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What "specific" and "actionable" issues gave rise to this tagging?
What "specific" and "actionable" issues gave rise to this tagging?

@Coffeeandcrumbs This issue needs your attention.


==Controversy section==
==Controversy section==

Revision as of 14:27, 17 July 2018

Remove "The neutrality of this article is disputed."?

From https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Template:POV#When_to_remove : "Drive-by tagging is strongly discouraged. The editor who adds the tag should discuss concerns on the talk page, pointing to specific issues that are actionable within the content policies."

What "specific" and "actionable" issues gave rise to this tagging?

@Coffeeandcrumbs This issue needs your attention.

Controversy section

I've removed the below section from the main article as both User:Animalparty and I agree that it violates WP:NPOV- the section is entirely negative. This is especially important as the article is a biography of a living person. I recommend that the section be rewritten complying with our policies before being readded. jcc (tea and biscuits) 20:50, 29 October 2017 (UTC)[reply]

Controversies, Scandals, and Connections to Billionaires

Cerf has been at the center of a number of controversies. These include:

  • a charge of nepotism by New York City's Conflict of Interest Board,[1]
  • racial discrimination lawsuits filed against the organizations he oversaw,[2]
  • using philanthropic money to enrich his for-profit corporations,[3]
  • replacing public schools with charter schools in Newark,[4]
  • state arbitrators finding in Sept. 2017 that the Cerf-run NPS improperly withheld pay from teachers,[5][6]
  • a resolution by the US Department of Education Civil Rights that found in favor of the plaintiffs who asserted Cerf's reforms had racially disparate impact.[7]
  • Cerf's performance as president at Edison Schools was controversial because the company, as the NY Times reports, "collapsed in the face of disastrous financial and operating performance as well as accounting irregularities."[8]
  • failure to properly report owning more than $6 million dollars in shares of a company that the New York Dept. of Education, where Cerf was a consultant, was paying on a multimillion dollar contract.[9][10]
  • Cerf's performance at the for-profit education corporation Amplify was similarly questioned because, he left Amplify "barely a year" after he began, "just before News Corp., Amplify’s parent, announced its intention to sell the division in the face of mounting losses."[11]
  • Charter schools that Cerf supported[12][13][14] subsequently closed under suspicious circumstances,[15] closed for failing to provide special education,[16] and closed because of weak academic programs.[17]
  • Amplify received $2.3 million from Newark Public Schools, a relationship that raised suspicions of conflicts of interest because of Cerf's connections to both entities.[18][19]
  • An Attorney General was called to investigate "Cerf’s ties to individuals involved in the purchase of the 18th Avenue School in Newark. The public school building was sold by the district – a process overseen by state-appointed Superintendent Cami Anderson – and eventually conveyed to an outfit called ‘Pink Hula Hoop.’ The ‘company,’ Pink Hula Hoop LLC, was run by a former business partner of Cerf who worked with him on charter school efforts in New York."[20]

Mr. Cerf is a contentious education reformer possibly because, as one author suggests, "He often invoked war metaphors in discussing the politics of education reform."[21] In 2011, the Star Ledger reported that Mr. Cerf said, "I do not believe that anything we do is going to create a peaceful environment."[22] Mother Jones reports Cerf said, “change has casualties” and “you have to override political infrastructure.”[23] NJ State Senator Ron Rice said in 2011, “Acting Commissioner Cerf prevaricates. He doesn’t tell all truths."[24]

Although Cerf is politically connected to Democrats like Bill Clinton,[25][26] he is connected to Republicans such as Chris Christie[27] and Jeb Bush.[28][29] One analysis concludes that Chris Cerf was "arguably the chief architect of [Gov. Christie's] school reform approach." Another report from 2011 found evidence that Cerf "will be completely on board with the Governor's education reforms."[30] Cerf was hired as a political advisor by billionaire NYC Mayor Bloomberg,[31] who was a Democrat, a Republican, and who ran for office as an Independent.[32] Cerf has strong connections to several billionaires, such as Eli Broad,[33][34] Mark Zuckerberg,[35] Michael Bloomberg,[36] and Rubert Murdoch.[37][38]

