Wikipedia:In the news/Candidates

This page provides a place to discuss new items for inclusion on In the news (ITN), a protected template on the Main Page (see past items in the ITN archives). Do not report errors in ITN items that are already on the Main Page here— discuss those at the relevant section of WP:ERRORS.

This candidates page is integrated with the daily pages of Portal:Current events. A light green header appears under each daily section – it includes transcluded Portal:Current events items for that day. You can discuss ITN candidates under the header.

Kasia Niewiadoma The Summer Paralympics open in Paris, France. More than two hundred people are killed in an Islamic militant attack in Barsalogho Department, Burkina Faso. The Islamic State claims responsibility for a mass stabbing that killed three people at a festival in Solingen, Germany. In cycling, Katarzyna Niewiadoma (pictured) wins the Tour de France Femmes. Ongoing: Israel–Hamas war timeline Russian invasion of Ukraine timeline Sudanese civil war timeline Recent deaths: Arthur J. Gregg Charlotte Kretschmann Juan Izquierdo David Anfam Salim Al-Huss Maryvonne Le Dizès view — page history — related changes — edit

Glossary Blurbs are one-sentence summaries of the news story. Altblurbs, labelled alt1, alt2, etc., are alternative suggestions to cover the same story. A target article, bolded in text, is the focus of the story. Each blurb must have at least one such article, but you may also link non-target articles. Articles in the Ongoing line describe events getting continuous coverage. The Recent deaths (RD) line includes any living thing whose death was recently announced. Consensus may decide to create a blurb for a recent death. All articles linked in the ITN template must pass our standards of review. They should be up-to-date, demonstrate relevance via good sourcing and have at least an acceptable quality. Nomination steps Make sure the item you want to nominate has an article that meets our minimum requirements and contains reliable coverage of a current event you want to create a blurb about. We will not post about events described in an article that fails our quality standards. Find the correct section below for the date of the event (not the date nominated). Do not add sections for new dates manually – a bot does that for us each day at midnight (UTC). Create a level 4 header with the article name (==== Your article here ====). Add (RD) or (Ongoing) if appropriate. Then paste the {{ITN candidate}} template with its parameters and fill them in. The news source should be reliable, support your nomination and be in the article. Write your blurb in simple present tense. Below the template, briefly explain why we should post that event. After that, save your edit. Your nomination is ready! You may add {{ITN note}} to the target article's talk page to let editors know about your nomination. The better your article's quality, the better it covers the event and the wider its perceived significance (see WP:ITNSIGNIF for details), the better your chances of getting the blurb posted. Headers When the article is ready, updated and there is consensus to post, you can mark the item as (Ready). Remove that wording if you feel the article fails any of these necessary criteria. Admins should always separately verify whether these criteria are met before posting blurbs marked (Ready). For more guidance, check WP:ITN/A. If satisfied, change the header to (Posted). Where there is no consensus, or the article's quality remains poor, change the header to (Closed) or (Not posted). Sometimes, editors ask to retract an already-posted nomination because of a fundamental error or because consensus changed. If you feel the community supports this, remove the item and mark the item as (Pulled). Voicing an opinion on an item Format your comment to contain "support" or "oppose", and include a rationale for your choice. In particular, address the notability of the event, the quality of the article, and whether it has been updated. Please do... Pick an older item to review near the bottom of this page, before the eligibility runs out and the item scrolls off the page and gets abandoned in the archive, unused and forgotten. Review an item even if it has already been reviewed by another user. You may be the first to spot a problem, or the first to confirm that an identified problem was fixed. Piling on the list of "support!" votes will help administrators see what is ready to be posted on the Main Page. Tell about problems in articles if you see them. Be bold and fix them yourself if you know how, or tell others if it's not possible. Please do not... Add simple "support!" or "oppose!" votes without including your reasons. Similarly, curt replies such as "who?", "meh", or "duh!" are not helpful. A vote without reasoning means little for us, please elaborate yourself. Oppose an item just because the event is only relating to a single country, or failing to relate to one. We post a lot of such content, so these comments are generally unproductive. Accuse other editors of supporting, opposing or nominating due to a personal bias (such as ethnocentrism). We at ITN do not handle conflicts of interest. Comment on a story without first reading the relevant article(s). Oppose a recurring item here because you disagree with the recurring items criteria. Discuss them here. Use ITN as a forum for your own political or personal beliefs. Such comments are irrelevant to the outcome and are potentially disruptive. Suggesting updates There are two places where you can request corrections to posted items: Anything that does not change the intent of the blurb (spelling, grammar, markup issues, updating death tolls etc.) should be discussed at WP:Errors. Discuss major changes in the blurb's intent or very complex updates as part of the current ITNC nomination.

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Suggestions

February 26

Portal:Current events/2018 February 26

February 26, 2018 (2018-02-26) (Monday) Arts and culture Women's rights in Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia opens applications for women to join its armed forces for the first time. (BBC) International relations United States–Mexico relations Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto cancels a scheduled trip to the United States after a heated phone call with U.S. President Donald Trump, in which Trump refused to publicly back down from his pledge of having Mexico pay for the U.S.–Mexico border wall. (CNN) France–Turkey relations French President Emmanuel Macron phones Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, telling Erdoğan that the UN-approved ceasefire in Syria also applies in the Afrin Region. (Reuters) Law and crime Clinton–Lewinsky scandal Monica Lewinsky questions whether her relationship with Bill Clinton was consensual, saying the Me Too movement forced her to reconsider it. (CNN) Crime in Belgium Five Dutch nationals and a Colombian are arrested at the staged delivery operation in Oss, Netherlands, of a container with 4,500 kilograms (9,900 lb) of cocaine and bananas for cover, originating from Colombia, that was previously intercepted in the Port of Antwerp. (NL Times) Politics and elections National Party of Australia leadership election, 2018 The cogoverning National Party of Australia elects Veterans' Affairs Minister Michael McCormack to succeed Barnaby Joyce as their leader. McCormack is later sworn in as Deputy Prime Minister. (The Sydney Morning Herald) Politics of France French Prime Minister Édouard Philippe announces plans to overhaul the state-owned railway firm SNCF. The details of the railway reform will be released in March. (Deutsche Welle) Politics of New Zealand Simon Bridges is elected as leader of the National Party, becoming the first Māori on that position. (The New Zealand Herald), (Newshub) Ron Mark is succeeded by Fletcher Tabuteau as deputy leader of New Zealand First. (Newshub) United States–North Korea relations United States Special Representative for North Korea Policy Joseph Y. Yun announces his retirement, effective 2 March. (Xinhua)

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February 25

Portal:Current events/2018 February 25

February 25, 2018 (2018-02-25) (Sunday) Armed conflicts and attacks Syrian Civil War Siege of eastern Ghouta Government forces launch a ground and air offensive in eastern Ghouta despite the adoption of Resolution 2401 by the United Nations Security Council demanding a ceasefire in part of the area. (Al Jazeera) Disasters and accidents 2018 Papua New Guinea earthquake A magnitude 7.5 earthquake occurs at the western Southern Highlands Province in Papua New Guinea, killing at least 31 people and injuring more than 300 others. (The United States Geological Survey), (TIME) An explosion destroys a store and a house, causing at least five deaths on Hinckley Road in Leicester, England. The cause of the explosion and subsequent fire is unknown. (BBC) International relations North Korea–United States relations South Korean president Moon Jae-in states that North Korea is willing to enter talks with the United States in an effort to denuclearize the Korean Peninsula. (ABC News) Law and crime Crime in Puerto Rico A mass shooting at a bar in the town of Comerio, Puerto Rico, near the capital San Juan, leaves at least five people dead and one other injured. (CBS News) An Iraqi court sentences 15 Turkish women to death by hanging after they were found guilty of joining the ISIS group as brides. (Newsweek) Politics and elections Politics of China The Central Committee of the Communist Party of China proposes that the country's constitution be amended to abolish term limits for the posts of President and Vice President. The move is seen as an attempt by current president Xi Jinping to solidify his power. (The Guardian) Sports 2018 EFL Cup Final Manchester City beat Arsenal 3–0 at Wembley Stadium to win the 2017–18 EFL Cup for the fifth time. (BBC) 2018 Winter Olympics The closing ceremony of the Winter Olympics occurs, officially bringing the competitions to an end. The Norwegian team leads the medal table with 14 gold and record 39 medals in total. (Pyeongchang 2018)

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2018 Winter Olympics closing ceremony

Article: 2018 Winter Olympics closing ceremony (talk · history · tag)
Blurb: ​ The 2018 Winter Olympics closes with Norway leading the medal table. (Post)
News source(s): BBC
Credits:

• Nominated by The Rambling Man (talk · give credit)

Nominator's comments: Because even some of our regular editors are confused, I'll nominate this, it's in a junk state but who knows, someone might fix it. The Rambling Man (talk) 21:20, 25 February 2018 (UTC)

• Oppose Multiple completely unsourced sections, years old tag, very short not offering any new information. The content it offers was already more elaborately covered in opening ITN post and just removed ongoing item. –Ammarpad (talk) 05:45, 26 February 2018 (UTC)

[Posted] RD: Ainsley Gotto

Article: Ainsley Gotto (talk · history · tag)
Recent deaths nomination (Post)
News source(s): The Australian
Credits:

• Nominated by TDKR Chicago 101 (talk · give credit)
• Updated by Canley (talk · give credit)

Article updated
Recent deaths of any person, animal or organism with a Wikipedia article are always presumed to be important enough to post (see this RFC and further discussion). Comments should focus on whether the quality of the article meets WP:ITNRD.

