Talk:Mass shootings in the United States/Archive 3

Archive 1

Archive 2

Archive 3

Archive 4

Recent edit

Preserving here by providing this link. These changes were noted in edit summaries as "ce", but they do not look like copyediting to me. I would be happy to discuss further. --K.e.coffman (talk) 19:24, 11 August 2018 (UTC)

@Springee: re this recent change [1], does the source specify how much lower the "rate of potentially survivable injuries" was? --K.e.coffman (talk) 00:08, 13 August 2018 (UTC)

Verified that the paper does not use the term much. To be honest, if one reads the paper it become clear that the source is being misused in this Wiki entry. The primary objective of the paper was to discuss the differences between combat and mass shooting wounds. It's very questionable to use the source to make the point that the sock editor has taken from the article. Here is a useful read relating to the article in question [[2]]. I would challenge the use of the article for the claim it's being used to make in the article. I will add a verification tag while waiting for others to show that the article supports the claim. Springee (talk) 00:18, 13 August 2018 (UTC)

@Springee: @K.e.coffman: I read the article. There were zero potentially survivable gunshot wounds from rifles, while 24 handgun and shotgun wounds were potentially survivable. That seems to support the statement that Springee removed. Springee, care to explain why you disagree? Waleswatcher (talk) 17:27, 14 August 2018 (UTC)

Other editors have read the content as well.

"before 1999 not accessible were from the period of 2000 through 2013."

"First, it is a "retrospective" (Prospective studies usually have fewer potential sources of bias and confounding than retrospective studies-For this reason, retrospective investigations are often criticised) review with all of the shortcomings inherent in this study design. Second, we lacked detailed autopsy results in some cases, and it is possible that we erroneously categorized some cases as non-survivable"

"Finally, although we attempted to review as many of the autopsy reports as possible, local laws, limited public information, and/or lack of response to FOIA requests prevented us from receiving reports from many events, thereby creating additional possibility of sampling bias. This may be compounded by the fact we limited analysis to events with 4 or greater fatalities. Although we attempted to contact as many coroners/medical examiners as possible, it took over two years to collect the information in this study. We did not feel that delaying the publication of these results in an attempt to contact the remaining coroners/examiners was justified given our findings. We strongly recommend that medical societies lobby law-makers to allow better access to and more complete reviews of outcomes following shooting events."

This can not be held to a high standard of accuracy as you are trying to use it. This report was created simple for medical personnel on how to treat victims and enhance survivability of active shooter events. Further it is questionable as to it being reliable or notable for use in this section of the article. -72bikers (talk) 21:48, 14 August 2018 (UTC)

All sources have limitations. No one is holding this to an especially high standard of accuracy. The justification for Springee's removal was that the claim in the text wasn't supported by the source, but it seems it is. 72bikers wrote "The source does not mention any specific firearm nor any firearm stats", which is false. I'm going to add the info back for now.Waleswatcher (talk) 14:08, 16 August 2018 (UTC)

Your comment seems to be making excuses for using the source in a way it was not intended and for its own acknowledgment of its inaccuracies. You are futher mistaken it does not "state specific firearms" just generalized comments. Also what is the notability of mentioning common knowledge of a rifle is more powerful at close range than the "average" handgun. There are handguns at close range that are actually more powerful than some rifles high velocity or not.

"First, it is a "retrospective" (Prospective studies usually have fewer potential sources of bias and confounding"

"thereby creating additional possibility of sampling bias."

"This may be compounded by the fact we limited analysis to events with 4 or greater fatalities."

"and it is possible that we erroneously categorized some cases as non-survivable"

Also please stop your edit warning as it is becoming disruptive. -72bikers (talk) 17:03, 16 August 2018 (UTC)

72bikers, please stop using misleading edit summaries (like "restored content" when you in fact removed content). Thanks. Waleswatcher (talk) 19:11, 16 August 2018 (UTC)

• WW, the word "much" is editorializing on your part. It doesn't appear in the article. The way the journal article is being used to create the claim in the Wikipedia article is already very questionable. Can you show where the journal authors actually make the claim that we have in the Wiki article? That is why I added the verification needed tag which you improperly removed. Springee (talk) 17:05, 16 August 2018 (UTC)

Springee, I don't think it's "editorializing", it's summarizing. But ok, would you object to a more detailed statement? In the article they find zero survivable rifle shot woulds, and 24 (I think, will have to double check the exact number) survivable handgun and shotgun wounds. So, what about a sentence giving those numbers? Waleswatcher (talk) 19:13, 16 August 2018 (UTC)

As already stated the source was not intended to be used this way and openly acknowledges its inaccuracies.

