14 DAY TRIAL // In what is the first move on behalf of Wikipedia against such a large group of users, members of the Church of Scientology have been banned from the site following the notification that users had been editing articles to serve their own interest. In order to continue promoting and further encourage objectivity, the site’s Arbitration Committee has ruled that all IP addresses owned by Scientology be blocked, News.com informs.
Individuals have been banned before from editing articles on Wikipedia, it is being said, but this is the first time that such a large organization is prevented from doing so altogether. All those believed to have contributed to “disruptive editing” and “persistent point-of-view pushing and extensive feuding over sources on multiple articles” have done so in order to promote their own interest, which goes completely against the site’s policy to always stick to neutral facts and not influence the reader in any way, the same publication says.
“According to evidence found by Wikipedia, multiple users with known scientology IP addresses had been ‘openly editing (Scientology-related articles) from Church of Scientology equipment and apparently coordinating their activities.’ The administrators were concerned the edits were ‘damaging Wikipedia’s reputation for neutrality.’ Wikipedia promotes the fact its articles are presented from a neutral point of view, and frowns upon users who edit the site ‘in order to promote their own interests’.” News.com says of the members’ actions that led to such a drastic decision.
As of now, the Scientology Wikipedia page is blocked to prevent any editing. The Church has not yet responded in any way to the accusations brought against some of its members, save for a statement coming from the Sydney branch. A spokesperson for the Church of Scientology Sydney has stated that, to their knowledge, no member pertaining to their group has been involved in such activities of disruptively editing the site, the aforementioned media outlet further informs.
In the meantime, the editors / contributors who have received the ban are not allowed to edit or otherwise contribute to “articles related to Scientology or Scientologists, broadly defined, as well as the respective article talk pages.” However, “editors topic banned under this remedy may apply to have the topic ban lifted after demonstrating their commitment to the goals of Wikipedia and their ability to work constructively with other editors,” it is further noted, with a promise from the Committee that their request will be properly analyzed before approval.