 --TDKR Chicago 101 (talk) 20:28, 25 February 2018 (UTC)

• Support good to go. The Rambling Man (talk) 20:42, 25 February 2018 (UTC)
• Support - fully referenced. good to go.--BabbaQ (talk) 22:38, 25 February 2018 (UTC)
• Posted Stephen 22:41, 25 February 2018 (UTC)

[Removed] Remove: 2018 Winter Olympics

Article: 2018 Winter Olympics (talk · history · tag)
Ongoing item removal (Post)

Nominator's comments: It's all over. The Rambling Man (talk) 14:22, 25 February 2018 (UTC)

• Per ITNR the closing is posted. 331dot (talk) 15:24, 25 February 2018 (UTC)
• I am actually not a fan of posting the closing, it is somewhat less prominent than the opening. We can remove the Ongoing tomorrow, for example. --Tone 16:47, 25 February 2018 (UTC)
• Converted type from rem to no, added possible blurb, if we wanted to have one instead. If I should have opened a separate candidate, please feel free to revert/fix 184.153.25.119 (talk) 17:05, 25 February 2018 (UTC)

  This is about removing the event from Ongoing. If someone wants to nominate the closing ceremony then that's a different nomination. Please people, focus. The Rambling Man (talk) 17:09, 25 February 2018 (UTC)

• Support my, how time flies! Lepricavark (talk) 17:36, 25 February 2018 (UTC)
• Support the right thing since it's over. –Ammarpad (talk) 20:31, 25 February 2018 (UTC)
• Support - it is no longer ongoing. Stormy clouds (talk) 21:09, 25 February 2018 (UTC)
• Removed Stephen 22:20, 25 February 2018 (UTC)

February 24

Portal:Current events/2018 February 24

February 24, 2018 (2018-02-24) (Saturday) Armed conflicts and attacks Somali Civil War (2009–present) February 2018 Mogadishu attack Two car bombings near the presidential palace in Mogadishu, Somalia, kill at least 38 people. Al-Shabaab claim responsibility for the attacks. (BBC) Syrian Civil War The United Nations Security Council unanimously approves a resolution demanding a 30-day ceasefire in Syria. (BBC), (The Washington Post) Yemeni Civil War (2015–present) Islamist car suicide bombers and gunmen try to storm the headquarters of a counter-terrorism unit in the southern port city of Aden, killing at least 14 people and wounding 40 others. (Reuters) War in Afghanistan (2001–2021) A series of militant attacks in Afghanistan kill more than 20 people. (Reuters) Internal conflict in Myanmar 2018 Sittwe bombings Three bombs explode in Sittwe, the capital of Myanmar's Rakhine State, slightly injuring a police officer. Three other unexploded bombs are defused around the city. It is unclear who was behind the bombs, but most of them were placed next to government-related buildings. (BBC), (Voice of America News) Arts and culture Archbishop of Guatemala City Oscar Julio Vian Morales died at age 70. Acting President Jafeth Cabrera decrees three days of national mourning. (ABC News) Politics and elections Aftermath of the Stoneman Douglas High School shooting 2018 NRA boycott Several companies, including First National Bank of Omaha, Hertz, and United and Delta airlines have cut ties with the NRA following the shooting, saying that the discount deals they have with the NRA are cancelled. (BBC) (USA Today) Nunes memo A memo written by Democrats on the United States House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence is released, countering the Republican memo released on February 2. (Bloomberg) Sports Doping in Russia Russian bobsledder Nadezhda Sergeeva who tested positive for the banned substance trimetazidine (a medication used to treat angina) at the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang admits to doping and has been disqualified from competing. (AP via MSN)

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[Posted] RD: Bud Luckey

Article: Bud Luckey (talk · history · tag)
Recent deaths nomination (Post)
News source(s): The Hollywood Reporter, Animation Magazine
Credits:

• Nominated by TDKR Chicago 101 (talk · give credit)

Article updated
Recent deaths of any person, animal or organism with a Wikipedia article are always presumed to be important enough to post (see this RFC and further discussion). Comments should focus on whether the quality of the article meets WP:ITNRD.

Nominator's comments: Article has been updated and is well sourced. Oscar-nominated Pixar animator. Death was announced today by his son. --TDKR Chicago 101 (talk) 00:20, 26 February 2018 (UTC)

• Support - fully referenced, long enough. RD ready.--BabbaQ (talk) 00:22, 26 February 2018 (UTC)
• Posted Stephen 00:56, 26 February 2018 (UTC)

RD/Blurb: Sridevi

Article: Sridevi (talk · history · tag)
Recent deaths nomination (Post)
News source(s): BBC
Credits:

• Nominated by The Rambling Man (talk · give credit)

Article updated
Recent deaths of any person, animal or organism with a Wikipedia article are always presumed to be important enough to post (see this RFC and further discussion). Comments should focus on whether the quality of the article meets WP:ITNRD.

 The Rambling Man (talk) 23:49, 24 February 2018 (UTC)

• Support Blurb - She was one of the best known comedians from Indian cinema and her career spanned several decades. She was the winner of several awards and played in numerous cult movies in both Hindi and Tamil. The article on her is detailed and well sourced --Manish2542 (talk) 02:13, 25 February 2018 (UTC)

@Manish2542: As this is a Recent Deaths nomination, support on the merits is not required; this will be posted once there is a quality update. 331dot (talk) 02:16, 25 February 2018 (UTC)

• Support. B class article and article is well sourced. Capitalistroadster (talk) 03:49, 25 February 2018 (UTC)
• Oppose At least 12 paragraphs without a single reference, and numerous other uncited claims. Stephen 04:18, 25 February 2018 (UTC)
• Support - Arguably the biggest 'Lady Superstar' in Indian cinema. The article needs a minor cleanup – there's a couple of {{cn}} tags in in the career section. —Vensatry _(talk) 04:26, 25 February 2018 (UTC)
• Support - Minor cleanup needed otherwise nicely sourced. Sherenk1 (talk) 04:48, 25 February 2018 (UTC)
• Support blurb - Nicely sourced with minor clean-up but the overall article state is nice. Honestly, a blurb could also be argued seeing the death is sudden and is being covered heavily international (from the BBC to CNN). --TDKR Chicago 101 (talk) 05:13, 25 February 2018 (UTC)
  • Support - Would support blurb as well. Sherenk1 (talk) 09:36, 25 February 2018 (UTC)
• Support - Very well sourced article. Sudden death which gained international coverage.--SouravDas1998^{t@lk to me?} 06:32, 25 February 2018 (UTC)
• Support Article looks fine. –Ammarpad (talk) 07:48, 25 February 2018 (UTC)
• Support when fully sourced It's mostly fine, but "Early years as child artist (1967–1975)" has no sources apart from the first sentence, the following paragraph has none at all. There are also a number of uncited claims in "Post-marriage and television debut (1998–2011)". These things do need to be fixed. Black Kite (talk) 09:46, 25 February 2018 (UTC)
• Support - when completed. Right now entire sections are unsourced so I have to give a weak oppose right now.BabbaQ (talk) 09:47, 25 February 2018 (UTC)
• Oppose virtually unknown outside India. And very poor article with unreferenced claims — Preceding unsigned comment added by Numancia (talk • contribs) 11:09, 25 February 2018 (UTC)

• @Numancia: Virtually unknown outside India? I'm from Mauritius where she is a household name just like in the whole of South Asia and everywhere where Indian films are watched. On the other hand, who is Billy Graham? Never heard of him before he somehow made the headlines on wikipedia — Preceding unsigned comment added by Manish2542 (talk • contribs)
• Well, I'm Canadian and I've heard of her. Every major media outlet here reported her death. Never heard of Graham though. 75.102.128.35 (talk) 17:49, 25 February 2018 (UTC)

• Oppose blurb, support RD this is what RD is for. For anyone tempted to scream about "American bias" and "Billy Grahm" pull that one and move it to RD. Per WP:USGOVERNMENTSHUTDOWN we now pull stories that have faded from the headlines, so go for it. --76.122.98.135 (talk) 14:22, 25 February 2018 (UTC)

• Graham is currently our most recent blurb. Pulling him would be a bad idea. Lepricavark (talk) 17:45, 25 February 2018 (UTC)

• Strong Support Blurb - The article is well referenced and of good quality, when considered on standalone basis. The actor was very popular in Bollywood in 80s and 90s. Making headlines and quite referenced in the subcontinent, the Middle East, and the leading US and UK publications ( CNN, Fox News, BBC News, The Guardian, Sky News, ABC News). The death was untimely which shocked everyone in India resulting in the outpouring of tributes. And regarding the popularity of the actor, one must have the knowledge on what Bollywood is all about!!! If a nomination in recent past did not make through, does not imply it will also not go through (US government Shut down was poplular but was not expected and did not make any short term impact).