"First, it is a "retrospective" (Prospective studies usually have fewer potential sources of bias and confounding"

"thereby creating additional possibility of sampling bias."

"This may be compounded by the fact we limited analysis to events with 4 or greater fatalities."

"and it is possible that we erroneously categorized some cases as non-survivable"

Also you seem to still be still edit warning. Your behavior is clearly read as disruptive in what you are now doing.-72bikers (talk) 20:00, 16 August 2018 (UTC)

WW, the "much" is absolutely editorializing because you are adding a subjective adverb that was not used by the original authors. That brings up a second issue with this whole mess. The content was added by a sock who was notorious for distorting sources to fit the sock's intended meaning. As the sock added the information it appears that the article was concluding that rifles are more deadly than handguns and shotguns by some ratio. However, no where in the article do the authors try to draw that conclusion. Instead the purpose of the article is to discuss the difference between combat type wounds and those seen in mass shootings. The sock likely saw the free summary of the article and quoted it because an academic article sounds authoritative. Said editor tried to pull similar BS in an automotive article. Regardless of the sock's intent, the sock was engaging in OR to portray the article as a paper that included research on the relative lethality of various types of guns. That wasn't something the authors were trying to do and the authors don't claim their data could be used as the sock used it. Springee (talk) 02:24, 17 August 2018 (UTC)

That a sock may have added something like this at some point in the past is totally irrelevant. What matters now is the content - does it improve the article, or not? I think there needs to be some information on why semi-auto rifles are so prominent in these shootings. An obvious possibility with a lot of evidence behind it is that they are more lethal than handguns or shotguns, and so more people get killed in shootings where they are used. There are lots of sources that can attest to that, so I'll look for another one (and maybe use this one as an alternate). Waleswatcher (talk) 13:34, 17 August 2018 (UTC)

Yes, the content does matter. The fact that the content added to the Wiki article is not supported by the source matters quite a bit. That is why it was removed. As for why the rifles are prominent that is two fold. One is media coverage helps define what is prominent. I know you have been unhappy with 72biker's sources but so far they are the best sources we have for addressing the issue you are raising. Springee (talk) 13:45, 17 August 2018 (UTC)

Extended content

Springee, please stop reverting all content added to this article. You do not WP:OWN it.Waleswatcher (talk) 11:56, 18 August 2018 (UTC) To expand a little: the statement is not "subjective", there is plenty of evidence (just look at the list of shootings in this article!). More importantly, that view is very wide-spread and I'm perfectly happy to add many more sources if you think they are needed. Because it is a wide-spread view, we must include it per NPOV (especially since we have a contrary view given lots of weight, as it stands the section is completely unbalanced). I've noticed you keep removing any material in this direction, which is starting to look more and more like WP:OWN and a pattern of tendentious editing. Waleswatcher (talk) 12:39, 18 August 2018 (UTC) You do realize this WP:OWN could be said of you. As well as "I've noticed you keep removing any material in this direction, which is starting to look more and more like WP:OWN and a pattern of tendentious editing." You do realize this is also not a gun article and you seem to be placing a lot of weight on just one aspect of just one weapons used part of the time in this crime. You have numerously stated that any content that does not share your views must be countered with significantly more content that supports your views. As far as sources you seem to be talking of WP:OVERKILL and WP:REFBOMB "One cause of "citation overkill" is edit warring, which can lead to examples like "Garphism is the study[1][2][3][4][5] of ...", as an editor desperately tries to shore up one's point and/or overall notability of the subject with extra citations, in the hope that their opponents will accept that there are reliable sources for their edit. With all of the aspersions being cast this is all of topic. -72bikers (talk) 19:18, 18 August 2018 (UTC)

