Talk:Benson Syndicate

Untitled

Whoever, gave ratings to this article as "Start Class", please know what you're doing first OK? Did it ever occur to you that there's not much information available on some topics? This fact is going to cause articles on such topics to be relatively short. The fact is that this article is actually relatively LONG given what is known (without resorting to original research, which I could certainly do, since I have numerous unpublished original documents on the topic, but that breaks the rules).

The ratings have been removed by me. If you wish to dipsute this, send me a message or make a comment here. A reversion to the previous conditions will do nothing but start a battle. Jeeb (talk) 23:45, 12 December 2011 (UTC)

@Jrbouldin: There are several different reasons why an article might be rated as "Start-class". Factors that assessors may consider include:

1. Referencing & citations
2. Coverage & accuracy
3. Structure
4. Grammar & style
5. Supporting materials
6. Accessibility

The length of an article does not necessarily imply a quality article. Articles first need to be sufficiently notable to even warrant an article, which means that someone else needs to have researched the subject of the article. As you note, unpublished original documents are generally not suitable as source material. Then the subject needs to be verifiable, which means that the sources that do exist need to be identified and cited within the article, preferably with article footnotes that allow all the facts mentioned in the article to be verified against the source information. The layout of an article is also important, with a lead paragraph introducing and briefly summarizing the key points of an article above the table of contents, before it dives into the details of the subject. This is where sections and headings become useful in breaking up the text of an article into digestible chunks that make it more accessible to the reader. Well written articles are generally written in the editors own words using an encyclopedic style and tone, rather than relying on long quotations from source material. Supporting materials such as images and info-boxes can also assist with improving the quality of an article, too. Articles also need to stay on topic and avoid introducing irrelevant material, so sometimes a shorter article that is precisely and concisely worded may be of better quality than a longer more verbose article. At this stage, I think the article sits between being a "Stub" and a "C-class" article, so it still merits a "Start" class assessment as it has not substantially changed or improved in quality during the last ten or so years. If you disagree with that assessment, change the class= parameters to an assessment grade you think the article merits. Please do not remove the assessment banner(s), themselves, because then the article will be lost to those who are interested in improving this article. WikiProject assessment banners identify not only the class or quality of an article but also its importance and which group(s) of editors are interested in improving an article. - Cameron Dewe (talk) 12:34, 31 May 2022 (UTC)