Let's not delay the publishing of the post. We have enough support for publishing it to the ITN Regards, theTigerKing  16:04, 25 February 2018 (UTC)

At least two of the supports above are actually opposes as of right now, because they are conditional on referencing being improved (Black Kite and BabbaQ). Pawnkingthree (talk) 16:38, 25 February 2018 (UTC)

• Oppose blurb on significance and RD on referencing gaps. Two sections with additional citations required banners, so not ready yet. Pawnkingthree (talk) 16:34, 25 February 2018 (UTC)
• Strong support blurb - Billy Graham has lowered the bar. WaltCip (talk) 17:09, 25 February 2018 (UTC)
• Oppose blurb - does not cross the notability threshold in my view, and is not in the same league of significance and impact as Graham. Also oppose for an RD listing owing to referencing concerns. Stormy clouds (talk) 17:37, 25 February 2018 (UTC)
• Oppose blurb Graham may have lowered the bar, but not that much. Lepricavark (talk) 17:40, 25 February 2018 (UTC)
• Support blurb - Far more notable than Billy Graham. Death at 54 is also surprising when compared to a 99 year old's death which is expected. 75.102.128.35 (talk) 17:46, 25 February 2018 (UTC)
• Comment The paragraphs above are still unsourced. "Support" voters - this isn't going to get posted to RD or ITN until the referencing issues are fixed. Black Kite (talk) 17:48, 25 February 2018 (UTC)
• Weak support blurb on significance, oppose on quality I'm seeing this being reported a good bit more than I was seeing Graham's death; then again I don't read solely or even predominantly US news sources. It's certainly a more unexpected death than Graham's. Vanamonde (talk) 17:57, 25 February 2018 (UTC)
• Oppose blurb on notability, oppose RD on quality. We don't elevate everyone who dies young to a blurb; her death must be noteworthy per se ("murder, suicide, or major accident" is the suggested standard). GCG (talk) 22:46, 25 February 2018 (UTC)

Changing my vote on notability to neutral due to the death seemingly being of non-natural causes (I'd put this on par with Heath Ledger, maybe?); but we are still miles away on the references. GCG (talk) 16:25, 26 February 2018 (UTC)

• Support. She has appeared in more than 300 films in Hindi and other languages.-Nizil (talk) 13:59, 26 February 2018 (UTC)
• Support blurb once lede is referenced If she was American, it probably would be posted already. That's impossible to eliminate, because many editors are from the US, but it can be counterbalanced, by improving and posting the articles of non-Americans. India is the second-largest English speaking country. THat said, though, the lede is still unreferenced. -A lad insane (Channel 2) 15:24, 26 February 2018 (UTC)

  A few points: no, it wouldn't alreay have been posted, and this is in no way related to any "bias", there's clear consensus in favour of the article being posted, but there's a great big orange maintenance tag on it which means no right-minded admin would ever promote it to the main page. No, we don't need to reference the lead. The lead should only contain information that's expanded upon in the main body, so referencing material there rather than in the lead is commonplace (just check any number of featured articles). Cheers. The Rambling Man (talk) 15:51, 26 February 2018 (UTC)

• RD is fine once the article is up to scratch, but I oppose a blurb. We should never have given Graham a blurb; let's not compound that mistake by dropping the bar even lower. Blurbs are for transformative world leaders (Thatcher, Mandela), not popular entertainers. Modest Genius ^talk 16:30, 26 February 2018 (UTC)

[Posted] RD: Yang Rudai

Article: Yang Rudai (talk · history · tag)
Recent deaths nomination (Post)
News source(s): Xinhua
Credits:

• Updated and nominated by Zanhe (talk · give credit)

Article updated
Recent deaths of any person, animal or organism with a Wikipedia article are always presumed to be important enough to post (see this RFC and further discussion). Comments should focus on whether the quality of the article meets WP:ITNRD.

 Zanhe (talk) 22:43, 24 February 2018 (UTC)

• Oppose - "Career data" (odd name) section is completely unreferenced. The Rambling Man (talk) 22:47, 24 February 2018 (UTC)

@The Rambling Man: I was adding the source at the same moment you were writing your comment. Please check again. -Zanhe (talk) 23:02, 24 February 2018 (UTC)

Support good work. The Rambling Man (talk) 21:17, 25 February 2018 (UTC)

• Support: One of the less well-known member of the CPC top leadership, pretty much away from the spotlight for the past 30 years. But since none of that is relevant, the article quality looks fine and therefore support RD (Source has been added for the "Career timeline" section). Alex Shih (talk) 06:57, 25 February 2018 (UTC)
• Support Now the article looks OK. –Ammarpad (talk) 07:48, 25 February 2018 (UTC)
• Support - article seems RD ready.BabbaQ (talk) 12:37, 25 February 2018 (UTC)
• Support - valuable contribution to economic reform, and combats systemic bias. Colipon+(Talk) 14:48, 25 February 2018 (UTC)
• Posted Stephen 22:35, 25 February 2018 (UTC)

[Posted] RD: Emma Chambers

Article: Emma Chambers (talk · history · tag)
Recent deaths nomination (Post)
News source(s): BBC The Guardian
Credits:

• Nominated by Thryduulf (talk · give credit)
• Updated by Black Kite (talk · give credit)

Article updated
Recent deaths of any person, animal or organism with a Wikipedia article are always presumed to be important enough to post (see this RFC and further discussion). Comments should focus on whether the quality of the article meets WP:ITNRD.

Nominator's comments: Although she died on the 21st it was not announced until today. The article needs more sources (which I'll get to later, I don't have time right now), but is reasonably comprehensive if not astounding. Obits will help with this of course. Thryduulf (talk) 19:54, 24 February 2018 (UTC)

• Oppose (with regret) tagged and with a completely unreferenced Career section. The Rambling Man (talk) 22:46, 24 February 2018 (UTC)

  Support good work, this is good to go. The Rambling Man (talk) 14:02, 25 February 2018 (UTC)

• Oppose article is short stub and mostly unreferenced. Joseph2302 (talk) 23:11, 24 February 2018 (UTC)
• Support Still short, but fully sourced now. I'll see if I can expand it a bit more. Black Kite (talk) 10:29, 25 February 2018 (UTC)
• Support Fully referenced, above stub level Galobtter (pingó mió) 12:37, 25 February 2018 (UTC)
• Posted Vanamonde (talk) 14:08, 25 February 2018 (UTC)

Ongoing: Rif Dimashq offensive (February 2018)

Article: Rif Dimashq offensive (February 2018) (talk · history · tag)
Ongoing item nomination (Post)
News source(s): BBC
Credits:

• Nominated by LukeSurl (talk · give credit)

Nominator's comments: This high-casualty military action has been in the headlines for the past week. Article seems adequate at the current time. LukeSurl ^{t c} 16:15, 24 February 2018 (UTC)

• Oppose - Turkey's Afrin operation is also making headlines from time to time. Having one Syrian Civil War story posted to Ongoing and not the other seems arbitrary to me. And posting both would be too much for one topic. I could, however, support a blurb. Fitzcarmalan (talk) 18:19, 24 February 2018 (UTC)
• Comment unanimous UN approval for a ceasefire seems notable enough, but should that make this ongoing, or should we have a whole new nomination with that as the crux? The Rambling Man (talk) 22:45, 24 February 2018 (UTC)
• Strong Support 1) It's a large scale and important offensive with huge civilian casualties, thanks to al-quaeda using the civilians as human shields. 2) it's all over the news. 3) the UNSC managed to secure a month-long truce, which is alredy ITN-worthy 4) Even Guterres commented on the offensive, stating that Eastern Ghouta is "hell of earth" Karl.i.biased (talk) 07:20, 25 February 2018 (UTC)
• Support. This is effectively a siege within a national capital, with higher casualties than Afrin. 2607:FEA8:1CDF:DF8C:C1B0:FBFB:8134:E367 (talk) 05:21, 26 February 2018 (UTC)
• Support ongoing, though it might be worth getting 'Ghouta' in the entry somehow, as that's the name in most media headlines. The UN ceasefire would be worth a blurb if it had held, but it doesn't seem to be having any effect. Modest Genius ^talk 16:45, 26 February 2018 (UTC)

