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Daniel Brandt
Who is Essjay? I would love to ID this guy. I think he's notable enough for his own biography.

He says that his username derives from his initials, S.J. That would suggest that his first and middle name, or first and surname, start with S and J. But it hasn't helped my search.

He's between 30 and 45, and teaches theology to undergrads and grads. He's a tenured professor. He says that he teaches at a private university in the northeastern U.S., but I have my doubts about this also.

He says he has these degrees: Bachelor of Arts in Religious Studies (B.A.), Master of Arts in Religion (M.A.R.), Doctorate of Philosophy in Theology (Ph.D.), Doctorate in Canon Law (JCD)

I've searched on his degrees, and I've looked at religion-department faculty lists in the northeast by using this resource. No clues.

He keeps to himself, and has been a Wikipedian only since February, 2005. Previous email addresses are essjay-wiki AT hotmail.com and essjay AT pacbell.net (some doubt about the latter).

He specializes in Roman Catholicism, but is a liberal non-Catholic. He's an elder in the Disciples of Christ, a liberal Protestant denomination. He's probably had essays on social issues published in obscure, liberal religious publications within the past ten years.

He is gay, and his live-in partner is a lawyer named Robbie (username Robbie31). Essjay owns and operates http://countervandalism.org/wiki/VCN but the service provider registered the domain for him and I don't see any clues there.

He and his partner have a cat named Mia and a lab retriever named Ami. Years ago, Essjay was a cantor at the Cathedral of the Assumption in Louisville, Kentucky.

He keeps to himself. The recent New Yorker article mentions him. He had a wikiaddiction to the tune of 14 hours a day, and sometimes he brings his laptop to class so that he can play Wikipedia while his students are taking a quiz. He will not be going to Wikimania, and he told the reporter that he has never met another Wikipedian.

If I could get even an IP address for Essjay or Robbie31, it would narrow the search to perhaps several universities instead of dozens. That would be a big help.

Essjay is probably more powerful than SlimVirgin, because he doesn't piss off too many people, and he appears to have some technical chops that come in handy for vandal-fighting through the use of bots. But I think he needs to be outed -- he spends too much time on Wikipedia and I'm sure it's bad for his health and warps his mind.

Can anyone help?
Somey
Interesting -- earlier today he desysopped almost everyone on the Counter-vandalism wiki:

http://countervandalism.org/wiki/Special:Log/rights

So now there's just him, Firefox, and BookofJude. Perhaps he's finally discovered an effective way to curtail abuse?
Poetlister
I personally have nothing but praise for Essjay. He was very helpful to me over the [[Seamus Heaney]] edit war. I still think that if I'd gone back to him rather than Jayjg over the List of Jewish jurists, it would have been better all round.
Sceptre
QUOTE(Somey @ Wed 26th July 2006, 9:33pm) *

Interesting -- earlier today he desysopped almost everyone on the Counter-vandalism wiki:

http://countervandalism.org/wiki/Special:Log/rights

So now there's just him, Firefox, and BookofJude. Perhaps he's finally discovered an effective way to curtail abuse?


Or rather, he reassigned permissions for users.

I agree with Poetlister, I can't find any fault with Essjay.
Somey
I don't see much of anything wrong with him either, but I do have to say that something still doesn't add up. He really does spend a huge amount of time on Wikipedia, to the extent that it's difficult to believe that he even has a job at all, much less a tenured professorship somewhere.

Believe it or not, I've known quite a few tenured professors, and while they generally don't work quite as hard as the ones who are still on tenure-track, the idea that one of them could be that heavily addicted to Wikipedia and still do everything the job normally entails really does strain credibility a little bit.

Maybe he never sleeps?
Daniel Brandt
If I was incompetent, and in charge of propaganda for an incompetent intelligence agency, I'd hire SlimVirgin to sling my spin on Wikipedia.

If I was competent, and in charge of propaganda for a competent intelligence agency, I'd form a small, tight committee to sign up under a single username, and avoid alienating everyone. (Essjay says, "I avoid controversy onsite whenever possible.")

Since his first Wikipedia edit in February, 2005, Essjay has climbed through the ranks. Everyone loves him. Currently he is:

administrator, en-wikipedia
administrator, wikiquote
administrator, meta-wiki
administrator, wikimedia commons
checkuser (he runs a "large percentage" of these)
oversight
bot approval group
handles user renaming requests
bureaucrat
official Freenode group contact
owns and operates Vandalism Control Network
chairman of Mediation Committee
election official, Board of Trustees 2006 election
17,000 edits

His user page pushes all the right buttons: he's gay, he's liberal, and he also has a deep respect for Roman Catholic ritual and tradition. There is nothing to object to, that isn't counterbalanced by something else. He is Wikipedia's EveryManWoman.

My guess is that Essjay could shut down someone like SlimVirgin if he approached it intelligently. That's what separates successful operatives from amateurs in spookdom. Essjay is a sleeper and a mole at the same time. He can just laugh off the SlimVirgins and the Kelly_Martins, because with a few strokes of the keyboard, they're history. But he has bigger plans, so there is no need to worry about people like Gerard, Sidaway, SlimVirgin, or Kelly.

