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This article has been mentioned by a media organization: Alyssa Pereira (December 21, 2016). "These were the most edited Misplaced Pages pages of 2016". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved December 22, 2016. The 2016 Presidential election sure brought the world a lot of stress. It also brought the world a lot of misinformation. That could be one reason why so many of the most edited Misplaced Pages pages of 2016 were politically related. ... 2016 United States election interference by Russia (641)

RfC: Should the lead include James Clapper's comment that as of January 2017, the agencies he supervised had found no evidence of collusion between Trump and Russia?

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Should the lead include James Clapper's comment that "as of January 2017, the agencies he supervised had found no evidence of collusion between Trump and Russia," or some variation of that? - MrX 12:12, 24 June 2017 (UTC)

• Oppose the proposed sentence, or any that says "the agencies he supervised had found no evidence", because that is inaccurate. It's not what he said. He said "he was not aware" of any evidence. He also said specifically that if the FBI (an agency he nominally supervises) had any such evidence, he would not have known about it. I am neutral about including an accurate sentence in the lede, such as "In May Clapper stated that as of January 2017 he was not aware of any evidence of collusion between Trump and Russia." I'm not convinced it is lede-worthy, although it should definitely be in the article. --MelanieN (talk) 18:17, 24 June 2017 (UTC)
• Oppose because it is inaccurate and not what Clapper said, per MelanieN. I also oppose the "not aware of" rephrasing because it is outdated and because it doesn't really help the reader. We already say that the current, ongoing investigation is into whether there was collusion. Neutrality 19:19, 24 June 2017 (UTC)
• Oppose. Undue to state in the lead that someone didn’t know something some months ago. I wouldn’t add it in the body myself as it sounds odd to say someone that used to supervise some of the investigative bodies hadn’t seen any evidence as of an earlier date. But I wouldn’t spend time arguing about it in the body in an accurate form. Although, I suspect it would eventually be removed when more is known. Objective3000 (talk) 19:28, 24 June 2017 (UTC)
• (edit conflict) Oppose - I agree with MelanieN that it is not accurate, but would go further and say that when reworded to be accurate, it becomes unworthy of inclusion in the lede. No objection to an accurate, properly contextualized discussion of this in the article body, but in the lede it is misleading and undue. Fyddlestix (talk) 19:30, 24 June 2017 (UTC)
• Oppose any mention of Clapper's January statement in any form and with any wording. The January statement is dated, has repeatedly been cited out of context to insinuate exculpation of Trump and his coterie, and which is now superceded by statements of current knowledge not then available to Clapper. Even if accurately worded, it is now WP:UNDUE. SPECIFICO talk 19:35, 24 June 2017 (UTC)
• Oppose Per all of the above. DN (talk) 19:46, 24 June 2017 (UTC)
• Oppose as outdated BUT we should give some information about the findings of all the investigations mentioned thus far. When the Clapper–Todd interview emerged in March 2017, his statements clarified the findings of the agencies as of January (Russia did lots of bad stuff, and we don't know if anyone around Trump was linked to this). Now it's June, and several people involved with the investigations have come forward to say various things. It may be hard to summarize in the lead but I believe we need to address the issue, for the benefit of readers who legitimately want a quick overview of "where are we standing now?" — JFG 20:05, 24 June 2017 (UTC)

This has nothing to do with "findings of all the investigations" -- Strawman again. SPECIFICO talk 21:18, 24 June 2017 (UTC)

• Oppose Inaccurate as to what he said, and also leaves out the fact he only claims this until Feb 2017. Thus it says nothing about anything really beyond being used as a piece of evidence there was no evidence at one time. It might be relevant if it turns out there is no evidence now (or whenever the investigation ends) in order to show this was a witch hunt, until them this is just flummery.Slatersteven (talk) 09:47, 25 June 2017 (UTC)
• Oppose. Out of date and now known to be inaccurate, so misleading to include it. He spoke from his admittedly incomplete POV at the time. Since then we know that other agencies were dealing with this. He was not privy to that info. -- BullRangifer (talk) 00:17, 26 June 2017 (UTC)
• Oppose. Inaccurate. Misleading. Outdated. Provides only part of info. Totally ignores own statements by Clapper saying, "Clapper: My words not 'exculpatory' for Trump". Sagecandor (talk) 02:51, 27 June 2017 (UTC)
• Oppose. For reasons given by MelanieN, Fyddlestix and Sagecandor. As Fyddlestix observes, when accurately reported, it becomes not lead-worthy. Neutral as to later inclusion tending toward include as part of the narrative journey. Pincrete (talk) 18:15, 27 June 2017 (UTC)
• Comment – Looks like a WP:SNOW close is warranted. The sentence has been removed already. Can some uninvolved soul kindly close the RfC? — JFG 04:08, 29 June 2017 (UTC)

No need to close it. It was only opened because of a couple blokes' obstinate refusal to accept consensus. SPECIFICO talk 12:39, 29 June 2017 (UTC)

• Oppose per all the above reasons. Unhelpful to article. —MRD2014 12:08, 1 July 2017 (UTC)
• Oppose per all the above reasons, especially those by SPECIFICO. SophisticatedSwampert 19:10, 4 July 2017 (UTC)
• Oppose zzz, WP:SNOW Stikkyy t/c 05:35, 8 July 2017 (UTC)
• Oppose As already pointed out, a) the wording is misleading if not an outright falsehood and b) the information is outdated. A Quest For Knowledge (talk) 13:33, 9 July 2017 (UTC)

Russia

What is this sentence in the third paragraph trying to say: "The statement went on to say that Russia would take work on Russian-American relations under the administration of President D. Trump." Is that a translation from one of the Russian references? Space4Time3Continuum2x (talk) 09:03, 25 June 2017 (UTC)

I was going to ask about that myself. The Russian source was very confusing, and I'm guessing it's a result of an earlier, and equally confusing RfC. -- There were better sources for it in English, but I didn't feel like getting involved in yet another dispute. DN (talk) 09:51, 25 June 2017 (UTC)

I tried to fix it here. -- BullRangifer (talk) 00:13, 26 June 2017 (UTC)

RfC was only about the lead section; this confusing sentence is elsewhere. Some good Russian speaker should provide a better translation indeed, and we probably don't need to quote three sources for that. — JFG 10:37, 25 June 2017 (UTC)

The edit I was referring to was from the third paragraph in the lead section. -- DN (talk) 19:11, 25 June 2017 (UTC)

Oh I see. So we should have two threads, because Space4Time3Continuum2x was quoting a totally different part of the article. — JFG 19:48, 25 June 2017 (UTC)

Sorry for the confusion. I should have added that my question was about the "Russia" subsection, not the lede. Space4Time3Continuum2x (talk) 04:04, 26 June 2017 (UTC)

Russia did not retaliate

The following discussion is closed. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made on the appropriate discussion page. No further edits should be made to this discussion.

About the "Russia did not retaliate" statement, I believe it is justified to mention it because the norm in international relations is quid-pro-quo: every time country A expels diplomats or spies from country B, the latter responds by expelling an equal number of diplomats or spies from country A. The fact that Putin said in effect "I'll wait and see until Trump is in office" is a very peculiar attitude… No matter how it's interpreted, it is on-topic for the whole Russia / Trump story. — JFG 19:48, 25 June 2017 (UTC)

"Russia did not retaliate" belongs in the article, but not the lead. I don't think it's significant in the context of an already extensively complex subject.- MrX 19:59, 25 June 2017 (UTC)

That is OR deluxe. If he said that not in OR effect but in fact, and RS link it to the topic of this article, then properly worded text might be appropriate. SPECIFICO talk 20:11, 25 June 2017 (UTC)

Many reliable sources noted that Russia did not retaliate against the expulsion of its diplomats. There was a source already describing it. Here's another: --DHeyward (talk) 21:15, 25 June 2017 (UTC)

Heyward, please review WP:SYNTH. You're not responding to the given problem here. We all know about sourcing. Lots of stuff is sourced. Nobody has said otherwise. SPECIFICO talk 22:34, 25 June 2017 (UTC)

The response from Russia when their diplomats were expelled is due for the lead if we keep that they were kicked out in it. Which is why it has consensus for inclusion here . @MrX: With talks on going and previous consensus to include it, why did you remove that part? PackMecEng (talk) 23:33, 25 June 2017 (UTC)

It's only a few words, so why not keep it? -- BullRangifer (talk) 00:15, 26 June 2017 (UTC)

That's the worst argument for including something in Misplaced Pages I've ever seen. --MelanieN (talk) 14:59, 26 June 2017 (UTC)

LMAO! MelanieN, of course it is, if taken alone and totally seriously. No serious Wikipedian who knows my history here would do that. Some people are very concerned about the size of the lead, so it was only for them. There are much more substantive arguments for and against including it. -- BullRangifer (talk) 15:23, 26 June 2017 (UTC)

OK, I've self-reverted. I still believe it would be better to leave this out of the lead, but consensus is apparently not on my side.- MrX 00:26, 26 June 2017 (UTC)

This needs to be stated in context, in the terms that RS discussed it at the time. The cryptic and synthy non-sequitur snippet in the lede, conveys no encyclopedic information. And the aggressive edit-warring to reinsert it while it's still under discussion is just sad. SPECIFICO talk 00:49, 26 June 2017 (UTC)

@PackMecEng: It's a bit hollow to cite an old RfC that lists a long-extinct version of the lede. Editing continued fast and furious throughout the RfC and since the RfC. What's your view of all the other changes? The RfC was not about that little appendage. SPECIFICO talk 00:57, 26 June 2017 (UTC)

(edit conflict) I would leave it out of the lede. It has no context and it's not an important enough detail for the lede. If it someday turns out to be significant (as it might - for example, suppose it turns out that they refrained from retaliating as part of some kind of bargain with a Trump advisor) we can reconsider then. --MelanieN (talk) 01:00, 26 June 2017 (UTC)

The RFC was closed just two weeks ago, so I disagree with it being old. While it was not specifically about that little part, it was also not disputed at all during the discussion. That may just be because there were bigger fish to fry in that lengthy debate but it should be noted.

I personally agree that it is not very clear in it's placement or wording but I would say that the response from Russia or lack there of is notable. Since it is very unusual that there was almost no retaliation and little response. As MelanieN notes some context for it would be helpful. PackMecEng (talk) 01:11, 26 June 2017 (UTC)

If you have RS stating that this is very unusual, etc. perhaps you can write some informative text to replace the snippet, most likely in the corpus but perhaps in the lede depending on what your RS has to say. SPECIFICO talk 02:33, 26 June 2017 (UTC)

NY Times Looks decent on it. Perhaps expanding the statement to something like "Russia's foreign minister recommended expelling American diplomats in a tit-for-tat response, but President Putin announced he would not retaliate. PackMecEng (talk) 02:49, 26 June 2017 (UTC)

How about "Putin instructed his foreign minister to pretend he was urging X but surprisingly, Putin disregarded his pleadings and generated several days' cable tv fodder by inviting American diplomats to his holiday kiddie show at the Kremlin." -- But in any event this stuff doesn't belong in the lede. SPECIFICO talk 12:56, 26 June 2017 (UTC)

Ha, that might be an improvement from what is currently there. But I think I like my suggestion better. PackMecEng (talk) 13:21, 26 June 2017 (UTC)

FWIW, my position is basically the same as MelanieN. This is a minor detail that is not a significant or properly contextualized enough to bear including in the lede. Fyddlestix (talk) 01:40, 26 June 2017 (UTC)

I agree that it has no context and should not be in the lede. It's not "a plain statement of what happened", to quote the editor who reinserted it, it's "a plain statement of what NOT happened". It doesn't "identify the topic, establish context, explain why the topic is notable, and summarize the most important points", it merely leaves the reader wondering what it's trying to imply. The consensus here seems to be for deletion from the lede. Space4Time3Continuum2x (talk) 04:36, 26 June 2017 (UTC)