Exactly how does any of this overly detailed opinion have relevance or notability to the article? "Indeed, the AR-15 is more an open-source platform than a single weapon. For instance, the Sig Sauer MCX used in the Orlando nightclub shooting more closely resembles an AK-47 in some respects, but an AR lower receiver can be "upgraded" to a Sig MCX." -72bikers (talk) 01:00, 19 August 2018 (UTC)

Removed content that was both non-neutral (appeal to emotion rather than factual) and cited to a non-notable opinion. The trauma surgeon may be an expert in wound care but not in firearms nor the motives of mass shooters. At the same time the doctor isn't otherwise a noted opinion. Springee (talk) 01:27, 19 August 2018 (UTC)

Section break

Restored the blanked content [[3]]. I think the restored paragraph should be reduced to perhaps 2 sentences and combined with the paragraph above. This may be a good place to use embedded quotes to reduce the text length. The restored material isn't optimal but blanking isn't the way to fix it. Springee (talk) 17:26, 20 August 2018 (UTC)

I have trimmed and combined with the paragraph above as suggested. -72bikers (talk) 18:27, 20 August 2018 (UTC)

@Waleswatcher:, this is a less than honest edit summary [[4]]. If you are just moving material fine. Do not remove content and then claim you just moved material in the article. Springee (talk) 18:25, 23 August 2018 (UTC)

What removed content are you referring to? Waleswatcher (talk) 19:58, 23 August 2018 (UTC)

WW you also keep placing overly detailed content on AR-15's (this is not a gun article) when they are not even the dominant weapon used, giving undue weight. -72bikers (talk) 02:51, 24 August 2018 (UTC)

They are the dominant weapon in the most deadly mass shootings, including essentially all of the recent ones. There's a reason for that and there are masses of articles about it, so an article on American mass shootings must cover it. I have no objection to also including other RSs that go into detail regarding weapons used. Waleswatcher (talk) 02:55, 24 August 2018 (UTC)

They have only been used 14 times in mass shootings over the last 35 years. AR's are covered in the article and this is not a gun article to go into overly specific details. So your placing undue weight on AR's and offer to stop removing RS on topic content in exchange for the inclusion of you overly detailed description. I don't know how you are not aware of this but that is not how Wiki works. -72bikers (talk) 03:47, 24 August 2018 (UTC)

Your opinion (and mine) is not relevant. We had - what was it? seven? - reliable sources calling the AR-15 the "weapon of choice" for mass shooters, before they were trimmed. There are many more. Not covering that extremely prevalent view thoroughly in this article violates NPOV. Waleswatcher (talk) 03:49, 24 August 2018 (UTC)

How can you state this "Your opinion (and mine) is not relevant" then go on to state because of some articles in a then current news cycle (which is mentioned) you feel should be given the most attention. In the last 3 years they have only been used 4 times. What should be covered is the actual facts (this is a encyclopedia) they actually play a marginal role. -72bikers (talk) 04:11, 24 August 2018 (UTC)

They certainly do not play "a marginal role". They have been used in most of the 10 most deadly shootings in US history, and all the most recent ones. You can try to twist the facts however you like, but what is wiki policy is representing the mainstream point of view, and it's very clear what that is. Waleswatcher (talk) 17:12, 24 August 2018 (UTC)

WW, I explained why I'm opposed to the material you added several days back (Aug 19). You have yet to say why you think your material doesn't violate impartial tone [[5]] nor why the opinion has weight in this article. Currently there isn't consensus for inclusion and you are simply edit warring. Springee (talk) 17:19, 24 August 2018 (UTC)

I guess you are referring to this? "Removed content that was both non-neutral (appeal to emotion rather than factual) and cited to a non-notable opinion. The trauma surgeon may be an expert in wound care but not in firearms nor the motives of mass shooters. At the same time the doctor isn't otherwise a noted opinion. Springee (talk) 01:27, 19 August 2018 (UTC)"

