Posts Claiming To Contain Facts In News-forum

[TAWP]

As we have seen over the years in this forum (been reading since 2003, reg 2005) is that some users like to incite flamewars and that is dealt with my mods and by the rules. Another aspect I have yet to fully see be countered is posts claiming to contain 'facts' about an event, that in hindsight must have knowingly been dreamt up or based on extreme distorted hearsay, and shouldn't have carried the 'fact'-tag at all to allow other users to properly validate the claims.

Case in point: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/index.php?sh...t&p=1379646

But there have been much worse cases in the past ofcourse, and in other forum-sections. However I'm mainly interested in seeing the news-section being held to a stricter standard since it should be just that - a source of information and news. Spreading of bad intel could have implications even outside the boards (even journalists surfed this board after the tsumani for instance) and care should be taken.

We all know how the internet works. But not everyone visiting the boards might be fully up to date that there is a lot of people that like nothing more then to incite rumours or flamwars by posting something controversial and might not beprepeared to handle claims accuratly if they are labeled as 'facts' by a poster.

I propose that either posting something that is knowingly false or claims of having firsthand information to back a claim up - when in hindsight it was false and so the user clearly couldn't - should be dealt with harshly. Perhaps an amendment to the rules would be a first step and an enforcing of requesting sources for claims by posters that cannot be validated via the normal channels?

[PeaceBlondie]

Surely you're not suggesting that the Pattaya News Clippings lack professional journalistic standards? Shirley, not!

[Jai Dee]

I have seen the interaction you have had with the other member over his "news".

As ThaiVisa is a public discussion forum we cannot verify the integrity of opinions or confirm the validity of information posted on the forum.

All news bulletins posted by admin and mods, as well as senior members of the forum, are backed up by a source, and we encourage all members of the forum to do likewise... quoting information from an external source not only validates the information, but also helps members evaluate the information as well.

For example, experienced members reading an article from the Thai National News Bureau Public Relations Department would understand that it has been translated by a Thai person into English, so some of the phrases and choice of words may not be exactly what a native English speaker would use. Similarly, experienced members reading an article about Thaksin from the Manager News would know of the Sondhi ownership of the Manager, and his anti-Thaksin sentiment, thus the articles are usually politically slanted.

This evaluation of the accuracy, completeness or usefulness of the information in the "news" can only be done by you, the members of ThaiVisa.

You have rightly challenged another member for posting "news", and when that other member refused to divulge his source other than stating "the embassy", you can only treat that information as hearsay and not factual.

[sriracha john]

The Bangkok Herald-Examiner.... the most trusted opinionated source of news in Thailand...

Edited June 26, 2007 by Jai Dee
Edited to reflect reality

[sriracha john]

Reason for edit: Edited to reflect reality

darn... I knew I should have copyrighted that comment

Edited June 26, 2007 by sriracha john

[bendix]

Facts are over-rated. Why let a slavish devotion to so-called facts get in the way of a good debate.

A good debater doesnt let facts - either right or wrong - get in the way of them :-)

[Gary A]

Some of you forget where you are at. What is a "FACT" today my not be true tomorrow.

[britmaveric]

Well news is inherently biased even by the writer itself.

[Maestro]

darn... I knew I should have copyrighted that comment

I’ve got news for you, SJ. (Oops, should I perhaps not have said “news”?) You do not copyright something. You acquire copyright, ie the intellectual property rights, to something you publish through the fact that you publish it. You can, if you wish, deposit a copy of your publication at the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C. to establish an official record of what you published and when you published it, but this is not essential for you to acquire copyright and later to assert or defend it.

Of course, sometimes when you send in something for publication in a journal you are made to sign something to sign away your copyright to the company owning that journal, or the sign-up procedure for some Internet sites make you do the same. It is not the case with ThaiVisa, though, I believe.

I know you were kidding, and my information is merely for general interest, since the topic came up.

Disclaimer: I am not a lawyer.

--

Maestro

P.S. I herewith publish the word “shendestoya”, respectively “shendesdoya”, and thereby acquire the intellectual property rights to it and to any word similarly written or pronounced. I do not have the foggiest idea what it means, I just overheard myself saying it the other day in that interesting state of semi-consciousness between sleep and wakefulness, those few seconds of the day when one usually has the brightest ideas. From the context of my state of mind at the time it could be synonymous with “goodness gracious!” or “<deleted>”.

[Kerryd]

Facts are over-rated. Why let a slavish devotion to so-called facts get in the way of a good debate.

A good debater doesnt let facts - either right or wrong - get in the way of them :-)

I thought you were a "master-debater" !

Having read the thread in question (in the OP), and this thread, when I recently researched a bunch of material for another topic (German Shot Dead in the Pattaya News Clippings), I was going to post the links to the sites where I got the information.

At one point, I checked all the windows I had open to different sites and realized I would have to post almost 20 links ! I didn't think too many other members would want to spend 1-2 hours reviewing all those sites to see if I had cut & pasted the information correctly. (during the 3+ hours I spent searching for the material to cut & paste).

How ever, should the need arise and I had the time, I'm sure I could find the sites again if anyone ever questioned the info I posted.

In my current job, I am sometimes privy to information which I can't even discuss, let alone quote sources. In such cases, it is better to just shut up and say nothing, rather than dangle a thread and then have to defend your reasonings for not disclosing the source of the information.

[TAWP]

Btw, you cannot claim copyright or intellectual property right to a word or term.

However a word can be a trademark, registrated too. But it goes under a different form of protection.

[MarkBKK]

Reason for edit: Edited to reflect reality

darn... I knew I should have copyrighted that comment

Wouldn't do you much good on Thai Visa -- you can break the law here but not talk about it!

This posting will self-destruct in 10 ... 9 ... 8 ... 7 ... 6 ... ha, ha, ha