Difference between revisions of "SourceWatch:Purpose"

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< [[SourceWatch:About|About SourceWatch]]
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{{helpbar}}
  
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'''SourceWatch''' is a free encyclopedia of people, issues, and groups shaping the public agenda, including activist groups and government agencies but especially [[public relations firms]], [[front groups]], [[industry-friendly experts]] and [[think tanks]] that try to manipulate public opinion. It catalogues descriptions and details of  as well as the criticisms that are made of these groups from different perspectives.
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[[SourceWatch:About|About SourceWatch]]
  
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A number of individuals and organizations have previously attempted to compile similar guides and directories, but the sheer number of ever-changing groups has prevented anyone from developing a comprehensive list. The goal of SourceWatch is to create the largest and most up-to-date guide in history, both in terms of breadth and depth. We also want SourceWatch to become a reliable resource. It is an ambitious goal, and it may take many years to achieve it.
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<big>'''The [http://www.prwatch.org '''Center for Media and Democracy'''] (CMD) publishes [[SourceWatch:Purpose|'''SourceWatch''']]</big>, this collaborative, specialized encyclopedia of the people, organizations, and issues shaping the public agenda.''' SourceWatch profiles the activities of [[front groups]], [[public relations professionals|PR spinners]], [[industry-friendly experts]], [[industry-funded organizations]], and [[think tanks]] trying to manipulate public opinion on behalf of [[corporations]] or government. We also highlight key public policies they are trying to affect and provide ways to get involved. In addition, SourceWatch contains information about others who help document information about PR spin, such as reporters, academics, and watchdog groups.
  
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== What is "disinformation"? ==
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To get started, there's a link to your left on the basics of how you can help write history.  We also have guides, such as [[How to research front groups|how to research front groups]] and uncover [[Resources for studying propaganda|propaganda]] tactics, such as the use of the "[[third party technique]]," as well as [[Research using the web|great insider tips for web researching]].
  
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Disinformation is deliberately misleading information announced publicly or leaked by a government, intelligence agency, corporation or other entity for the purpose of influencing opinions or perceptions.
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Launched in 2003, SourceWatch now has <b>{{NUMBEROFARTICLES}} articles</b>, as of today, thanks to interested contributors like you, and over six million new visitors to its pages a year and many returning visitors who rely on our articles regularly.
  
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Unlike [[misinformation]], which is also a form of wrong information, disinformation is produced by people who ''intend'' to deceive their audience.
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Welcome to the '''SourceWatch''' community! [[Arn Pearson]], Executive Director of the Center for Media and Democracy, publisher of SourceWatch, PRWatch, and BanksterUSA
  
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A group might plant disinformation in reports, in press releases, in public statements or in practically any other routine, occasional or unusual communique. Disinformation can also be leaked, or covertly released to a source who can be trusted to repeat the false information.
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==What is SourceWatch's role in increasing transparency and public scrutiny?==
  
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A common disinformation tactic is to mix truth, half-truths, and lies. Disinformants sometimes seek to gain the confidence of their audience through emotional appeals or by using semi-neutral language interlaced with threads of disinformation.
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SourceWatch provides simple tools to attract public participation in documenting information about the people, companies, and entities attempting to shape public opinion.  With the experience of the [[Center for Media and Democracy]] (CMD) in researching and writing about spin and propaganda, CMD believes it is vital to a working democracy to increase public scrutiny and public awareness of the people and companies shaping public policy.  We think it is imperative to provide useful information about key policies and document disinformation about these issues.  And, it is important to help people understand options for addressing these problems.
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It may be easier to ask and answer questions like "at what point does opinion or advocacy ''become'' disinformation?", "can history or ideology ''remain'' simplified without being disinforming?", and "what concept ''equals'' what other concept in this opinion, advocacy, history, or ideology?" Such distinctions are studied in the fields of [[w:conceptual metaphor|conceptual metaphor]], [[w:information warfare|information warfare]], [[w:psychological operations|psychological operations]], [[w:scientific method|scientific method]], [[w:historical method|historical method]] and the [[w:sociology of knowledge|sociology of knowledge]]. 
 
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One distinction that most students of these topics accept is that someone with an economic self-interest is rarely, if ever, a neutral observer. 
 
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==Is disinformation just lying?==
 
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No.  The word "lying " usually implies an awareness of spreading untruths.  Long study in [[w:psychology|psychology]], e.g. [[w:false memory syndrome|false memory syndrome]], [[w:groupthink|groupthink]], suggests that honest advocates of a view can rarely tell when they have accepted some questionable premise or evidence along with the valid evidence for that view.  This suggests a constructive role for their opponents in 'culling' that evidence and moderating extreme points of view among front groups, and industry experts.  Such views may reflect not a desire to disinform, but rather a biased [[w:mind-set|mind-set]] or [[w:paradigm|paradigm]] where some central dogma has become accepted as true.
 