The problem I have with this whole thing is that it doesn't compute. He's so busy on Wikipedia that he makes SlimVirgin look lazy. His user page is full of detail, but absolutely nothing can be verified externally so far. He's cloaked up to his eyebrows whenever he's online. He never screws up and shows an IP address. He does not get people mad enough to start wondering who he is. He has never even mentioned my name, as far as I know.

Essjay is too slick to be true. I say he's a competent, professional spook who manages several employees to help him out on Wikipedia. Jimbo probably doesn't even know who he is.
Somey
QUOTE(Daniel Brandt @ Thu 27th July 2006, 5:51pm) *
Essjay is too slick to be true. I say he's a competent, professional spook who manages several employees to help him out on Wikipedia. Jimbo probably doesn't even know who he is.

I have to say, the comedic potential of this is almost beyond any kind of conceivable measurement!

Still, I have to admit, in my various researches on Wikipedia user/admin behavior over the last few months, there have been instances, especially with Mormons and one or two other sectarian religious organizations, that I've gotten the distinct impression that I was looking at the work of a committee - people who'd go from semi-rational, well-written arguments one day to childish, grammatically-embarrassing sniping the next. I generally prefer to ascribe this to psychological reasons, but that's only because I'm me, i.e., not someone with an intelligence-agency background.

But for the less conspiracy-minded, I think you have to grant that there are lots of other possibilities, other than that he's exactly what he says he is - the dude could have inherited a lot of money, or scored big in the stock market, or won the lottery, or whatever... then quit his job in order to blow the rest of his life on Wikipedia, which you have to admit is much easier than traveling the world or getting involved in some worthwhile cause or other. He might even be physically incapacitated in some way, unable to travel or go hang out with other people or even play golf, which is what I generally do, when I have time.

I guess there are lots of reasons why an intelligence agency might want to obtain power on Wikipedia, though, especially since it can involve the ability to see people's IP addresses. I wonder how many tax dollars that would cost? And assuming it's American intelligence, would it really make the US safer from, let's say, terrorism than something like, I dunno, capturing Osama bin Laden?
MARMOTFACE
QUOTE(Daniel Brandt @ Wed 26th July 2006, 5:35pm) *


If I could get even an IP address for Essgay or Robbie31, it would narrow the search to perhaps several universities instead of dozens. That would be a big help.





Beg and thou shalt receive.
Somey
QUOTE(MARMOTFACE @ Mon 21st August 2006, 2:38pm) *
Beg and thou shalt receive.

O great MARMOTFACE, we beseech thee in thy everlasting glory to take pity on these faithless wretches, underserving of thy great beneficence, and bestow upon us the knowledge (and specifically the IP address) we seek, whereby in return we shall forever refrain from making fun of thy username, and never again respond dismissively to thy pithy one-sentence reply-postings which, in expectation of these bestowals, shall be surely proven then to be the greatest of all wisdom?

(I took a college-level course in begging, so I figured I'd give it a shot!)
IronDuke
You know, as he was obviously interviewed for the Atlantic Monthly piece, and the above-mentioned academic credentials were listed there, I'm going to wager that they are real. Unlike Wikipedia, the Atlantic Monthly employs actual fact-checkers, and has a standard of journalistic ethics. However, you could always write Marshall Poe and enquire about his methods of verifying what he was told.
Backfire
Hmm. S.J. Could this be a Jesuit reference instead of his initials?

Doctorate of Canon Law is another giveaway, and his specializing in Roman Catholocism.

There are 11 Jesuit colleges and universities in the Northeast: http://www.ajcunet.edu/tier.aspx?bid=55

This might help narrow it down
Daniel Brandt
From someone's talk page:
QUOTE
Jondel: Thanks for the note on my Talk page...Although I have great respect for them, no, I am not a Jesuit, as I'm not a priest. I'm a Catholic scholar at a secular university in the U.S. "Essjay" is the spelled-out form of my initials, S.J. (no, not "Society of Jesus") as well as my patron saint, Saint Justin. It was a nickname I picked up in graduate school. Thanks for the interest. --Essjay 04:18, May 9, 2005 (UTC)

He says "secular university," which precludes Jesuit institutions.

The exchange below is funny. It's from the #wikimedia channel on freenode. Brion is Brion Vibber, Wikimedia Foundation's lead developer. They're talking about the upcoming election for a new trustee to replace Angela. Candidates have to be at least 18 years old under Florida law, and the candidate has to identify themselves to at least one election official.
QUOTE
2006-08-11 02:30 < brion> hrm
2006-08-11 02:30 < brion> "Candidates will be required to identify themselves fully to Essjay, Aphaia, Datrio, or another designated individual"
2006-08-11 02:30 < brion> isn't Essjay one of those who refuses to identify him/herself?
2006-08-11 02:44 < cimon> brion: somebody should run, and find out how he could identify himself fully to Essjay...

karmafist
Daniel, i'd slightly disagree with you on Essjay.

You're right in the fact that when he's on, he's a force to be reckoned with, but when he's not, he's a wreck.


