Talk:Matt Ridley

message: There is an ongoing edit war going on because including favorable reviews of Ridley's book is known as "puffery" according to an editor.
I suppose an acceptable compromise would be to remove all reviews? Or maybe something else. Thoughts? 129.120.177.8 (talk) 19:57, 6 August 2010 (UTC)
replies: text: Compromise done. 129.120.177.8 (talk) 20:10, 6 August 2010 (UTC)
replies: text: No, that somebody is me, not Matt Ridley. I'm not trying to remove any reference to the Northern Rock (I left the section in the middle of the article because it's relevant), I'm just saying that 1) for WP:BLP you can't take a reference from a blog (such as skepticalscience); 2) you can't say that "he's best known for" because this isn't true. If you know him only for that, it's your problem, not everybody's. I'm not saying that there shouldn't be any mention of that role in the lede, just that the tones were clearly pov. I'll try to readd a more neutral reference myself.  — Preceding unsigned comment added by Udippuy (talk • contribs) 15:57, 25 February 2012 (UTC)

text:  If you claim that Northern Rock is what he's best known for, you have to prove it. I am Italian and I didn't even know of the existence of Northern Rock before reading this article. However, being interested in evolution, I've read one of Matt Ridley's books ("The Red Queen"). In general, I think you should avoid accusations of sock puppetry and of vandalism and try to keep a neutral tone in your edits and discussions. By the way, I'm fine with the mention of Northern Rock in the lede - I'm just removing the claim that he's best known for it. I'll add the fact that he resigned, though, that sounds important. Udippuy (talk) 20:07, 26 February 2012 (UTC)
thread_title:  "Puffery" 

message: Taking Fears of Acid Oceans With a Grain of Salt January 7, 2012 WSJ; excerpt ... 
The head of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration calls it global warming's "equally evil twin."
See Natural Resources Defense Council, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, Nature Climate Change, mollusks, marine ecosystems
97.87.29.188 (talk) 19:30, 8 January 2012 (UTC)
thread_title:  article resource 

message: Maybe Ridley's commitment to shale gas exploitation should be mentioned. Economic interests? Look this GWPF book:
http://www.thegwpf.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/09/Ridley-ShaleShock.pdf 188.108.222.213 (talk) 06:04, 1 October 2012 (UTC)
replies: text: It seems to me OK to mention this, provided that it is done in a neutral manner. Can you clarify your "economic interests" suggestion? Are you suggesting that MR has a vested interest in shale gas? Viewfinder (talk) 10:36, 1 October 2012 (UTC)
thread_title:  Ridley's view on climate change 

message: What was the rationale for the recent move?  And shouldn't it have been discussed here first?  The new name seems almost the worst choice possible, being neither the most common name used nor the correct full name and title. Jonathan A Jones (talk) 15:52, 7 February 2013 (UTC)
thread_title:  Recent move: why? 

message: Is best know as a popular writer? And somewhat incidentally, "He is also a businessman" !? This is ridiculous - the whole Chairman of Northern Rock thing has to be the most prominant thing on this page, anything else would look suspiciously like whitewashing.
Any objections? Please justify before I restructure everything in a day or two.  — Preceding unsigned comment added by Alewhey (talk • contribs) 21:18, 6 August 2013 (UTC)
replies: text: I object. It is clearly stated that he was Chairman of Northern Rock and that during his period Northern Rock experienced the first run happened on a British bank in 150 year, so no whitewashing here. But his main work is being a writer, not a businessman. He is internationally primary known as a popular author of scientific books. It seems that you are POV here (with using term like 'whitewashing'). Dr. D.E. Mophon (talk) 06:38, 7 August 2013 (UTC)

text: Skimming Google News mentions of his name, he is overwhelmingly referred to as a "science writer". --McGeddon (talk) 07:40, 7 August 2013 (UTC)
replies: text: He's been a writer for some years,indeed I do own one of his books, but surely being in the House of Lords and his involvement with one of the most a major economic events in the UK in recent years overshadows the writing. The BBC news article at the time of his selection for the Lords reflects this.  http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-21358553. Also the source for 'The World's Top Thought Leaders' isn't really established as authoritative  FDent (talk) 21:26, 16 December 2013 (UTC)
thread_title:  The man who oversaw the first run on a British bank in 150 years... 

message: I started this section, gathering such that were scattered about the article. Work in progress.
Here is a list, reproduced from Sourcewatch, which IB came from an older version of Ridley"s website:
* Welch Prize for best zoology degree, Oxford University 1979
* Glaxo science writer’s award for best science article1983
* Aventis prize for science books (short-listed four times)
* Samuel Johnson prize for non-fiction (short-listed) 2000
* Los Angeles Times Book Award (short-listed) 2001
* National Academies Book Award 2004
* Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature (1999)
* Fellow of the Academy of Medical Sciences (2003)
* Visiting Professor, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory (2002)
* Honorary doctorate of science, Buckingham University
* Honorary Fellow of Magdalen College, Oxford
Obviously need sourcing (and editorial discretion) to include here. Copied as I'm off to another comittment for the day. Pete Tillman (talk) 20:17, 8 February 2014 (UTC)
thread_title:  Honors and awards 