"The doctor" is a retired Navy officer and the surgeon who operated on Gabby Giffords. He's quoted in a reliable source. His quote has nothing to do with the motives of mass shooters, it has to do with the firearm, which he quite clearly is an expert on from two different angles (medical and as a military officer). Furthermore you removed much more text than just the quote from him. Can I assume you have no objection to the rest? Waleswatcher (talk) 17:37, 24 August 2018 (UTC)

You have been shown the actual facts, you are attempting to place content that "you" feel is the most relevant. Based on what appears to be the then current news cycles with over-dramatized headlines, and this is covered in the article. Fox talks of this and how the media filters the facts to best suit there views. There has been only one use this year and only 4 in the last 3 years. There is no more coverage of this weapon in the new since earlier this year. Further this is not a gun article and there is no need for overly detailed descriptions.

This "it has to do with the firearm, which he quite clearly is an expert on from two different angles (medical and as a military officer)" is incorrect. He is not a expert on firearms and no source or job description supports that. This has already been sorted. He did not carry a AR nor do any of our enemies. -72bikers (talk) 18:10, 24 August 2018 (UTC)

That doesn't make the case that his opinion carries weight for inclusion here. Furthermore, per NPOV-Impartial Tone, we should present the information in an impartial tone. Phrases like "killing machine" are not impartial. You also haven't shown that he is an expert in firearms. Springee (talk) 18:19, 24 August 2018 (UTC)

So you have no objection except to that quote? Waleswatcher (talk) 21:20, 24 August 2018 (UTC)

You clearly see that is not the only objection. -72bikers (talk) 21:36, 24 August 2018 (UTC)

While "killing machine" is emotionally laden, it does describe the function of firearms accurately. The main question is what was any given firearm designed to kill and in what circumstances. However, that's neither here nor there. If a source is reliable and the reference is in the voice of the source, the source doesn't need to be neutral. Could somebody please link to the sources being disputed here? Simonm223 (talk) 11:09, 25 August 2018 (UTC)

No, per NPOV we should convey the information in an impartial tone. That means don't use emotion laden quotes even if we might otherwise say the source in reliable. A better question is what value does that quote provide to the reader? The "weapon of choice" claim was emotion laden and arguably doesn't provide value to the reader but a strong case was made that it was widely stated. We don't have that here. It's not clear that the person being quoted in notable enough to actually deserve a direct quote in the article at all. The person is not an expert in mass shootings nor firearms. Their medical opinion is notable as a clearly experienced surgeon but why take the article in the direction of an appeal to emotions? Springee (talk) 13:05, 25 August 2018 (UTC)

Ok, this is about the weapon of choice quote? I disagree with you on that then. The weapon of choice quote is fine as long as we don't put it in Wikipedia's voice. If the source is an RS, they're an RS. Selectively deciding they're reliable for what you want but not for what you don't want is not on. Simonm223 (talk) 16:53, 25 August 2018 (UTC)

@Simonm223:, the source is this. Waleswatcher (talk) 03:07, 26 August 2018 (UTC)

@Simonm223: Pinging again as I messed up the first one. Waleswatcher (talk) 03:08, 26 August 2018 (UTC)

Regarding NPOV and "emotionally laden", Simonm223 is correct. Springee, you seem to be under the misapprehension that NPOV means you cannot quote sources with strong or biased opinions. That is exactly wrong. NPOV means you must present such views, just in proportion to their weight. Such disputes sometimes can be presented in a neutral wikivoice, but given how controversial this article is, attributed quotes are probably a better choice here. Given that a very large group of RSs regard the AR-15 as the "weapon of choice" and an extremely deadly weapon proven capable of killing masses of civilians, we must report that view here or we are violating NPOV, and a quote like the one from Rhee is a reasonable means of doing so. That is particularly true because you and other editors have insisted on including quotes from a minority that argues that the AR-15 is not especially lethal. Waleswatcher (talk) 13:17, 26 August 2018 (UTC)