February 23

Portal:Current events/2018 February 23

February 23, 2018 (2018-02-23) (Friday) Armed conflicts and attacks Syrian Civil War Rif Dimashq offensive Syrian government warplanes carry out a sixth day of airstrikes in the rebel-held Ghouta suburbs east of Damascus, killing 32 people as the death toll from a week of bombardment reaches over 400. (U.S. News & World Report) International relations Australia–United States relations U.S. President Donald Trump meets with Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull in the White House. Trump indicated that there would be new sanctions against the North Korean regime. (CNBC) Law and crime Mueller special counsel investigation Rick Gates pleads guilty to charges of conspiracy against the United States and making false statements, and agrees to cooperate with the Special Counsel investigation. (NPR) Politics and elections Politics of Australia Barnaby Joyce announces his resignation as Deputy Prime Minister and leader of the National Party, following scandals involving an affair with a staffer and a sexual harassment allegation. The party, a junior partner in the Coalition government, will vote for his successor on February 26. (The Guardian) Sports 2017–18 NCAA Division I men's basketball corruption scandal Documents obtained through legal discovery filings during the ongoing FBI probe into college basketball corruption reveal potential current and retroactive NCAA rules issues for at least 20 Division I programs and more than 25 players. In addition to programs named when federal criminal charges were first revealed in September 2017, among the programs potentially implicated in the new documents are Duke, Kentucky, and North Carolina. (Yahoo! Sports)

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[Closed] Ongoing: Battle of Khasham

The following discussion is closed. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made on the appropriate discussion page. No further edits should be made to this discussion.

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Article: Battle of Khasham (talk · history · tag)
Ongoing item nomination (Post)
News source(s): [1] [2] [3]
Credits:

• Nominated by Banedon (talk · give credit)

Nominator's comments: The battle itself is long over but there's a surprisingly large amount of ongoing coverage. Details are murky. If indeed Russian mercenaries intentionally attacked a US base that should be pretty significant. Somewhat hesitant about this but nominating it to see what ITN thinks. Banedon (talk) 00:49, 23 February 2018 (UTC)

• No It happened on February 7th. I would have supported it 2 weeks ago. But it's not ongoing, and the oldest ITN piece we have right now is the school shooting in florida, which happened like 10 days after the battle. If I were you and was interested in the syrian war, I'd nominate the SAA intervention in Afrin. Seems like the absolute madmen actually did it and that's actually hug news and a severe blow to the american attempts to destabilize the country and put as many of their bases there as possible. Karl.i.biased (talk) 01:53, 23 February 2018 (UTC)
• Oppose "Ongoing" means the event, not the coverage. GCG (talk) 12:57, 23 February 2018 (UTC)
• Oppose decidedly not ongoing. The Rambling Man (talk) 13:00, 23 February 2018 (UTC)

The discussion above is closed. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made on the appropriate discussion page. No further edits should be made to this discussion.

February 22

Portal:Current events/2018 February 22

February 22, 2018 (2018-02-22) (Thursday) Armed conflicts and attacks Montenegrin police identify the perpetrator of a grenade attack on the U.S. embassy in Podgorica which occurred yesterday. According to authorities, he was a veteran of the Armed Forces of Yugoslavia. (BBC) Syrian Civil War Russian involvement in the Syrian Civil War Russia blocks agreement on a United Nations Security Council resolution calling for a 30-day truce in Syria. A formal vote is postponed. (The New York Times) Rif Dimashq offensive The death toll since February 18 in the rebel-held Damascus suburb of Eastern Ghouta is more than 400, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. (AP via Time) International relations In exchange for some of its national debt being written off, the Seychelles designates two new marine protected areas in the Indian Ocean, covering about 210,000 square kilometres (81,000 sq mi). It is the result of a financial deal, brokered in 2016 by The Nature Conservancy. (BBC), (Phys.org) Canada–India relations Canadian prime minister Justin Trudeau rescinds from Jaspal Atwal his invitation to a reception. (BBC) Law and crime Politics of Romania Romanian Justice Minister Tudorel Toader announces that he would trigger the dismissal procedures of the Chief Prosecutor of the National Anticorruption Directorate, Laura Codruța Kövesi. The announcement sparks protests. (Act Media) 2018 Russian presidential election Russian police detained the political activist Alexei Navalny and his chief of staff Leonid Volkov, who will be taken to court for having organized an unauthorized protest on January 28. Navalny claims that the authorities want him in jail when the upcoming presidential election occurs on March 18. (Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty) 2017–18 United States political sexual scandals A grand jury indicts Missouri Governor Eric Greitens on charges of felony invasion of privacy by allegedly threatening to publish a nude photo of the woman he was involved with in a 2015 extramarital affair, if the woman ever disclosed the relationship. Governor Greitens denies the blackmail charge. (St. Louis Post-Dispatch), (Fox News) Mueller special counsel investigation Special Counsel Robert Mueller files a 32-count indictment against political consultant and lobbyist Paul Manafort and his aide Rick Gates in the Eastern District of Virginia for multiple crimes including tax evasion and bank fraud. (ABC News), (Fox News), (The New York Times), (Justice.gov) Presidency of Donald Trump The Trump administration through the U.S. Justice Department announces charges filed against more than 250 defendants in senior-citizen fraud schemes totaling $500 million. (CNBC) Politics and elections 2017–18 United States political sexual scandals California State Senator Tony Mendoza resigns after being investigated over sexual harassment claims. (The New York Times) Rhode Island State Senator Nicholas Kettle resigns after being indicted on charges of extortion and voyeurism. (WJAR)

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[Posted] RD: Richard E. Taylor

Article: Richard E. Taylor (talk · history · tag)
Recent deaths nomination (Post)
News source(s): The Washington Post
Credits:

• Nominated by The Rambling Man (talk · give credit)
• Updated by TDKR Chicago 101 (talk · give credit)

Recent deaths of any person, animal or organism with a Wikipedia article are always presumed to be important enough to post (see this RFC and further discussion). Comments should focus on whether the quality of the article meets WP:ITNRD.

Nominator's comments: Nobel Prize-winning physicist who was part of the group who discovered quarks. The Rambling Man (talk) 20:50, 25 February 2018 (UTC)

• Weak oppose Awards section needs more sources and there is no section with death or later life info. I'll help fix it up. --TDKR Chicago 101 (talk) 20:53, 25 February 2018 (UTC) Support Article has been fixed up and is g2g. --TDKR Chicago 101 (talk) 21:05, 25 February 2018 (UTC)
• Posted Stephen 22:27, 25 February 2018 (UTC)

Stéphane Valeri elected as the new president of Monaco's National Council

Articles: Stéphane Valeri (talk · history · tag) and National Council (Monaco) (talk · history · tag)
Blurb: ​ Stéphane Valeri is elected as the president of the National Council of Monaco. (Post)
News source(s): "Stéphane Valeri élu président du Conseil national". Nice Matin. February 22, 2018. Retrieved February 24, 2018.
Credits:

• Nominated by Zigzig20s (talk · give credit)

Article updated

 We rarely post anything about Monegasque politics and while it is a small principality, it is home to many (billionaire) investors who play a huge role in our capitalist system globally. Valeri ran on a "Monaco first" platform.Zigzig20s (talk) 16:21, 24 February 2018 (UTC)

• Oppose the target article is a bland stub. Valeri's article is barely more than a stub and shows not one iota of update. Perhaps this is why we "rarely post anything about Monegasque politics". The Rambling Man (talk) 22:44, 24 February 2018 (UTC)
• Oppose Not a head of state/government. I'd oppose even with expansion. – Muboshgu (talk) 22:48, 24 February 2018 (UTC)

Przewalski's horse

Articles: Przewalski's horse (talk · history · tag) and Wild horse (talk · history · tag)
Blurb: ​ Genetic studies determine the Przewalski's horse (pictured) to be a feral horse and not the last extant undomesticated wild horse. (Post)
Alternative blurb: ​ The Przewalski's horse is reclassified as a feral horse, making the wild horse extinct.
News source(s): Science, Times, Independent, Sky News, Science Daily
Credits:

• Nominated by Brandmeister (talk · give credit)

Both articles need updating

Nominator's comments: Potentially major change published in the peer-reviewed Science, but I'm putting this before updating just in case. Brandmeister^talk 11:58, 23 February 2018 (UTC)