He had a big hissy fit in late 2005 where he deleted everything he made for Esperanza and did some other strange things because he wanted to leave Wikipedia forever and eventually was brought back after a big sympathy orgy.
Daniel Brandt
It's possible that he has made up all of his biographical details. He's too busy on Wikipedia to be a full-time professor, maintain a relationship with Robbie, and eat and sleep too. His checkuser skills do not impress me (block them all, you might even hit someone), and his entire counter-vandalism site is probably next to worthless.

Yes, his hissy fit at the end of November was rather immature. I think we know why Essjay stays away from controversy -- it's because he can't handle it.

Wouldn't it be fun if Essjay and SlimVirgin started attacking each other? SlimVirgin would eat him alive, even though she's a vegetarian. But then Essjay would call up Jimmy, and Jimmy would remind Essjay that they're making all the world's information available to all the world's people, and why not just send a couple more laptops to African children and forget about SlimVirgin?
karmafist
QUOTE(Daniel Brandt @ Mon 28th August 2006, 11:57am) *



Yes, his hissy fit at the end of November was rather immature. I think we know why Essjay stays away from controversy -- it's because he can't handle it.


I'd disagree, he stays away from being in the limelight of controversy, he can't handle it when he's in someone's focus, but I don't think that's the case when he's an outside bulwark to the controversy.

Nobody can get as high up in Wikipedia as Essjay has without putting in frequent insights into dispute ridden situations.


QUOTE(Daniel Brandt @ Mon 28th August 2006, 11:57am) *

Wouldn't it be fun if Essjay and SlimVirgin started attacking each other? SlimVirgin would eat him alive, even though she's a vegetarian. But then Essjay would call up Jimmy, and Jimmy would remind Essjay that they're making all the world's information available to all the world's people, and why not just send a couple more laptops to African children and forget about SlimVirgin?


lol. I can see him now. "Everyone, let's gather some 'genuine human feeling', ok?"
Somey
Apparently the mystery may have been solved for us - Essjay has been hired by Wikia Corporation. There's even a photo:

http://www.wikia.com/wiki/User:Essjay

I always thought he'd look a little less monochromatic than that, though.
Poetlister
I think that we should always ignore skin colour, or lack of it; it's what's inside that matters. I have often been described as white when in fact I'm pink.
Daniel Brandt
I'm not convinced that the mystery is solved. I just did some clicking around, and Ryan Jordan, tenured professor of theology at a private university in the eastern U.S., with a Doctorate of Philosophy in Theology (Ph.D.) and a Doctorate in Canon Law (JCD), an expert on Roman Catholicism, with the initials S.J. (where is the "S" in Ryan Jordan?), has a zero footprint in the search engines. The only connection is that Essjay says he used to be a cantor at the Cathedral of the Assumption in Louisville, Kentucky, and now this Ryan Jordan is back living near Louisville.

I'd say that unless and until there is confirmation from Gil Penchina, CEO of Wikia, that this is the real identity of this new Wikia staffer, we have to assume that this is just more smoke.
Jonny Cache
I thought SJ meant Society of Jesus, that is, the Jesuits.

Shades of the Eliminati !!!

Jonny cool.gif
Somey
QUOTE(Daniel Brandt @ Thu 11th January 2007, 11:12am) *
...Ryan Jordan, tenured professor of theology at a private university in the eastern U.S., with a Doctorate of Philosophy in Theology (Ph.D.) and a Doctorate in Canon Law (JCD), an expert on Roman Catholicism, with the initials S.J. (where is the "S" in Ryan Jordan?), has a zero footprint in the search engines.

Interesting... I guess I wouldn't put it past him/them to hire Essjay under an assumed name. Makes perfect sense, in a way. But it's hard to imagine Essjay handing over his account to a completely different person - it has to be the same guy, even if that isn't his real name.

One possibility is that Essjay is on a one- or two-year sabbatical from whatever University he's tenured at, and this is basically a temp job for him. If that's the case, he wouldn't want that University to know that he had another job - that's usually considered a no-no for an Associate or Full Professor. IOW, he's probably supposed to be writing a book or working on a documentary or chairing some sort of prestigious international academic organization, something like that. That would certainly explain his not wanting to use his real name, and their willingness to go along with it.
Daniel Brandt
This Essjay user page is worth quoting, before it gets modified. Please humor me and click and verify -- it could disappear faster than you can say "phantom administrator."
QUOTE
"Essjay" is the spelled-out form of my initials, S.J.; it is an old nickname I picked up. Others sometimes confuse me with Sj, but we are not the same person!
...
I get a lot of requests for personal information about me; however, in these days of internet stalking, anonymity has become more and more important. Here are some details I'm willing to share:

Alias: Justin Stewart

Me: I am male, past 30 but not yet 40, gay and in a long-term relationship with my partner, Robbie, an attorney. We live in the Northeastern United States.

Career: I teach theology at a university in the eastern United States. My area of expertise is Roman Catholicism, though I rarely contribute to theology articles anymore.

I am not Catholic, a priest, or a Jesuit; my interest in Catholicism is purely academic. I am a member of the Christian Church, and serve as an Elder.