It seems to me that most editors simply don't want anything except for American government claims and actions in the article. We say that Russian diplomats were expelled, and that Russia did not retaliate. Both are equally significant. Why are we removing the second half of that story from the lede? Because this article is meant to state American intelligence agencies' views in Misplaced Pages's encyclopedic voice. -Thucydides411 (talk) 05:16, 26 June 2017 (UTC)

I am not sure that Russia not retaliating is as significant, and no nations do not always retaliate. What is more important is they said they would, and then did not after the election (and taking into account Donnys actions ]).Slatersteven (talk) 09:38, 26 June 2017 (UTC)

@Thucydides411: Stop disparaging other editors and comment only on content improvement. SPECIFICO talk 12:57, 26 June 2017 (UTC)

The phrase could be used in proper context, i.e. Putin did not respond because he expected favors from Trump (that is what Russian language sources I read were telling). However, as written this sounds strange. My very best wishes (talk) 20:00, 26 June 2017 (UTC)

What about rewording to "Russia's foreign minister recommended expelling American diplomats in a tit-for-tat response, but President Putin announced he would not retaliate." That should add some context to why it was unusual. Also given the number of RS writing about it at the time I feel it qualifies as notable. Thoughts?PackMecEng (talk) 17:50, 27 June 2017 (UTC)

Lead describes the actual subject (the "interference" by Putin) and the reaction by US. Telling there was no reaction to reaction does not belong to the lead. My very best wishes (talk) 18:57, 27 June 2017 (UTC)

The lack of reaction is the notable part, which is why it needs an explanation. Specifically everyone was expecting them to react and Putin was advised by high ranking officials to react but choose not to for unknown reasons. PackMecEng (talk) 13:00, 28 June 2017 (UTC)

Not at all. Utter BS propaganda. Find any RS account to support? SPECIFICO talk 16:44, 28 June 2017 (UTC)

NYT, CNBC, and WashingtonPost. Those are just three quick ones I found. PackMecEng (talk) 17:03, 28 June 2017 (UTC)

Like I says, "carefully stage-managed" propaganda BS is what RS describe. This article is not about BS, it's about the Russian attack. SPECIFICO talk 17:12, 28 June 2017 (UTC)

Good point, we should point out the propaganda related to this as well. Do you have a suggestion for adding that info? The rest of the sources don't really mention that though. I'm also not sure I agree that parts of this article are not about BS. PackMecEng (talk) 21:32, 28 June 2017 (UTC)

You mean like arse techinca and the pundit amigos? Maybe. SPECIFICO talk 03:08, 29 June 2017 (UTC)

Perhaps but the Ars Technica (I think you made a typo with the name) adds some much needed expert balance to the article. I was thinking more along the lines of the Fox Vox sources. PackMecEng (talk) 03:19, 29 June 2017 (UTC)

Update: I see there was an attempt to remove the sentence, per "majority opinion in talk", and it was then restored. Personally I do not yet see a clear majority in this discussion. This is how I read it:

• Include sentence in lede: User:JFG, User:DHeyward, User:PackMecEng, User:BullRangifer.
• Don't include sentence in lede: User:MrX, User:MelanieN, User:Fyddlestix, User:Space4Time3Continuum2x, User:BullRangifer, User:SPECIFICO, User:My very best wishes
• Unclear: User:SPECIFICO (against?), User:Thucydides411 (for?), User:Slatersteven, User:My very best wishes (against?).

It might become clearer if the people I have listed as "unclear" - people who have commented without specifically saying "include" or "don't include" - would clarify where they stand. And if I have misinterpreted anyone's stand, please correct me. --MelanieN (talk) 19:22, 29 June 2017 (UTC)

That is because I do not think it is quite that black and white. The bare statement "Russia did not retaliate" should not be in the lead without it also saying that they had planned to and then decided against it.Slatersteven (talk) 20:01, 29 June 2017 (UTC)

OK, thanks for clarifying. --MelanieN (talk) 20:07, 29 June 2017 (UTC)

Against lede. I doubt that any RS ultimately consider it of lasting significance. And we have no idea what any Russian thinks or recommends because RS tell us Putin routinely has folks disappeared when they disappoint him. SPECIFICO talk 21:23, 29 June 2017 (UTC)

Yes, I am against including "Russia did not retaliate" for two reasons: (1) Actually, Putin is going to retaliate right now , (2) he already retaliated in a number of ways, such as this. My very best wishes (talk) 23:14, 29 June 2017 (UTC)

I moved to "not include". Without better context (which would be too much detail for the lead), it doesn't warrant inclusion in the lead, BUT it should be included in the body, with context, and this latest USA Today ref about planned retaliation. -- BullRangifer (talk) 03:15, 30 June 2017 (UTC)

When I deleted the sentence the last time, I had counted seven editors against including it in the lede (that's a 58.3% majority), four for inclusion, and one undecided which seems to be the exact tally we're at right now. The sentence wasn't even discussed in the RfC, and I still don't know how that ended. It kind of fizzled out after a month, and after another month an editor closed it based on a "consensus favor(ing) the proposed" version. How did the closer even manage to count editors supporting para 1+3 but not 2+4, etc.? Putin's statements are cited ad nauseam in the "Russia" commentary and reaction section, they don't belong in the lede. Space4Time3Continuum2x (talk) 17:44, 30 June 2017 (UTC)

Updating my update, it appears we DO have consensus to remove it from the lede, and SpaceTime has removed it. Context or new information can be added to the article. --MelanieN (talk) 19:24, 30 June 2017 (UTC)

And so the cleansing of the article proceeds. At least when an article becomes skewed enough, it's no longer harmful - readers can see it for what it is. -Thucydides411 (talk) 18:44, 4 July 2017 (UTC)

Who the Russia investigators are talking to

Who the Russia investigators are talking to, Axios

BullRangifer (talk) 16:58, 25 June 2017 (UTC)

Is this RS?Slatersteven (talk) 17:00, 25 June 2017 (UTC)

I'm not certain how it's viewed here, but it should be possible to verify each person in more known RS, which can be used as references. This gives a basis for investigation/confirmation. -- BullRangifer (talk) 23:54, 25 June 2017 (UTC)

What edit are you suggesting?Slatersteven (talk) 09:34, 26 June 2017 (UTC)

We should be covering this. It should be under the "Investigation by special counsel" section, and that section still needs to be enlarged to the bursting point and then spun off into a sub-article devoted to the investigation. (All content deleted from that section should be restored.) We talked about it, but has it happened? There should only be a few summary paragraphs there and a "main" link. -- BullRangifer (talk) 14:44, 26 June 2017 (UTC)

Commentary and reactions - Russia (again)

For lack of a better option, I ended up Google-translating the Russian references. The first one (current ref. number 322) is Putin’s official statement as "Russian President", i.e., primary source. The second one (#323) is a rehash that same statement (consisting mostly of direct quotes) by the Russian government’s newspaper of record, Rossiyskaya Gazeta, i.e., also a primary source. I’ve deleted both and, instead, added the NY Times article editor DHeyward mentioned in the "Russia did not retaliate" discussion above. The text of the section needs some rewriting; right now it reads like the official statement. I'll tackle it tomorrow unless someone else gets to it first. Space4Time3Continuum2x (talk) 18:11, 27 June 2017 (UTC)

Yes, good fix. It tells correctly "The statement went on to say that further steps for restoring Russian-American relations would be built on the basis of the policies developed by the Trump administration". My very best wishes (talk) 19:13, 27 June 2017 (UTC)

Yes, I did it already. -- BullRangifer (talk) 05:23, 28 June 2017 (UTC)

Proposed new subsection of Commentary and reactions

GOP operative sought Clinton emails from Russian hackers, implied he was working with Mike Flynn.

This is pretty big. https://www.wsj.com/amp/articles/gop-operative-sought-clinton-emails-from-hackers-implied-a-connection-to-flynn-1498770851 — Preceding unsigned comment added by Casprings (talk • contribs)

It certainly could be something to add - after sources have a little time to chew on it and determine what it all means. --MelanieN (talk) 22:09, 29 June 2017 (UTC)

Definitely sounds big. Definitely sounds too early for us. Objective3000 (talk) 22:56, 29 June 2017 (UTC)

I really don't get this, "its too early" stuff. WP:NOTNEWS does not prevent one from having an up to date article.Casprings (talk) 03:33, 30 June 2017 (UTC)

Look at item 2 on WP:NOTNEWS. "While including information on recent developments is sometimes appropriate, breaking news should not be emphasized or otherwise treated differently from other information." WP:FART is also an apt essay on the subject. Best bet would be wait for more sources to come in to collaborate and add to the WSJ story. PackMecEng (talk) 03:42, 30 June 2017 (UTC)

The point is that it should not be treated differently. Treating this the same as other information from other WP:RSes means that it should go in the article. The only reason, I would argue, to keep it out is that it is an extraordinary claim and such a claim may need other independent sources. That says, we have other independent reporting in an hour, we should not continue to wait. Misplaced Pages should be up to date. Additionally, given the quaility of the WSJ andthe sourcing in the article, I think there is a pretty good argument to go ahead and add.Casprings (talk) 03:55, 30 June 2017 (UTC)

I would also rather wait, it's not as if this is going to go away. But have no strong objection (but see the thread below).Slatersteven (talk) 08:49, 30 June 2017 (UTC)

There is one source for your "extraordinary claim" and you think it must be rushed into the article? What I meant by citing item 2 was that yes it should be treated like other pieces of information. Which would mean that one source is not enough to make a big claim like that. Like everyone else is saying, it should be left out until more report on it. PackMecEng (talk) 13:13, 30 June 2017 (UTC)

I don't see a place for this in this article. This story is about the personal potential culpability of an American seeking Clinton emails, not "Russian Interference". And although it might add to the cloud surrounding the Trump regime, it is only tangentially related to the article subject of "Russian interferance" in that it pertains to Clinton emails. And it does not sound like he succeeded in obtaining Clinton emails, only that he was poking about. Beyond the fact this individual was not Russian it does not sound like this individual HAD any actual influence on the election or participated in any way, and that he completely failed at even his attempt... there is simply no basis for inclusion in the article of this latest revelation based on the subject title of the article itself of "Russian" "interference" in the "election". Marteau (talk) 10:01, 30 June 2017 (UTC)

Do RS make the link?Slatersteven (talk) 10:44, 30 June 2017 (UTC)

I can't prove a negative, i.e. I can't prove that they don't. That would be a question for any editor supporting inclusion, which is not me. Marteau (talk) 11:11, 30 June 2017 (UTC)

So I take it form that that the sources you have seen have not made the link?Slatersteven (talk) 11:14, 30 June 2017 (UTC)

I don't have a subscription to the Wall Street Journal, who broke this story. But I saw nothing in the Newsweek article which cited the Wall Street Journal investigation which supports including this matter in this article about "Russian" "interference" in the "election" (and I quote those words for emphasis, because that's what this article is about... I find nothing about this latest story relating to the election, Russia, and interference except tangentially. Marteau (talk) 11:51, 30 June 2017 (UTC)

The link is being made. You have clear evidence that an American worked with Russians. Muliple examples, but here is one: http://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow/watch/gop-operative-sought-russian-hacker-help-against-clinton-wsj-980053059798 .Casprings (talk) 18:42, 30 June 2017 (UTC)

The Rachel Maddow show is not a reliable source. It is an opinion show. PackMecEng (talk) 18:51, 30 June 2017 (UTC)

the wh

OK, looking a little more deeply at this report, I don't find there is much to it, as far as this article is concerned: An American who SAYS he was working with Mike Flynn ATTEMPTED to contact the Russians to see if he could get Clinton's deleted emails. (You know, the ones Trump publicly invited the Russians to find.) Several groups of hackers, including some Russian hackers, claimed to have Clinton's emails. But the operative was not convinced what they gave him was authentic and he did nothing with it. There is no indication that he actually connected with anyone associated with the Russian government, or obtained any valid information, or passed any information to the campaign. Looking at all the ifs and maybes and nothing-theres, I don't find anything worth including in this article. --MelanieN (talk) 19:11, 30 June 2017 (UTC)

I think the point is that someone contacted to the Trump Campain was trying to work with Russians. Importantly, his connections apprears more the Flynn. https://www.wsj.com/amp/articles/gop-activist-who-sought-clinton-emails-cited-trump-campaign-officials-1498872923 Casprings (talk) 03:34, 1 July 2017 (UTC)

If RS do not make the link neither do we.Slatersteven (talk) 08:49, 1 July 2017 (UTC)

They do.

