The bread crumbs of this Wikiscandal are disappearing faster than you can say, "What's Essjay?" Here is enough recovered evidence to give you a good idea of what happened:

1. Essjay's user page from August, 2005. His first claims of bogus credentials were made several months earlier, not long after he began editing on Wikipedia in February, 2005.

2. His Wikia user page was noticed in January. The details at the bottom of the page are sharply at odds with his Wikipedia user page, and set off alarms for researchers at wikipediareview.com.

3. Meanwhile, Essjay was getting wined and dined by the cabal during a trip to San Francisco. He had a great time.

4. The conflict over the two different biographies bothered some Wikipedians. Essjay's first inclination was to brag about how clever he is.

5. That seemed to satisfy some of his supporters, so he expanded on the same theme.

6. Lurking behind the scenes, a major correction was in the works at The New Yorker. Their March 5 issue featured an extensive editor's note about Essjay. This issue was published on February 26, but they don't put "The Mail" page online. On February 28 they appended this note to their original article. Now that there was something solid online, the controversy moved into high gear in blogville. At first Essjay and his supporters blamed online persecution for his behavior, claiming that his fake credentials served to throw Brandt-style "stalkers" off of his trail. But researchers soon pointed out that Brandt didn't become involved with Wikipedia until October 2005, by which time Essjay had already been using his fake credentials to browbeat other editors into accepting his version of disputed items in Wikipedia articles. That behavior had nothing to do with protecting onself against "stalkers."

7. Pressure is building. Essjay presents his most complete explanation on March 1. In the process he manages to libel Stacy Schiff, the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of the original piece.

On March 3, Essjay resigns under pressure from Wikipedia and Wikia.

Sounds about right. I'm not sure if you read my post suggesting that you make a press release on the issue. If you would like I could draft one up for you. I am a nobody and also a non-player in this series of events thus it doesn't make sense for me to send it in. I could post the draft here to WR for everyone's feedback. As Seth said in his most recent blog entry, now is time to set the tone on how this is going to be perceived in the mainstream media, and thus my suggestion of a press release as one way to do it, that is if you are okay with probably being interviewed by the media on this to get more background. Your choice. It is going to be covered by the mainstream media anyways, just this is a way for you to get more control over its presentation.

I think the admins of wikipediareview.com should make a press release. Of course, that's a problem because they're anons, and that sends the wrong message immediately. Just because I'm one of the few users on this board using a real name doesn't mean that I should have to carry the ball with the Real World.

There are two people who come to mind that have been following this very closely and are very articulate on this issue. One is Seth Finkelstein and the other is Larry Sanger. I think the press should go to either one of them. Both of them are more inclined than I am to criticize Jimmy Wales' role in this thing. It's not that I don't agree with them about Jimmy. It's just that I think they would do a much better job because they're more articulate.

I see my role as something of an archivist, providing a chronology and documentation as needed.

No problem. I figured that you might want the credit that's all and you'd have an easy time getting the attention from the media since you pursued the NYer and have a reputation as a Wikipedia critic. Seth and Larry, since they are only commentators are not really able to shape the media presentation, just comment on it. It would be great for Wikipedia Review to issue the press release, but since it is just a message board (even a highly functional one as WR) at this moment, it will have close to zero credibility with those not familiar with it thus that isn't a viable option. I could issue the press release myself under my own identity but it will leave people wondering why I am important and I will probably end up much more peripheral than Larry and Seth. The long-term solution may be to create a more reputable non-message board front end to Wikipedia Review. At that point, it could issue press releases and be taken seriously.

CORRECTION: I might be wrong about WR's credibility with regards to issuing a press release. Maybe it could work even though it is a "message board" filled mostly with anonymous posters?

I found that blog especially poignant. It reads as though but a week ago he was on top of the world, having met his heros, and networked with them as equals - probably the first time he has ever done anything like this in his life.

And now it must feel to him as though that was the peak of his existence, a feeling that he will never experience again.

