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Wikinews:Water cooler/miscellaneous/archives/2024/June

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This is an archive of past discussions from Wikinews:Water cooler/miscellaneous/archives/2024. Do not edit the contents of this page. If you wish to start a new discussion or revive an old one, please do so on the current page.


Announcing the first Universal Code of Conduct Coordinating Committee

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Hello,

The scrutineers have finished reviewing the vote results. We are following up with the results of the first Universal Code of Conduct Coordinating Committee (U4C) election.

We are pleased to announce the following individuals as regional members of the U4C, who will fulfill a two-year term:

  • North America (USA and Canada)
    • –
  • Northern and Western Europe
  • Latin America and Caribbean
    • –
  • Central and East Europe (CEE)
    • —
  • Sub-Saharan Africa
    • –
  • Middle East and North Africa
  • East, South East Asia and Pacific (ESEAP)
  • South Asia
    • –

The following individuals are elected to be community-at-large members of the U4C, fulfilling a one-year term:

Thank you again to everyone who participated in this process and much appreciation to the candidates for your leadership and dedication to the Wikimedia movement and community.

Over the next few weeks, the U4C will begin meeting and planning the 2024-25 year in supporting the implementation and review of the UCoC and Enforcement Guidelines. Follow their work on Meta-wiki.

On behalf of the UCoC project team,

RamzyM (WMF) 08:14, 3 June 2024 (UTC)[reply]

Tech News: 2024-23

Latest tech news from the Wikimedia technical community. Please tell other users about these changes. Not all changes will affect you. Translations are available.

Recent changes

  • It is now possible for local administrators to add new links to the bottom of the site Tools menu without JavaScript. Documentation is available. [1]
  • The message name for the definition of the tracking category of WikiHiero has changed from "MediaWiki:Wikhiero-usage-tracking-category" to "MediaWiki:Wikihiero-usage-tracking-category". [2]
  • One new wiki has been created: a Wikipedia in Kadazandusun (w:dtp:) [3]

Changes later this week

  •   The new version of MediaWiki will be on test wikis and MediaWiki.org from 4 June. It will be on non-Wikipedia wikis and some Wikipedias from 5 June. It will be on all wikis from 6 June (calendar). [4][5]

Future changes

  • Next week, on wikis with the Vector 2022 skin as the default, logged-out desktop users will be able to choose between different font sizes. The default font size will also be increased for them. This is to make Wikimedia projects easier to read. Learn more.

Tech news prepared by Tech News writers and posted by bot • Contribute • Translate • Get help • Give feedback • Subscribe or unsubscribe.

MediaWiki message delivery 22:34, 3 June 2024 (UTC)[reply]

Overall neutrality

I'm concerned with the overall neutrality of our recent coverage of the Israeli-Palestine conflict. We've had the following articles published recently:

While I'm thrilled we're experiencing a period of higher activity and participation here, I think we need to keep an eye on the bigger picture of what our reporting trends look like.

In addition to the overall trend of articles, the two articles published today both contain the following statement: "Hezbollah has launched a variety of strikes against Israel, using 4,000 rockets and killing multiple soldiers and ten civilians." Only one source verifies that and it's The Jerusalem Post.[6] The supporting statement is:

Most countries would never accept one rocket fired from a neighboring country, let alone 4,000.

The problem I have with that is 1. it's a conveniently-even number, meaning it's more likely an estimation and 2. the source is not neutral in its treatment of the topic. 3. the article doesn't say anything like '4,000 rockets have been fired at Israel,' it said in effect 'no one would accept 4,000 rockets fired at them.' I think the two June 6 articles should be changed while we have time (24 hours) to do so without requiring a correction.