• This blurb sounds a little esoteric, where the news is a lot more clear/interesting: wild horses are extinct. Should we go with something like "With the reclassification of Przewalski's horse, geneticists have determined the wild horse is extinct?" GCG (talk) 12:55, 23 February 2018 (UTC)
  • Added alt. Brandmeister^talk 13:07, 23 February 2018 (UTC)
• Support I'm on the fence here. While the extinction of megafauna in modern times is extremely noteworthy, this event actually dates the last wild horse to 1909 at the latest. I'm going support because this should be of interest to readers. GCG (talk) 13:48, 23 February 2018 (UTC)
• Support - article quality is great. Makes for interesting reading for ITN. BabbaQ (talk) 13:55, 23 February 2018 (UTC)
• Comment I think there is something here but the blurb(s) may be misleading, at least reading through other articles, specifically the part of "wild horses extinct". (I can't see the full Science article, so I can't see how the authors put it). Perhaps something like the first blurb but as "Genetic studies determine the Przewalski's horse (pictured) to be feral domesticated horse rather than the last-known wild horse." Also, I think the target article needs a slightly larger update than two sentences in the lede. --Masem (t) 14:14, 23 February 2018 (UTC)
• Comment Reassigning a subspecies that most people have never heard of doesn't seem like something that would interest many readers. zzz (talk) 14:28, 23 February 2018 (UTC)

Random flight/train crashes aren't really that interesting either.. Galobtter (pingó mió) 15:40, 23 February 2018 (UTC)

• There are many wholly unreferenced paragraphs in the Przewalski's horse article. In general, I'm in agreement with User:Signedzzz about the likely interest there is in this story. --LukeSurl ^{t c} 15:31, 23 February 2018 (UTC)
• Comment. Although I would probably argue this event is notable, it has enough problems as to make fixing the article a job for editors experienced in the subject, and unless you can find an editor who is willing to take the time, I cannot support it. Inatan (talk) 15:40, 23 February 2018 (UTC)
• Conditional Oppose. The article about the horse is busting at the seams. Although nevertheless an intriguing (and somewhat tragic) discovery, it is largely trivial and arbitrary. Although covered in several science papers and websites, most conventional news and media are turning away from this discovery, and those that do cover it are not front page news, this is what turns me off. SamaranEmerald (talk) 17:32, 23 February 2018 (UTC)

@SamaranEmerald Coverage does not constitute whether or not an event is ITN worthy, I have seen world events before that that were posted on ITN and yet received barely any coverage. Kirliator (talk) 17:40, 23 February 2018 (UTC)

• Weak Oppose purely trivial as SE puts it, but still interesting, may reconsider if article is updated sufficiently. Kirliator (talk) 17:49, 23 February 2018 (UTC)
• Strongly Oppose. When information about the article in Science, etc. gets included in Wikipedia (specifically in Wild horse, Feral horse and/or Przewalski's horse) AND the horse is reclassified as feral not wild (by the IUCN or whoever) then we might try again. After all, we didn't publish ITN items saying "Billy Graham is gravely ill", "Billy Graham is on his deathbed" and so on. Once this is done (if it is done), I think I would support such an ITN item. --RoyGoldsmith (talk) 19:36, 23 February 2018 (UTC)
• Weak Oppose interesting DYK but I don't think its ITN-worthy. – Nixinova ⟨T|C⟩ 02:35, 24 February 2018 (UTC)
• Strong Oppose Highly misleading. One peer-reviewed study showed that they are a feral horse. There's definitively no consensus on that matter. Wikipedia is not daily Mail. Karl.i.biased (talk) 04:06, 24 February 2018 (UTC)

February 21

Portal:Current events/2018 February 21

February 21, 2018 (2018-02-21) (Wednesday) Armed conflicts and attacks Operation Barkhane Two French soldiers are killed after their armoured vehicle hits a roadside bomb in Mali. (France 24) Boko Haram insurgency The Nigerian military rescues 76 schoolgirls taken on Monday during a Boko Haram raid on the village of Dapchi, Yobe State. The bodies of two girls were recovered, and at least thirteen other students remain missing. (Reuters) (Daily Trust) 2018 Lashio bombing A bomb explodes at a bank in Lashio, Shan State, in northern Myanmar, killing two employees and injuring 22 others. (The New York Times) (Reuters) Disasters and accidents A coach transiting the Pan-American Highway plunges off the road in Arequipa, Peru, killing 44 people. (BBC) A ferry explosion at the Playa del Carmen's pier in Mexico injures 18 people. None of the injuries appear to be life-threatening. (CBS News via MSN) International relations Foreign relations of South Korea South Korea signs free trade agreements with the Central American countries of Costa Rica, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, and Panama to eliminate duties on about 95% of traded goods and services. (Reuters) Politics and elections Stoneman Douglas High School shooting U.S. President Donald Trump meets in the White House State Dining Room with parents and friends of young people killed in school shootings to discuss what needs to be done. Suggestions for the president included a number of items to make schools safer, and for Trump to "put politics aside" and back gun control measures. (NBC News) (AP via Star Tribune)

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[Posted] Billy Graham

The following discussion is closed. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made on the appropriate discussion page. No further edits should be made to this discussion.

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Article: Billy Graham (talk · history · tag)
Blurb: ​ Billy Graham, widely regarded as the most influential preacher of the 20th century, dies at the age of 99. (Post)
Alternative blurb: ​ U.S. Christian evangelist Billy Graham, known for his mass-proselytizing crusades, dies at age 99.
Alternative blurb II: ​ Billy Graham, widely regarded as the most influential Evangelical preacher of the 20th century, dies at the age of 99.
News source(s): BBC
Credits:

• Nominated by The Rambling Man (talk · give credit)
• Updated by Coffee (talk · give credit)

 The Rambling Man (talk) 13:43, 21 February 2018 (UTC) + — Coffee // have a ☕️ // beans // 14:48, 21 February 2018 (UTC)

• Weak oppose for now; article is in pretty good shape, but the "other honors" section needs refs. --Jayron32 13:45, 21 February 2018 (UTC)

We should just delete that section; most of those awards probably aren't notable anyway.--Pawnkingthree (talk) 13:58, 21 February 2018 (UTC)

• Support. Quite a big deal, and the article is OK. Guy (Help!) 13:46, 21 February 2018 (UTC)
• Weak Support on article quality. There are a handful of spots where a cite is needed but overall the article is in good condition and these can be quickly fixed. Support Blurb on the importance of the subject. Graham was an absolutely iconic figure both in the United States and globally and will certainly be remembered as one of the great figures in the history of Evangelical Protestantism. Unquestionably meets our criteria for a blurb. -Ad Orientem (talk) 13:50, 21 February 2018 (UTC)
• Support RD A couple of CN tags but nothing that should prevent posting in my view. Neutral about a blurb; I concede he was influential within he's field but he's hardly a global icon in the mould of Mandela.--Pawnkingthree (talk) 13:58, 21 February 2018 (UTC)

I disagree. He is easily the most recognized clergyman in the world excepting only the Pope. -Ad Orientem (talk) 14:02, 21 February 2018 (UTC)

Perhaps I'm an ignorant neophyte, but I have to admit this is the first time I've heard of or seen the name "Billy Graham".--WaltCip (talk) 14:05, 21 February 2018 (UTC)

Indeed. I had never heard of him before I moved to the US.--Pawnkingthree (talk) 14:06, 21 February 2018 (UTC)

Support blurb Curious how old these editors are. I'm 38 and definitely caught Graham in his waning years; any younger and he may seem irrelevant. But his influence was massive and global for decades. GCG (talk) 14:13, 21 February 2018 (UTC)

I'm 41, if you must know :-)--Pawnkingthree (talk) 14:17, 21 February 2018 (UTC)

He was 99 and has been semi-retired for a long time. Also (and I am not making any assumptions regarding anyone's personal beliefs here) people who are religiously indifferent or are non-believers aren't likely to keep tabs on famous clergy. I am also quite sure there are people who have no idea who Nelson Mandella was. In fact I am fairly sure two such are relatives of mine. :-( -Ad Orientem (talk) 14:18, 21 February 2018 (UTC)

I support inclusion as main news. For those who have never heard of him, then perhaps the inclusion of the news will address our appalling and immense ignorance about religion and religious men. werldwayd (talk) 15:20, 21 February 2018 (UTC)