• A new report raises some big questions about Michael Flynn and Russian hackers
• GOP Operative Attempted to Collude With Hackers He Thought Were Russian to Get Hacked Clinton Emails
• MICHAEL FLYNN ALLY SOUGHT HACKED HILLARY CLINTON EMAILS, SAYS REPORT

The fact you have an alley of Mike Flynn, a long time GOP operative, seeking to work with the Russians and break the law is hugely important. Casprings (talk) 13:52, 1 July 2017 (UTC)

As far as I can tell not they do not link the election interference with this. What we have is someone who worked for the GOP,m claiming to work for Flynn unsuccessfully contacting the Russians (off his own back). Sorry this is not a link..Slatersteven (talk) 14:03, 1 July 2017 (UTC)

Oh come on! Russia hackers discussed getting Clinton emails to Michael Flynn – report "Intelligence agency findings describe hackers seeking to obtain messages and send them to intermediary who also had deep ties to Trump backer Newt Gingrich" and "The Journal said investigators looking into Russian meddling in the election had examined intelligence agency reports about how hackers wanted to get emails from Clinton’s server to an intermediary and then to Flynn, a retired lieutenant general and senior adviser to Trump who went on to serve briefly as his national security adviser." <---- there's your source making an explicit connection. Let's get more:

'I was recruited to collude with the Russians': An unexpected player has added a new layer to the Trump campaign's Russia ties "Hackers believed to be Russian discussed how to steal Hillary Clinton's emails from her private server and transfer them to Michael Flynn via an intermediary, The Wall Street Journal reported Thursday, citing reports compiled by US intelligence agencies investigating Russia's interference in the 2016 election." <------ another source making an explicit connection.

Also this "Most of the commentary surrounding the Russia scandal has treated the possibility that Donald Trump’s campaign deliberately colluded with Moscow as remote, unfounded speculation. The new reporting that has broken this weekend suggests instead that this collusion likely did take place."

So can we please stop pretending that this is not connected to the Russian interference in the 2016 United States election? Volunteer Marek (talk) 22:14, 1 July 2017 (UTC)

Pretty obvious connection. Flynn was working for Trump, and no one under Trump dares act without direct orders from him. Trump is known to punish independent action very severely. Trump always expressed public admiration and defense of Flynn, even after he was removed from his position. Trump never showed any discontent for Flynn's actions. -- BullRangifer (talk) 23:37, 1 July 2017 (UTC)

The report that Russian hackers were trying to get hold of information they had been asked to get for a Flynn intermediary - that's very interesting. If true it confirms - from the other side of the transaction - that someone was asking known hackers for those emails and dropping Flynn's name. Of course the hackers would have been looking for those emails anyhow - Trump publicly asked them to! None of the reporting suggests that they actually did get into the server, or did get any emails (although Smith's report suggests that they tried to give him some stuff he didn't regard as valid). It's very tempting to take these reports and extend them and make connections and fill in blanks and jump to conclusions - I was about to do some of that myself but caught myself before hitting "save". We have to avoid that temptation and stick to the exact details of what has been reported. Let's continue to collect info and not put anything in the article just yet. I am a little troubled if the ONLY source is WSJ. We normally look for two sources. Are any other publications getting independent leaks? Has anyone confirmed a relationship between Smith and Flynn? --MelanieN (talk) 02:34, 2 July 2017 (UTC)

I’m a subscriber, but am wary of politically related stories in which WSJ is the sole source. Objective3000 (talk) 02:57, 2 July 2017 (UTC)

It is worth noting that the WSJ is a very WP:RS source with an extremely impressive record. The story has muliple sources, including ones on the record. Finally, if the WSJ is thought to have a bias, it is to the right. Seems pretty likely that this is simply a "scope", but one that seems of high quality enough to include.Casprings (talk) 04:21, 2 July 2017 (UTC)

It probably is time to put something about this in the article. In the meantime I have written an article about the principal, Peter W. Smith, who is notable for multiple reasons. --MelanieN (talk) 01:04, 3 July 2017 (UTC)

Proposed draft

I have written a draft about this - you can see it here: User:MelanieN/Smith. But I'm not sure it belongs in this article. This was not about anything the Russians did; it was about an American trying to contact hackers, including Russian hackers. I think this belongs in the encyclopedia somewhere but I'm not sure where. Thoughts? --MelanieN (talk) 15:10, 6 July 2017 (UTC) "

Possibly under New Developments, or, Cyber Attacks and Email Leaks? DN (talk) 19:47, 6 July 2017 (UTC)

Cyber Attacks and Email Leaks 2.2 sounds like the best fit. At least until it gets it own article of course. PackMecEng (talk) 19:55, 6 July 2017 (UTC)

Should go under a section about us collusion. Casprings (talk) 20:36, 6 July 2017 (UTC)

Since many, if not most, readers won't be able to read the paywalled WSJ story (I'm one of them), here's another source you may want to add because it details some of WSJ's content that I didn't see anywhere else. Smith taking the story to the WSJ in May sounds to me like an intentional distraction and attempt at obfuscation by an avowed Trump supporter, i.e., an attempt to draw attention away from the actual investigation of Russian intervention and suspected/alleged collusion by the Trump campaign and drag Clinton and her private email servers and their disbunked (no evidence or even indication found, ever) hacking back into the spotlight. For now, the story belongs right where you put it, in Smith's article. Thanks for writing it; Troopergate mentions him only in passing but he seems to have been a central player, i.e., the financier who paid the troopers for making statements to Brock. BTW, DOB may be February 23, 1936, unless there are two 81-year old Peter W. Smiths who died in IL on May 14, 2017, in IL. According to the Chicago Tribune, the Peter W. Smith in question was 81 when he died. Space4Time3Continuum2x (talk) 13:32, 7 July 2017 (UTC)

I did include a link from The Hill for that reason, but I'll include the Vox link as well, thanks. And I'll put in the birth date. No need for conspiracy theories; Smith did not take this story to the WSJ out of the blue. According to Harris, he had been working on it for some time, but hadn't called Smith yet. Smith heard the WSJ was working on the story so he called them. He talked to them a couple of times and provided them with some documents. As to why he called them, obviously he wanted to get his version into the story, and it's possible he realized he didn't have long to live. I gather your opinion is NOT to include it in this article? --MelanieN (talk) 17:37, 7 July 2017 (UTC)

Correct, my opinion is not to include. "Attempted Attempted collusion by veteran GOP operative claiming to work with Flynn, Bannon, and Conway", no information on the self-styled "Russian hackers" who responded - I don't see how this fits into this article. Space4Time3Continuum2x (talk) 05:30, 8 July 2017 (UTC)

I can see how my original language gave the impression that Smith had approached the WSJ with the story. I have changed it from "Smith told the WSJ" to "Smith confirmed to the WSJ". --MelanieN (talk) 18:02, 7 July 2017 (UTC)

The Vox article said "attempted collusion" may have occurred; could that be a section heading? --MelanieN (talk) 18:04, 7 July 2017 (UTC)

I would say possiable instead of attempted. Not sure what did or did not occur.Casprings (talk) 01:06, 10 July 2017 (UTC)

We do know that they did not gain any useful information. And we have no evidence, or even a suggestion, that they were in contact with the Russian government. That's why I preferred "attempted". (oops, forgot to say: this is MelanieN, away from my regular computer.)

We should go ahead and get this in the article.Casprings (talk) 15:32, 11 July 2017 (UTC)

NY Times 'correction'

https://mobile.nytimes.com/2017/06/25/us/politics/trumps-deflections-and-denials-on-russia-frustrate-even-his-allies.html:

Correction: June 29, 2017 A White House Memo article on Monday about President Trump’s deflections and denials about Russia referred incorrectly to the source of an intelligence assessment that said Russia orchestrated hacking attacks during last year’s presidential election. The assessment was made by four intelligence agencies — the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, the Central Intelligence Agency, the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the National Security Agency. The assessment was not approved by all 17 organizations in the American intelligence community.

Humanengr (talk) 07:07, 30 June 2017 (UTC)

Do you have a source for the original article? It would be nice to check what it said. Also, have we cited or used this in the article or discussed it here? -- BullRangifer (talk) 15:24, 30 June 2017 (UTC)

http://web.archive.org/web/20170626053247/https://www.nytimes.com/2017/06/25/us/politics/trumps-deflections-and-denials-on-russia-frustrate-even-his-allies.html:

… The latest presidential tweets were proof to dismayed members of Mr. Trump’s party that he still refuses to acknowledge a basic fact agreed upon by 17 American intelligence agencies that he now oversees: Russia orchestrated the attacks, and did it to help get him elected.

Humanengr (talk) 17:09, 30 June 2017 (UTC)

As far as I can tell, this article does not make the "17 agencies" claim anywhere, so I'm not sure what this has to do with this article at all. Fyddlestix (talk) 17:21, 30 June 2017 (UTC)

Humanengr, thanks for finding that. Unless there is some other reason, I have to agree with Fyddlestix that there doesn't seem to be any relevance here at this point. Otherwise it just means that "The latest presidential tweets were proof to dismayed members of Mr. Trump’s party that he still refuses to acknowledge a basic fact agreed upon by four American intelligence agencies: Russia orchestrated the attacks, and did it to help get him elected." (revised version from June 30) That much is still certain. -- BullRangifer (talk) 02:27, 1 July 2017 (UTC)

The title of the article, "Russian interference in the 2016 United States elections," implies that the alleged interference is a fact, and a number of editors have argued that we should accept the opinions of U.S. security police regardless of how mainstream media reports their findings. TFD (talk) 03:39, 1 July 2017 (UTC)

So, iiuc, 13 agencies decline to approve, 4 do and, as you say, "a number of editors have argued that we should accept the opinions of U.S. security police regardless of how mainstream media reports their findings." Do I have that right? Humanengr (talk) 04:54, 1 July 2017 (UTC)

Do you have an RS that says that 13 agencies "declined to to approve"? I don't remember even one agency declining. 13 agencies not contributing towards the assessment does not mean that they agree or disagree with the findings, it just means that they were not involved, hardly surprising for agencies such as Coast Guard Intelligence or National Geospatial Intelligence. The sentence that used the phrase "representing 17 intelligence agencies" to explain who the ODNI is - and not to claim that all 17 agencies came to any conclusion - was removed from the article. It was the conclusion of ODNI, FBI, CIA, and NSA. And 6 months later a journalist made an error, and the newspaper corrected it (badly, IMO, they should have said who the agencies were, but I'm editorializing). It's not relevant to this article. Space4Time3Continuum2x (talk) 06:56, 1 July 2017 (UTC)

Until the Coast Guard and the Mine Safety Review Board produce fingerprints of Putin on Assange's laptop... SPECIFICO talk 13:33, 1 July 2017 (UTC)

Now that would be an interesting story. PackMecEng (talk) 14:08, 1 July 2017 (UTC)

@BullRangifer, re 'a basic fact' per the quote you included above: may I ask if you take 'Russian interference' as 'fact' because, in your view, 1) reliable sources report it as fact or 2) primary sources claim it as fact or ?? Thx

What BullRangifer, you or I consider "facts" is irrelevant. This is not a forum. It is an encyclopedia based on reliable sources. Objective3000 (talk)

Objective3000 is correct, but, FYI, I base my opinions and editing on what RS "report as fact" (which is the same as what they "claim as fact", "allege as fact", whatever). They know more than I do. That RS confirm what primary sources say is an added plus. -- BullRangifer (talk) 03:58, 4 July 2017 (UTC)

Thx. Iiuc, we part in that I see an RS "report as fact" as substantially different from "claim as fact" or "allege as fact". The former present as 'fact', the latter an allegation. E.g., refs 1, 3, 4 quote the ODNI-DHS joint statement: "The U.S. Intelligence Community is confident that …" and "We believe … that …". Ref 2, the ODNI presents their conclusions as "We have high confidence in these judgments …". The lede sentence says 'high confidence'. I take these primary sources, the RS's citing those primary sources, and the lede sentence as presenting allegations not facts. Humanengr (talk) 09:44, 4 July 2017 (UTC)

Does this source cxontradictvthat, does it say the other intelligence agencies have not concluded this, or just they were not part of the process (when it is not part of their job)?Slatersteven (talk) 12:00, 4 July 2017 (UTC)

Re 4 out of 17: agree that's not worth pursuing as there is insufficient public data re agency roles and positions. Interesting though that the claim of all 17 has been repeated elsewhere by 'experts'. Humanengr (talk) 03:55, 5 July 2017 (UTC)

Is this sworn testimony under oath clear enough?:

SEN. MARTIN HEINRICH (D-NM): The president has repeatedly talked about ... Russia's involvement in the U.S. election cycle as "a hoax" and as "fake news." ...