No WW, you are incorrect. The widely characterized comment was discussed on the AR-15 article. I don't agree with it here anymore than there but it was extensively discussed. The "perfect killing machine" is an opinion quote from a single source and one that hasn't been established as reliable in that context. Furthermore, NPOV says we should use an impartial tone. Can you explain how that quote is impartial? Springee (talk) 13:55, 26 August 2018 (UTC)

Obviously we shouldn't use that quote in Wikipedia's voice; but I'd say that a trauma surgeon with extensive military experience cited in a high-quality long-format journalistic source as an expert constitutes a reliable source to use a statement in their voice. This is not a violation of WP:NPOV as long as it is characterized as a quote from an expert. If you can find another expert with a contradicting view I would support the inclusion of both, but I don't see you have any policy driven grounds for exclusion here beyond WP:IDONTLIKEIT Simonm223 (talk) 15:21, 26 August 2018 (UTC)

@Simonm223: The NY Times source was discussed at RSN. Note that the "proposed text" quote box appears a few lines down in the archive. –dlthewave ☎ 15:49, 26 August 2018 (UTC)

A non-admin closure that probably should have said "no consensus" isn't a particularly compelling argument. And I think it's using a rather overly broad interpretation of what can be sourced to WP:MEDPOP Simonm223 (talk) 17:45, 26 August 2018 (UTC)

I agree with you, I just thought you should be aware of the recent discussion. –dlthewave ☎ 18:05, 26 August 2018 (UTC)

Rhee is a prominent surgeon who operates on gunshot victims, a retired military officer, and quoted in a reliable source on AR-15s and gun violence. That settles the question of his expertise. Further, wiki policy supports quoting "biased" opinions so long as all sides are presented. In this article, only a minority view is presented, those claiming AR-15s are not particularly lethal. That violates NPOV. So unless there are policy-based objections, I think we should restore the Rhee quote (that AR-15s are "perfect killing machines"). If necessary, I expect I can find many more RSs expressing similar sentiments. Waleswatcher (talk) 14:01, 27 August 2018 (UTC)

You have not show that Rhee is a reliable source for the opinion that the AR-15 is a "perfect killing machine". Beyond that what was being quoted? Even if the Dr was RS for such a claim, since that isn't a widely used claim it would be UNDUE here. Inclusion is an issue with impartial tone. We don't need to balance such a claim because it's not encyclopedic. However, 72bikers has provided sources that would dispute the claim (see the back and forth at the AR-15 article). But let's be honest about what the claims are and the function they serve in the source articles. They are emotional hooks. They aren't factual, data driven assessments. The create an emotional response in the readers and that is why they are included. Per NPOV we should be careful to avoid such appeals to emotion. There is a case for inclusion, as in the AR-15 article, "widely characterized as the weapon of choice". However, this is one Dr's opinion and not in an area where the Dr has been shown to be an expert (ie, is it really a better killing machine vs some other less common firearm or non-firearm). I think the AR-15 material should be in this article based on media coverage but that should be limited when we start talking about perception. The facts regarding usage etc should be included in a data driven fashion. In general it would be better if we avoided the sort of compare and contrast (X says these are really bad. Y says they aren't really bad) and tried to make it more like (usage rate in mass shootings is X). I would also ask everyone to please stop changing the article so much. If we have to revert, go back to say end of July when things were a bit more stable and then lets agree what changes should be made. Springee (talk) 14:55, 27 August 2018 (UTC)

Please stop being disruptive. Overly detailed content on one gun is not appropriate, this is not a gun article and it has a minority use. The word many is not appropriate, 13 uses in the last 35 years and only 4 uses in the last 3 years is not a large number. The RS content has nothing to do with the inclusion of a quote from a doctor stating his perceived lethality.

Also he is not a expert on the AR-15, he most likely never even carried it nor do any of our enemies. His "opinion" is only stated once in one article, for such a substantial claim it would need further support from experts. As to the doctors claim, as pointed out this has already been fleshed out.

Generally, the views of tiny minorities should not be included at all, except perhaps in a "see also" to an article about those specific views.

Undue weight can be given in several ways, including but not limited to depth of detail, quantity of text, prominence of placement, juxtaposition of statements and imagery. In articles specifically relating to a minority viewpoint, such views may receive more attention and space.

