On 17 March 2010 04:06, Brian McNeil <[email protected]> wrote:
> It was at short notice we were seeking competition sponsorship - with > the hope this would bring in a lot of competitors. It did not go as well > as I would have liked, and several reasonably established contributors > somewhat gamed the system by writing just-qualifying articles in > preference to the in-depth work I hoped to solicit. > ... > So, to return to the writing competition, I think it has - to some > extent - be written off as a failure... Brian, I don't think this is a fair assessment either for the compo entrants or for you organising the competition. One of the most common complaints about Wikinews seems to be that we simply don't cover *enough* stories to be a real news source, worth checking regularly. In-depth pieces are great, but we also need the shorter stories - and writing them ought to be rewarded too. Besides, some people just find it easier and more fun to do. Maybe tweaking the points system a little would make for a more interesting race, but there was no way to know until we tried it, and now we have a better idea about next time. As it is, the compo has produced quite a few new articles, and more importantly new contributors. Personally, I know I'm not doing brilliantly, but it has encouraged me to add the extra little bit to my stories. Plus it stopped me bringing in articles from Voice of America, which I'm sure you're pleased about :-) Pete / the wub _______________________________________________ Wikinews-l mailing list [email protected] https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikinews-l