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==Why are PR firms a threat?==
 
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[[w:Public relations|Public relations]], the profession that trades in influence and in altering mind-sets and conceptual metaphors in public life, often has both economic self-interest and a commitment to a point of view.  Thus an extreme scrutiny on activities and [[w:ethical code|ethical code]]s of such professions is advised:  the statements it produces must usually be considered ''disinformation by definition'', at least by opponents, until proven otherwise.
 
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==How can the public fight back?==
 
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When such activities are genuinely against the public interest, wise members of the public seek tools to regain [[w:mindshare|mindshare]] for what they see as 'truth'.  Holding disinforming groups up to scrutiny is an ongoing process, a process far more important than labeling any particular point of view, or metaphor, or idea, as "disinforming".  It is a cornerstone of any [[democracy]].
 
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==What is this project's role in increasing public scrutiny?==
 
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Because of its global scope and experience with prior projects like [[w:Wikipedia|Wikipedia]] and others by [[PRwatch]], hopefully a project like '''SourceWatch''' can support the public scrutiny process more effectively than was possible with prior methods.  If not, then also hopefully, that will become obvious and a more effective successor that will serve public purposes better can evolve, learning from this project's flaws and successes.  So this project will likely serve as it is, and inspire successors. Our hope is based on use of very open and simple tools that have proven capable of attracting mass public participation:
 
  
 
==Who owns SourceWatch?==
 
==Who owns SourceWatch?==
  
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The owner of the server and the domain names is the [[w:|Center for Media and Democracy]] (CMD). However, the articles are released by their authors under the [[GNU Free Documentation License]], so the articles are [[w:open content|open content]]. Therefore, it cannot be said that the owner of SourceWatch articles is CMD. See [[SourceWatch:Copyrights]] and [[SourceWatch:Readers' FAQ]] for information on how you can use SourceWatch content. (Please note, however, that other sections of the PR Watch web site remain copyrighted property of the Center for Media and Democracy and should not be used without permission.)
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The [http://www.prwatch.org Center for Media and Democracy] (CMD) is the publisher of SourceWatch. CMD owns the server and domain names related to SourceWatch. The articles in SourceWatch are released by their authors under the [[GNU Free Documentation License]], so the articles are [[w:open content|open content]]. See [[SourceWatch:Copyright]] and [[SourceWatch:Readers' FAQ]] for information on how you can use SourceWatch content. Other publications of CMD, including our PR Watch web site, remain copyrighted property and should not be used without permission.
  
 
==Who is responsible for the articles on SourceWatch?==
 
==Who is responsible for the articles on SourceWatch?==
  
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This is a [[w:collaborative|collaborative]] endeavor.  Many people have contributed to different parts of this project, and anyone can do so.  ''Including you!'' All you need to know is [[SourceWatch:How to edit a page|How to edit a page]]. It would also be good to know what you are talking about.
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This is a collaborative endeavor.  Many people have contributed to different parts of this project, and anyone can do so, including you! All you need to know is [[SourceWatch:How to edit a page|How to edit a page]]. It would also be good to know what you are talking about or to have a passion for the truth about these issues or the public's right to know more about them.  You can see who is responsible for the most recent versions of any given page by clicking on the "History" link.
  
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You can learn who is responsible for the most recent versions of any given page by clicking on the "History" link. But remember, if you spot an error in the latest revision and you don't correct it, then you share responsibility for the error. So [[be bold in updating pages]]!
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==Getting Started==
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* First you need to [http://sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Special:Userlogin&type=signup register].
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* Then you need to know [[SourceWatch:How to log in|how to log in]] and set your preferences.
  
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If you are uncertain or find the wording confusing, quote the material on the associated talk page and leave a question for the next more knowledgeable reader or editor.  This helps eliminate errors, inaccuracies or misleading wording more quickly and is highly appreciated by the community.  Thank you!
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== Contribute an Article or an Edit==
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* How to follow the [[SourceWatch:Policy|policies for contributors]]
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* How to [[SourceWatch:Contributing|add an article or edit articles]]
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* How to [[SourceWatch:Manual of Style|follow our manual of style]]
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* How to [[SourceWatch: Editorial Policy| stay within the bounds of our editorial policy]]
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* How to [[SourceWatch:Uploading Images & PDFs|upload images and key documents]]
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* How to find [[SourceWatch:Help|our ''how to'' pages]]
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* How to get answers to [[SourceWatch:FAQ|Frequently Asked Questions]]
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* How to test out how wiki editing and formatting works by playing in the editing [[SourceWatch:Sandbox|sandbox]]
  
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==I want to contact the project by e-mail. What's the address?==
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==More Details==
  
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Contact the [http://www.prwatch.org Center for Media & Democracy] or SourceWatch editor Bob Burton by sending him an email (bob AT SourceWatch.org). Otherwise, see the next question.
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* Finding [[Special:Recentchanges|recent changes]]: see the articles that SourceWatch contributors are working on with the most recent changes listed first
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* Tracking [[Special:Newpages|new articles]]
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* Requesting [[SourceWatch:Requested articles|an article or information]]
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* Fixing [[SourceWatch:Find or fix a stub|a stub]], which is the small starting kernel for an article
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* Getting better [[SourceWatch:Searching|search]] results
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* Using [[SourceWatch:Categories|categories]] to link articles and build the SourceWatch index
  
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==Where can I talk about SourceWatch with others?==
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==Errors or Complaints==
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* Fixing [[Help:How to fix or report an error|errors]]
  
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If you want to communicate with a specific user, leave a message on his or her personal talk page; you can find a list of registered SourceWatch users at [[Special:Listusers]]. ''PR Watch'' also hosts a [http://www.prwatch.org/forum/forumdisplay.php?forumid=22 SourceWatch web forum]. Finally, if you're looking to talk about a specific article or page, the best place to put your comments is on that page's Talk section.
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==Other Policies==
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* [[SourceWatch: General disclaimer]]
  
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==What is Wikipedia?==
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== Some Quick History ==
  
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See [[How does SourceWatch relate to Wikipedia?]].
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* July 3, 2004: SourceWatch is [http://www.usemod.com/cgi-bin/mb.pl?BiggestWiki the world's 14th biggest wiki website] by mere article count.
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[[Category:SourceWatch Help]]
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* March 10, 2003: SourceWatch is publicly launched.
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* January 15, 2003: SourceWatch is first created.
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* December 18, 2002: [http://www.prwatch.org PR Watch] editor [[w:Sheldon Rampton|Sheldon Rampton]] attends a conference in Amsterdam hosted by [http://www.world-information.org World-Information.org] and first learns about the creation of [[w:Wikipedia|Wikipedia]].

Latest revision as of 16:35, 24 October 2018

SourceWatch Help

Start here:

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About SourceWatch

The Center for Media and Democracy (CMD) publishes SourceWatch, this collaborative, specialized encyclopedia of the people, organizations, and issues shaping the public agenda. SourceWatch profiles the activities of front groups, PR spinners, industry-friendly experts, industry-funded organizations, and think tanks trying to manipulate public opinion on behalf of corporations or government. We also highlight key public policies they are trying to affect and provide ways to get involved. In addition, SourceWatch contains information about others who help document information about PR spin, such as reporters, academics, and watchdog groups.

To get started, there's a link to your left on the basics of how you can help write history. We also have guides, such as how to research front groups and uncover propaganda tactics, such as the use of the "third party technique," as well as great insider tips for web researching.

Launched in 2003, SourceWatch now has 68,584 articles, as of today, thanks to interested contributors like you, and over six million new visitors to its pages a year and many returning visitors who rely on our articles regularly.

Welcome to the SourceWatch community! Arn Pearson, Executive Director of the Center for Media and Democracy, publisher of SourceWatch, PRWatch, and BanksterUSA

What is SourceWatch's role in increasing transparency and public scrutiny?

SourceWatch provides simple tools to attract public participation in documenting information about the people, companies, and entities attempting to shape public opinion. With the experience of the Center for Media and Democracy (CMD) in researching and writing about spin and propaganda, CMD believes it is vital to a working democracy to increase public scrutiny and public awareness of the people and companies shaping public policy. We think it is imperative to provide useful information about key policies and document disinformation about these issues. And, it is important to help people understand options for addressing these problems.

Who owns SourceWatch?

The Center for Media and Democracy (CMD) is the publisher of SourceWatch. CMD owns the server and domain names related to SourceWatch. The articles in SourceWatch are released by their authors under the GNU Free Documentation License, so the articles are open content. See SourceWatch:Copyright and SourceWatch:Readers' FAQ for information on how you can use SourceWatch content. Other publications of CMD, including our PR Watch web site, remain copyrighted property and should not be used without permission.

Who is responsible for the articles on SourceWatch?

This is a collaborative endeavor. Many people have contributed to different parts of this project, and anyone can do so, including you! All you need to know is How to edit a page. It would also be good to know what you are talking about or to have a passion for the truth about these issues or the public's right to know more about them. You can see who is responsible for the most recent versions of any given page by clicking on the "History" link.

Getting Started

Contribute an Article or an Edit

More Details

Errors or Complaints

Other Policies

Some Quick History

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