JAMES COMEY: Yes, sir. There should be no fuzz on this whatsoever. The Russians interfered in our election during the 2016 cycle. They did it with purpose. They did it with sophistication. They did it with overwhelming technical efforts. And it was an active measures campaign driven from the top of that government. There is no fuzz on that. It is a high-confidence judgment of the entire intelligence community, and the members of this committee have seen the intelligence. It's not a close call. That happened. That's about as unfake as you can possibly get and is very, very serious, which is why it's so refreshing to see a bipartisan focus on that because this is about America, not about any particular party.

HEINRICH: So that was a hostile act by the Russian government against this country?

COMEY: Yes, sir.

There is zero wiggle room left for doubt. -- BullRangifer (talk) 20:34, 4 July 2017 (UTC)

References

1. Politico Staff (June 8, 2017). "Full text: James Comey testimony transcript on Trump and Russia". Politico Magazine. Retrieved June 9, 2017.

Do any of the 17 current (e.g., not fired) agency heads concur? Also, per DNI.gov:

High confidence generally indicates that our judgments are based on high-quality information, and/or that the nature of the issue makes it possible to render a solid judgment. A “high confidence” judgment is not a fact or a certainty, however, and such judgments still carry a risk of being wrong.

Humanengr (talk) 04:02, 5 July 2017 (UTC)

Instead of asking here, maybe you should look it up and find some sources on the subject, then see whether there's any information worth adding to this article. -- Red Rock Canyon (talk) 12:07, 5 July 2017 (UTC)

Also what have these agencies been quoted as experts on? It is down to those who want to include something to demonstrate relevance. Now maybe we could reword it to " all relevant US intelligence agencies", but why bother?Slatersteven (talk) 12:17, 5 July 2017 (UTC)

If there were such, it wouldn't matter, as they would be concurring re 'high confidence', not a fact. See DNI definition above. Humanengr (talk) 12:25, 5 July 2017 (UTC)

What?Slatersteven (talk) 12:31, 5 July 2017 (UTC)

My edits crossed with RRC's and then w yours. Hope it's readable now. Humanengr (talk) 12:39, 5 July 2017 (UTC)

I see now it dropped my edit. Will redo in a bit. Humanengr (talk) 12:42, 5 July 2017 (UTC)

@Red Rock Canyon If there were such, it wouldn't matter, as they would be concurring re 'high confidence', not a fact. See DNI definition above. @Slatersteven Agree re don't bother. (I had inserted a response to you above re 'not worth pursuing'.) Humanengr (talk) 12:52, 5 July 2017 (UTC)

Let me explain, when I said why bother I meant why bother to change what we have now, your source does not contradict the claim that the US intelligence community conclude with high confidence the interference occurred, what it says is that agencies not involved foreign espionage were not part of the process. It does not say they do not agree with the assessment.Slatersteven (talk) 13:03, 5 July 2017 (UTC)

That's fine (though we can't say for certain no other agencies were involved in some way). The open issue (which maybe should be split off if it continues) is the derivative discussion BullRangifer and I are having. Humanengr (talk) 14:00, 5 July 2017 (UTC)

The definitions are interesting, but it would be a SYNTH violation to use them here since that's from a document about Iran. Regardless, it's clear that the intelligence community treats this as a fact and carries out their investigations on that basis. They are seeking more evidence to back up what they have already found. What they've already found is what makes them so confident it happened.

I do find their "high confidence" definition interesting, as it is the strongest possible statement wise humans can make, and in science a window is always left open for the possibility of being wrong. It's essentially a scientific definition, as those of us in the scientific world would use the same language to describe the theory of gravity and other scientific theories which we treat as fact. We can always be wrong, but the known evidence is so strong that we bet our lives on it being true every single day.

The only thing still in doubt is the degree of collusion between Russians, hackers, and the Trump campaign, and that too is becoming more clear. The allegations in the Steele dossier are very clear and many have been corroborated, while others are still being investigated. So that's why we are more cautious with how we describe collusion. We treat it as unproven or partially proven. The latest revelations about the Russian/Flynn/Peter W. Smith collusion is very interesting and demonstrate some form of collusion did occur. -- BullRangifer (talk) 14:23, 5 July 2017 (UTC)

Started new thread below Humanengr (talk) 14:58, 5 July 2017 (UTC)

Nomination of 2017 Special Counsel for the United States Department of Justice team for deletion

A discussion is taking place as to whether the article 2017 Special Counsel for the United States Department of Justice team is suitable for inclusion in Misplaced Pages according to Misplaced Pages's policies and guidelines or whether it should be deleted.

The article will be discussed at Misplaced Pages:Articles for deletion/2017 Special Counsel for the United States Department of Justice team until a consensus is reached, and anyone is welcome to contribute to the discussion. The nomination will explain the policies and guidelines which are of concern. The discussion focuses on high-quality evidence and our policies and guidelines.

Users may edit the article during the discussion, including to improve the article to address concerns raised in the discussion. However, do not remove the article-for-deletion notice from the top of the article.

Nominator's note: I feel that having a stand-alone article for this is WP:UNDUE, and do not expect people on the talk page to be interested in merge proposals. Power~enwiki (talk) 00:15, 5 July 2017 (UTC)

Meaning of 'high confidence"

dni.gov provides that definition identically in multiple docs -- see, e.g., the Annex of this doc. It's general DNI policy.

What We Mean When We Say: An Explanation of Estimative Language

… Confidence in Assessments. Our assessments and estimates are supported by information that varies in scope, quality and sourcing. Consequently, we ascribe high, moderate, or low levels of confidence to our assessments, as follows: • High confidence generally indicates that our judgments are based on high-quality information, and/or that the nature of the issue makes it possible to render a solid judgment. A “high confidence” judgment is not a fact or a certainty, however, and such judgments still carry a risk of being wrong. …

@BullRangifer, re your second para above: Is the issue at hand here one of 'science' or one of 'law'? Humanengr (talk) 14:55, 5 July 2017 (UTC)

And what edit are you suggesting?Slatersteven (talk) 15:05, 5 July 2017 (UTC)

@BullRangifer Re: science. This is law, not science. It has not been adjudicated. Until then, it is 'alleged', here with 'high confidence'. Humanengr (talk) 15:22, 5 July 2017 (UTC)

This is not a street crime. History is replete with bad actions by governments that have never been adjudicated in a court of law. That doesn’t mean we must use the word alleged. Objective3000 (talk) 15:31, 5 July 2017 (UTC)

@Slatersteven I'll address a suggested edit after this discussion clarifying 'high confidence'. Humanengr (talk) 15:22, 5 July 2017 (UTC)

Why?Slatersteven (talk) 15:26, 5 July 2017 (UTC)

iiuc, you are asking why clarify first. A: to build common understanding. Humanengr (talk) 15:31, 5 July 2017 (UTC)

But without knowing what edit you propose we do not know if this definition ids being correctly applied.

To illustrate (based upon the conversation this forked from) your edit might be "only 4 of the 176 agencies concluded with high confidence", but this clearly would have nothing to do with the definition of "high confidence".Slatersteven (talk) 15:35, 5 July 2017 (UTC)

I'm not really sure what the problem is. The very first line of this article says "high confidence" and includes a link to an article explaining exactly what that means. -- Red Rock Canyon (talk) 15:37, 5 July 2017 (UTC)

This is why I am asking what this is actually about.Slatersteven (talk) 15:38, 5 July 2017 (UTC)

Allow me to refer all to related discussion at Misplaced Pages talk:Identifying reliable sources#Citing claims in international disputes, which I started there as that issue bears more broadly across WP. (Slatersteven has already responded there.)Humanengr (talk) 17:48, 5 July 2017 (UTC)

I'm not seeing a point here, either. Does Humanengr have some suggested changes, or is this like their previous TP discussion that was hatted? DN (talk) 06:15, 6 July 2017 (UTC)

We're merely citing RS reporting on the conclusion of the US intelligence community. If there are newer RS now reporting something different, then please cite them. Otherwise this is just a retread of prior discussions on who or what is a reliable source and how to paraphrase/quote them. Space4Time3Continuum2x (talk) 13:36, 6 July 2017 (UTC)

And now it has been raised here as well ].Slatersteven (talk) 13:24, 7 July 2017 (UTC)

Small suggestion

Only because looked at this from a thread at WT:RS, might I suggest that the Russia response section (since they are a major player) be elevated to an H2 heading rather than left as the last H3 heading in the "Reaction" section? (I'd put it right after "US Gov't Response"). Or at least it should be elevated to be the first reaction rather than the last, within that section. Leaving Russia's reaction to the very very end seems rather dismissive of what they have to say in a major international dispute. No content has to be changed. --MASEM (t) 13:50, 7 July 2017 (UTC)

seems fair.Slatersteven (talk) 13:55, 7 July 2017 (UTC)

Thx both -- I was planning on raising that issue as well. Humanengr (talk) 14:14, 7 July 2017 (UTC)

@Slatersteven Would you care to do that? Alternatively does anyone object if I do? Humanengr (talk) 09:09, 9 July 2017 (UTC)

No problem if you do it.Slatersteven (talk) 09:25, 9 July 2017 (UTC)

Grazie -- Will put as H2 as per suggestion. Thoughts on header title? Humanengr (talk) 09:35, 9 July 2017 (UTC)

Why change it?Slatersteven (talk) 09:44, 9 July 2017 (UTC)

Currently as the last H3 section, it's titled 'Russia'. Humanengr (talk) 09:51, 9 July 2017 (UTC)

Change it to Russian Government Response then, not a big issue.Slatersteven (talk) 09:53, 9 July 2017 (UTC)

• I object, BIGLY. Russian government response to Russian interference? They were a major player alright, as indicated in title and body from start to finish, but the section was right where it belongs, Russian commentary/reaction (among other commentary and reactions) to US intelligence community’s conclusion and US government response. It’s WP:FALSEBALANCE to elevate formatting level of Russian denials of interference and reactions to conclusions and response. You asked if there were any objections, and 12 seconds later you went ahead because one editor who happened to be online at the time agreed? I reverted; please do not go ahead without discussion. Space4Time3Continuum2x (talk) 11:36, 9 July 2017 (UTC)

It does seem that the article already includes comments from Russian officials in response to specific accusations and developments, especially in the first major section, "Russian Involvement". So it's not like the Russian side of the argument is relegated to a single subsection down at the end of the article. That makes sense as a way to structure things, with Russian responses on specific issues throughout the article, and more general related developments in Russia in their own subsection. --Red Rock Canyon (talk) 13:53, 9 July 2017 (UTC)

Just two words

The following discussion is closed. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made on the appropriate discussion page. No further edits should be made to this discussion.