He's no longer on facebook, of if he is I can no longer find him. His mental state is unpredictable. Perhaps he's already dead by his own hand - and if so, this story is currently a shadow of its future self...

I think you are being overly dramatic. All he has to do is create a sock. Insiders will help him to the top in record time. There are very substantial doubts among researchers that Ryan Jordan in Kentucky even exists. I am not aware that anyone he met in San Francisco has even confirmed the photo of "Ryan Jordan" we have. That priest never answered my fax. The media has not been able to find him either. At this point he's not worth worrying about.

#wikipedia channel, New York City time:


I don't see him on facebook any longer either. For the record, here is a list of the "friends" he had. A number of them are from the Louisville area, but that doesn't mean Ryan Jordan still lives there.

Facebook friends of Ryan Jordan, captured 2007-01-20:

Ryan Jordan's Friends
Friend List
Ryan has 80 friends.

Name: Kendall Allen
Network: Centre '09

Name: Jeff Bachey
Network: Centre Alum '06

Name: Stephanie Bailey
Networks: Centre Alum '05
Cincinnati Grad Student
Cincinnati, OH

Name: Kellen Baker
Network: Kentucky Alum '05

Name: LaToya Patrice Battle
Network: Murray State KY '06

Name: Angela Beesley
Network: London

Name: Adam Blandford
Network: Centre '06

Name: Sadora Bloom
Network: E. Kentucky Alum '06

Name: Erika Boyle
Networks: Centre Alum '05
Chicago, IL

Name: Blake Brandenburg
Network: Centre '09

Name: Michelle Bryant-Funk
Network: Louisville '06

Name: Brandon Cain
Network: Centre Alum '05

Name: Brittany Camenisch
Network: Centre '09

Name: Melissa Clemmons
Network: Kentucky '06

Name: Josh Coakley
Network: Kentucky '06

Name: DeShawn Collett
Networks: Centre Alum '05
Louisville, KY

Name: Colleen Cooney
Networks: Charleston, SC
Hope Alum '05

Name: Corey Coons
Network: Louisville '07

Name: Jeremiah Cox
Network: Kentucky '06

Name: David Crowley
Network: Centre Alum '05

Name: Jared Cutright
Networks: Centre Alum '05
Johns Hopkins Grad Student '09
Washington, DC

Name: Amber Dahlhauser
Networks: Spalding Grad Student '07
Louisville, KY

Name: FN Denton
Networks: Kentucky Grad Student
Centre Alum '06
Lexington, KY

Name: Berkley Donaldson
Network: Centre '09

Name: Markham Dowell
Network: Kentucky '06

Name: Shawn Drake
Network: Kentucky '06

Name: Lori Fey
Network: Kentucky Alum '05

Name: James Forrester
Networks: London
Warwick Alum '05

Name: Bryan Gatlin
Network: Kentucky

Name: Chris Gooden
Networks: ETSU
Tennessee

Name: Erin Greunke
Network: W. Kentucky Alum '05

Name: Sarah Harrison
Networks: Centre Alum '06
Kentucky
Xavier Grad Student
Lexington, KY

Name: Randy Hays
Network: Centre Staff

Name: Erin Henegar
Networks: Wisc Stevens Point Grad Student '07
Centre Alum '05
Wausau, WI

