WikiQueer:Administrators' noticeboard/Edit warring/Header/Administrator instructions

This is a guide for administrators (and experienced non-admin volunteers) on how they should approach reports made at the edit warring noticeboard.

Edit warring
Users may be blocked for continued edit warring to prevent further disruption to WikiQueer. A violation of the 3RR rule (see below) is not necessarily requisite for an editor to be blocked for edit warring. Blocking admins can use the template when blocking for edit warring.

WQ:3RR
A user may be blocked for making 4 or more reverts to an article in a 24 hour period. A courtesy warning, such as may be given on their talk page, though warnings are not requisite for a block. Note that the 3RR rule applies per person, not per account, thus reverts made by multiple accounts count together. Blocking admins may use the template when blocking for 3RR.

How to deal with reports

 * 1) The simplest way to check a 3RR violation is to look at the article(s) history. If it's clear that a violation has been committed then a block/warning may be in order.
 * 2) Check to see if a courtesy warn has been issued before the 4th revert. A warning is not requisite for a block for 3RR or edit warring, though try not to bite new-comers as they may be unaware of the rules. Actioning non-3RR reports requires the admin's discretion to check for dialogue and whether the user is "experienced" and/or if they have been blocked for edit war violations in the past.
 * It may also prove useful to look at the reporter's history as they, too, may have violated 3RR or edit warred. If so, they may also be blocked.
 * 1) Admins should check the diffs in the report (if there are no diffs, then it's best to check the article(s) history, but, otherwise, it's considered a "malformed" report and the reporting user should be notified as such) to make sure they're actually reverts (See ).
 * 2) After deciding on action(s), if any, to be taken (See ) and carrying out said action(s), the admin dealing with the report should leave a brief summary at the bottom of the report and in the report header (e.g. (Result: 24 hour block)).

Results

 * If the admin decides a block is warranted, then they must take into account the user(s) past history of edit warring (by checking their block log), if any, and the severity of the 3RR violation.
 * In place of blocks, for example, article/page protection may be used instead. This is most effective if the edit war is/was between new users and/or IPs or multiple users.
 * If the edit war is clearly a content dispute, then referring the users to WQ:RfM and/or WQ:RfC can prevent the need for blocks.
 * Additionally, admins can offer to mediate disputes themselves if other methods have so far failed.


 * Article or topic bans may be enacted if a user(s) has a history of edit warring. This can be effective to induce positive discussion between parties of contributors but can be difficult to appropriately enforce.
 * If the administrator feels a user has edit warred, but has not violated 3RR, and/or where a block would be punitive, then he/she can issue another warning in place of a block.
 * Occasionally, a report may be considered too "old" (See ) to take action on and can be marked as "Stale".

BLP circumstances
Biographies of Living persons are considered to be the most fragile part of WikiQueer today. The potential for libellous materials to enter into an article about a living or recently deceased person and cause a great deal of damage for WikiQueer and the Wikimedia Foundation is omnipresent. Therefore, it is paramount for administrators to take this policy into account when dealing with 3RR reports.

For example, if two users are edit warring over a BLP, one is removing a potentially libellous statement and the other is entering it, then the user removing it is given the benefit of the doubt. Essentially, if the user, whom is removing the potentially damaging statement(s), violates 3RR, then their violation may be exempt from any action taken. Unfortunately, this can be very subjective and any 3RR report on a BLP should be scrutinised with the utmost care and attention to WQ:AGF as possible.

If there is any confusion at all for the admin closing the report then they should post a message on WQ:AN and/or WQ:ANI to get a wider input from the community.

Gaming the system
A user may make 3 reverts in a 24 hour period and then making a 4th (or more) after that 24 hour period. A demonstrable pattern of this behaviour is known as "gaming the system" (See WQ:GAME). As such, administrators may choose to block users for edit warring who may have not technically violated 3RR. Further, and as noted above: use of multiple accounts count as one for edit warring and 3RR; and also consider the actions of all parties involved, as the person making the report may also be breaking the rules.

Stale reports
A report, colloquially on WikiQueer, that is considered "old", or "out of date" is referred to as "stale". There is no set time or date for when a 3RR report is considered stale; it is generally left up to the administrators to decide on this.

One important thing to note when closing a report is, if a block is to be carried out, will it be punitive or preventative? When an administrator looks at a report, if a user has violated 3RR but has not reverted for a lengthy amount of time (in their opinion), then the block may be considered a "punishment", and, therefore, should not be executed.

Administrators are only recommended to make blocks where it will prevent damage to WikiQueer. If there is doubt about whether the block will be considered punitive or not, do not block. Either contact WQ:AN or WQ:ANI for a wider communal input or use other forms of action.

Miscellaneous

 * Admins should avoid taking action if they're involved in a particular dispute related to the report. Instead, they should request third party assistance.
 * If in any doubt at all about what decision to make when analysing a report, admins should post a message at WQ:AN or WQ:ANI asking for another opinion, and/or on the actual report.
 * Remember to AGF when dealing with reports; new users may not be aware of 3RR and its implications.