References

  1. ^ Barbaro, Michael. "Christopher Cerf, Schools Deputy, to Join Bloomberg Campaign - NYTimes.com". Retrieved 2017-10-08.
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference :11 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ "Groups linked to Booker, Cerf received nearly one-third of first $13M of Facebook donation to Newark schools". NJ.com. Retrieved 2017-10-08.
  4. ^ Cite error: The named reference :12 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  5. ^ Strauss, Valerie (2017-10-18). "Analysis | Chris Christie's administration violated teachers contract, arbitrator says. It's going to cost a lot to fix". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved 2017-10-19.
  6. ^ Cite error: The named reference :1 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  7. ^ Cite error: The named reference :13 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  8. ^ Knee, Jonathan A. (2015-08-26). "The Melting of Mark Zuckerberg's Donation to Newark Schools". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2017-10-10.
  9. ^ Gootman, Elissa (2007-02-09). "Schools Official Deflects Query About Stocks". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2017-10-29.
  10. ^ "Bloomberg's Corrupt Headmaster of School Privatization". www.schoolsmatter.info. Retrieved 2017-10-29.
  11. ^ Knee, Jonathan A. (2015-08-26). "The Melting of Mark Zuckerberg's Donation to Newark Schools". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2017-10-10.
  12. ^ "John Sico". The Jersey City Independent. Retrieved 2017-10-19.
  13. ^ "THE DEAL: Baraka and Cerf become school "reform" allies". Bob Braun's Ledger. 2015-12-01. Retrieved 2017-10-20.
  14. ^ "Do charter schools bring the right reform to New Jersey education? : Speak Easy : WHYY". WHYY. Retrieved 2017-10-20.
  15. ^ "M.E.T.S. Charter School announces decision to close its doors". TAPinto. Retrieved 2017-10-19.
  16. ^ "Here are the specific reasons N.J. closed these 4 charter schools". NJ.com. Retrieved 2017-10-20.
  17. ^ "Here are the specific reasons N.J. closed these 4 charter schools". NJ.com. Retrieved 2017-10-20.
  18. ^ "NJ education commissioner sees no conflict in new private sector job". NJ.com. Retrieved 2017-10-11.
  19. ^ "Cerf's Amplify gets $2.3 million from Newark". Bob Braun's Ledger. 2014-02-27. Retrieved 2017-10-11.
  20. ^ "State Board Should Reject Cerf's Superintendent Contract for Newark". Observer. 2015-07-06. Retrieved 2017-10-20.
  21. ^ Cite error: The named reference :2 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  22. ^ "Newark schools superintendent search narrowed to 2 candidates, sources say". NJ.com. Retrieved 2017-10-08.
  23. ^ Simmons, Andrew. "When Education Philanthropy Goes Awry". The Atlantic. Retrieved 2017-10-08.
  24. ^ Haimson, Leonie (2011-03-15). "Chris Cerf, There You Go Again!". Huffington Post. Retrieved 2017-10-07.
  25. ^ Strauss, Valerie (2015-06-22). "Controversial Newark schools chief leaving post — finally". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved 2017-10-07.
  26. ^ Segura, Liliana (2016-05-04). "Gutting Habeas Corpus: The Inside Story of How Bill Clinton Sacrificed Prisoners' Rights for Political Gain". The Intercept. Retrieved 2017-10-07.
  27. ^ Haimson, Leonie (2011-03-15). "Chris Cerf, There You Go Again!". Huffington Post. Retrieved 2017-10-07.
  28. ^ Schneider, Mercedes K. (2014-04-01). A Chronicle of Echoes: Who’s Who in the Implosion of American Public Education. IAP. ISBN 9781623966751.
  29. ^ Rooks, Noliwe (2017-09-26). Cutting School: Privatization, Segregation, and the End of Public Education. The New Press. ISBN 9781620972496.
  30. ^ Spina, Mike (2011-02-17). Teachers Under Attack: How NJ Governor Chris Christie’s Personal Vendetta Against Teachers Will Destroy Public Education. Xlibris Corporation. p. 170. ISBN 9781456864620.
  31. ^ Barbaro, Michael. "Christopher Cerf, Schools Deputy, to Join Bloomberg Campaign - NYTimes.com". Retrieved 2017-10-08.
  32. ^ KUGLER, SARA (2007-06-20). "NYC Mayor Michael Bloomberg Leaves GOP". ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved 2017-10-08.
  33. ^ "ELC OBTAINS CONFIDENTIAL NJDOE SCHOOL TURNAROUND PLAN | Education Law Center". www.edlawcenter.org. Retrieved 2017-10-08.
  34. ^ "New Jersey's Education Cerf-dumb". Plainfield View. 2014-02-01. Retrieved 2017-10-08.
  35. ^ "Despite Facebook philanthropy, Newark schools struggle". Retrieved 2017-10-08.
  36. ^ "Chris Cerf and the charter school parent vote | Chalkbeat". www.chalkbeat.org. Retrieved 2017-10-29.
  37. ^ Strauss, Valerie (2015-09-19). "Rupert Murdoch's leap into education technology business ends badly". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved 2017-10-08.
  38. ^ "Cerf's Amplify gets $2.3 million from Newark". Bob Braun's Ledger. 2014-02-27. Retrieved 2017-10-08.
Nowhere in WP:NPOV does it say that you can't cover controversy. --Bellshook (talk) 03:27, 9 November 2017 (UTC)[reply]