• Support blurb - not a fan of the man's work, but his notability is unquestionable. — Coffee // have a ☕️ // beans // 14:19, 21 February 2018 (UTC)
  • Notability is not a question here. It is how much of an impact on the world that his death has/may create. He was 99 so his death was not surprising (I had thought he passed already), and while its still early in the news cycle, I'm not seeing the type of shock and awe we'd associate with a blurb-worthy posting like Mandala/Thatcher or Bowie/Prince/Williams. --Masem (t) 14:23, 21 February 2018 (UTC)
    • Actually, with rare exceptions the standard is not the impact of their death, but rather their life. Madella's death was long expected and had virtually no impact as he had long retired from politics. We typically give blurbs to people who were in the top tier of their field. Graham unquestionably fits that criteria. It is of course also true that we occasionally give blurbs in cases where a very well known figure dies unexpectedly. -Ad Orientem (talk) 14:30, 21 February 2018 (UTC)
    • (edit conflict) "shock and awe" has never been a requirement for posting a blurb on ITN, and for good reason. Shock and awe is a military doctrine based on the use of overwhelming power, dominant battlefield awareness, dominant maneuvers, and spectacular displays of force to paralyze an adversary's perception of the battlefield and destroy its will to fight. — Coffee // have a ☕️ // beans // 14:34, 21 February 2018 (UTC)
      • I didn't mean it in a military sense. I'm looking at it from the fact that the world (broadly) was taken aback by the news. Clearly, someone as notable as Graham will get tons of obit coverage, but I'm looking to see if there are mass gatherings to show respect, or similar actions that demonstrate that this was more impactful as a death than just numerous obits. There might be, but that I'm not seeing yet, just a lot of obits. --Masem (t) 14:55, 21 February 2018 (UTC)
        • Apologies my tongue was in my cheek. So you're opposing because someone who literally just died hasn't had gatherings for them yet? Interesting logic. — Coffee // have a ☕️ // beans // 15:00, 21 February 2018 (UTC)
          • A good rule of thumb for a death blurb in my view is whether there is likely to be a separate article just for the death. See Death of Nelson Mandela, Death of David Bowie. Will there be a Death of Billy Graham?--Pawnkingthree (talk) 15:04, 21 February 2018 (UTC)
            • I respectfully disagree. We should make these decisions based on the impact of the individual's life, not the specific circumstances of his death. This man was a major world figure for decades. Lepricavark (talk) 15:24, 21 February 2018 (UTC)
          • Given that we can post an interim RD while blurb discussions continue, this is completely reasonable to see how the situation develops in the next 24 hrs. The stuff I'm reading right now is still of the ilk "Oh, he was a great man, shame he died"-type of tributes, which do not meet my opinion of where a blurb is worthy. --Masem (t) 15:21, 21 February 2018 (UTC)

Billy Graham is a world-famous white Christian Evangelical who I don't think is a raving right-wing fruit-loop. That's notable in itself ;-) One would like to think he would at least attempt a cup of tea and a sit-down with Richard Dawkins without each other screaming at 120 decibels. Ritchie333 ^{(talk) (cont)} 15:34, 21 February 2018 (UTC)

• Support blurb per Coffee, GCG, and Ad Orientem. Gamaliel (talk) 14:29, 21 February 2018 (UTC)
• RD is fine once the article is up to scratch, but strong oppose blurb. I find it laughable that anyone thinks this man is a world-changing figure comparable to Nelson Mandela or Margaret Thatcher, which is the standard we apply for blurbs. Modest Genius ^talk 14:30, 21 February 2018 (UTC)

Again, the standard is being misstated. It is not "world changing," Mandella did not change the world. He changed his country. The standard has always been that the subject is generally recognized as being in the top tier of their profession. World changing is silly. We would have a death blurb maybe once a decade if that. And virtually everyone outside the field of politics would be excluded. Graham definitely meets the traditional criteria we have always applied here for a blurb. -Ad Orientem (talk) 14:42, 21 February 2018 (UTC)

I disagree in almost every way. I'll just point you to WP:ITN/DC which states that blurbs are limited to "major transformative world leaders", which Graham was not. You can't narrow things down to a tiny field just to claim this person was important. In a century's time, people will still be talking about Nelson Mandela. They will not be talking about an obscure preacher. Modest Genius ^talk 14:51, 21 February 2018 (UTC)

If you believe that Billy Graham was an obscure preacher than all I can say is that we do not inhabit the same world and further discussion is pointless. -Ad Orientem (talk) 14:54, 21 February 2018 (UTC)

• Support blurb According to WP:ITN, blurbs are for the deaths of "major transformative world leaders in their field" and in the field of religion, Billy Graham meets this standard. Additionally, his death is receiving substantial coverage around the world [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] [9] [10], [11]. Spencer^T♦C 14:39, 21 February 2018 (UTC)
• Support blurb "He was widely regarded as the most influential preacher of the 20th century" from his biography says it all, biggest christian figure of the 20th century. Claims that he is a obscure preacher are outright laughable and i am not even close to being near the US. Here's a bit from an article i read about his death "Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. counted Graham as a close friend and ally, once remarking, “Had it not been for the ministry of my good friend Dr. Billy Graham, my work in the Civil Rights Movement would not have been as successful as it has been." GuzzyG (talk) 14:55, 21 February 2018 (UTC)
• Support blurb we might as well quit doing these blurbs altogether if this one isn't posted. Lepricavark (talk) 15:00, 21 February 2018 (UTC)
• Comment RD or blurb, there's gaps in sourcing throughout, and all the list of honors at the ends needs sourcing before this can be posted. --Masem (t) 15:02, 21 February 2018 (UTC)
• Too soon to judge about a blurb (I'm usually the first one opposing them, so maybe he does deserve one). News seems to be recent, let's wait a little and reassess? – Muboshgu (talk) 15:07, 21 February 2018 (UTC)
• Support RD. Oppose blurb. Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. is the person with a statue in Washington DC and a U.S. national holiday. -SusanLesch (talk) 15:13, 21 February 2018 (UTC)

Dr. King is honored for his social/political activism, not his influence in religion. If he were remembered chiefly for his influence in religion he would not have a statue paid for with public funds. -Ad Orientem (talk) 16:16, 21 February 2018 (UTC)

• Strong support. Article should be highlighted as leading news. As a minimum, his name should be mentioned as Recent deaths. werldwayd (talk) 15:16, 21 February 2018 (UTC)
• Support blurb international transformative impact in the field of religion far beyond his roots in the American South or even his denomination. One quibble though, I think it worth noting that he is considered the most Protestant preacher of the 20th century for NPOV reasons. One could reasonably argue that John Paul II brought down the Soviet Union with his preaching (not an argument I am making, but one that has been made in reliable sources), and I am sure that there are Orthodox clerics who one could argue with as well (Ad Orientem would likely be better at thinking of them than I am, to my shame.) @The Rambling Man and Coffee: what are your thoughts on this? TonyBallioni (talk) 15:19, 21 February 2018 (UTC)
  • Prefer alt: that has recently been added by Ad for NPOV reasons. I didn't even begin to get into non-Christian preachers (which reasonably would include clerics of other religions whose preaching has also had an impact (positive or negative) on world events comparable to Graham. I think the sourcing would generally agree he was the most influential evangelical preacher, and this is typically what is being referenced, even if in shorthand. TonyBallioni (talk) 15:33, 21 February 2018 (UTC)
    • Reiterating an earlier comment, Graham was a famous preacher but it is nonsense to call him out in this way. Martin Luther King Jr. was an American Baptist who exceeds Graham's influence from here to eternity. -SusanLesch (talk) 15:44, 21 February 2018 (UTC)
• Support blurb - Graham is the single most influential preacher of the last 50+ years and unlike most famous "pastors" was near universally respected. --ThaddeusB (talk) 15:20, 21 February 2018 (UTC)
• Support Altblurb – Long a household name in the U.S. and fairly widely known internationally. Altblurb offered to avoid subjective "widely regarded ... most influential," which smacks of hagiography. (Is no recent pic available? This one is 52 years old.) Sca (talk) 15:23, 21 February 2018 (UTC)

I do not see any altblurb.--Pawnkingthree (talk) 15:26, 21 February 2018 (UTC) Ad Orientem has added one, although it doesn't address the hagiography issue.--Pawnkingthree (talk) 15:33, 21 February 2018 (UTC)

⇒ Somehow mine got overwritten. Now restored above and Ad Orientem's moved down as Alt2. Sca (talk) 15:45, 21 February 2018 (UTC)

• Support blurb - Admittedly I first heard of him by getting him mixed up with the rather-more-to-my-tastes Bill Graham, but he does appear to have sold the whole "don't be a jerk" side of religion quite well. Ritchie333 ^{(talk) (cont)} 15:29, 21 February 2018 (UTC)

I remember being dumb-founded thinking that Superstar Billy Graham was going to proselytizing on prime time TV. GCG (talk) 16:22, 21 February 2018 (UTC)

• Support blurb - Graham was a massive icon globally, and a world-leading figure in religion, and very clearly passes the threshold of notability, rendering him worthy of a blurb. Stormy clouds (talk) 15:38, 21 February 2018 (UTC)
• Strongly support blurb - He was unquestionably one of the most influential people of his day. Even discounting his work as "America's pastor", he served as a counselor to several US presidents (whether officially or not). I'm quite surprised (though I really shouldn't be, considering this is an international project) at the amount of people who haven't heard of him. — Gestrid (talk) 15:39, 21 February 2018 (UTC)