Name: Brittney Hertog
Network: Centre '09

Name: Candace Hobbs
Network: KYSU Alum '06

Name: Stacey Hohl
Networks: Louisville, KY
Centre Alum '05

Name: Kenneth Horton
Network: Kentucky

Name: Samuel Horwitz
Networks: J. R. Masterman High School '07
Philadelphia, PA

Name: Heather Johns
Networks: Los Angeles, CA
Michigan Alum '05

Name: Ryan Jordan
Network: Thiel '09

Name: Shanel K
Networks: McMaster '06
Toronto, ON

Name: Bill Kaufmann
Network: Harvard Alum '88

Name: Rachel Kitzero
Network: E. Kentucky Alum '06

Name: Vicky Little
Networks: WashU Alum '05
St. Louis, MO

Name: Chrissy Masero
Network: Kentucky '06

Name: William Masterson
Network: Kentucky Alum '05

Name: Frances McClasky
Networks: Louisville, KY
Louisville Grad Student '06

Name: Dominic McDevitt-Parks
Network: Reed '09

Name: Michael McGee
Networks: Washington, DC
Centre Alum '05

Name: Drew McKinney
Network: Centre '09

Name: Gerron McKnight
Networks: Indiana Grad Student '08
Kentucky Alum '05

Name: Allis Mclaughlin
Network: Centre Staff

Name: Leah Moss
Network: Purdue '08

Name: Ilya N
Network: Illinois Math and Science Academy '09

Name: Justin O'Malley
Networks: Kentucky Grad Student
Centre Alum '05

Name: Joung Park
Network: Centre '08

Name: Gil Penchina
Network: San Francisco, CA

Name: Erin Powers
Network: Centre '09

Name: Lindsay Rall
Networks: Centre Alum '05
Lexington, KY

Name: Cheresa Reynolds
Networks: Centre Alum '05
Louisville, KY

Name: Randall 'Rudy' Richardson
Network: E. Kentucky '06

Name: Chris Russell
Network: Centre '09

Name: Kelli Ryan
Networks: Centre Alum '05
Louisville, KY

Name: Justin M. Sanders
Networks: Louisville, KY
W. Kentucky Alum '06

Name: Scott Singer
Network: Centre Grad Student '08

Name: Kenny Smith
Network: Centre '09

Name: Kaniece Smith
Network: Louisville Alum '05

Name: Michael Swartzentruber
Network: Centre '06

Name: Anna Uebele
Networks: Centre Alum
Louisville Grad Student

Name: Jimmy Wales
Network: San Francisco, CA

Name: Kat Walsh
Networks: George Mason Grad Student '09
Stetson Alum '05
Washington, DC

Name: Tessa Wilkinson
Networks: W. Kentucky Alum '06
Louisville, KY

Name: Robert E Wooten
Network: Alaska Fair

Name: Chad Yaden
Networks: Centre Alum '04
Lexington, KY

Name: Jing Zhang
Network: Centre '09

They can't make it too obvious of course, but this is to be expected.



No surprise. But this isn't stopping the hivers from invoking the WP:BLP(!) in defense of their preferred liar:

http://lists.wikimedia.org/pipermail/wikie...rch/064645.html

Even if the name is "Ryan Jordan", there are probably hundreds if not thousands of them in the USA (google returns 41000 hits for '"Ryan Jordan" -wikipedia' -- http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fusea...iendid=67539249 is one of the multitude of hits) There is no further information to tell which, so what does "belief" have to do with it?

In any case, they clearly have absolutely no idea how this all looks to the outside world, and most of them are slavishly following the Grand Poobah: they simply don't care. And Jimbo proposed a neo-Citizendium optional credential mechanism, but this is being dismissed, as he must have known full well it would be. Plausible deniability from the top, anticipating the next, inevitable, media smack-down.

I just saw this, which is useful because a Louisville reporter did some checking:

Wikipedia editor who posed as professor is Ky. dropout
Man resigns post after controversy

By Andrew Wolfson, Louisville Courier-Journal, 2007-03-06

http://www.courier-journal.com/apps/pbcs.d...EWS01/703060446

So he seems to exist. The "UK spokesman" is presumably David Gerard; does he pass [[Wikipedia Review:ReliableSources]]?

I think that means University of Kentucky, confused me too.

The article states:

His deception was discovered after he took a job at the for-pay arm of Wikipedia, Wikia Inc.

Well, what do you know? Another journalist seems to think that Wikia is somehow affiliated with the Wikipedia organization. I wonder how they EVER get that crazy idea in their heads? There's absolutely no cross-contamination of personnel, funds, or content between those two organizations, right?

(Jimbo and Angela are probably just going to let this particular "mistake" go without calling for a retraction.)

Greg