Also an article should not give undue weight to minor aspects of its subject, but should strive to treat each aspect with a weight proportional to its treatment in the body of reliable, published material on the subject. For example, discussion of isolated events, criticisms, or news reports about a subject may be verifiable and impartial, but still disproportionate to their overall significance to the article topic. This is a concern especially in relation to recent events that may be in the news. -72bikers (talk) 14:32, 27 August 2018 (UTC)

Reminder to 72bikers that it's not appropriate to characterize the argument of an editor who disagrees with your edits disruptive, as for the "views of tiny minorities," this of course begs the question of just how tiny that minority is. That said, WP:NOTE and WP:RS would suggest that it is very much appropriate to show the notable minority view of an issue, as long as it is appropriately contextualized as being the view of that notable person and given appropriatedue weight. It shouldn't be in Wikipedia's voice. But that doesn't mean we leave it out. Simonm223 (talk) 14:51, 27 August 2018 (UTC)

Next break

@Simonm223:, @72bikers:, lots of back and forth there. 72bikers, I think Simonm223 sounds generally open to some of your changes but is worried about the prose of the text. I understand the concern. Why not take a bit to recompose the new material and copy the paragraphs below. That will allow us to agree on the text while not flipping the article back and forth. It also assures that no one has to worry about 3RR. I would suggest using the differences in this edit as the starting point (ie in the end we want the content (in general) that was removed but not the prose) [[6]] Springee (talk) 15:16, 27 August 2018 (UTC)

That's precisely what I'm looking for here. Simonm223 (talk) 15:36, 27 August 2018 (UTC)

Yes, that's a good idea, and thanks for being constructive Springee. There are two separate issues here. One is the inclusion of the Dr. Rhee quote, and more broadly, inclusion of some material regarding the (quite evident) lethality of the AR-15. Some such material is required by NPOV if we're going to keep the Hazen+ quotes, but it doesn't have to be the quote by Rhee. The other issue are the edits that 72bikers keeps inserting, which are ungrammatical, poorly organized, make editorial statements in wikivoice, and are generally not suitable. That's not to say some of the material cannot be included, but just that the edits as they are just don't pass the basic cut. Waleswatcher (talk) 15:39, 27 August 2018 (UTC)

I should note that, as per my most recent revert, I have serious concerns about the WP:NPOV position of 72bikers' most recent edit. We've talked a lot on this page and on the AR-15 talk page about the use of Wikipedia voice with regards to point of view. To include, in Wikipedia voice, "But it's a very common misconception..." seems to be in complete contravention of that rather thorough discussion. That being said, I don't think it's a surprise that I prefer major edits to contentious articles to be work-shopped at talk before being taken live. Hell, I've cleaved to that view even on less contentious articles like Science Fiction. Simonm223 (talk) 15:44, 27 August 2018 (UTC)

Well we are getting somewhere. I think we need to sort out the balance issue that is being discussed. I don't have time to do it now but perhaps tonight I can give it a go. I'm against the Rhee quote specifically because it is an emotional, non-impartial quote and isn't a widely used claim like "king of pop" might be for say Michael Jackson. I also agree that we should not have weasel words/phrases like "But it's a very common misconception..." Such phrases could only be used as attributed quotes and even then we should ask if they are really needed. If we are going to say something is a misconception then it opens the door to also posting the voices that say that thing. Since this isn't an AR-15 article it may be better to trim much of this down to just say "A study of mass shooting crimes shows X weapon type is used Y% of the time (repeat as needed)." Some mention of "AR-15 and similar are said to play an over sized role [sources with in citation quotes as needed] but not all researchers agree [source with in citation quotes as needed]. The nice thing about keeping the emotive content out of the article is it makes it harder for us to argue. Once we have that done we can talk about how much nicer the weather is in Scotland vs Wales. Springee (talk) 17:24, 27 August 2018 (UTC)

I like where you're going with this. And yes, it can wait for a few hours. Simonm223 (talk) 17:45, 27 August 2018 (UTC)

