Changes

The need to appoint a "Catholic expert" arose in the fall of 2006 when misinformation in the hit piece on [[Paul Weyrich]] and the [[Free Congress Foundation]] was pointed out by a friend of Weyrich.  Weyrich was being [[politically profiled]] as a right-wing "theocratic dominionist" who wanted to bring back slavery and burn witch's at the stake. <ref>http://www.nationalreview.com/kurtz/kurtz200505020944.asp</ref>  Wikipedia's entry on [[Dominionism]] up front defines it as, "a trend in Protestant Christian evangelicalism and fundamentalism." <ref>http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Dominionism&diff=83649766&oldid=83640075</ref> When Weyrich's friend exposed the flaw in Wikipedia's expert reasoning and sources, demonstrating Weyrich is Catholic <ref>http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Talk:Paul_Weyrich#Inaccurate_information</ref>, Weyrich's friend subsequently received a Community ban. <ref>http://wikipediareview.com/index.php?showtopic=7075</ref>  In early 2007, Jimbo Wales appointed a "Catholic expert" then to cover the gap.

The need to appoint a "Catholic expert" arose in the fall of 2006 when misinformation in the hit piece on [[Paul Weyrich]] and the [[Free Congress Foundation]] was pointed out by a friend of Weyrich.  Weyrich was being [[politically profiled]] as a right-wing "theocratic dominionist" who wanted to bring back slavery and burn witch's at the stake. <ref>http://www.nationalreview.com/kurtz/kurtz200505020944.asp</ref>  Wikipedia's entry on [[Dominionism]] up front defines it as, "a trend in Protestant Christian evangelicalism and fundamentalism." <ref>http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Dominionism&diff=83649766&oldid=83640075</ref> When Weyrich's friend exposed the flaw in Wikipedia's expert reasoning and sources, demonstrating Weyrich is Catholic <ref>http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Talk:Paul_Weyrich#Inaccurate_information</ref>, Weyrich's friend subsequently received a Community ban. <ref>http://wikipediareview.com/index.php?showtopic=7075</ref>  In early 2007, Jimbo Wales appointed a "Catholic expert" then to cover the gap.

In January Wikipedia critic Daniel Brandt discovered that a prominent Wikipedia administrator, bureaucrat and arbitrator nicknamed Essjay has lied <ref>[http://www.wikipedia-watch.org/essjay.html Essjay/Archive/52 recovered by Brandt for posterity]</ref> on Wikipedia and in phone interviews with ''The New Yorker'' magazine about his age, job, background, and academic credentials<ref>http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/6423659.stm</ref>.  Essjay, who later identified himself as Ryan Jordan and who was an employee at Wikia Inc. funded by Jimbo Wales, had claimed to be a 40 year old homosexual, holding doctoral degrees in theology and canon law and is a tenured professor at a private university; but he was in fact a 24 years old community college dropout <ref>http://wikipediareview.com/index.php?s=&showtopic=2778&view=findpost&p=22351</ref> from Kentucky. This fraud was reported by ABC, BBC and many other major news organizations.  Jimbo Wales upon learning of this incident, stated: "I regard it as a pseudonym and I don’t really have a problem with it."<ref>http://www.newyorker.com/archive/2006/07/31/060731fa_fact</ref>

In January Wikipedia critic Daniel Brandt discovered that a prominent Wikipedia administrator, bureaucrat and arbitrator nicknamed Essjay had lied <ref>[http://www.wikipedia-watch.org/essjay.html Essjay/Archive/52 recovered by Brandt for posterity]</ref> on Wikipedia and in phone interviews with ''The New Yorker'' magazine about his age, job, background, and academic credentials<ref>http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/6423659.stm</ref>.  Essjay, who later identified himself as Ryan Jordan and who was an employee at Wikia Inc. funded by Jimbo Wales, had claimed to be a 40 year old homosexual, holding doctoral degrees in theology and canon law and is a tenured professor at a private university; but he was in fact a 24 years old community college dropout <ref>http://wikipediareview.com/index.php?s=&showtopic=2778&view=findpost&p=22351</ref> from Kentucky. This fraud was reported by ABC, BBC and many other major news organizations.  Jimbo Wales upon learning of this incident, stated: "I regard it as a pseudonym and I don’t really have a problem with it."<ref>http://www.newyorker.com/archive/2006/07/31/060731fa_fact</ref>

The first public notice occurred on Wikipedia Review, a critic's forum frequented by Brandt and several other prominent Wikipedians, including many who have been blocked from editing Wikipedia.  Brandt pointed out as early as July 2006 <ref>http://wikipediareview.com/index.php?s=&showtopic=2778&view=findpost&p=12701</ref> that "something... doesn't add up" regarding Essjay's claim of being a college professor despite editing Wikipedia as much as 16 hours per day.  One of the site's administrators posted on Jan. 11, 2007 regarding Essjay's hiring by Wikia after noticing that Jordan's "Essjay" account on Uncyclopedia (a Wikia-owned site) had been changed to include the "Staff" reference, normally given only to paid Wikia employees. The "Essjay" user page on Wikia had been posted, along with the name "Ryan Jordan," on Jan. 7, 2007 - with no explanation given for why Essjay would leave a tenured faculty position to work as a Community Manager for Wikia. The situation quickly became the subject of increasing speculation by the Wikipedia Review forum members, of whom Brandt was the most skeptical.

The first public notice occurred on Wikipedia Review, a critic's forum frequented by Brandt and several other prominent Wikipedians, including many who have been blocked from editing Wikipedia.  Brandt pointed out as early as July 2006 <ref>http://wikipediareview.com/index.php?s=&showtopic=2778&view=findpost&p=12701</ref> that "something... doesn't add up" regarding Essjay's claim of being a college professor despite editing Wikipedia as much as 16 hours per day.  One of the site's administrators posted on Jan. 11, 2007 regarding Essjay's hiring by Wikia after noticing that Jordan's "Essjay" account on Uncyclopedia (a Wikia-owned site) had been changed to include the "Staff" reference, normally given only to paid Wikia employees. The "Essjay" user page on Wikia had been posted, along with the name "Ryan Jordan," on Jan. 7, 2007 - with no explanation given for why Essjay would leave a tenured faculty position to work as a Community Manager for Wikia. The situation quickly became the subject of increasing speculation by the Wikipedia Review forum members, of whom Brandt was the most skeptical.