Wikipedia:Working group on ethnic and cultural edit wars

Interested parties

Applications for places on the Working Group are now open. If interested, please read the working group guidelines first, and then email any arbcom member or the Arbitration Committee's private mailing list, arbcom-l@lists.wikimedia.org.

Application is open to any editor in good standing, meeting the tentative criteria (broadly interpreted and subject to improvement). The Committee will seek to appoint the users it feels would have the best chance of producing a successful report with insightful findings, as its primary criterion.

Users wishing to suggest others may do so, but usually are best advised as a courtesy to check beforehand if they would wish to be nominated.

Applications should be received prior to January 29 2008, 7 days from now (to allow time for Committee discussion after that date), and the Committee will announce the working group membership by February 2 2008. Arbitrators also invite any general comments and suggestions that are related to the issue, or the proposed approach to it.

Please see the working group guidelines for more.

Please ensure you state clearly your username, or a link to your talk page.

Membership in the working group was considered between January 23 and February 2, 2008. On February 6, the following users were appointed to the working group. In addition a number of others were given observer standing, explained below.

The arbitration committee, in choosing the working group members, deemed that "The Committee will seek to appoint the users it feels would have the best chance of producing a successful report with insightful findings, as its primary criterion". This was carefully considered. Accordingly there are likely to be some surprises, also explained below.

1. Working group members:

(As a matter of best practice we decided no arbitrator or ex-arbitrator would be allowed on the working group, to allow the group maximum freedom to find its own new approach to the entire area and not feel restricted in so doing.)

We feel strongly that this group should be created genuinely fresh and cover a wider than usual range of experiences and viewpoints, subject to the guideline requirement to be able to work with others and to value communal norms. Of the above, some have rejected adminship, some have criticized past decisions (of various kinds, communal, arbcom etc), a few have been mediators and others "just good editors" or administrators putting work into the relevant areas. A few have had controversy attached. In each case, our sole criteria in the decision has been whether the group will be more likely to produce better results for their involvement, and their ability to meet the criteria set out in the guidelines and work beneficially.

2. Observers

A number of users who applied, will be given access to the working group's discussions as described below. Users who are not in the formal working group but are given access this way include:

Note - All members of Arbcom-L (current and former arbitrators and Jimbo) also have observer status.

†: these editors were "late additions", granted observer status after the group was established.

The intent is that the group may benefit from the views of users who are uninvolved in the main discussion but may come up with additional perspectives and analyses for consideration now and then. Observer status also better suits certain people's skills and approaches, users who are interested but expect to become busy or away, users who are uncertain about their level of involvement, and users with other specialist insight and experience relevant to an aspect of the issue. Movement between the groups will probably be allowed in some cases.

3. Next...

To all who applied and are not listed above - thank you for your interest and time. It was valued, and brought several names to attention that would otherwise not have been. Much of what was said did make a difference.

Matters are in hand for the working group, and an email will be sent to all the above by the end of the week with further details. Anyone wishing to discuss any aspect of the working group or its activities, please feel free to email me.

FT2 ^{(Talk | email)} 19:18, 6 February 2008 (UTC)
For the Arbitration Committee