From https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Template:POV#When_to_remove: "The neutral point of view is determined by the prevalence of a perspective in high-quality, independent, reliable secondary sources." The "controversy" section is well-cited. Indeed, each sentence is cited. The content refers to articles produced by respected media org's (e.g., NYT). It regurgitates the criticisms that others' have reported. There is little, if any, "editorializing" and there is no independent research. --Bellshook (talk) 03:01, 9 November 2017 (UTC)[reply]
Five principles from WP:NPOV and how they do not seem to be violated by this section:
1. "Avoid stating opinions as facts." (there are no opinions stated in this section -- just regurgitation of news reports)
2. "Avoid stating seriously contested assertions as facts." (anything that *might* be contested is prefaced with "a charge" or "state arbitrators found" or "the NY Times reports."
3. "Avoid stating facts as opinions." (again, the copious citing seems to be a good way this section does not conflate facts and opinions)
4. "Prefer nonjudgmental language" (removing this well-cited content would be to take sides, so the problem is with the removal, not the inclusion of verified controversies).
5. "Indicate the relative prominence of opposing views." (This is a section on controversies, so if you would like to research views that oppose the NY Times, the US Dept of Education, and other sources, then please *add* to this section...and then figure out what the correct relative prominence should be. For example, I know of no source that opposes the fact that a charge was brought by NYC's Conflict of Interest Board, but if you find someone who says that a charge was not brought, then feel free to add that view.)
In sum, please take the time to edit or remove specific statements if they fail to meet specific criteria, but it is unnecessary and overzealous to remove the entire section. Lastly, here is another bit from WP:NPOV: "As a general rule, do not remove sourced information from the encyclopedia solely on the grounds that it seems biased. Instead, try to rewrite the passage or section to achieve a more neutral tone." Notice the "do not remove sourced information." I've added back in the section. --Bellshook (talk) 03:01, 9 November 2017 (UTC) ==[reply]
@Bellshook: You've quoted a lot of WP:NPOV, but please read WP:BLP: especially WP:BLPSTYLE: the tone of this article is very opinionated, filled with loaded language: Language like "has been at the center of a number of controversies" distorts the truth (some references do not directly mention Cerf, "replacing public schools with charter schools" is not in itself a controversy,), and there is a world of difference between "been accused of" and "has done". You've cited personal blogs (jerseyjazzman.blogspot.com, bluejersey.com (also written by Mr. Jazzman), bobbraunsledger.com, parentingthecore.com, schoolsmatter.info), all of which are violations of WP:BLPSPS and you've conveniently left out positive or even neutral coverage: from this 2009 New York Times article, where you extracted "one of the world’s largest operators of public schools for profit" we also learn that Cerf is "a widely admired figure in the education world", and assisted in Michael Bloomberg's re-election campaign. Other sources such as www.saveourschoolsnj.org teachers' unions, have a vested POV. Phrases like "Some have argued" are weasel words, and there seems to be a bit too much comparisons like "Cerf says A, however this other thing happened". I've already invested too much time in combing through this, I think we need more eyes. I'm a progressive person myself, but the tone of this article makes me want to dive into Fox News and for a semblance of balance. Check out this Philly.com article for how to neutrally present a biography. I believe a notice at Biographies of living persons/Noticeboard is in order. --Animalparty! (talk) 05:20, 9 November 2017 (UTC)[reply]
@Animalparty: Animalparty, I appreciate your more thorough work and editing. I agree that more eyes on this would be good -- especially some eyes that are knowledge about the subject. However, the original issue JCC and you had with this article was that it violated WP:NPOV. I responded that it did not violate NPOV. Let's resolve that issue first. What specific parts violate NPOV? I think working at the sentence level is warranted, but I'm glad to go back and forth about the best unit of analysis. My big point is that almost all sentences are cited -- a much higher proportion of sentences is cited here than in many Wikipedia articles. But if some of my cites are wrong -- that is, if some of what I wrote is contrary to another source, then it should be changed -- so I would appreciate more eyes on those parts. Thanks.
I have posted a notice at BLP noticeboard. Hopefully constructive attention will follow. --Animalparty! (talk) 23:35, 6 December 2017 (UTC)[reply]
And I've removed the section again, as simply re-adding it isn't how this works. jcc (tea and biscuits) 14:18, 9 November 2017 (UTC)[reply]