Michael.C.Wright (Talk/Published) 13:50, 6 June 2024 (UTC)[reply]

@Me Da Wikipedian: I agree with this assessment. I'm happy to sight if any changes are made soon. [24Cr][talk] 14:09, 6 June 2024 (UTC)[reply]
  • Yes to this. Neutrality is a slippery thing..... it's like 'validity' in research. But: We should always be pursuing it or better yet: watching out for forces that can destroy it.--Bddpaux (talk) 15:02, 6 June 2024 (UTC)[reply]
Thanks for bringing this up Michael. I guess by "neutrality of trends" you mean you think our war coverage is biased in its overall focus? Eh. That can be a problem. Reporters should be careful to choose topics based on their interests, not based on their beliefs. But a selection of coverage one person thinks shows bias toward one side could alternatively be seen as biased towards the other. I think the other important thing is, if you think a facet of something (or a whole) hasn't been getting enough coverage, write it. I see WN:Neutrality#Choosing stories has more.
The specific example is concerning. "Only one source verifies that" — You mean, only the JPost source verifies there were 4,000 rockets, or only it verifies anything in that sentence? The latter would be worse, since I don't see any mention of a death toll in there. I agree, either way, we should have a source that more clearly states the number of rockets fired and if that's an estimate — I agree it probably is. Heavy Water (talk) 18:54, 6 June 2024 (UTC)[reply]
I agree it probably is...but it doesn't say so and I am going by what the source in fact says. If anyone can find a better source, please do. There is no requirement for sources to be neutral, and in a contentious topic like this it is very hard not to have at least 1 biased source. But if you have other non-biased ones it's usually not an issue. I am choosing topics based on my interests and what I feel is underrepresented in mainstream media. I have no problem changing provided you can find a better source.@Bddpaux@Cromium@Heavy Water@Michael.C.Wright Me Da Wikipedian (talk) 10:32, 7 June 2024 (UTC)[reply]
Support for that statement is the responsibility of the author of that statement, not anyone else. I don't think anyone else should have to find support for a statement not made by them. Even so, a quick web search for "hezbollah fires 4,000 rockets at Israel" does not provide a second source.
There is no requirement for sources to be neutral. The point I was trying to make is not that the Post's article is an invalid source due to its obvious bias, but that this bias weakens its credibility as the sole source for statements made by en.wn. Wikinews:Content_guide#Cite_your_sources recommends the following:

To help guard against possible mistakes by news sources and to help establish a neutral point of view, editors are encouraged to find multiple sources on an issue, and fact-check those sources.

Setting aside the bias of The Post's article for a moment; I don't believe there is solid-enough support in The Post's statement for our article to simply say 'Hezbollah has launched...4,000 rockets.' I don't think The Post's article clearly stated '4,000 rockets were launched.' Had The Post attributed that count to an authority, it might have been more clear it was a factual statement rather than a statement of conjecture of what other countries might tolerate.
A simple fix would have been for us to change '4,000' to 'thousands' or to attribute the statement so readers could make their own decision on the count.
We're now past the 24 hour grace-period for an easy fix and I'm not sure if this is something that rises to the level of a correction or not. I would defer to others on that one.
@Heavy Water, ...if you think a facet of something (or a whole) hasn't been getting enough coverage, write it. I was hoping to spur someone else to do that—no one in particular— just someone with the interest. I should have been more explicit. I don't disagree with Me Da Wikipedian's point above regarding mainstream coverage. But I do think our responsibility to neutrality extends beyond individual articles. I'm not asking anyone to write or publish fewer articles on a given topic. My point was to bring attention to what it might look like to readers.

Choice of what to cover can itself introduce bias, even though the things reported are factual with no bias in the way they are reported.

– Wikinews:Neutrality#Unbiased_coverage

Michael.C.Wright (Talk/Published) 14:11, 7 June 2024 (UTC)[reply]
I have given support for the statement. It is not perfect, but as far as I can see it does support it. It's not my responsibility to find a better source if this one works, and besides were outside the 24 hours window at this point. There is no requirement for a second source either. Obviously bias weakens credibility, but can you find a more credible alternative. Assumption is that a reliable source is correct unless there is good reason to believe it's not, right? Editors are encouraged, not required, to find multiple sources on an issue, not for each claim. I think it's pretty clearly saying that 4,000 rockets were fired at Israel. Look at the context. I agree it is probably an guesstimate, but then again all figures are going to be guesstimates. And yes, it's probably an approximation. But we have no closer value. Do you think we should say around? That might be reasonable. We already have other editors writing about the conflict, such as BigKrow and Asheiou. Obviously more is always better, but it's not just me anyways. And yes, choice of what to cover does give bias. This is balanced (at least theoretically) by the fact that theres a bunch of editors, likely with different opinions here. In other words, our combined coverage should be neutral in terms of what we cover as well.Me Da Wikipedian (talk) 21:01, 7 June 2024 (UTC) @Michael.C.Wright:[reply]

Tech News: 2024-24

Latest tech news from the Wikimedia technical community. Please tell other users about these changes. Not all changes will affect you. Translations are available.

Recent changes

  • The software used to render SVG files has been updated to a new version, fixing many longstanding bugs in SVG rendering. [7]
  •   The HTML used to render all headings is being changed to improve accessibility. It was changed last week in some skins (Vector legacy and Minerva). Please test gadgets on your wiki on these skins and report any related problems so that they can be resolved before this change is made in Vector-2022. The developers are still considering the introduction of a Gadget API for adding buttons to section titles if that would be helpful to tool creators, and would appreciate any input you have on that.
  •   The HTML markup used for citations by Parsoid changed last week. In places where Parsoid previously added the mw-reference-text class, Parsoid now also adds the reference-text class for better compatibility with the legacy parser. More details are available. [8]

Problems

  • There was a bug with the Content Translation interface that caused the tools menus to appear in the wrong location. This has now been fixed. [9]

Changes later this week

  •   The new version of MediaWiki will be on test wikis and MediaWiki.org from 11 June. It will be on non-Wikipedia wikis and some Wikipedias from 12 June. It will be on all wikis from 13 June (calendar). [10][11]
  •   The new version of MediaWiki includes another change to the HTML markup used for citations: Parsoid will now generate a <span class="mw-cite-backlink"> wrapper for both named and unnamed references for better compatibility with the legacy parser. Interface administrators should verify that gadgets that interact with citations are compatible with the new markup. More details are available. [12]
  • On multilingual wikis that use the <translate> system, there is a feature that shows potentially-outdated translations with a pink background until they are updated or confirmed. From this week, confirming translations will be logged, and there is a new user-right that can be required for confirming translations if the community requests it. [13]

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MediaWiki message delivery 20:20, 10 June 2024 (UTC)[reply]

The final text of the Wikimedia Movement Charter is now on Meta

You can find this message translated into additional languages on Meta-wiki. Please help translate to your language

Hi everyone,

The final text of the Wikimedia Movement Charter is now up on Meta in more than 20 languages for your reading.

What is the Wikimedia Movement Charter?

The Wikimedia Movement Charter is a proposed document to define roles and responsibilities for all the members and entities of the Wikimedia movement, including the creation of a new body – the Global Council – for movement governance.

Join the Wikimedia Movement Charter “Launch Party”

Join the “Launch Party” on June 20, 2024 at 14.00-15.00 UTC (your local time). During this call, we will celebrate the release of the final Charter and present the content of the Charter. Join and learn about the Charter before casting your vote.

Movement Charter ratification vote

Voting will commence on SecurePoll on June 25, 2024 at 00:01 UTC and will conclude on July 9, 2024 at 23:59 UTC. You can read more about the voting process, eligibility criteria, and other details on Meta.

If you have any questions, please leave a comment on the Meta talk page or email the MCDC at mcdc@wikimedia.org.

On behalf of the MCDC,

RamzyM (WMF) 08:44, 11 June 2024 (UTC)[reply]

Tech News: 2024-25

Latest tech news from the Wikimedia technical community. Please tell other users about these changes. Not all changes will affect you. Translations are available.

Recent changes

  • People who attempt to add an external link in the visual editor will now receive immediate feedback if they attempt to link to a domain that a project has decided to block. Please see Edit check for more details. [14]
  • The new Community Configuration extension is available on Test Wikipedia. This extension allows communities to customize specific features to meet their local needs. Currently only Growth features are configurable, but the extension will support other Community Configuration use cases in the future. [15][16]
  • The dark mode beta feature is now available on category and help pages, as well as more special pages. There may be contrast issues. Please report bugs on the project talk page. [17]

Problems

  •   Cloud Services tools were not available for 25 minutes last week. This was caused by a faulty hardware cable in the data center. [18]
  • Last week, styling updates were made to the Vector 2022 skin. This caused unforeseen issues with templates, hatnotes, and images. Changes to templates and hatnotes were reverted. Most issues with images were fixed. If you still see any, report them here. [19]

Changes later this week

  •   The new version of MediaWiki will be on test wikis and MediaWiki.org from 18 June. It will be on non-Wikipedia wikis and some Wikipedias from 19 June. It will be on all wikis from 20 June (calendar). [20][21]
  • Starting June 18, the Reference Edit Check will be deployed to a new set of Wikipedias. This feature is intended to help newcomers and to assist edit-patrollers by inviting people who are adding new content to a Wikipedia article to add a citation when they do not do so themselves. During a test at 11 wikis, the number of citations added more than doubled when Reference Check was shown to people. Reference Check is community configurable. [22]
  • Mailing lists will be unavailable for roughly two hours on Tuesday 10:00–12:00 UTC. This is to enable migration to a new server and upgrade its software. [23]

Tech news prepared by Tech News writers and posted by bot • Contribute • Translate • Get help • Give feedback • Subscribe or unsubscribe.

MediaWiki message delivery 23:48, 17 June 2024 (UTC)[reply]

What are these

Out of curiousity, what are the Developer Socks 1-3 created in September 2010 that have reviewer rights and have never been used for anything? Me Da Wikipedian (talk) 01:20, 19 June 2024 (UTC)[reply]

They were for testing by MediaWiki devs. Cf. Test article for dev use. I'm not sure if they were ever used on a now-deleted page (such edits would be invisible to mere mortals like you and me). Heavy Water (talk) 01:55, 20 June 2024 (UTC)[reply]
Admin? (@Cromium or @Bddpaux) @Heavy Water Me Da Wikipedian (talk) 10:08, 20 June 2024 (UTC)[reply]

Tech News: 2024-26

Latest tech news from the Wikimedia technical community. Please tell other users about these changes. Not all changes will affect you. Translations are available.

Recent changes

  • Editors will notice that there have been some changes to the background color of text in the diff view, and the color of the byte-change numbers, last week. These changes are intended to make text more readable in both light mode and dark mode, and are part of a larger effort to increase accessibility. You can share your comments or questions on the project talkpage. [24]
  • The text colors that are used for visited-links, hovered-links, and active-links, were also slightly changed last week to improve their accessibility in both light mode and dark mode. [25]

Problems

Changes later this week

  •   The new version of MediaWiki will be on test wikis and MediaWiki.org from 25 June. It will be on non-Wikipedia wikis and some Wikipedias from 26 June. It will be on all wikis from 27 June (calendar). [27][28]
  • Starting 26 June, all talk pages messages' timestamps will become a link at English Wikipedia, making this feature available for you to use at all wikis. This link is a permanent link to the comment. It allows users to find the comment they were linked to, even if this comment has since been moved elsewhere. You can read more about this feature on Diff or on Mediawiki.org. [29]

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MediaWiki message delivery 22:32, 24 June 2024 (UTC)[reply]

Voting to ratify the Wikimedia Movement Charter is now open – cast your vote

You can find this message translated into additional languages on Meta-wiki. Please help translate to your language

Hello everyone,

The voting to ratify the Wikimedia Movement Charter is now open. The Wikimedia Movement Charter is a document to define roles and responsibilities for all the members and entities of the Wikimedia movement, including the creation of a new body – the Global Council – for movement governance.

The final version of the Wikimedia Movement Charter is available on Meta in different languages and attached here in PDF format for your reading.

Voting commenced on SecurePoll on June 25, 2024 at 00:01 UTC and will conclude on July 9, 2024 at 23:59 UTC. Please read more on the voter information and eligibility details.

After reading the Charter, please vote here and share this note further.

If you have any questions about the ratification vote, please contact the Charter Electoral Commission at cec@wikimedia.org.

On behalf of the CEC,

RamzyM (WMF) 10:51, 25 June 2024 (UTC)[reply]

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