To make the title and first section header consistent with the lede, prepend with 'Alleged'. Humanengr (talk) 14:40, 7 July 2017 (UTC)

we have had this more then once (once a week) we have it in two other forums, drop the stick.Slatersteven (talk) 14:47, 7 July 2017 (UTC)

Presidential Advisory Commission on Election Integrity

You are invited to participate in Talk:Presidential Advisory Commission on Election Integrity#RfC: Russian interference in Background section. --Dr. Fleischman (talk) 17:25, 7 July 2017 (UTC)

James Comey testimony

DrFleischman In this edit your edit summary reads "summarize and remove blockquote - readily paraphrased, totally undue and unnecessary" - How exactly is including the testimony "totally" WP:UNDUE or "unnecessary" in a section titled James Comey testimony, June 8, 2017? I find it hard to understand how the literal testimony could be considered undue here, not to mention how such a small portion of the testimony could be considered "unnecessary" or giving too much WP:WEIGHT. See below...

SEN. MARTIN HEINRICH (D-NM): The president has repeatedly talked about ... Russia's involvement in the U.S. election cycle as "a hoax" and as "fake news." ...

JAMES COMEY: Yes, sir. There should be no fuzz on this whatsoever. The Russians interfered in our election during the 2016 cycle. They did it with purpose. They did it with sophistication. They did it with overwhelming technical efforts. And it was an active measures campaign driven from the top of that government. There is no fuzz on that. It is a high-confidence judgment of the entire intelligence community, and the members of this committee have seen the intelligence. It's not a close call. That happened. That's about as unfake as you can possibly get and is very, very serious, which is why it's so refreshing to see a bipartisan focus on that because this is about America, not about any particular party.

HEINRICH: So that was a hostile act by the Russian government against this country?

COMEY: Yes, sir.

DN (talk) 22:49, 7 July 2017 (UTC)

I also think this part of his testimony is extremely WP:DUE in that particular section. In his live testimony, Comey was asked why he thought he was fired and he replied, "I take the president at his word that I was fired because of the Russia investigation." here's a more appropriate link - Taken from the article Dismissal of James Comey. DN (talk) 02:23, 8 July 2017 (UTC)

DrFleischman wrote a good paraphrase of the essential points made by Comey; a full quote does not inform the reader any better. MOS:QUOTE explicitly says that well-written prose is preferred to extensive quotes. — JFG 03:35, 8 July 2017 (UTC)

@JFG: What MOS:QUOTE says is...

• While quotations are an indispensable part of Misplaced Pages, try not to overuse them. Long quotations crowd the actual article and remove attention from other information. Many direct quotations can be minimized in length by providing an appropriate context in the surrounding text. A summary or paraphrase of a quotation is often better where the original wording could be improved. Consider minimizing the length of a quotation by paraphrasing, by working smaller portions of quotation into the article text, or both. Provided each use of a quotation within an article is legitimate and justified there is no need for an arbitrary limit, but quotes should not dominate the article.

Overuse happens when:

   a quotation is used without pertinence: it is presented visually on the page, but its relevance is not explained anywhere
   quotes are used to explain a point that can also be paraphrased
   the quotes dominate the article or section

This is not the case in this instance, nor does it bare any similarity to "OVERUSE". If you disagree, then the burden of proof is on you and DrF. The more applicable portion of this guideline is...MOS:BLOCKQUOTE....DN (talk) 04:56, 8 July 2017 (UTC)

This also does not address the reasoning that DrFleischman gave, which was that it is WP:UNDUE. DN (talk) 05:02, 8 July 2017 (UTC)

Hacked emails in lede

I just noticed that this sentence was changed from the former correct version to a confusing one. (Looks like it isn't just Trump who can't keep those facts straight.) Those were two separate and different incidents. The hackers invaded the DNC servers and stole emails sent to and from DNC staff members from January 2015 until the operation was discovered and eventually shut down in May 2016. John Podesta's personal Gmail account was hacked (spearphished) on March 19, 2016. Space4Time3Continuum2x (talk) 20:10, 9 July 2017 (UTC)

Several now-outdated inaccuracies with this page.

Upon reviewing this page, there are some glaring holes in the way this story is being presented and written about here.

1) There has still been no definitive evidence produced that Russia interfered in the 2016 US election. Therefore the article title and references to it in the article should include "alleged". This is a major flaw that runs through the entire page.

2) The lead sentence of the article (in the summary at the top) incorrectly begins with the assertion that "The United States Intelligence Community has concluded..." This has now been debunked with many retractions and clarifications from several sections of the media. Example - AP (https://apnews.com/6f05b3a81e134568902e015e666726f6). The NY Times has also corrected this (http://freebeacon.com/national-security/new-york-times-associated-press-correct-claims-that-all-17-intelligence-agencies-agreed-on-russian-interference/) It was in fact only three U.S. intelligence agencies who have suggested this - the FBI, CIA and National Security Agency. This fact should probably be included in the article itself (perhaps a section on media reaction/retractions?).

3) The fact that the above point uses the Washington Post as a reference (who have no interest in releasing any kind of retraction or correction) is a telling part of their bias and I question using them as a source for any part of this story. It is a well-known fact that Jeff Bezos, the owner of the Washington Post (and Amazon billionaire) is a Democratic Party donor and funded Hillary Clinton's Presidential Campaign in 2016. It is in his interests (and those of the editors that are hired to work for him) to push this story as hard as it can. Many other news outlets have discredited the "United States Intelligence Community"/ 17 intelligence agencies assertion that circulated for months unchallenged.

You really need to question why the majority of news source links in this article are coming from The Washington Post and The Guardian (among others) who have a vested and biased interest in using this story to de-legitimize Trump's election victory in 2016. If you're going to allow article references for this story from sources like those (along with Buzzfeed... lol), then would you also allow articles from sites like News Max, The Daily Caller or Info Wars? My point is that including biased references discredits the entire page.

4) This mistake is repeated in the section 'U.S. intelligence analysis' under 'January 2017 Intelligence Community Assessment' where the page states "U.S. intelligence agencies released a de-classified version...". This should be corrected to the 'Office of the DNI' and/or 'three U.S. intelligence agencies'.

I believe this page will be less biased and more neutral (something I KNOW Misplaced Pages strives to achieve) if the above recommendations / criticisms are acted upon. To do anything less makes the page article (and this site) seem littered with bias and incorrect facts.

Mangodebango (talk) 20:33, 9 July 2017 (UTC)

If you want to evaluate RS like WaPo, I suggest you take it to RSN. We don't evaluate evidence or make judgement calls like the ones you are suggesting, as far as I know. If you prefer sources, like Breitbart for example, you will find they aren't as reliable. DN (talk) 00:21, 10 July 2017 (UTC)

1) Evidence has been found, according to our sources. (Hopefully evidence is not being "produced") 2) Dubious claim and broken links. 3) Just no. We don't evaluate sources based on their owners. You can inquire at WP:RSN if you believe otherwise. 4) I don't see a mistake there.- MrX 01:31, 10 July 2017 (UTC)

What a garbage & pithy response.

1) And where exactly is this evidence because it isn't linked or shown anywhere on the page discussing it. 2) The links work fine for me. I suggest you check your internet connection. 3) So can I link news stories made by such places as BreitBart or Info Wars then? (not that I want to... you're completely missing the point made). 4) The mistake highlighted in my original report is repeated in that relevant section. It is NOT "U.S. intelligence agencies released a de-classified version..." it is only the Office of the DNI (as per the cited reference).

Get your facts straight before you bother with another response. If the issues on this page aren't handled objectively, I will petition to either have the entire page removed or relevant sections that contain the errors highlighted. Mangodebango (talk) 03:14, 10 July 2017 (UTC)

1) Not this crap again. 2) No no it has not been "debunked" and "Free Beacon" ain't RS. You're also trying to make mountains out of a minor correction. 3) Yawwwwnnnn. WaPo is RS. "FreeBeacon" or whatever, is not.Volunteer Marek (talk) 04:08, 10 July 2017 (UTC)

I'd recommend reading past discussion on this page, where others have discussed each of those issues in detail and come to consensus about them, especially your #1. For #2, the NY Times has a full explanation of their retraction which explains the situation better than I could. Politifact as well. While it would be inaccurate to say "17 agencies concluded", it is NOT inaccurate to say "the intelligence community concluded". The Coast Guard or DEA intelligence agencies were not asked to help in producing intelligence about Russian interference in an election, because they would have nothing to contribute. The Office of the Director of National Intelligence is responsible with coordinating the other agencies, and speaks on behalf of all of them - in the absence of competing conclusions from other agencies (there are none in this instance), the ODNI can be assumed to be the consensus of the intelligence community. Please go and read some of the other threads on this talk page - all of your concerns have been addressed in one way or another. --Red Rock Canyon (talk) 04:51, 10 July 2017 (UTC)

Volunteer Marek - I have reverted your deletion of the US media reaction section. You cite "Washington Free Beacon' in your explanation but that is inadequate. The two sources cited are directly from the AP and the NYT. What's more - this recent development (less than 2 weeks old) has relevance to the page. It is NOT "making a mountain out of a molehill". That's just your (biased) opinion.

Honestly - is this a page of unbiased moderators or is this whole Misplaced Pages being run from an unbiased perspective some kind of big charade? I think some of you guys really need to moderate your own comments with a little less vitriol before you go adjusting the page! Mangodebango (talk) 05:30, 10 July 2017 (UTC)

Yeah, you're not suppose to do that. You're suppose to get consensus for your additions. You should self revert (might also want to explain what a brand-new account which "has been paid by Combs Enterprises Inc on their behalf." is doing on this page. A bit out of your neighborhood, no?) You should also read WP:SOAPBOX.

And yes, the two sources are NYT and AP but in this case they are WP:PRIMARY sources and this is not enough to merit a mention in the article, much less to have a section of its own.Volunteer Marek (talk) 05:40, 10 July 2017 (UTC)

Look, Mangodebango, you need to stop doing this. Perhaps this specific issue warrants inclusion, but that should be discussed first. In any case, it is of only marginal relevance to the topic of the article - some newspapers printed an incredibly minor inaccuracy, and then later corrected it. It's probably not something worth taking note of, except in that we make sure not to include the mistaken version. Either way though, it's not such a pressing issue that you should try to force it through without any discussion whatsoever. --Red Rock Canyon (talk) 06:18, 10 July 2017 (UTC)

There is no context for this...

• On June 29, 2017 and June 30, 2017, several news media outlets (including the Associated Press and The New York Times) issued a correction/clarification to their previous reports widely circulated that "all 17 U.S. intelligence agencies" agreed that Russia tried to influence the 2016 U.S. election. The correction noted that there were only three U.S. intelligence agencies who have reached this assessment - the FBI, CIA and the National Security Agency.