This information used to be on his main Wikipedia user page. Now it's gone from there. The most recent trace is in this copy of his user page from November 23. Notice above the big box on the bottom, where it says "User:Essjay/Personal" in red. This means that he had already deleted the subdirectory, but forgot to fix the main page reference as of this date, which is red because it points to a nonexistent page. This page still exists at meta.wikimedia.org

I believe that Essjay was a fraud from the beginning. It's a bad sign that Wikia CEO Gil Penchina is allowing this sort of bullshit to get infiltrated into Wikia. Seems to me that when you're talking $14 million in venture funding ($4 million start-up and another $10 million from Amazon), that you should have real people who are really verifiable on your staff.
nobs
What is the point of all this? Essjay could be a committe.
Somey
True - he could be a whole religion, nationality, or even ethnicity unto himself. But as for whether or not Wikia should hire him, I've always assumed that web-based companies hire people under assumed names all the time. That would be especially true of Wikia - anonymity is so essential to their success, they probably encourage it!
Daniel Brandt
QUOTE(nobs @ Thu 11th January 2007, 2:20pm) *

What is the point of all this? Essjay could be a committe.

All we know for sure is that Essjay is not Nobs. Essjay knows how to spell.
nobs
QUOTE(Daniel Brandt @ Thu 11th January 2007, 1:40pm) *
QUOTE(nobs @ Thu 11th January 2007, 2:20pm) *
What is the point of all this? Essjay could be a committe.
All we know for sure is that Essjay is not Nobs. Essjay knows how to spell.
Pardon my Franklish. Essjay could be a comité.
Somey
QUOTE(nobs @ Thu 11th January 2007, 8:36pm) *
Pardon my Franklish. Essjay could be a comité.

Or even a termite!

Or, perhaps he's concomitant with the commisariat of the complementary Communist commercial comb-over conspiracy...

Anyway, let's put this whole issue of how to spell the word "committee" aside for a moment. The question now is whether or not Essjay is, or was, or ever was, a Professor of Theology, or for that matter, even a teaching assistant in Theology or any other religious studies-like program. While this is of only marginal importance, and mostly of interest to people on WP who were led to believe that he was an authority on the subject, it would at least indicate that Essjay had been, at best, disingenuous in representing himself within the WP community. (Not that such things are unusual!)

He doesn't look older than 27 in the photo, maybe 30 tops, but it might be an old photo. And there's no reason not to believe that he really is/was a religion professor, except for the fact that nobody named "Ryan Jordan" can be found on sites like ratemyprofessors.com (which in itself is a subject I'd like to discuss one of these days), teaching in a religion department in an East Coast college or university. There's one who teaches History at UC San Diego, but I doubt that's him.

Still, by all accounts he's a reasonably decent sort, and there's probably no need to make a big deal out of it... It is rather curious, though!
a view from the hive
QUOTE(Somey @ Thu 11th January 2007, 9:39pm) *

QUOTE(nobs @ Thu 11th January 2007, 8:36pm) *
Pardon my Franklish. Essjay could be a comité.

Or even a termite!

Or, perhaps he's concomitant with the commisariat of the complementary Communist commercial comb-over conspiracy...

Anyway, let's put this whole issue of how to spell the word "committee" aside for a moment. The question now is whether or not Essjay is, or was, or ever was, a Professor of Theology, or for that matter, even a teaching assistant in Theology or any other religious studies-like program. While this is of only marginal importance, and mostly of interest to people on WP who were led to believe that he was an authority on the subject, it would at least indicate that Essjay had been, at best, disingenuous in representing himself within the WP community. (Not that such things are unusual!)

He doesn't look older than 27 in the photo, maybe 30 tops, but it might be an old photo. And there's no reason not to believe that he really is/was a religion professor, except for the fact that nobody named "Ryan Jordan" can be found on sites like ratemyprofessors.com (which in itself is a subject I'd like to discuss one of these days), teaching in a religion department in an East Coast college or university. There's one who teaches History at UC San Diego, but I doubt that's him.

Still, by all accounts he's a reasonably decent sort, and there's probably no need to make a big deal out of it... It is rather curious, though!


Ok, ok, why wants to start RateMyProfessors-Watch. Lots and lots of anon people there and there is a LOT more false information. Wikipedia pales in comparsion to the false information posted on that site.
everyking
QUOTE(Somey @ Fri 12th January 2007, 6:39am) *

QUOTE(nobs @ Thu 11th January 2007, 8:36pm) *
Pardon my Franklish. Essjay could be a comité.

Or even a termite!

Or, perhaps he's concomitant with the commisariat of the complementary Communist commercial comb-over conspiracy...

Anyway, let's put this whole issue of how to spell the word "committee" aside for a moment. The question now is whether or not Essjay is, or was, or ever was, a Professor of Theology, or for that matter, even a teaching assistant in Theology or any other religious studies-like program. While this is of only marginal importance, and mostly of interest to people on WP who were led to believe that he was an authority on the subject, it would at least indicate that Essjay had been, at best, disingenuous in representing himself within the WP community. (Not that such things are unusual!)

