Talk:Simon Ostrovsky

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Undue revert - Simon Ostrovsky is a former Israeli and reports extensively about Israeli topics

An extensive edit that I wrote was reverted without discussion or explanation.
This is not acceptable conduct.

First I wish to discuss the validity of what I wrote:

He is considered Israeli by Israeli and foreign media outlets, and in fact, he IS a former Israeli. This is not just about citizenship but also about apperciation of the culture and knowledge of intricate Israeli internal politics, showing that he is NOT an armchair journalist, but rather a well-versed person with a good background about the area he's making a video about.

I brought good resources for everything I wrote. Pointing to his reports on youtube - the videos are all from the Vice channel itself, so no copyright or other problems. Is anybody contesting the description of the videos' content?

There are exactly two sentences at the beginning which are not sourced, but which are clearly shown in the rest of the article, and which I can easily show is correct with sources. I'm sure he himself agrees with me on this, although, obviously, he would not agree with my view on Israeli policies and politics, but that has no bearing on what I wrote which is simply fair, NPOV and correct to say. Jabri was considered, at least by Israelis, as one of Israel's worst enemies. Here's the Daily Telegraph saying it(!): How Israel killed Jabari - its toughest enemy in Gaza.

I came to add some sources showing the discussion his videos created in both the Israeli right and left, but found it was all erased!

Here's what I wrote:

Extended content

:Ostrovsky is ...a former Israeli...

[ref name="israeltimes"] Pro-Russian separatists confirm: American-Israeli journalist hostage (Times of Israel website). Ostrovsky also mentions his Israeli background in various anti-military videos he makes about the Israeli military. /ref

Section: -- Israel --

Ostrovsky has made a string of videos against Israeli militaristic nationalist policies. Ostrovsky had lived in Israel for several years before moving to the USA, and he is fluent in Hebrew.

[ref name="israeltimes" /]

He frequently repeated this in several of his videos which were highly critical of the Israeli official and mainstream narrative, and which at times show sympathy with its worst enemies. In his videos, he receives access to military commanders, industrial leaders, and officials, as well as extremists of all sorts, who mistake him for a friendly and sympathetic ear.

In 2012, Ostrovsky documented a series on Jewish settlers called "Renegade Jewish Settlers" in which he depicted the settlers and Israelis as trigger happy, teaching children to use guns, and receiving Israeli governmental support with an ideology which counters the two state solution.

[ref] Renegade Jewish Settlers (Youtube Vice channel)[/ref]

The same year he documented the Israeli citizens' prevailing responses to attacks from the Gaza strip during the 2012 Gaza Conflict known by the Israeli military as Operation Pillar of Defence. Ostrovsky interviewed Gershon Baskin who claimed that the war was caused by the Assassination of Ahmed Ja'abri who was preparing to sign a long-term truce with Israel, while Benjamin Netanyahu needed hardliners to rally for him in the upcoming elections. Ostrovsky claimed that over 150 Gazan civilians were killed and that this number was undisputed. He showed Israelis wishing to "flatten the city", or enjoying the scene of destruction in Gaza by artillery or air force bombing.

[ref] The Israeli-Palestinian arms race [/ref]

In 2013, Ostrovsky, aided by an Israeli Journalist received permission and cooperation by Israeli military experts to enter the Israeli Drone industry air base, while joking with him that they'll have to kill him if they tell him how the drone can use autonomous weapons, and speaking about the Israeli "drone invasion".

[ref] Israel Killer Robots [/ref]

In 2017 it was exposed the Breaking the Silence (non-governmental organization) along with Ostrovsky's team where trying to glean information about similar underground autonomous killer robots used for attacking the underground attack tunnels in the Gaza area. In 2015 Vice TV did a follow-up program with Ben Ferguson called 'How Israel Rules the World of Cyber Security'.

[ref]How Israel Rules the World of Cyber Security (Youtube, Vice channel)[/ref]

In early 2014 Ostrovsky made another video about Israel's policing policies evicting the Bedouin formerly nomad tribes in the Negev desert from land they had settled on.

[ref] Banishing Israel's Bedouin [/ref]

A short time afterward, Ostrovsky received permission to join an IDF unit that was treating injured rebel fighters in Syria. He followed and exposed the extent of Israeli medical and military aid to Al-Qaeda's Jabhat el Nusra, while questioning Israel's military policies.

[ref] The war next door (Youtube, Vice TV channel) [/ref]

In 2016, Vice TV made another follow-up video against the attempt by Israelis to counter online incitement for murder by stabbing and car ramming which was being viewed by children and youth and implemented by them. This was compared with what was considered by Palestinians to be legitimate child involvement in violent clashes with the Israeli military, including a long interview with Jena Jihad and Ahed Tamimi.

[ref] Digital Intifada part 1 (Youtube, Vice channel) [/ref]

[ref] Digital Intifada part 2, Interview in Nebi Saleh[/ref]

Please discuss before reverting. Especially if it's an extensive edit. Doing that will show respect to the wikipedia writers.

As a final note, the user, User:Partiya, does not have a talk page or user page, and all his/her many edits are about this particular WP entry. I did not look into them and hope this is not a puppet nor vandalism. -- פשוט pashute ♫ (talk) 01:52, 26 April 2018 (UTC)

I'm in agreement with your reversion to the consensus content of this article, Pashute. Most problematic is Partiya's use WP:BIASED and tabloid sources such as the Daily Mail (per this RfC). Whether or not there is merit in the content added, the sourcing and motivation is far more on the WP:RIGHTGREATWRONGS side of things, and is fringe rather than mainstream. First and foremost, Wikipedia is neither the news, nor is it a venue for advocacy. --Iryna Harpy (talk) 06:31, 5 May 2018 (UTC)