...since nowhere in the article does it currently state "all 17 U.S. intelligence agencies agreed that Russia..." When the retraction was made, it was removed from the article. The inclusion of just the retraction seems WP:UNDUE. DN (talk) 06:31, 10 July 2017 (UTC)

Volunteer Marek - I can take on board some of the suggestions that Darknipples has suggested (even though I still think this entire page should be clarified as being an allegation/alleged as nothing has been definitively proven), but I ask that you do not engage in harrassment/public airing of my personal details in this forum. My personal details and whether I have a new account or not, or where I've claimed being a paid contributor (as per Misplaced Pages rules) is frankly no business of yours. Before you go and post any more on my Talk page or look up my edit history, I suggest that you look up WP:DNB. And while you're at it, you can also look up WP:PRIVACY, WP:HA and User space harassment (and no, I won't be posting those on your Talk page although I probably should). For someone who has been here for over 12 years, you should know better! Mangodebango (talk) 07:34, 10 July 2017 (UTC)

If you're insinuating that I violated your privacy or are "harassing" you, then that's false. I only asked about a detail you yourself posted on your user page. I do find it a bit peculiar that a brand new account which so far has only edited articles related to Sean Combs, would all of sudden decide to jump into the middle of this one right here. All I've done is asked for an explanation. That's not "harassment" that's... asking for an explanation.Volunteer Marek (talk) 07:40, 10 July 2017 (UTC)

Your focus on the Washington Post and who owns is also peculiar.Volunteer Marek (talk) 07:47, 10 July 2017 (UTC)

To a degree I think there is a valid point here, the article (maybe) should make it clear that all three of the domestic and overseas "espionage" agencies concluded this. That only intelligence agencies that do not engage or deal with espionage were not included in the assessment.Slatersteven (talk) 09:38, 10 July 2017 (UTC)

You think it might make sense to include some information in the January 2017 Intelligence Community Assessment then, as a general description of the report and process? Especially since it seems a lot of people are confused due to the stories going around about "17 agencies". --Red Rock Canyon (talk) 09:58, 10 July 2017 (UTC)

As it does seem to be causing confusion (and as our job is to inform) yes it might be a good idea.Slatersteven (talk) 10:23, 10 July 2017 (UTC)

How about adding the bold text to the lead and the January 2017 Intelligence Community Assessment and adding the Rosenberg’s NY Times article as a second reference? This isn’t the article to go into lengthy explanations on what the responsibilities and areas of expertise of the individual members of the Intelligence Community are (if people are confused, maybe it's because they are reading sources like the Free Beacon and tweets by prominent individuals?).

• A January 2017 assessment by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI), based on intelligence information collected and disseminated by CIA, FBI, and NSA, stated that Russian leadership preferred presidential candidate Donald Trump over Hillary Clinton, and that Russian President Vladimir Putin personally ordered an "influence campaign" to harm Clinton's electoral chances and "undermine public faith in the US democratic process".

• The report, based on intelligence information collected and disseminated by CIA, FBI, and NSA, asserted that Russia had carried out a massive cyber operation ordered by Russian President Putin with the goal to sabotage the 2016 U.S. elections. Space4Time3Continuum2x (talk) 17:53, 10 July 2017 (UTC)

Looks like a useful and correct clarification to me, thanks. — JFG 19:40, 10 July 2017 (UTC)

No it isn't. ONDI, which represents 17 Intel agencies, did the assessment. Because of the time requirement only 3 agencies took part in developing the report. Nowhere is it supported that all the Intel came from those agencies nor that any agency disagreed.Casprings (talk) 23:23, 10 July 2017 (UTC)

Never seen this theory of "the time requirement". The DNI himself, James Clapper, testified under oath that only the FBI, CIA and NSA contributed to the report. Brennan (CIA) and Comey (FBI) testified the same thing. The "17 agencies agreed" story was merely a Hillary campaign talking point, conflating "ODNI represents 17 agencies" with "all 17 agencies endorsed the report". This was established long before the New York Times issued their correction. Details from an archived thread follow. — JFG 05:22, 11 July 2017 (UTC)

Maybe you've seen the theory of due weight. BTW there's no constuctive purpose served by using this page to rehash and justify the hundreds of tenuous and now disproved denials of the facts of this matter. SPECIFICO talk 11:32, 11 July 2017 (UTC)

The Russia-WikiLeaks claims first surfaced on July 25, 2016, at the opening of the Democratic convention, just a couple days after WikiLeaks had published the DNC emails. Source: https://www.bloomberg.com/view/articles/2016-07-25/cybersecurity-experts-say-russia-hacked-the-democrats Then Clinton emphasized the "17 intelligence agencies" claim during the third presidential debate. Source: https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-fix/wp/2016/10/19/the-final-trump-clinton-debate-transcript-annotated/ and media coverage picked up from there. Compare a news search for "17 intelligence agencies" and "Russia" from January to September 2016 with the same search for just October 2016. — JFG 06:12, 25 May 2017 (UTC)

A candidate stating a fact doesn't make it a campaign talking point. Let's not tell the intelligence agencies how to do their work. Let's just report what they say, as scrutinized and verified by RS. This point has been hashed and rehashed here so many times it would help not to bring it up any further here. WP editors' theories about how the US intelligence services "should" conduct themselves is of no interest to our users. SPECIFICO talk 12:11, 25 May 2017 (UTC)

Uh? "Let's just report what they say"? That's exactly my point! The head of the intel agencies said under oath that the report was compiled by FBI, CIA and NSA, nobody else. There is no "WP editors' theories" behind this at all... — JFG 13:46, 25 May 2017 (UTC)

JFG I refer you to my comment here. Even ignoring that completely insurmountable objection to this edit, it's still not something that belongs in an encyclopedia. The simple fact is; when the spokesman for an agency speaks for that agency, they are speaking for that agency. That you've "uncovered" the fact that only three of the agencies worked on the report only shows that three of the agencies worked on the report. It doesn't indicate, in any way -as such an edit would- that the other agencies disagreed with them or even held no opinion on the matter. Indeed, we have a statement prepared on behalf of the entire US intelligence community which states quite clearly the lack of any disagreement, whatsoever. Neither of you have, nor can prove that no-one in any other agency did not review the report and endorse it, for example. I know you both see this as "there's no evidence that any of the other agencies had anything to do with this," but that's simply not an accurate view of this report. The authors were explicitly speaking for the entire community, as evinced not only in the report but in the reliable third-party coverage of it. ᛗᛁᛟᛚᚾᛁᚱPants Tell me all about it. 04:44, 25 May 2017 (UTC)

That's not me saying it, it's the DNI director in charge. Clapper's Senate testimony, May 8, 2017, his opening statement:

As you know, the I.C. was a coordinated product from three agencies; CIA, NSA, and the FBI not all 17 components of the intelligence community. Those three under the aegis of my former office. Following an extensive intelligence reporting about many Russian efforts to collect on and influence the outcome of the presidential election, President Obama asked us to do this in early December and have it completed before the end of his term. The two dozen or so analysts for this task were hand-picked, seasoned experts from each of the contributing agencies.

Source: https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/post-politics/wp/2017/05/08/full-transcript-sally-yates-and-james-clapper-testify-on-russian-election-interference/ — JFG 05:22, 11 July 2017 (UTC)

Other sources agree that only the CIA, FBI, NSA, and ODNI were involved in producing the report, and that the report represents the conclusion of the intelligence community as a whole. Both are true. "Four out of the 17 were involved in the January assessment about Russia: CIA, FBI, NSA and the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, which is an umbrella agency that oversees all 17 organizations." ] "The reason the views of only those four intelligence agencies, not all 17, were included in the assessment is simple: They were the ones tracking and analyzing the Russian campaign." . Though the distinction between "a report produced by 17 agencies" and "a report representing the views of the intelligence community as a whole" may not be super important, it does exist. I think some clarification along the lines of what Space4Time3Continuum2x suggested is warranted, though I would prefer "produced by the CIA, FBI, NSA, and ODNI" or something. --Red Rock Canyon (talk) 08:32, 11 July 2017 (UTC)

Agreed. I see you've already added the info to the body. I'm also considering changing the second sentence of the lede as follows (bold): Their assessment released on January 6, 2017, by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) to make it clear that it was the assessment of the US Intelligence Community and not just the ODNI who released it. Objections/thoughts? Space4Time3Continuum2x (talk) 18:48, 11 July 2017 (UTC)

We need to get the wording right. Per: https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/post-politics/wp/2017/05/08/full-transcript-sally-yates-and-james-clapper-testify-on-russian-election-interference/?utm_term=.96f4ac596edc

FRANKEN: Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

I want to thank both you and the ranking member for -- for this hearing and these hearings.

And I want to thank General Clapper and -- and Attorney General Yates for -- for appearing today. We have -- the intelligence communities have concluded all 17 of them that Russia interfered with this election. And we all know how that's right.

CLAPPER: Senator, as I pointed out in my statement Senator Franken, it was there were only three agencies that directly involved in this assessment plus my office...

FRANKEN: But all 17 signed on to that?

CLAPPER: Well, we didn't go through that -- that process, this was a special situation because of the time limits and my -- what I knew to be to who could really contribute to this and the sensitivity of the situation, we decided it was a constant judgment (ph) to restrict it to those three. I'm not aware of anyone who dissented or -- or disagreed when it came out..

In sum, ONDI, which represented 17 agencies, produced the report. Because of time requirements and because of the sensitivity of the subject, they only used 3 of the 17 agencies within ONDI to produce the report.Casprings (talk) 19:01, 11 July 2017 (UTC)

I'm not sure if the Their assessment language makes sense, or is necessary. The first sentence makes clear that this is the conclusion of the Intelligence Community as a whole, but when talking about the report specifically, it isn't necessarily the assessment of the Intelligence Community as a whole. It just feels like that change would imply the active participation of every agency, which I think is what we want to avoid, at it would be misleading. --Red Rock Canyon (talk) 19:09, 11 July 2017 (UTC)

I was going by the "cover(?)" on pg. 4 of the PDF which says "ICA Intelligence Community Assessment" but that may be OR (not that we don't have any of that in this article). I can live with the current wording. Space4Time3Continuum2x (talk) 19:59, 11 July 2017 (UTC)

Trump’s Son Met With Russian Lawyer After Being Promised Damaging Information on Clinton

Seems important: https://www.nytimes.com/2017/07/09/us/politics/trump-russia-kushner-manafort.html?mwrsm=Email Casprings (talk) 20:38, 9 July 2017 (UTC)

Yepppp. Go ahead and add it.Volunteer Marek (talk) 22:08, 9 July 2017 (UTC)

Confirmed my trump JR. https://www.washingtonpost.com/amphtml/news/the-fix/wp/2017/07/09/donald-trump-jr-s-stunningly-incriminating-statement-to-the-new-york-times/ Casprings (talk) 23:28, 9 July 2017 (UTC)

Well, WaPo is just referring to the NYT. Personally, I wouldn't add this too quickly. But, considering the reputation of these sources, I also wouldn't be stomping my feet to remove it. Objective3000 (talk) 00:12, 10 July 2017 (UTC)

Point was that Trump Jr is confirming the story and WP:RSes are making that point.Casprings (talk) 00:30, 10 July 2017 (UTC)

This seems like material for Links between Trump associates and Russian officials, not this page. Power~enwiki (talk) 00:27, 10 July 2017 (UTC)

Can't argue with that. Objective3000 (talk) 00:33, 10 July 2017 (UTC)

Why not both? Volunteer Marek (talk) 03:18, 10 July 2017 (UTC)

It seems the allegation is not about rigging the election but about the instructions the Trump administration will take from the Soviets after the election. TFD (talk) 00:48, 10 July 2017 (UTC)

The "Soviets"? GoodDay (talk) 00:56, 10 July 2017 (UTC)

There is an ongoing investigation as to rather the Trump campaign worked with and coordinated efforts with the Russians. Of course it is relavent to this article and, more importantly, WP:RSes agree.Casprings (talk) 00:57, 10 July 2017 (UTC)

I'm inclined to agree with Casprings that there is some relevant WP:Weight here. I haven't had a chance to examine the story thoroughly, but maybe enough for a brief inclusion. ::Power~enwiki Objective3000 The Four Deuces how is it this context should be exclusive to Links between Trump associates and Russian officials and not this article? See below...

• "The meeting — at Trump Tower on June 9, 2016, two weeks after Donald J. Trump clinched the Republican nomination — points to the central question in federal investigations of the Kremlin’s meddling in the presidential election: whether the Trump campaign colluded with the Russians. The accounts of the meeting represent the first public indication that at least some in the campaign were willing to accept Russian help."