WW reported 72biker for edit warring. It's regrettable that WW used this as an oportunity to remove an editor for 72 hours rather than at least give 72bikers a chance to self revert in case it was an accidental 4RR. As such we will have to wait at least 72 hours to get 72biker's buy in. I'm going to ask that we leave the article alone in the mean time. I'm not going to edit it one way or the other until we get some consensus here. Springee (talk) 02:26, 28 August 2018 (UTC)

I didn't "use it", I reported a user who blatantly violated the 3RR after a warning. You're accusing me of bad faith and WP:HOUNDing me. I advise you to stop and read WP:AOBF. Waleswatcher (talk) 03:09, 28 August 2018 (UTC)

Working text for the Weapons Used section

Weapons use Firearms used in mass shootings in the United States, including rifles, handguns, and shotguns. A 2014 study of 142 shootings by Dr. James Fox found 88 (62%) were committed with handguns of all types (68 (48%) with semi-automatic handguns, 20 (14%) with revolvers), 35 (25%) with military style semi-automatic rifles, and 19 (13%) with shotguns. The study was conducted using the Mother Jones database of mass shootings from 1982-2018. High capacity magazines were used in approximately half of mass shootings. Military style, semi-automatic rifles such as the AR-15 or similar have been used in six of the ten deadliest mass shooting events. AR-15 rifles have come to be widely characterized as the weapon of choice for perpetrators of these crimes.

Sources

• The above represents a reduced version of the current article text. I stuck with largely the material in the first paragraph but tried to present the facts with a neutral tone. I'm not sure about the value of the last sentence to the reader and the headaches that it will/has already caused. I think some of 72biker's material might fit here but I don't think we do readers any favors by making this an article that overly emphasizes either the semi-auto rifle or high capacity magazine controversies. For this reason I didn't try to find some of the references that note that "high capacity" magazines are often the default type included with firearms and articles that question if magazine size limits would have an impact on fatalities. I figured I would sidestep the fights by keeping the material brief. Springee (talk) 03:03, 28 August 2018 (UTC)

I don't want to make a change without group input but I would like group input :) Springee (talk) 20:00, 29 August 2018 (UTC)

• Support I think this revision is probably as good as we're going to get with the material we have. Simonm223 (talk) 12:00, 30 August 2018 (UTC)

Looks good, but the last sentence in that paragraph is not factually correct. This could be addressed here and now or separately, I don't want to muddy the waters in Springee's suggested change. But "AR-15 rifles have come to be widely characterized as the weapon of choice for perpetrators of these crimes." this is only voiced by journalists. With the data from the studies and experts clearly stating weapon of choice is handguns, by a margin of almost 3 to 1 if we lump all handguns together. I am not suggesting we remove it but simply clarify. Such as "widely characterized by the media" and perhaps "though the facts show it is handguns", or something to that effect. -72bikers (talk) 04:02, 1 September 2018 (UTC)

No, for the umpteenth time, we cannot with the quality of sources we have, say "though the facts show..." in Wikipedia's voice here. Simonm223 (talk) 11:03, 1 September 2018 (UTC)

If you find it bothersome to engage in conversation, I would remind you that you have no obligation to participate here.

As I stated "or something to that effect" my suggestions were not written in stone. As you did not address this "widely characterized by the media" I assume you have no objections to providing this clarity. In the future perhaps you could explicitly explain your interpretations, instead of just generalized statements. -72bikers (talk) 14:44, 1 September 2018 (UTC)

"AR-15 rifles are "customizable, adaptable, reliable and accurate" and "can basically shoot as quickly as you can pull the trigger". But AR-15s are not the only rifles with these characteristics. Indeed, the AR-15 is more an open-source platform than a single weapon. For instance, the Sig Sauer MCX used in the Orlando nightclub shooting more closely resembles an AK-47 in some respects, but an AR lower receiver can be "upgraded" to a Sig MCX." It seem illogical to go into such detail outside of a gun article. To date there has been no credible reason as to why this is included in the article. This overly detailed content on just one weapon used a fraction of the time. This offers nothing to the article. -72bikers (talk) 15:11, 1 September 2018 (UTC)