He doesn't look older than 27 in the photo, maybe 30 tops, but it might be an old photo. And there's no reason not to believe that he really is/was a religion professor, except for the fact that nobody named "Ryan Jordan" can be found on sites like ratemyprofessors.com (which in itself is a subject I'd like to discuss one of these days), teaching in a religion department in an East Coast college or university. There's one who teaches History at UC San Diego, but I doubt that's him.

Still, by all accounts he's a reasonably decent sort, and there's probably no need to make a big deal out of it... It is rather curious, though!


My very brief account is that he isn't a reasonably decent sort at all.
Jonny Cache
I still think that the Limonata and the Ordure are behind all this.

Jonny cool.gif

PS. Yes, I know how to spell their real names. I just don't want them tracking me down with their dark satanic search engines.
Poetlister
QUOTE(everyking @ Fri 12th January 2007, 8:57am) *

My very brief account is that he isn't a reasonably decent sort at all.

He welcomed me when I first started on WP and was most helpful when I first had a real problem. I still wonder what would have happened had I gone to him rather than Jayjg over a subsequent problem.
gomi
QUOTE(Jonny Cache @ Fri 12th January 2007, 4:47am) *

I still think that the Limonata and the Ordure are behind all this.

Ach, yuv got too much Orangina in yer Iron Bru.
everyking
QUOTE(Poetlister @ Fri 12th January 2007, 1:50pm) *

QUOTE(everyking @ Fri 12th January 2007, 8:57am) *

My very brief account is that he isn't a reasonably decent sort at all.

He welcomed me when I first started on WP and was most helpful when I first had a real problem. I still wonder what would have happened had I gone to him rather than Jayjg over a subsequent problem.


Maybe my impression of him isn't a fair one--my experience with him is limited to one unfortunate instance when he quite abusively blocked me.
Nathan
I always thought I was a bit pale, myself.

Since Essjay outed himself as Ryan Jordan, we can guess that's either:
a) an assumed name
b) or he lied about Essjay meaning the initials S.J. (unless his name is really S. Ryan Jordan or Ryan S. Jordan, the S has to be there somewhere)

Anyway...

I'm wondering how one can be both gay and a Catholic (when the Catholic Church has such a negative stance on gays). Isn't that a contradiction in terms? Anyway, this isn't the place for such lines of discussion.

I have nothing but praise for Essjay (and I rarely say that about anyone on Wikipedia) because any interactions I've had with him have been either positive or neutral.

QUOTE(Poetlister @ Thu 11th January 2007, 11:43am) *

I think that we should always ignore skin colour, or lack of it; it's what's inside that matters. I have often been described as white when in fact I'm pink.
everyking
QUOTE(Nathan @ Mon 15th January 2007, 3:21am) *

I always thought I was a bit pale, myself.

Since Essjay outed himself as Ryan Jordan, we can guess that's either:
a) an assumed name
cool.gif or he lied about Essjay meaning the initials S.J. (unless his name is really S. Ryan Jordan or Ryan S. Jordan, the S has to be there somewhere)

Anyway...

I'm wondering how one can be both gay and a Catholic (when the Catholic Church has such a negative stance on gays). Isn't that a contradiction in terms? Anyway, this isn't the place for such lines of discussion.

I have nothing but praise for Essjay (and I rarely say that about anyone on Wikipedia) because any interactions I've had with him have been either positive or neutral.

QUOTE(Poetlister @ Thu 11th January 2007, 11:43am) *

I think that we should always ignore skin colour, or lack of it; it's what's inside that matters. I have often been described as white when in fact I'm pink.



No, read what Daniel quotes from him above: "I am not Catholic, a priest, or a Jesuit; my interest in Catholicism is purely academic."
Nathan
Ah, missed that, sorry. It happens.

I suppose I can agree with it myself; I have a passing interest in religion but I'm completely non-religious.
Somey
There have been some additions to Essjay's Wikia Centra user page recently. Here's the stuff about Essjay himself:

QUOTE
For those who may be interested, I'm a 24 year old guy from Kentucky; I grew up in Kentucky, and studied philosophy and religion at Centre College in Danville, Kentucky as well as the University of Kentucky and University of Louisville. I currently live outside Louisville with my cat Mia.

Before coming to Wikia, I was an account manager with a Fortune 20 company, where I worked on a ten person team that managed roughly $500,000,000 in annual sales. Prior to that, I was a paralegal for five years: I spent two years working for a local firm, nearly a year with a firm in Louisville that represented doctors in medical licensure matters, and a three month special position with a United States Bankruptcy Trustee. From there, I went freelance, and spent nearly two years handling special projects for several firms.

Is he just laughing at us all at this point?

So we're supposed to believe that a 24-year-old studied philosophy and religion at three separate institutions, and then worked for five years as a paralegal - which in itself requires at least a year of specialized training - and then got a sales job with a Fortune "20" company? Even if the sales job lasted only a few weeks, c'mon - when did he graduate from High School, at age 13?