Next thing you know, editors will be trying to argue whether or not collusion with Russia is illegal , and that therefore the entire article must be WP:UNDUE. DN (talk) 01:51, 10 July 2017 (UTC)

Keep in mind that per Comey's testimony before Congress, the New York Times published an incorrect article. We should proceed with caution. A Quest For Knowledge (talk) 01:58, 10 July 2017 (UTC)

Which one? Volunteer Marek (talk) 03:27, 10 July 2017 (UTC)

Ah. Never mind. Still, New York Times stands by its reporting and this seems to be a disagreement over what constitutes a Russian agent. This is minor and really of no consequence here.Volunteer Marek (talk) 03:30, 10 July 2017 (UTC)

The NYT has been pretty dead on and accurate with their reporting. Plus Trump Jr. said it happened. Casprings (talk) 02:08, 10 July 2017 (UTC)

Not really:

RISCH: I remember, you talked with us shortly after February 14th, when the "New York Times" wrote an article that suggested that the trump campaign was colluding with the Russians. Do you remember reading that article when it first came out?

COMEY: I do, it was about allegedly extensive electronic surveillance in their communications.

RISCH: Correct. That upset you to the point where you surveyed the intelligence community to see whether you were missing something in that. Is that correct?

COMEY: That's correct. I want to be careful in open setting, but —

RISCH: I'm not going to go any further than that, so thank you. In addition to that, after that, you sought out both Republican and Democrat senators to tell them that, hey, I don't know where this is coming from, but this is not the case. This is not factual. Do you recall that?

COMEY: Yes.

RISCH: Okay. So again, so the American people can understand this, that report by the New York Times was not true. Is that a fair statement?

COMEY: In the main, it was not true. And again, all of you know this. Maybe the American people don't. The challenge, and I'm not picking on reporters about writing stories about classified information, is the people talking about it often don't really know what's going on, and going on are not talking about it. We don't call the press to say, hey, you don't that thing wrong about the sensitive topic. We have to leave it there.

I mentioned to the chairman the nonsense around what influenced me to make the July 5th statement. Nonsense. But I can't go explaining how it is nonsense.

http://www.politico.com/story/2017/06/08/full-text-james-comey-trump-russia-testimony-239295 A Quest For Knowledge (talk) 14:48, 10 July 2017 (UTC)

Yeah, that's not really a criticism of New York Times. Anyway - here you have primary source vs. primary source. You need a secondary source.Volunteer Marek (talk) 23:24, 10 July 2017 (UTC)

Analysis: Donald Trump Jr.'s stunningly incriminating statement to the New York Times Volunteer Marek (talk) 04:17, 10 July 2017 (UTC)

The original story certainly fits in the links article. IMO, the follow-up stories provide what is needed for inclusion in this article – not as an example of interference; but as evidence the Trump team was amenable to interference. Objective3000 (talk) 11:46, 10 July 2017 (UTC)

We need to point out that the "damaging information" was that Russia was allegedly paying money to the DNC. TFD (talk) 00:28, 11 July 2017 (UTC)

Per Don Jr's statement, which we have every reason to doubt.Casprings (talk) 00:31, 11 July 2017 (UTC)

Don received an email that told him the information was coming from the Russian government

Seems pretty important to me. https://www.nytimes.com/2017/07/10/us/politics/donald-trump-jr-russia-email-candidacy.html?_r=0 Casprings (talk) 01:21, 11 July 2017 (UTC)

He received the email not sent it. But:

"Before arranging a meeting with a Kremlin-connected Russian lawyer he believed would offer him compromising information about Hillary Clinton, Donald Trump Jr. was informed in an email that the material was part of a Russian government effort to aid his father’s candidacy"

and

"Mr. Trump acknowledged that he was interested in receiving damaging information about Mrs. Clinton, but gave no indication that he thought the lawyer might have been a Kremlin proxy. Mr. Goldstone’s message, as described to The New York Times by the three people, indicates that the Russian government was the source of the potentially damaging information."

and

" In an interview Monday, Mr. Goldstone said he was asked by Mr. Agalarov to set up the meeting with Donald Trump Jr. and the Russian lawyer, Natalia Veselnitskaya. “He said, ‘I’m told she has information about illegal campaign contributions to the D.N.C.,’” Mr. Goldstone recalled, referring to the Democratic National Committee. He said he then emailed Donald Trump Jr., outlining what the lawyer purported to have."

Volunteer Marek (talk) 03:20, 11 July 2017 (UTC)

As ever, plenty of selective quoting going on here. So, see also:

• "It is unclear whether Mr. Goldstone had direct knowledge of the origin of the damaging material. One person who was briefed on the emails said it appeared that he was passing along information that had been passed through several others"
• "He said, ‘I’m told she has information about illegal campaign contributions to the D.N.C.,’” Mr. Goldstone recalled, referring to the Democratic National Committee. He said he then emailed Donald Trump Jr., outlining what the lawyer purported to have. But Mr. Goldstone, who wrote the email over a year ago, denied any knowledge of involvement by the Russian government in the matter, saying that never dawned on him. “Never, never ever,” he said. Later, after the email was described to The Times, efforts to reach him for further comment were unsuccessful".

As with all of these news reports, what actually happened is pretty unclear and depends on who you believe when it comes to detail. A paper's anonymous sources say the info was sold as coming from the Russian govt; the person who wrote the email says, on an initial inquiry, it was not and he did not assume it was. Our current text states as fact that it was from the govt, with people here as usual diving in to add the most negative content they can from speculative media reporting. N-HH talk/edits 09:18, 11 July 2017 (UTC)

Not clear what your point is. It seems like obfuscation and some particular original research. The source clearly says "the Russian government was the source of the potentially damaging information".Volunteer Marek (talk) 14:55, 11 July 2017 (UTC)

Don Jr confirmed the meeting and you have the email from 3 different sources.Casprings (talk) 10:04, 11 July 2017 (UTC)

We also have the White House confirming it happened confirming it , so the only question is not if it happened but what was disused.Slatersteven (talk) 10:08, 11 July 2017 (UTC)

Well and you have an email that indicates the info is from the Russian government. Casprings (talk) 10:13, 11 July 2017 (UTC)

Er, where did I suggest the meeting did not take place? As for "sources", I have pointed out the discrepancy in the claims, quoting the actual article and helpfully bolding the relevant bits for you. We do not have the actual email of course. Given that, WP cannot claim in its own voice the info was, definitely, being sold as coming from the Russian govt and that Trump Jr would have known that going into it. This is pretty basic stuff for those approaching editing with an open mind and no bias, and should not be being reinserted. And what on earth is a "Russian connected lawyer"? N-HH talk/edits 10:16, 11 July 2017 (UTC)

There's no "discrepancy in the claims" unless you really really twist things around till they are something they are not. And WP is not Misplaced Pages, so yeah, they can claim "in its own voice". Not your job to second guess reliable sources. *That* is pretty basic stuff for those approaching editing with an open mind and no bias. Like in WP:NOR.Volunteer Marek (talk) 14:59, 11 July 2017 (UTC)

A Russian connected lawyer is a lawyer with Russian connections, which she clearly had. I will self revert the other. However, the wording of the email is confirmed by 3 sources that state he indicated that the information came from the Russian government. That is a key fact and should be in the article.Casprings (talk) 10:24, 11 July 2017 (UTC)

She is, I believe, a Russian lawyer. Sticking "connected" in the middle adds no information (connected to what? The whole country? The Kremlin, by implication?) and is grammatically confusing. If you want to include the fact that the NYT is citing anonymous sources as claimimg some particular alleged detail relating to a highly politicised issue, you'll no doubt get away with that (although personally I don't think this sort of media reporting is good for an encyclopedia) but please at least attribute it as being exactly that. N-HH talk/edits 10:33, 11 July 2017 (UTC)

Connected to the Russian government of course. That's sorta obvious no? Volunteer Marek (talk) 14:59, 11 July 2017 (UTC)

No, not obvious from the wording necessarily, hence why I asked for clarification. And to the extent that that is the implication, not necessarily true either, or at least pretty meaningless (how "connected" do you have to be to be definitively "connected"?). N-HH talk/edits 19:33, 11 July 2017 (UTC)

Don Jr. being told that the Russian government provided the info isn't a small detail. It's pretty core. Moreover it's from an extremely WP:RS sources with great sourcing.Casprings (talk) 11:33, 11 July 2017 (UTC)

I didn't say it was a "small" detail, I said it was a detail, and a contested one at that, which it is. And anonymous sources may be "great sourcing" for speculative and political media reports, but no, neither are for an encyclopedia, whether it's the NYT or anyone else. As I also said, if it does go in, it has to be exactly on that basis: anonymous sources being cited by the NYT. N-HH talk/edits 11:42, 11 July 2017 (UTC)

My, how far have the goal posts been moved.Volunteer Marek (talk) 14:59, 11 July 2017 (UTC)

Part of the e-mail chain has just been tweeted by D. Trump Jr. and will hit secondary sources soon. Objective3000 (talk) 15:20, 11 July 2017 (UTC)

Which obviously changes everything, as it confirms what the sources reported (which of course in turn does not invalidate any earlier objections to relying solely on anonymous-source reporting, especially to say things in WP's voice as facts). As for "goal posts" being moved, that literally makes no sense. N-HH talk/edits 19:33, 11 July 2017 (UTC)

Content disputes

Two questions are in dispute in the section.

1. Should the article mention that the email indicated that the Russian government was the source of the information. Per: https://www.nytimes.com/2017/07/10/us/politics/donald-trump-jr-russia-email-candidacy.html?hp&action=click&pgtype=Homepage&clickSource=story-heading&module=a-lede-package-region&region=top-news&WT.nav=top-news&_r=0

Mr. Goldstone’s message, as described to The New York Times by the three people, indicates that the Russian government was the source of the potentially damaging information. It does not elaborate on the wider effort by Moscow to help the Trump campaign.

2. Should the title of the article mention that Veselnitskaya is Russian connected? In other words, should the title mention he was meeting with someone that was connected to the Russia and the Russian government?

If you say yes to either, what should the wording be?

Casprings (talk) 11:06, 11 July 2017 (UTC)

"The media claimed that Donald Trump jnr had exchanged e-mails that said that information being provided by a Russian lawyer to Trump Jnr had come form the Russian government. Whilst the meeting had been confirmed the details of what was discused have not been".Slatersteven (talk) 11:12, 11 July 2017 (UTC)

Nyet. We don't use "claim" when we mean "report" - and prior to retaining criminal counsel, Jr. confirmed what was discussed in his attempt to minimize its significance. SPECIFICO talk 11:30, 11 July 2017 (UTC)

So care to actually make a constructive suggestion?Slatersteven (talk) 11:42, 11 July 2017 (UTC)

1.Per discussion above, if this claim does go in, it needs to be something like, "According to anonymous sources cited by the New York Times, the email indicated that the information being touted would have come from the Russian government, a claim denied by Goldstone".
2. Per discussion above, "Russian connected lawyer" doesn't add much more than innuendo to how she is already described, eg a "Russian attorney". As for including it in the sub-heading, that is already long enough, with eight words (one of them wrong; I'll fix that now). N-HH talk/edits 11:53, 11 July 2017 (UTC)

Unnamed sources. They aren't anonymous to the NYT. Objective3000 (talk) 12:30, 11 July 2017 (UTC)

Yes. Let there be no further denigration of RS reporting with the strawman decoy canard about "anonymous sources" from the underworld. SPECIFICO talk 14:17, 11 July 2017 (UTC)

Agree. Something like. "The New York Times reported, based on three unnamed sources with access to Goldstone's email, that the email indicated that the Russian government was behind the information on Clinton."