NPOV

I have no prior knowledge of this person, but the entire structure seems like an attack article. There is hardly any biographical info, and a list of controversies right off the bat is a very slanted presentation. WP:NPOV and WP:BLP are non-negotiable policies. --Animalparty! (talk) 20:51, 29 October 2017 (UTC)[reply]

  • Animalparty, I have to agree with you about NPOV concerns. The first section discusses how "Cerf is not a resident of Newark, but instead lives in the N.J. suburb of Montclair, a reported site of a 'large number of high-profile backers of a national reform movement.'" ,which seems to be an attempt to create some sort of guilt by association. The connections to billionaires issue is also problematic. I will see what I can do to achieve a greater level of neutrality about a person who is in fact notable. Alansohn (talk) 17:28, 9 November 2017 (UTC)[reply]
    • Bellshook, this is WP:COATRACKing at its worst. You list Cerf and a bunch of names of people who happen to be billionaires. What is the relevance, other than some sort of insinuation that billionaires are all inherently evil and that this original sin has rubbed off on Cerf because of this connection. Alansohn (talk) 03:36, 30 November 2017 (UTC)[reply]
  • Alansohn, The citations explain and elaborate on the connections between Cerf and billionaires. Most people are not closely connected to billionaires, so the connection is noteworthy. I do not mention "evil" or "original sin" -- so you are making that implication, not my writing. If you can find evidence that Cerf is NOT connected to billionaires, then I suggest you add that evidence to Wikipedia. Indeed, I would welcome such evidence as it would expand and deepen this article. Regardless of whether you can find evidence of NO connection to billionaires, there is no reason to remove facts (based in several citations) from Wikipedia that reference Cerf's connection to billionaires. I do not want to withhold that information from the public. --Bellshook (talk) 21:53, 6 December 2017 (UTC)[reply]

Article does not need a makeover, edit only what is inaccurate or violates WP protocols

This article is still 99% about controversy (i.e. a coat rack article, even with the "list of controversies" removed, and there is almost no structure, e.g. chronological or thematic. A decent article would at least start with the basics: who is this guy, where did he get his education, early career, etc. then move into his time at Newark Public Schools, giving significant events no more or less coverage than is due giving the entirety of the subject's career: the current (poor) state of the article suggests he's done almost nothing else. We can state facts neutrally, even if some sources themselves are very biased, by omitting or severely limiting direct quotes, which can be misused (for good or bad), as cherry-picking. --Animalparty! (talk) 22:08, 12 November 2017 (UTC)[reply]

@Animalparty: I agree I am going to TNT this article and start over. As this is a BLP, I am surprised no one has done already. If there are no objections, I going make my bold move in a couple of days. Pinging a few more interested people: @Bellshook, Alansohn, and Jcc:--- Coffeeandcrumbs 20:47, 15 July 2018 (UTC)[reply]
@Coffeeandcrumbs: Thanks, Godspeed and good luck. I note that the most fervent defender of the current status of this slanted article, Bellshook, has edited almost exclusively with regards to Cerf and New Jersey public schools, suggesting a single purpose account. Disinterested editors without agendas are much preferred. There are still too many non-RS blogs, press releases from partisan orgs, and primary sources used as references. --Animalparty! (talk) 21:17, 15 July 2018 (UTC)[reply]
@Animalparty: Thanks, will do. When I get to a good stage, I would appreciate your input to ensure I don't swing too far back in the other direction. Cerf has had a long career. First as a lawyer (clerked for J. Skelly Wright and Sandra Day O'Connor then served in the White House Counsel's office) and then as a school administrator in New York City, New Jersey State and then finally in Newark. This page ignores all of that and focuses entirely on Newark. There are many editorials and articles about his career, many of them with lots of praise and just as many with criticism. I will try to find a good balance per due weight.--- Coffeeandcrumbs 21:56, 15 July 2018 (UTC)[reply]
Coffeeandcrumbs, thanks for taking on this task. Best of luck. Please let me know if I can help in any way. Alansohn (talk) 02:53, 16 July 2018 (UTC)[reply]
@Coffeeandcrumbs: The basic article should not be thrown out! It is beyond the pale to throw out a WP entry that has withstood months of critique and has undergone revisions. Proceed by REVISING what is wrong. Do not remove from history the truth about this guy. Do not proceed with your re-write. I will revert all changes to before you threw out pages and pages of truthful content that met WP standards.

Move discussion in progress

There is a move discussion in progress on Talk:Christopher Cerf (producer) which affects this page. Please participate on that page and not in this talk page section. Thank you. —RMCD bot 15:00, 16 July 2018 (UTC)[reply]

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