Not much question now - this is completely bogus. Daniel Brandt is right - this whole Essjay thing is a huge lie, and they may even be doing it to amuse themselves at Brandt's expense, or ours. Admittedly I do feel a bit foolish for believing it at first - hey, maybe "AGF" should only apply to honest people? - but anyone who buys this crap at this point is basically wacked.
Daniel Brandt
You're forgetting that he once claimed on his user page that he held the following degrees:

* Bachelor of Arts in Religious Studies (B.A.)
* Master of Arts in Religion (M.A.R.)
* Doctorate of Philosophy in Theology (Ph.D.)
* Doctorate in Canon Law (JCD)

The New Yorker, famous for its fact-checking, was completely snookered:

QUOTE
KNOW IT ALL: Can Wikipedia conquer expertise?

by Stacy Schiff

The New Yorker, Issue of 2006-07-31, Posted 2006-07-24

...

One regular on the site is a user known as Essjay, who holds a Ph.D. in theology and a degree in canon law and has written or contributed to sixteen thousand entries. A tenured professor of religion at a private university, Essjay made his first edit in February, 2005. Initially, he contributed to articles in his field -- on the penitential rite, transubstantiation, the papal tiara. Soon he was spending fourteen hours a day on the site, though he was careful to keep his online life a secret from his colleagues and friends. (To his knowledge, he has never met another Wikipedian, and he will not be attending Wikimania, the second international gathering of the encyclopedia's contributors, which will take place in early August in Boston.)

...

Essjay is serving a second term as chair of the mediation committee. He is also an admin, a bureaucrat, and a checkuser, which means that he is one of fourteen Wikipedians authorized to trace I.P. addresses in cases of suspected abuse. He often takes his laptop to class, so that he can be available to Wikipedians while giving a quiz, and he keeps an eye on twenty I.R.C. chat channels, where users often trade gossip about abuses they have witnessed.

...

Essjay says that he routinely receives death threats. "There are people who take Wikipedia way too seriously," he told me. (Wikipedians have acknowledged Essjay's labors by awarding him numerous barnstars -- five-pointed stars, which the community has adopted as a symbol of praise -- including several Random Acts of Kindness Barnstars and the Tireless Contributor Barnstar.)

...

Wales recently established an "oversight" function, by which some admins (Essjay among them) can purge text from the system, so that even the history page bears no record of its ever having been there. Wales says that this measure is rarely used, and only in order to remove slanderous or private information, such as a telephone number.


Ryan Jordan's "friends" on Facebook include Angela Beesley, James Forrester, Shanel Kalicharan, Gil Penchina, Jimmy Wales, and Kat Walsh. I cannot tell how long each has been on his friends list. Those are just the names I recognize. There are some names from this list of friends who live near him in Kentucky, which might be useful for anyone investigating if he really exists.

I might write to The New Yorker and complain about their fact-checking, and ask for a retraction and investigation. Stacy Schiff, the author of the piece in The New Yorker, is a "Pulitzer Prize-winning writer who lives in New York City. She is a graduate of Phillips Academy and Williams College. She was a Senior Editor at Simon & Schuster until 1990 whose essays and articles have appeared in The New Yorker, The New York Times Book Review and The Times Literary Supplement. Schiff has received fellowships from the Guggenheim Foundation and the National Endowment for the Humanities."

Maybe some enterprising admin on this board can contact Ms. Schiff, and ask how she got snookered by Wikipedia. Then he could post her reply on this board.

If we can put some meat on this story, it might make an interesting page on wikipedia-watch.org. The significance here is that it not only serves as a critique of Wikipedia (which Jimmy and Angela wouldn't mind throwing to the dogs at this point), but also of Wikia (which they love dearly because there's big bucks involved).
Daniel Brandt
Dear Ms. Stacy Schiff:

The purpose of this email is to inquire about a serious error of fact in your article about Wikipedia in The New Yorker that ran in the July 31, 2006 issue.

In this article, you identify Essjay as someone "who holds a Ph.D. in theology and a degree in canon law," and who is "a tenured professor of religion at a private university."

I have spent about ten hours in recent months trying to determine Essjay's real name, and have been unable to find any information that correlates with the clues he has offered about himself at various times and in various places on Wikipedia. It is true that he once claimed a Bachelor of Arts in Religious Studies (B.A.), a Master of Arts in Religion (M.A.R.), a Doctorate of Philosophy in Theology (Ph.D.), and a Doctorate in Canon Law (JCD) on his Wikipedia user page.

Recently, however, he has been named as a community manager for Wikia, Inc., and has offered personal information that is entirely at odds with the information he once offered on Wikipedia. He now says he is 24 years old, and while he says he took philosophy and religion courses at three places in Kentucky, he may not have a degree. His professional experience has nothing to do with this interest, and in itself is suspicious for a person of only 24 years.

He is a fraud. It's possible that he doesn't exist as a single person, but is a collection of top administrators. Your statements about him in your article should be corrected for the record, because they imply that Wikipedia is administered by responsible and authoritative people. This is simply not true.

I would like to know who recommended you to Essjay, how was he represented to you, who made these representations, and what steps you and The New Yorker took to verify his statements and his identity.

Since Essjay has recently deleted some personal information from his Wikipedia user page, I fear the same thing could happen with the new information provided by him. Therefore, I have made a screen shot of his user page on wikia.com, which I placed on my site at http://www.wikipedia-watch.org/gifs/wmessjay.png (see "About Me" towards the bottom of that screen shot).

A portion of his previous Wikipedia personal information is still available on his user page at wikimedia.org, a screen shot of which is at http://www.wikipedia-watch.org/gifs/mtessjay.png

You probably know that Jimmy Wales has a picture of you on his photo site at http://www.flickr.com/photos/jimbo_wales/109885558/ You also know by now that your article in The New Yorker resulted in your own flattering biography in Wikipedia, which was started on July 24, the same day your article was posted online. It has to be asked: Was there any quid pro quo involved between certain top Wikipedians and your article in The New Yorker?

Thank you,
Daniel Brandt
www.wikipedia-watch.org
anon1234
QUOTE(Daniel Brandt @ Sat 20th January 2007, 11:54pm) *

Dear Ms. Stacy Schiff:

The purpose of this email is to inquire about a serious error of fact in your article about Wikipedia in The New Yorker that ran in the July 31, 2006 issue.


Awesome! Burn! I would have held back on the personal insults because it might preclude a response. I would write another if I were you to their general letters section, tone it down a bit and it might end up in an issue of the New Yorker, which would be great to see.
Nathan
I could'n't have done better myself, and Wikitruth says I'm a "clever wordsmith"..hah!
Daniel Brandt
Look at the bottom of this screen shot, where I ask Essjay to explain himself. It lasted 28 minutes until Shanel reverted it. Note that Shanel is also on his Facebook "friends" list, and she became a steward last month.

Now I'm taking bets on how long it will be until Essjay comes along and wipes out the history diff.
Jonny Cache
Yeah, I keep wondering how long it will take the establishment media to get over it with the G Wiz Biz and get down to doing some real investigative journalism. Then again, who needs a second Pulitzer?

Jonny cool.gif
Daniel Brandt
The two emails I found for Stacy Schiff both bounced. One was schiff AT observer.com and the other was schiff AT nytimes.com. I sent a copy to a media-inquiry email address listed in the "contacts" box at The New Yorker. That one went through, and will most likely end up in the trash.

When Ms. Schiff was writing the article, she talked to Seigenthaler, and he told me that he gave her my number. But she never called me. I wouldn't have known anything about Essjay at that point anyway, although I would have talked to her about Wikipedia. The fact that she didn't even try to call me proves that she didn't do much research, and wasn't particularly interested in presenting Wikipedia objectively.

In terms of contact information, all I could find out about Stacy Schiff from clicking around is that she lives in New York City with her husband and children. If anyone can find better contact information, please let me know.
anon1234
QUOTE(Daniel Brandt @ Sun 21st January 2007, 2:19pm) *

The two emails I found for Stacy Schiff both bounced. One was schiff AT observer.com and the other was schiff AT nytimes.com. I sent a copy to a media-inquiry email address listed in the "contacts" box at The New Yorker. That one went through, and will most likely end up in the trash.

When Ms. Schiff was writing the article, she talked to Seigenthaler, and he told me that he gave her my number. But she never called me. I wouldn't have known anything about Essjay at that point anyway, although I would have talked to her about Wikipedia. The fact that she didn't even try to call me proves that she didn't do much research, and wasn't particularly interested in presenting Wikipedia objectively.

In terms of contact information, all I could find out about Stacy Schiff from clicking around is that she lives in New York City with her husband and children. If anyone can find better contact information, please let me know.


Just sent a polite email to the observer general inquiries box asking for her new contact information. Your inquiry to the New Yorker, if worded properly should get a lot of traction.
Daniel Brandt
QUOTE(anon1234 @ Sun 21st January 2007, 12:11pm) *

Your inquiry to the New Yorker, if worded properly should get a lot of traction.

I'm not having much luck pursuing this. I sent a fax to the general fax number at The New Yorker on letterhead, informing them that a serious error was published, and requesting contact info for Stacy Schiff. I also mentioned that a copy of my bounced email to Ms. Schiff was sent to mediarequests AT newyorker.com. If anyone read the fax, they should have been able to retrieve it from that department. My fax was sent on January 21. No response yet.

I sent an email to Carol Wentworth, the PR person for Wikia, Inc. I asked her to forward a copy to Gil Penchina. My email asked whether the information provided by Ryan Jordan on his Wikia user page has been verified by Wikia. I pointed out that The New Yorker published bogus credentials for Essjay based on his Wikipedia user page. I got an autobot response from Ms. Wentworth informing me that she is out of the office and will not return until January 23. Now it's three days since she returned, and still no response.

Today I added Essjay to http://www.wikipedia-watch.org/hive2.html#309

I think I've given Wikia and Essjay an opportunity to respond, and by now it is responsible and proper for me to create a special Essjay page on Wikipedia-Watch. As for The New Yorker, I suspect their position will be, if ever they feel the need to present their position, that since the name "Essjay" was itself a pseudonym, it is not necessary to correct phony credentials attached to a phony name. However, I think it should be pursued further with The New Yorker and Stacy Schiff, simply so that they will be less inclined to drink Wikipedia's Kool-Aid in the future.
Alex
QUOTE(Daniel Brandt @ Fri 26th January 2007, 5:58pm) *

Today I added Essjay to http://www.wikipedia-watch.org/hive2.html#309

I think I've given Wikia and Essjay an opportunity to respond, and by now it is responsible and proper for me to create a special Essjay page on Wikipedia-Watch. As for The New Yorker, I suspect their position will be, if ever they feel the need to present their position, that since the name "Essjay" was itself a pseudonym, it is not necessary to correct phony credentials attached to a phony name. However, I think it should be pursued further with The New Yorker and Stacy Schiff, simply so that they will be less inclined to drink Wikipedia's Kool-Aid in the future.

What I found odd is that on Essjay's user page he stated he is older than 30 and younger than 45... Which is true? 24 as on Wikia, or the vague 30-45 on Wikipedia? Who knows.
anon1234
QUOTE(Alex @ Fri 26th January 2007, 6:16pm) *

QUOTE(Daniel Brandt @ Fri 26th January 2007, 5:58pm) *

Today I added Essjay to http://www.wikipedia-watch.org/hive2.html#309

I think I've given Wikia and Essjay an opportunity to respond, and by now it is responsible and proper for me to create a special Essjay page on Wikipedia-Watch. As for The New Yorker, I suspect their position will be, if ever they feel the need to present their position, that since the name "Essjay" was itself a pseudonym, it is not necessary to correct phony credentials attached to a phony name. However, I think it should be pursued further with The New Yorker and Stacy Schiff, simply so that they will be less inclined to drink Wikipedia's Kool-Aid in the future.

What I found odd is that on Essjay's user page he stated he is older than 30 and younger than 45... Which is true? 24 as on Wikia, or the vague 30-45 on Wikipedia? Who knows.


This is someone one needs to follow up on. A webpage would be good. But also getting blogosphere coverage or DIGG coverage would also be useful. Here is an idea. Why not submit it to DIGG and tell the rest of the forum when you do so we can vote on it.
Somey
QUOTE(anon1234 @ Fri 26th January 2007, 12:28pm) *
This is someone one needs to follow up on. A webpage would be good. But also getting blogosphere coverage or DIGG coverage would also be useful. Here is an idea. Why not submit it to DIGG and tell the rest of the forum when you do so we can vote on it.

Okay... but is he a big enough target to warrant that much scrutiny, though? I mean, there's obviously something fishy going on, but if you apply Occam's Razor to the situation, I'd say it's probably more likely that he's 24 (and being dishonest on his "Wikiresume") than that he's pushing 40 and just left a tenured faculty job to work for Wikia, apparently from his house.

The question is whether or not anyone outside of Wikiland is likely to care all that much, given that most of them won't realize how high-ranking Essjay is, or how that's even all that relevant. I'd imagine a lot of media people just assume that Wikipedia users are dishonest about their supposed qualifications as a matter of course... The fact that Essjay managed to schnooker a writer for the New Yorker is significant, but one might have to find someone who's actively hostile to the New Yorker and give them a full run-down before a story actually gets written.
anon1234
QUOTE(Somey @ Fri 26th January 2007, 6:47pm) *

QUOTE(anon1234 @ Fri 26th January 2007, 12:28pm) *
This is someone one needs to follow up on. A webpage would be good. But also getting blogosphere coverage or DIGG coverage would also be useful. Here is an idea. Why not submit it to DIGG and tell the rest of the forum when you do so we can vote on it.

Okay... but is he a big enough target to warrant that much scrutiny, though? I mean, there's obviously something fishy going on, but if you apply Occam's Razor to the situation, I'd say it's probably more likely that he's 24 (and being dishonest on his "Wikiresume") than that he's pushing 40 and just left a tenured faculty job to work for Wikia, apparently from his house.

The question is whether or not anyone outside of Wikiland is likely to care all that much, given that most of them won't realize how high-ranking Essjay is, or how that's even all that relevant. I'd imagine a lot of media people just assume that Wikipedia users are dishonest about their supposed qualifications as a matter of course... The fact that Essjay managed to schnooker a writer for the New Yorker is significant, but one might have to find someone who's actively hostile to the New Yorker and give them a full run-down before a story actually gets written.


The webpage on Essjay should detail how he is in the inner circle and the way the processes work on Wikipedia. But it shouldn't be that hard to show he is in the inner circle to fairly new outsiders if one has a few pictures with number of users in each circle. It can be seen as an instructive lesson into the structure of the Wikipedian inner circle -- which no publication has yet covered. Thus you can sell it based on that new angle it offers to readers. That the inner circle of Wikipedia is contains at least one major fabricator in the spirit of Jason Blair -- which further brings into question the truthfulness of everything Wikipedia does. The world is ready for a major expose into the dark side of Wikipedia and this may be the route in for major media if done appropriately.
guy
QUOTE(Alex @ Fri 26th January 2007, 6:16pm) *

What I found odd is that on Essjay's user page he stated he is older than 30 and younger than 45... Which is true? 24 as on Wikia, or the vague 30-45 on Wikipedia? Who knows.

Welcome Alex.

Well, if you're making up everything else, why not your age?
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