Actually we shouldn't even try to poison the well with this "unnamed sources" business, especially since Trump pretty much confirmed the email.Volunteer Marek (talk) 14:48, 11 July 2017 (UTC)

I guess we can dispense with the "unnamed sources" business now.Volunteer Marek (talk) 16:01, 11 July 2017 (UTC)

Fine with me. Objective3000 (talk) 17:30, 11 July 2017 (UTC)

Information about Trump administration's response from The Independent. --Red Rock Canyon (talk) 18:37, 11 July 2017 (UTC)

Before the emails were actually published and commented on directly, it was perfectly right to query the use in an encyclopedia of just-published reporting based on anonymous or unnamed sources – as it always is – and to require, if it is used, that it is described as such. There's nothing "denigratory" or "strawman decoy canard"-like (whatever that means) about describing evidence/speculation in exactly the same way as the paper reporting it does. And of course "anonymous" refers to the fact that they are not being made public by the paper rather than the fact that even the paper doesn't know who they are. N-HH talk/edits 19:40, 11 July 2017 (UTC)

That's not what's meant by 'anonymous' - that's what's meant by 'undisclosed' 'unnamed' 'confidential' usw. SPECIFICO talk 19:52, 11 July 2017 (UTC)

No, that's exactly what is meant by "anonymous", which is synonymous with "unnamed" in the terminology the New York Times and other newspapers themselves use. Like I said. N-HH talk/edits 19:57, 11 July 2017 (UTC)

We all understand that was your understanding, but most comments appear to say it's incorrect. No bigsie, as they say in USA. SPECIFICO talk 21:40, 11 July 2017 (UTC)

OK, you and most other people commenting here appear not to understand how the word is technically and professionally used in this context and were, quite clearly, at least partially misunderstanding and/or misrepresenting my point as a result. To clear up the confusion, I then point you to an article in that very paper explaining how it actually uses the term. This might have been thought helpful for both this and any future discussion, but instead you're coming back at me again and *still* telling me I'm the one being "incorrect" about usage, just because you and one or two other pseudonymous online people don't know what they're talking about when it comes to media terminology? Um, OK. N-HH talk/edits 22:28, 11 July 2017 (UTC)

Anonymous can mean unknown to the paper or known and unnamed (although the NYT wouldn’t use unknown sources). Unnamed means unnamed. So, it makes no sense to use the word anonymous as it can be confused by the reader with unknown to anyone. Unnamed is far less likely to be confusing. Objective3000 (talk) 22:35, 11 July 2017 (UTC)

Tell the public editor of the New York Times and pretty much any other journalist. They seem to manage. N-HH talk/edits 22:45, 11 July 2017 (UTC)

From Greek via Latin "anonymus" literally means "unnamed", I don't see what the big fuss is about. Journalists regularly used unnamed, anonymous, undisclosed, hidden, confidential, protected or exclusive sources. "Anonymous source" seems to be the term of art in the profession, so we go with what the RS profession uses most. — JFG 23:26, 11 July 2017 (UTC)

Yes, we know that. But, many readers probably don’t. This is particularly true in these times as the term ‘’anonymity’’ has a different connotation on the Internet. If the source says anonymous, we should use it. But, if the source doesn’t specifically use that word; I think it would be better to use phraseology that indicates that the primary sources are known to the secondary source. Let us not assume that everyone has memorized the dictionary. (I’m up to aardvark so far.) Objective3000 (talk) 00:08, 12 July 2017 (UTC)

Tell it to Greek Misplaced Pages. What's Greek for "alleged" ?

Email Text

Per:

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/07/11/us/politics/trump-russia-email-clinton.html?mwrsm=Email

The June 3, 2016, email sent to Donald Trump Jr. could hardly have been more explicit: One of his father’s former Russian business partners had been contacted by a senior Russian government official and was offering to provide the Trump campaign with dirt on Hillary Clinton.

The documents “would incriminate Hillary and her dealings with Russia and would be very useful to your father,” read the email, written by a trusted intermediary, who added, “This is obviously very high level and sensitive information but is part of Russia and its government’s support for Mr. Trump.”

If the future president’s elder son was surprised or disturbed by the provenance of the promised material — or the notion that it was part of an ongoing effort by the Russian government to aid his father’s campaign — he gave no indication.

He replied within minutes: “If it’s what you say I love it especially later in the summer.”

Four days later, after a flurry of emails, the intermediary wrote back, proposing a meeting in New York on Thursday with a “Russian government attorney.”

We should quote email and add more context.Casprings (talk) 15:14, 11 July 2017 (UTC)

Lol.Volunteer Marek (talk) 15:25, 11 July 2017 (UTC)

Don Jr just tweeted out the emails also.Casprings (talk) 15:28, 11 July 2017 (UTC)

Yeah, which said email from Goldstone directly contradicts Goldstone's "denied any knowledge of involvement by the Russian government in the matter, saying that never dawned on him. “Never, never ever,” - since he says "This is obviously very high level and sensitive information but is part of Russia and its government's support for Mr. Trump". Never, huh? Volunteer Marek (talk) 15:37, 11 July 2017 (UTC)

Maybe he doesn't recall. See also: Jeff Sessions.- MrX 17:21, 11 July 2017 (UTC)

Another canard, or a kettle of fish. SPECIFICO talk 19:56, 11 July 2017 (UTC)

Easier to read Emails in chronological order

Much easier version to read: https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2017/07/donald-trumps-jrs-email-exchange/533244/

Casprings (talk) 16:50, 11 July 2017 (UTC)

That would probably make a good external link.- MrX 17:09, 11 July 2017 (UTC)

Location in Article

Just from the perspective of organization, does it makes sense to include this subsection under 2017 Developments? I can see an argument that it should be, based on the fact that it only became public knowledge in 2017, but perhaps there should be some explicit acknowledgement of that? As is, it doesn't make much sense to have an event that occurred in June 2016 under a 2017 heading. I think it would be better to put it in Links between Trump associates and Russian officials --Red Rock Canyon (talk) 15:30, 11 July 2017 (UTC)

Cool with that. Also, thinking this should be in lede.Casprings (talk) 15:32, 11 July 2017 (UTC)

Agree with that and was just thinking the same thing. It might actually need its own section though it may be too early for that.Volunteer Marek (talk) 15:38, 11 July 2017 (UTC)

New page

A new page on this was started here: Trump Campaign—Russian meetingCasprings (talk) 01:03, 12 July 2017 (UTC)

Possible bias

Suggestion to look over political bias in this article Teddy707 (talk) 23:05, 10 July 2017 (UTC)

We always do. But, this is not a productive edit without some specific examples. Objective3000 (talk) 00:01, 11 July 2017 (UTC)

Oh, no! I think Teddy707 is on to us!. The jig is up! Run for it!!! DN (talk) 04:36, 11 July 2017 (UTC)

This is not helpful.Slatersteven (talk) 09:25, 11 July 2017 (UTC)

Agreed. This section should be hatted. DN (talk) 18:16, 11 July 2017 (UTC)

This is not what I mean, and you know it. Please do not game the system.Slatersteven (talk) 18:26, 11 July 2017 (UTC)

Missing info on Peter Smith

The article is missing the info on Peter Smith and Matt Tait , , and of course .Volunteer Marek (talk) 15:29, 11 July 2017 (UTC)

POV title

- (edit summary-(Inb4 some triggered reverts my edit) Hi, Zakawer, could you please explain, with detail, to all the "triggered s" here your reasons for the POV TITLE tag you just put on the article? That would be great. Thanks. DN (talk) 19:00, 11 July 2017 (UTC)

Senate Judiciary Chairman asked FBI to investigate Fusion GPS and Natalia Veselnitskaya

It was happended on April 28, 2017 and I don't know why it is not on the article. Now, I think is the oportunit. Neuwert (talk) 19:15, 11 July 2017 (UTC)

References

1. https://www.judiciary.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/2017-04-28%20CEG%20to%20FBI%20%28follow-up%20to%20Steele%20letter%29%20with%20attachments.pdf

That definitely seems worth including, since there's a lot of material there about illegal Russian lobbying in the US, and specifically about Veselnitskaya. The reports received by the committee say that Veselnitskaya and Fusion GPS were both involved in lobbying Congress on behalf of the Russian government to repeal the Magnistky Act, without registering as foreign government lobbyists. Are there any secondary sources that have picked up this story and made the connections? --Red Rock Canyon (talk) 19:38, 11 July 2017 (UTC)

Oppose inclusion as undue weight. I'm not sure how any alleged connection between the Russian lawyer and the Pee Pee Papers is even relevant to the topic under discussion. Also the material that was being entered contained negative BLP content that was referenced to a primary source. Geogene (talk) 21:14, 11 July 2017 (UTC)

The connection as such may not be relevant to the article (though it may turn out to be at some point), but this document does include a report from the Foreign Agents Registration Act Unit on multiple lobbyists (including Fusion GPS and Veselnitskaya) illegally attempting to influence American politicians on behalf of the Russian government. That seems like it might be considered Russian interference in the 2016 election on its own. I'm not advocating putting anything in immediately, but I think this should be examined, and I'll be looking around for related sources. --Red Rock Canyon (talk) 21:53, 11 July 2017 (UTC)

It could be; taking a longer view of it than just for today. In this particular episode, Veselnitskaya doesn't appear to have influenced the election at all, they just offered Junior some dirt that didn't exist, and sat him down to talk to him about the Magnitsky Act. The problem is that Junior took the bait, and now has been caught. Geogene (talk) 01:08, 12 July 2017 (UTC)

Is the article about the alleged russian inteference? Why does that connection not relevant? http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-4683232/Glamorous-Russian-lawyer-met-Don-Jr-s-political-links.html Neuwert (talk) 23:16, 11 July 2017 (UTC)

Well, the article is "Russian interference" as opposed to (alleged) "Interference by Russians". And that's only a small and incorrectly weighted aspect of the overarching story: that Donald Trump Jr. was offered dirt on Clinton, was told that supposed dirt was being provided by the Russian government, and that he eagerly met a supposed foreign agent in order to get it. That's what matters, and that's what sources are giving the overwhelming WP:Weight. The supposed Pee Pee connection looks like a pathetic effort from the White House spokesman to try to distract from it. Geogene (talk) 00:43, 12 July 2017 (UTC)

Neuwer - the Senate papers are official government documents from the FARA Registration Unit and a court record, neither of which can be used as the main source when discussing accusations against living persons (according to WP:BLP). Plus the connection there is very tenuous, only that they both appeared to violate FARA and lobby against the Magnitsky Act, which is currently only tangentially related to the reason they're mentioned in the article. Additionally, the other sources you've presented only refer to Mark Corallo claiming that there's a connection between them, without any attempt at independent verification. I imagine that soon some newspapers will examine this story in more detail, and perhaps at some point it will make sense to include, but definitely not until then.--Red Rock Canyon (talk) 01:30, 12 July 2017 (UTC)

SPECIFICO

Your opinion is important, everybody's opinion too. But it doesn't erase the facts with any opinion.Neuwert (talk) 20:17, 11 July 2017 (UTC)

The burden is on the editor that wants to add content to justify its inclusion, not on anyone else, including editors that delete it. Geogene (talk) 21:15, 11 July 2017 (UTC)

@Neuwert: You are quite precocious, instructing other editors here. Please undo your reinsertion and read the WP policies at WP:WEIGHT WP:NPOV and WP:SYNTH and WP:V. We're not in the truth business here, and I am too grey and dim to have anything that could be called an "opinion." SPECIFICO talk 21:37, 11 July 2017 (UTC)

BTW <-- can't say this in Misplaced Pages voice. Or at all.Volunteer Marek (talk) 22:23, 11 July 2017 (UTC)

You could rewrite that better instead of deleting everything. Is that an editors' standard? I don't think the word "crap" is a good argument. Is the word "crap" used only by long-time editors? Is the request made by de Senate Justice Committee not valid as source, or must not be mention on the article?Neuwert (talk) 22:53, 11 July 2017 (UTC)

No, it's not valid as a source for casting aspersions about living people. Geogene (talk) 00:45, 12 July 2017 (UTC)

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