Submissions/The Perfect Policy Proposal

After careful consideration, the Programme Committee has decided not to accept the below submission at this time. Thank you to the author(s) for participating in the Wikimania 2014 programme submission, we hope to still see you at Wikimania this August.

Submission no. 1081

Title of the submission: The Perfect Policy Proposal

Type of submission (discussion, hot seat, panel, presentation, tutorial, workshop)

Presentation, followed by as much discussion as time allows

Author of the submission

Beeblebrox

E-mail address

|Contact=Through "email this user" function on en.wp

Username: User:Beeblebrox

Country of origin

US (Alaska)

Affiliation, if any (organisation, company etc.)

Personal homepage or blog

Abstract (at least 300 words to describe your proposal)

I have crafted several of the more widely attended and controversial policy discussions in the last few years on the English Wikipedia. Some of them were successes, some of them were disasters. Learn what worked, what didn't and what approach is right for your chosen issue. I made mistakes so you don't have to.

The general idea is presented in this essay. I was the architect of two major RFCs on the use of pending changes, a never-quite-got -finished RFC on the issue of civility and civility enforcement, and several other policy proposals. Some of it went well, some of it sucked. Some of what sucked was my fault, some of it was other people. Attendees will be provided with an overview of the different types of formats that have been used in large-scale discussions, what they need to do before they open such a discussion, tips on how to handle problems that arise while it is underway, and how to evaluate success or failure at the end. Should you use open discussion or position endorsements? Do you need to recruit the closing admin or admins before you even start? Are you really, really sure that what you are proposing will help? What do you do if one or two users are trying to filibuster the debate? How much psychiatric counseling are you likely to need afterward?

If time allows there will be an open question-and-answer session after the presentation.

If you are crazy enough to want to change something major in Wikipedia policy, get the inside tips from someone who has already been there and seen the best and the worst of what these types of processes entail. Or, if you are a stable, sane person, run away screaming in terror at the very idea of trying it.

Beeblebrox (talk) 06:24, 3 January 2014 (UTC)[reply]

Track

WikiCulture & Community

Length of session (if other than 30 minutes, specify how long): 30 Minutes

Will you attend Wikimania if your submission is not accepted?: Yes, dependent on scholarship.

Slides or further information (optional)

Special requests

Front-row seating for anyone who shows up wearing a tinfoil hat.

Interested attendees

If you are interested in attending this session, please sign with your username below. This will help reviewers to decide which sessions are of high interest. Sign with four tildes. (~~~~).

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