User blog:Vultraz/On Subjective Writing

There is a problem here.

A problem which, in my paradigm, has not yet been directly acknowledged - many novice editors are currently writing/creating articles from a first-person/subjective standpoint. What this means is that novice editors are taking their opinions and blowing them up out of proportion, then applying them within the manner in which they create and edit articles.

To simplify, let's have an example: Let's say that I, Vultraz, were insulted by a ROBLOX user the other day. I may proceed to:

1. Create an unnecessary article about said user. The user may or may not be significant enough to be mentioned on the ROBLOX Wiki, but regardless, since I believe him to be a significant blot on my own social boundaries (for insulting me), I will create an article about said user.

2. Edit said article so as to influence readers to believe as I believe, for example, by framing and trimming facts about said user so to convince readers that aforementioned user should not be trusted, or less subtlely, simply outright insulting aforesaid user within the article.

3. Exaggerate - My personal belief, which is currently set to react towards said user negatively, can be exaggerated within the article which I am writing, I may say that the "general public" believes this and attempt to appeal to herd instinct, or I may say that the "experts" believe so (" ") and attempt to appeal to leader instinct. Either way, I am manipulating the data in such a way as to push the reader to a certain conclusion, aka exaggerating.

I propose that we, first, establish that articles should be written and created, firstly, objectively (so as to actually fit general consensus and not simply be the opinion of one person blown up out of proportion) - this also means that writing in first person should be avoided as much as possible, because writing in first person also, while it may not seem so obvious, encourages biased, subjective writing. Measures should be taken to explain the concepts of objectivity and subjectivity, and efforts should be made to encourage objective writing, as this is a wiki - on a wiki, you expect to find information. Not to find out that Vultraz hates XXSONICTHEHEDGEHOGXX or likes Telamon.