• As a side note, it looks like NBC interrupted their regularly scheduled programming to announce the death of Billy Graham, and that's not, in my experience, very common at all. (An "NBC News Special Report" like the one in the news article I linked is used to interrupt regularly-scheduled programming here in America.) — Gestrid (talk) 15:50, 21 February 2018 (UTC)

• Besides being America's pastor, he was also the pop music's pastor. A shining example is Cliff Richard, one of the biggests British and international stars. Here is when his life was changed by Billy Graham at Earl's Court in London in 1996 at the height of his fame. Here years later Cliff Richard in a 1984 Billy Graham crusade in 1984. see testimony. werldwayd (talk) 16:16, 21 February 2018 (UTC)

• As an anonymous poster, I don't think my voice should weigh too much... but I do come here on occassion to see the discussion on cases which I think are notable enough to get a blurb. I'm glad to see that most of the people posting here seem to be getting it right. Graham was knighted by Queen Elizabeth and spoke to over 120K at a rally in England---the largest religious rally at the time in English history.74.124.47.10 (talk) 15:41, 21 February 2018 (UTC)
• Posted with a simpler version of altblurb2. Obvious overwhelming support for posting a blurb but keeping this open for any additional comments. -- Fuzheado | Talk 15:52, 21 February 2018 (UTC)
• Post-posting support blurb - It's interesting to see a lot of people who do not regularly participate in ITN/C come out of the woodwork to support a blurb for this person. That may speak volumes to his outreach. Moreover, to my relief, it may represent a loosening of the blurb standard so that we get out of this "Thatcher, Mandela, Thatcher, Mandela" mantra we otherwise seem to be constantly stuck in.--WaltCip (talk) 15:54, 21 February 2018 (UTC)
• Post-posting Comment Post Posting Oppose blurb on article quality His well-known homophobia is not referenced even once. His misogynistic views are skated over. Article is incomplete. Black Kite (talk) 16:39, 21 February 2018 (UTC)
• Comment - I recognize that the "if x then y" argument does not apply in ITN. However, I nonetheless find it seriously off-kilter that Le Guin's death was rejected for a blurb while Graham's is almost immediately posted -- and that the arguments for each are almost mirror-image. U.S. residents may have failed to notice that Graham's primary impact was almost totally inside the U.S. (In secondary impact, eg. charitable organisations working abroad, his work is comparable to dozens if not hundreds of others.) He did establish a number of successful firsts in the field of evangelical religion, mostly related to commercializing it. Others have done similar things before him, less successfully. Others have gone considerably further than him since then. He is a significant marker in a U.S.-based roadmap which goes back to Civil War England, but within the broad view he is only another such marker. (Religious rallies of that nature actually go back in the U.S. at least as far as the U.S. Civil War -- and most of those who held them then are forgotten today.)

At a neutral WP, we obviously don't use "For those who have never heard of him, then perhaps the inclusion of the news will address our appalling and immense ignorance about religion and religious men" as a criterion. (Probably just as well, or else the words "appalling and immense ignorance" might well resonate with other decisions which have been made here.) With Le Guin, I suggested two objective measures for a writer which would be necessary for a blurb: academic analysis and marketplace analysis. The comparable objective measures for Graham would be worldwide media coverage of his death (not just the U.S.) and an identifiable widespread social change brought about specifically as a result of his work. For Graham, I see significance, but I don't see worldwide reaction in any way comparable to the U.S. versions, and I don't see a clear social change which can be laid specifically at his door. That kind of thing merits an RD, not a blurb. - Tenebris 66.11.171.90 (talk) 16:49, 21 February 2018 (UTC)

On no planet and in no town is Guin more known/notable then Graham, it's not about religion either. You're comparing a genre writer to a major preacher who advised MLK and presidents. GuzzyG (talk) 17:07, 21 February 2018 (UTC)

It is not my fault if you cannot remember all the literature you should have studied in high school. How many English-language U.S. schoolchildren have there been since 1969? That is the minimum number of how many people ought to know of Le Guin. It is one of the basic texts, after all. L-i-t-e-r-a-t-u-r-e, not "genre". - Tenebris 66.11.171.90 (talk) 18:47, 21 February 2018 (UTC)

Yeah, i am in Australia and that's the thing, i know Graham but not Le Guin, also F-a-n-t-a-s-y and s-c-i-e-n-c-e f-i-c-t-i-o-n writers are genre writers, sorry to say. GuzzyG (talk) 18:56, 21 February 2018 (UTC)

• Oppose blurb, support RD. The blurb is a bit much for a Christian minister. I also feel very, very uncomfortable with the POV-pushing tone of the article given his support for homophobia.Zigzig20s (talk) 17:31, 21 February 2018 (UTC)

He was a lot more than just a minister, he ministered to 2.2 billion people. His social views are not relevant to the fact that he was influential. 331dot (talk) 17:38, 21 February 2018 (UTC)

That makes it worse.Zigzig20s (talk) 17:41, 21 February 2018 (UTC)

We're not here to right the great wrong of homophobia. – Muboshgu (talk) 17:59, 21 February 2018 (UTC)

Nor should we post POV-pushing blurbs on the main page.Zigzig20s (talk) 18:01, 21 February 2018 (UTC)

I don't think it's POV to call him influential. He was incredibly influential, as evidenced by his personal relationships with Presidents Eisenhower, Kennedy, Johnson, and Nixon. People can judge for themselves his best and worst qualities. – Muboshgu (talk) 18:05, 21 February 2018 (UTC)

No. Influential in the United States perhaps. Not influential in Monaco, believe me. We are not USApedia. If we are going to keep the word "influential", the blurb should read "in the United States" after "influential" at least.Zigzig20s (talk) 18:09, 21 February 2018 (UTC)

Oy, not this argument again. Influence is influence, even if it doesn't touch every country. Maybe he was/is influential to Christians in Monaco, I don't know that. – Muboshgu (talk) 18:25, 21 February 2018 (UTC)

No he was only influential to the 2.2 billion people living in the United States. - Floydian ^τ _¢ 18:31, 21 February 2018 (UTC)

I am very, very uncomfortable with the notion that being a Christian minister disqualifies one from a blurb. Lepricavark (talk) 18:12, 21 February 2018 (UTC)

We don't usually post blurbs for RDs. He was not well-known outside the US, and he spread discrimination to boot. There shouldn't be a blurb. We will post a blurb when former president GHW Bush dies--I am sorry but Billy Graham was not on the same level at all.Zigzig20s (talk) 18:22, 21 February 2018 (UTC)

I'm not sure if we will, though. Bush was a one-term president, and he was widely perceived to be riding on the political coattails of Ronald Reagan, who himself would be blurb-worthy.--WaltCip (talk) 18:27, 21 February 2018 (UTC)

• Questions 1) The blurb feels a bit weasely to me: "one of the most influential" is not a wording that's commonly seen on the main page. The quote is present in the article, but it is sourced to one book, which seems to be some biography published last summer. 2) In any case, should the blurb be "one of the most influential evangelical preachers of the 20th century in the United States"? I must admit I've never heard of him before, so I'm not sure about his international reach. Isa (talk) 17:42, 21 February 2018 (UTC)

Altblurb would be more NPOV than Altburb2 for sure. Except we should add, "known in the United States".Zigzig20s (talk) 17:46, 21 February 2018 (UTC)

• Support original blurb, truly an influential figure. --AmaryllisGardener ^talk 17:57, 21 February 2018 (UTC)

⇒ Agree with Isa that "one of the most influential evangelical preachers" is too weasely. While I understand Fuzheado's motives in toning down the description, I think it comes across as a rather obvious bid to avoid criticism of a subjective assertion. I would point out that Alt1 is entirely factual. Sca (talk) 18:47, 21 February 2018 (UTC)

The discussion above is closed. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made on the appropriate discussion page. No further edits should be made to this discussion.

[Withdrawn] Thomas C. Wales case

The following discussion is closed. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made on the appropriate discussion page. No further edits should be made to this discussion.