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thread_title:  External links modified 

message: Without doubting the information, rather too much of the factual information comes from the subject's own online CV, rather than an independent source. Wikipedia:SPS It would be good if other reliable sources (not derived from that one) could be cited.  Chemical Engineer (talk) 16:34, 31 October 2015 (UTC)
replies: text: Fair enough.  I'll add some Who's Who references for the moment. Jonathan A Jones (talk) 16:58, 31 October 2015 (UTC)
thread_title:  Secondary sources required 

message: Right now it sort of reads like this:
Ridley is a popular author! He's written lots of books! Some have won prizes! He's given lectures - even a TED lecture!
Oh, yes, and there was that bank failure.... Marjaliisa (talk) 04:45, 15 May 2016 (UTC)
replies: text: Perfectly right to include it, and it's easy to find sources that refer to him as such, e.g.  which is ref 49 in the current version. Jonathan A Jones (talk) 13:18, 10 August 2016 (UTC)
thread_title:  Lede 

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thread_title:  External links modified 

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thread_title:  External links modified (January 2018) 

message: Can someone make sure that it is clear that Ridley is a supporter of Brexit.  
Then compare and contrast to his skills and judgement running Northern Rock as a business.  — Preceding unsigned comment added by 87.224.32.138 (talk) 16:30, 5 February 2018 (UTC)
thread_title:  Brexit and Northern Rock. 

message: "Ridley has consistently argued that the evidence suggests that carbon dioxide emissions are currently doing more good than harm" is a WP:FRINGE statement which is not properly balanced by mainstream positions contradicting it. So, it will have to be either deleted, together with the rest of the paragraph, or balanced. --Hob Gadling (talk) 05:38, 19 June 2020 (UTC)
replies: text: Attacks on Mr Ridley's position would have to be due and well sourced and properly attributed etc. You have proposed nothing that would fit the bill. Also, looking at what he actually said, it seems to be indeed only about what's "currently" the good-versus-harm balance. You have presented  nothing to show that's a fringe statement. Peter Gulutzan (talk) 13:33, 19 June 2020 (UTC)
replies: text: You already know that is the position of a tiny fraction of climate scientists. Climate change denial is fringe, Ridley's position is fringe. You need sources for adding stuff, not for deleting stuff. --Hob Gadling (talk) 14:33, 19 June 2020 (UTC)
replies: text: We don't need right wing activists like Peter Gulutzan policing pages claiming that global warming denial is not fringe. Just ignore him. He's a troll. jps (talk) 14:45, 19 June 2020 (UTC)
thread_title:  Unbalanced fringe statement 

message: You're telling us that he "does not have a PhD. He's an economist..."
I asked Oxford University's Degree Conferrals Office to verify your information about his not having a PhD.
* University Administrative Services is unable to verify the information you provided.
* A Student Records officer referred me to this article's infobox.
It seems that Dr. Ridley does have a doctor of philosophy degree (abbreviated as DPhil at Oxford or PhD generically), in zoology.
Notes
Collier, Jacqui. Email message to author. 30 November 2021.
: UAS [University Administrative Services] Verifications
: Dear J[...]
: We cannot confirm the details of living people without their consent. You can make a Freedom of Information request through that team: [Information Compliance Team]@admin.ox.ac.uk
: You can also independently follow Wikipedia links to verify the information there: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Matt_Ridley#cite_note-dphil-4  Which leads to this: https://solo.bodleian.ox.ac.uk/primo-explore/fulldisplay?vid=SOLO&docid=oxfaleph013858922&context=L&search_scope=LSCOP_OX
: Best wishes
: Jacqui C[...]
: Student Records Officer
: Degree Conferrals Office, Student Registry
–Dervorguilla (talk) 07:56, 7 December 2021 (UTC)
replies: text: The implied antecedent is "A PhD in a relevant field. (e.g. viruses, biosafety, etc.)" Even with a PhD in Zoology, he is not particularly qualified to comment on matters of virus evolution or zoonosis. — Shibbolethink (♔ ♕) 09:54, 7 December 2021 (UTC)
replies: text: I don't think he needs to be an expert in the subject for his comment to be qualified for inclusion in his own bio. If necessary, it can be contextualised for WP:BALANCE, which should be quite easy here. Are there any better quotes that we can use than the one from Baric himself? LondonIP (talk) 22:39, 13 December 2021 (UTC)
replies: text: Generally, when someone talks fringe nonsense about stuff they are not experts for, we ignore it even in the article about the fringe-nonsense talker unless reliable sources have noticed it, and even then we only mention it if there are also mainstream refutations of this specific person's fringe nonsense which we can add. See WP:FRINGE. --Hob Gadling (talk) 07:26, 14 December 2021 (UTC)
thread_title:  Ridley's doctorate in zoology 

message: He is going to retire soon as one of the youngest  — Preceding unsigned comment added by 84.167.80.9 (talk) 18:49, 11 December 2021 (UTC)
thread_title:  House of Lords 

message: Why is Ridley's chairmanship of Northern Rock not in the lede of this article. Isn't that the most significant involvement he had in UK public life, although in his appearances in the media he keeps very quiet about it. NB I'm new to Wikipedia, so I'm raising the question first! PeterNimmo (talk) 09:17, 5 November 2022 (UTC)
replies: text: It is in the lede: see paragraph 3. Jonathan A Jones (talk) 12:10, 5 November 2022 (UTC)

text: If you mean the text above the contents box (which is what Wikipedia contributors usually mean by the lede, although Wikipedia:Manual of Style/Lead section discourages this analogy) then it was there already, but moving it from paragraph 3 to paragraph 1 as you have done is not a problem: some people might disagree with the move but it's certainly not obviously wrong. If you mean the Help:Infobox then that has a tightly defined standard format, and there is already a mention there in the appropriate place. So I remain confused by precisely what you are suggesting. Jonathan A Jones (talk) 17:01, 12 November 2022 (UTC)
thread_title:  Northern Rock