Wikipedia:Mediation Cabal/Cases/2006-07-05 Ohio Turnpike "original research" dispute

Mediation Case: 2006-07-05 Ohio Turnpike "original research" dispute

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Request Information

Request made by: Larrysphatpage 00:54, 5 July 2006 (UTC)

Where is the issue taking place?

In the article Ohio Turnpike.

Who's involved?

User:SPUI and User:Larrysphatpage.

What's going on?

User:SPUI has now twice removed a section called "Shunpiking" that lists routes that can be used to avoid the Ohio Turnpike, claiming it constitutes original research. I (User:Larrysphatpage) disagree, as that information can be found using any published map of highways in the state of Ohio. (Note: You may need to pull up a previous version of the Ohio Turnpike page to see the "Shunpiking" section.)

What would you like to change about that?

I simply want outside opinions on the question, does the "Shunpiking" section constitute original research? I would assume good faith with most editors, but User:SPUI has a long history of acting unilaterally against consensus (see his user talk page).

Would you prefer we work discreetly? If so, how can we reach you?

I'm not concerned about working discreetly, but you can reach me by e-mail at larry@phatpage.org if you like.

Mediator response

Hi, there. I am Cowman109^Talk over from the Mediation Cabal. This isn't exactly a mediation case as you are asking for a third opinion, but I should still be able to help. Using WP:NOR and WP:NOT as sources of policy, it does appear that the section in question is not suited to a Wikipedia article. Unfortunately, Wikipedia isn't the place to give driving directions (WP:NOT#Wikipedia_is_not_an_indiscriminate_collection_of_information specifically states that Wikipedia is not an instruction manual or a travel guide. Does that clear things up a bit? Cowman109^Talk 01:19, 5 July 2006 (UTC)

Closing case. Nothing new under the sun. Agreed its better off at RfC than a medCabal case.

Compromise offers

This section is for listing and discussing compromise offers.

Discussion

While using the talk page of the article in question to solve a dispute is encouraged to involve a larger audience, feel free to discuss the case below if that is not possible. Other mediators are also encouraged to join in on the discussion as Wikipedia is based on consensus.

There's certainly nothing wrong with a few sentences like "State Route 2 is a non-tolled freeway that parallels the Turnpike" etc. But the detailed driving directions are not appropriate. --SPUI (T - C) 01:53, 5 July 2006 (UTC)