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Article: Thomas C. Wales (talk · history · tag)
Blurb: ​ The United States' FBI indicates the unsolved slaying of Thomas C. Wales, the only federal prosecutor ever assassinated, was probably carried out by a professional hit man. (Post)
Alternative blurb: ​ In the United States, law enforcement announce the unsolved murder of government official Thomas C. Wales may have involved a conspiracy among a small group of people.
News source(s): Seattle Times
Credits:

• Updated and nominated by Chetsford (talk · give credit)

Article updated

Nominator's comments: An update into a criminal investigation may not normally be newsworthy, however, given this was a high-profile assassination that has been unsolved for 16 years, and the recent announcement the only significant update on the case in that time, I think it warrants an ITN mention even though it is US-centric. Chetsford (talk) 04:27, 21 February 2018 (UTC)

• Oppose a minor update to a parochial crime. Stephen 04:43, 21 February 2018 (UTC)
• Oppose highly localised speculation. The Rambling Man (talk) 09:41, 21 February 2018 (UTC)
• Oppose The update, whilst interesting, doesn't seem to be super news worthy. Pedro :  Chat  11:46, 21 February 2018 (UTC)
• Oppose'. Being US centric is not relevant(per "Please do not" above such objections would be invalid) but this is too local a story for posting and does not have sufficiently wide coverage even in just the US. This is not a top or even mid-level news story. We also don't typically posts developments in criminal cases; on rare occasions an arrest, but typically only convictions are posted due to BLP issues. Thank you, though, for the nomination. 331dot (talk) 11:51, 21 February 2018 (UTC)

The issue is not that it's US centric, but more that it has no notability outside of a specific minute niche of interest.--WaltCip (talk) 11:58, 21 February 2018 (UTC)

I understand that, but the nominator mentioned "US centric" as a concern, I was simply informing them that is not an issue. 331dot (talk) 12:00, 21 February 2018 (UTC)

• Oppose - As a general rule, "mights", "maybes" and "possiblys" don't get posted on ITN, especially when it comes to potential BLP issues.--WaltCip (talk) 11:57, 21 February 2018 (UTC)

Well I'm not sure there's a BLP issue here since the B is about someone who is decidedly not L. That said, the reasoning presented has changed my mind as to the utility of this as an ITN candidate and I withdraw the nomination. Chetsford (talk) 12:01, 21 February 2018 (UTC)

@Chetsford: The BLP issue is with regards to any suspect their is; posting a development in any criminal cases could suggest the suspect is guilty before their case is adjudicated, which we cannot do. 331dot (talk) 12:20, 21 February 2018 (UTC)

I don't think there's any suspect(s), but I suppose I could be wrong. Chetsford (talk) 12:22, 21 February 2018 (UTC)

The discussion above is closed. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made on the appropriate discussion page. No further edits should be made to this discussion.

February 20

Portal:Current events/2018 February 20

February 20, 2018 (2018-02-20) (Tuesday) Armed conflicts and attacks Syrian Civil War Turkish military operation in Afrin Pro-Syrian government forces are sent to help the Kurdish YPG fight against Turkey and the Turkish-backed Free Syrian Army in the Afrin Region. This action opens up a new front in the war. (The Independent) Business and economy Economy of Venezuela Venezuela launches its Petro cryptocurrency, which it claims is the world's first sovereign cryptocurrency. (BBC) Disasters and accidents 2017–18 South Pacific cyclone season Seven regions in New Zealand declare states of emergency as Cyclone Gita makes landfall. (Newshub) Iran Aseman Airlines Flight 3704 Iranian forces have spotted the wreckage of the missing Aseman Airliner 30 meters below a hilltop on mount Dena. Helicopters could not land yet at the crash site due to weather and topographical conditions. 65 people are feared dead. (PressTV) 2018 Mount Sinabung eruption Indonesia's Mount Sinabung has a massive eruption, completely destroying the volcano's peak, with ash reaching over 7 kilometres (4.3 mi) high. Much of the surrounding area is covered with ash. (Quartz) Law and crime Corruption in Latvia Latvia will ask the European Central Bank not to renew the mandate of ECB Governing Council member Ilmārs Rimšēvičs, the head of the central Bank of Latvia since 2001, amid an ECB payment moratorium and an U.S. graft investigation into Latvia's third-largest lender, ABLV. On 19 January, Rimšēvičs was released on bail. (Bloomberg) Judiciary of Thailand A court in Thailand awards a Japanese man paternity rights over 13 of his children from Thai surrogate mothers. (BBC) Gun politics in the United States U.S. President Donald Trump orders the Department of Justice to prepare regulations to ban devices that allow semi-automatic rifles to become fully automatic, such as the bump stocks used in the 2017 Las Vegas shooting. (The Hill) U.S. Special Counsel investigation Attorney Alex van der Zwaan pleads guilty in the U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C., to making false statements to the FBI during the special counsel investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 United States elections. Specifically, the charges are that he lied to investigators about his interactions with political consultant and lobbyist Rick Gates and an unidentified Ukrainian-based associate of Paul Manafort. (The New York Times) Politics and elections Aftermath of the Stoneman Douglas High School shooting Families and students from Parkland, Florida, begin arriving in Tallahassee, the Florida State Capitol, for advocacy meetings with lawmakers and other State officials. During Tuesday's legislative session, the Republican-controlled Florida House defeated, by a party-line vote, a motion to debate assault weapons ban legislation, 71–36. (Tallahassee Democrat) (Miami Herald) 2017–18 Spanish constitutional crisis Anna Gabriel, former member Parliament of Catalonia for Popular Unity Candidacy and Catalan independentism leader, flees to Switzerland before declaring before the Supreme Court of Spain amid rebellion and desobedience crime. (Independent) Sports 2017 NCAA Division I men's basketball corruption scandal In college basketball, the NCAA denies an appeal of sanctions imposed on the University of Louisville stemming from a sex scandal first publicized in 2015. The most significant sanction requires Louisville to vacate its 2013 national title, making the Cardinals the first Division I men's or women's basketball team ever forced to vacate a national title. (ESPN)

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February 19

Portal:Current events/2018 February 19

February 19, 2018 (2018-02-19) (Monday) Armed conflicts and attacks Syrian Civil War Rif Dimashq offensive Ahead of an expected ground offensive, Syrian Air Force strikes on rebel-held eastern Ghouta, near Damascus, kill at least 44 people, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. (France 24) An attacker stabs three people at a Tim Hortons in Montreal, Canada. (CTV news) Disasters and accidents 2018 Oaxaca earthquake Three days after the previous, stronger earthquake, a 5.9-magnitude possible aftershock strikes again near the coast of Oaxaca and is widely felt across Southern and Central Mexico. No victims are reported so far. (Reuters) A collapse at a garbage dump in Mozambique kills at least 17 people. (BBC) Mount Sinabung in North Sumatra, Indonesia, erupts. There are no reports of injuries or fatalities. (Evening Standard) Law and crime United Kingdom football sexual abuse scandal Former coach Barry Bennell is sentenced to 31 years in prison for 50 offences against 12 boys between 1979 and 1990. (The Guardian) Child sexual abuse in the United Kingdom A court sentences Matthew Falder, convicted on 137 charges, to 32 years in jail after confessing to blackmailing numerous teenagers into performing sexual acts. (The Guardian) Politics and elections Eurozone Spanish Minister of Economy and Competitiveness, Luis de Guindos, is set to be nominated by the Eurogroup to succeed Vítor Constâncio as Vice-President of the European Central Bank. (Business Insider) Science and technology Human impact on the environment In a Scientific Reports publication, researchers propose 1965 as the start of the Anthropocene era. In that year, human nuclear weapons testing caused a noticeable spike in radiocarbon in the heartwood of the world's remotest tree, a Sitka spruce on Campbell Island, New Zealand. The general scientific community has already been using 1950 as the year "Before Present", when nuclear weapons began to significantly affect the reliability of radiocarbon dating of objects whose organic matter content formed after that epoch. (The Conversation)

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[Posted] RD: Sergey Litvinov

Article: Sergey Litvinov (athlete, born 1958) (talk · history · tag)
Recent deaths nomination (Post)
News source(s): ESPN CTV L'Equipe
Credits:

• Nominated by Black Kite (talk · give credit)

Article updated
Recent deaths of any person, animal or organism with a Wikipedia article are always presumed to be important enough to post (see this RFC and further discussion). Comments should focus on whether the quality of the article meets WP:ITNRD.

Nominator's comments: Olympic gold medal winner and world champion. I've sourced this as far as it needs. It might need a little tweaking but the basics are there. Black Kite (talk) 12:57, 21 February 2018 (UTC)

• Support - Referenced,notable, short but I think just by an inch above the required length in my opinion. BabbaQ (talk) 22:52, 21 February 2018 (UTC)
• Support Article looks fine to me. –Ammarpad (talk) 03:15, 22 February 2018 (UTC)
• Very weak support for an Olympic gold medallist and world record holder, this article is barely above stub. But it is above, and what's there appears to be adequately referenced. The Rambling Man (talk) 08:25, 22 February 2018 (UTC)
• Posted -Ad Orientem (talk) 14:13, 22 February 2018 (UTC)

References

Nominators often include links to external websites and other references in discussions on this page. It is usually best to provide such links using the inline URL syntax [http://example.com] rather than using <ref></ref> tags, because that keeps all the relevant information in the same place as the nomination without having to jump to this section, and facilitates the archiving process.

For the times when <ref></ref> tags are being used, here are their contents: