and to provide full disclosure of the connection if you comment about the article on talk pages or in other discussions. Requests for updates to an article about yourself or someone with whom you have a personal connection can be made on the article's talk page by following the instructions at WP:COIREQ.
An exception to not editing an article about yourself or someone you know is made if the article contains defamation or a serious error that needs to be corrected quickly. If you do make such an edit, please follow it up with an email to WP:VRT, Misplaced Pages's volunteer response team, or ask for help on WP:BLPN, our noticeboard for articles about living persons, or the talk page of the article in question.
Citing yourself
Shortcut "WP:SELFCITE" redirects here. For Misplaced Pages citing itself, see WP:CIRCULAR. See also: WP:MEDCOIUsing material you have written or published is allowed within reason, but only if it is relevant, conforms to the content policies, including WP:SELFPUB, and is not excessive. Citations should be in the third person and should not place undue emphasis on your work. You will be permanently identified in the page history as the person who added the citation to your own work. When in doubt, defer to the community's opinion: propose the edit on the article's talk page and allow others to review it. However, adding numerous references to work published by yourself and none by other researchers is considered to be a form of spamming.
Cultural sector
"WP:CURATOR" redirects here. For the tool used by Misplaced Pages:New pages patrol, see Misplaced Pages:Page Curation. Further information: Misplaced Pages:GLAM, Misplaced Pages:Advice for the cultural sector, and Misplaced Pages:The Misplaced Pages Library/Cultural Professionals ShortcutMuseum curators, librarians, archivists, and similar are encouraged to help improve Misplaced Pages, or to share their information in the form of links to their resources. If a link cannot be used as a reliable source, it may be placed under further reading or external links if it complies with the external links guideline. Bear in mind that Misplaced Pages is not a mirror or a repository of links, images, or media files.
See also WP:Expert editors.
Wikipedians in residence
ShortcutThere are forms of paid editing that the Wikimedia community regards as acceptable. These include Wikipedians in residence (WiRs)—Wikipedians who may be paid to collaborate with mission-aligned organizations, such as galleries, libraries, archives, and museums. WiRs must not engage in public relations or marketing for their organization in Misplaced Pages, and they should operate within the bounds defined by Core characteristics of a Wikipedian in Residence at Wikimedia Outreach. They must work closely with a Misplaced Pages project or the general Misplaced Pages community, and are expected to identify their WiR status on their user page and on talk pages related to their organization when they post there.
Reward board
Another example of acceptable paid editing is the reward board, where editors can post incentives, usually to raise articles to featured-article or good-article status. If you participate in this, transparency and neutrality are key.
Miscellaneous
Solicitations by paid editors
In any solicitation sent to a prospective client, paid editors should disclose the following information:
- Paid editors do not represent the Wikimedia Foundation nor the Misplaced Pages editing community, and they have no authority beyond that of any volunteer editor.
- Paid editors must disclose their employer, client, and affiliations on Misplaced Pages. There is no confidentiality for the client.
- Paid edits may be reviewed and revised in the normal course of work on Misplaced Pages. Neither the client nor the paid editor own the article.
- Paid editors cannot guarantee any outcome for an article on Misplaced Pages. It can be revised or deleted by other editors at any time.
Providing a client with a link to this section is appropriate disclosure if it is done in a neutral and non-deceptive manner.
- Paid editors must also provide a link to their user page which includes a declaration of their paid editing status. If an external website claims that a particular Misplaced Pages editor works for them, but that editor's user page has no such declaration, this is likely to indicate that the website is impersonating that editor.
If you received a solicitation from a paid editor that does not include this information, we recommend that you not do business with them. They are not following our policies and guidelines.
Beware of scams
Shortcut Further information: Misplaced Pages:Articles for creation/Scam warningSome solicitations from paid editors have been linked to fraud; see for example Operation Orangemoody. A large number of businesses claim to offer editing services, but some of these are scams. If someone claims that experienced editors work for them, ask them for the user names of those editors and check the corresponding editor user pages for a paid-contribution disclosure; its absence likely indicates that the claim is false. Offers to guarantee that a page will be saved from deletion, in return for significant sums of money, are always fraudulent, as are offers to use special privileges on Misplaced Pages.
If you think you've received a fraudulent solicitation, please forward it to paid-en-wpwikipedia.org for investigation.
Law of unintended consequences
Further information: Misplaced Pages:Misplaced Pages is in the real world ShortcutOnce an article is created about yourself, your group, or your company, you have no right to control its content, or to delete it outside the normal channels. If there is anything publicly available on a topic that you would not want to have included in an article, it will probably find its way there eventually.
No shared accounts, no company accounts
Further information: WP:NOSHARE and WP:ORGNAMEDo not create a shared organizational account, or use the name of an organization as the account name. The account is yours, not your employer's.
Making uncontroversial edits
ShortcutsEditors who have a general conflict of interest may make unambiguously uncontroversial edits (but see WP:FINANCIALCOI). They may:
- remove spam and unambiguous vandalism,
- remove unambiguous violations of the biography of living persons policy,
- fix spelling, grammatical, or markup errors,
- repair broken links,
- remove their own COI edits, and
- add independent reliable sources when another editor has requested them, although it is better to supply them on the talk page for others to add.
If another editor objects for any reason, it is not an uncontroversial edit. Edits not covered by the above should be discussed on the article's talk page. If an article has few uninvolved editors, ask at the talk page of a related WikiProject or at the COI noticeboard. See also WP:COITALK.
Supplying photographs and media files
Editors with a COI are encouraged to upload high-quality media files that are appropriately licensed for Misplaced Pages and that improve our coverage of a subject. For more information, follow the instructions at Commons. In some cases, the addition of media files to an article may be an uncontroversial edit that editors with a COI can make directly, but editors should exercise discretion and rely on talk pages when images may be controversial or promotional. If the addition of an image is challenged by another editor, it is controversial.
The use of non-free contents are restricted. Generally, using press photos or images provided by client who wish to feature them in the article but unwilling to irrevocably release the copyright under Creative Commons is unacceptable. Editors may not upload images provided by client for "Misplaced Pages article purpose only" and falsely claim they're licensed under CC BY-SA, as such photos are fundamentally incompatible with free content principles. Only the copyright owner or their authorized representatives may grant permission to use a work under a Creative Commons license, not the photographed subject or their public relations agent. If the same image is found copyrighted elsewhere prior to the upload date, it may be removed as a copyright violation. If you are the copyright owner and want to release content to Creative Commons for use on Misplaced Pages, see Commons:Volunteer Response Team § Licensing images: when do I contact VRT?.
How to handle conflicts of interest
Advocacy, noticeboards
Main pages: Misplaced Pages:Neutral point of view/Noticeboard and Misplaced Pages:Reliable sources/NoticeboardIf a user's edits lead you to believe that they might have a COI (that is, if they have an "apparent COI"), and there has been no COI disclosure, consider first whether the issue may be simple advocacy. Most advocacy does not involve COI. Whether an editor is engaged in advocacy should first be addressed at the user's talk page, then at WP:NPOVN, the neutral-point-of-view noticeboard. The appropriate forum for concerns about sources is WP:RSN, the reliable-sources noticeboard. If there are concerns about sockpuppets or meatpuppets, please bring that concern to WP:SPI.
Reporting to the conflict of interest noticeboard
Main page: Misplaced Pages:Conflict of interest/Noticeboard ShortcutIf you believe an editor has an undisclosed COI and is editing in violation of this guideline, raise the issue in a civil manner on the editor's talk page, which is the first step in resolving user-conduct issues, per the dispute resolution policy, citing this guideline. If that fails to resolve the issue, such as when an editor has repeatedly added problematic material over an extended period, then open a discussion at the conflict of interest noticeboard (COIN). This also applies to a disclosed COI that is causing a problem: for example, an acknowledged BLP subject who is editing their own BLP.
During the COIN discussion, avoid making disparaging remarks about the user in question, their motives or the subject of the article(s).
Post whatever public evidence you have to support that there is a COI, or that it is causing a problem, in the form of edits by that user or information the user has posted about themselves. Do not post private information; see WP:OUTING, which is policy, and the section below, "Avoid outing".
If private information must be shared to resolve a COI issue, it may be emailed to paid-en-wpwikipedia.org. Follow the advice in WP:OUTING: "Only the minimum information necessary should be conveyed and the minimum number of people contacted." The priority should be to avoid unnecessary privacy violations.
Avoid outing
Shortcut Further information: Misplaced Pages:Harassment § Posting of personal information, and Misplaced Pages:Wikimedia Foundation statement on paid editing and outingWhen investigating COI editing, the policy against harassment takes precedence. It requires that Wikipedians not reveal the identity of editors against their wishes. Examine editors' behavior instead and seek advice by email if necessary. Do not ask a user if they are somebody; instead one can ask if they have an undisclosed connection to that person. If revealing private information is needed to resolve COI editing, and if the issue is serious enough to warrant it, editors can email paid-en-wpwikipedia.org. Also see the section "Reporting to the conflict of interest noticeboard" above.
Dealing with single-purpose accounts
Further information: Misplaced Pages:Blocking policy § Disruption-only, and Misplaced Pages:Single-purpose accountAccounts that appear to be single-purpose, existing for the sole or primary purpose of promotion or denigration of a person, company, product, service, website, organization, etc., and whose postings are in apparent violation of this guideline, should be made aware of this guideline and warned not to continue their problematic editing. If the same pattern of editing continues after the warning, the account may be blocked.
Templates
Relevant article talk pages may be tagged with {{connected contributor}}
or {{connected contributor (paid)}}
. The article itself may be tagged with {{COI}}
. A section of an article can be tagged with {{COI|section}}
Other templates include:
{{uw-coi}}
(to be placed on user Talk pages to warn editors that they may have a conflict of interest){{uw-coi-username}}
(another Talk page warning, this one for editors whose username appears to violate the WP:Usernames policy){{COI editnotice}}
(this template goes on article talk pages and gives instructions to COI editors on how to submit edit requests to the article){{User COI}}
(userbox for users to self-declare on their own Userpages those articles with which they have a conflict of interest; userbox can list up to nine articles)
See also
Wikimedia Foundation
- Terms of Use#4. Refraining from Certain Activities
- Sue Gardner, "Press releases/Sue Gardner statement paid advocacy editing", Wikimedia Foundation, 21 October 2013.
Contact us
Article
Policies
- Misplaced Pages:Paid-contribution disclosure
- Misplaced Pages:Username policy
- Misplaced Pages:What Misplaced Pages is not
Wikiprojects
Miscellaneous
- Misplaced Pages:About you
- Misplaced Pages:The Misplaced Pages Library/Cultural Professionals
- Category:Misplaced Pages conflict of interest edit requests (lists edits for review where proposer has a conflict of interest)
- Category:Misplaced Pages articles with possible conflicts of interest
- Misplaced Pages:Reward board
- Misplaced Pages:FAQ/Article subjects
- User:COIBot
- Users creating autobiographies (an edit filter)
- Statement on Misplaced Pages from participating communications firms, June 2014
Essays
- Misplaced Pages:Best practices for editors with close associations
- Misplaced Pages:Conflicts of interest (medicine)
- Misplaced Pages:Deceptive advertising
- Misplaced Pages:Don't cry COI
- Misplaced Pages:For publicists publicizing a client's work
- Misplaced Pages:Ghostwriting
- Misplaced Pages:Help available for editors with conflicts of interest
- Misplaced Pages:Independent sources
- Misplaced Pages:Paid editing (essay)
- Misplaced Pages:Plain and simple conflict of interest guide
- Misplaced Pages:Public relations (essay)
- Misplaced Pages:Search engine optimization
- Misplaced Pages:Misplaced Pages is in the real world
Historical
- Misplaced Pages:WikiProject Cooperation (defunct)
- Misplaced Pages community discussion on paid editing, 2009, sparked by discovery that admin/crat/OTRS editor was editing for pay
- Misplaced Pages community discussion on conflict of interest, 2012.
- Misplaced Pages:COI+ (failed proposal, 21 February 2013)
- Commercial editing (failed policy proposal turned into an essay, November 2013)
- No paid advocacy (failed policy proposal, November 2013)
- Paid editing policy proposal (failed policy proposal, November 2013)
- Conflict of interest limit (failed policy proposal, December 2013)
Further reading
- (chronological)
- Davis, Michael (1982). "Conflict of Interest", Business and Professional Ethics Journal, 1(4), pp. 17–27 (influential). doi:10.5840/bpej1982149
- Luebke, Neil R. (1987). "Conflict of Interest as a Moral Category," Business & Professional Ethics Journal, 6, pp. 66–81. JSTOR 27799930 (influential)
- Davis, Michael (Winter 1993). "Conflict of Interest Revisited," Business & Professional Ethics Journal, 12(4), pp. 21–41. JSTOR 27800924
- Stark, Andrew (2003). Conflict of Interest in American Public Life, Harvard University Press.
- Carson, Thomas L. (January 2004). "Conflicts of Interest and Self-Dealing in the Professions: A Review Essay," Business Ethics Quarterly, 14(1), pp. 161–182. JSTOR 3857777
- Krimsky, Sheldon (2006). "The Ethical and Legal Foundations of Scientific 'Conflict of Interest'", in Trudo Lemmings and Duff R. Waring (eds.), Law and Ethics in Biomedical Research: Regulation, Conflict of Interest, and Liability, University of Toronto Press.
- McDonald, Michael (23 April 2006). "Ethics and Conflict of Interest", The W. Maurice Young Center for Applied Ethics, University of British Columbia.
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