Has it occurred to you that AR-15s being used a relatively small fraction of the time in these shootings makes it much more significant that basically all of the recent most deadly shootings used them? Clearly they are extremely lethal, and that text explains why. But I wouldn't oppose a lightly edited version of Springee's text above, that removes that test and also the other material on the AR-15 (the Hazen quotes etc). Waleswatcher (talk) 01:30, 2 September 2018 (UTC)

I think we are on the same page then. My single paragraph above was intended to replace the two paragraphs in the original article. I would also be happy to drop the AR-15 weapon of choice line. That was carried over from the AR-15 article as these sections were initially very similar between the two articles. So what about something like this which drops the last sentence from my original proposal. I may not have been clear the first time but I would also drop the "AR-15 rifles are "customizable, adaptable, reliable and accurate"..." paragraph as it really just focuses on the AR-15 rather than weapons used in mass shootings.

Firearms used in mass shootings in the United States, including rifles, handguns, and shotguns. A 2014 study of 142 shootings by Dr. James Fox found 88 (62%) were committed with handguns of all types (68 (48%) with semi-automatic handguns, 20 (14%) with revolvers), 35 (25%) with military style semi-automatic rifles, and 19 (13%) with shotguns. The study was conducted using the Mother Jones database of mass shootings from 1982-2018. High capacity magazines were used in approximately half of mass shootings. Military style, semi-automatic rifles such as the AR-15 or similar have been used in six of the ten deadliest mass shooting events.

Hopefully that is acceptable to all. Springee (talk) 02:12, 2 September 2018 (UTC)

Sources

WW That text explains nothing it just rambles on.

Springee he just said remove the test (I.E the study) and make smaller the breakdown along with removing the hazon and blair content. Removing legitimate expert content for a sliver of another makes no sense.

I would be ok with what you just submitted with this at the end of it. Experts told ABC news "it has nothing to do with the AR-15's lethality, but rather simple familiarity." Gun expert and former SWAT team member Dean Hazen added, "It’s a copycat thing. Pete Blair, executive director of Texas State University's Advanced Law Enforcement Rapid Response Training Center—which studies mass murder—echoed Hazen's comments.[53][54][55] There should be clarity also, "Rifles and handguns with high capacity magazines". -72bikers (talk) 03:24, 2 September 2018 (UTC)

72bikers, please learn to indent tour comments and try to keep them concise. Springee's suggestion is for the entire section, so all of that would go. Waleswatcher (talk) 12:43, 2 September 2018 (UTC)

What's a "tour comments"? Perhaps spelling is more vital to conveying a concise statement.-72bikers (talk) 15:15, 2 September 2018 (UTC)

@72bikers: put down the WP:STICK - Springee has worked very hard to build a consensus version that meets WP:NPOV and addresses the concerns of a pretty diverse group of editors. It does not need a qualifier protecting the reputation of the AR-15 at the end to be balanced. Simonm223 (talk) 12:40, 4 September 2018 (UTC)

I went ahead and made the change. Thank everyone for collaborating on this. Springee (talk) 02:04, 6 September 2018 (UTC)

Clarification for table

I noticed on the table we use semi-automatic in front of the rifles. None of the mass shootings use fully automatic or bolt action should we just remove semi-automatic since it is not actually making a distinction? For the pistols I think it might makes sense since there are revolvers used in there. Though with that you could just say revolver instead of pistol perhaps? PackMecEng (talk) 13:36, 31 October 2018 (UTC)

Didn't the shooter in the University of Texas tower shooting primarily use a bolt action rifle for most of the killings? Regards, AzureCitizen (talk) 13:41, 31 October 2018 (UTC)

Looking at it now there was a bolt action rifle, pump action rifle, and semi automatic rifle. But good point all the same, I see for that section we just list rifles for our table. PackMecEng (talk) 13:48, 31 October 2018 (UTC)

It would be useful if we could figure out which of seven firearms the tower shooter possessed were actually used in the shootings, so that the unused firearms could be eliminated from the list (the same way the Umpqua Community College shooting entry doesn't list the AR-15, because the shooter left it in his car when he got to the campus). But given that the tower shooting happened more than 50 years ago, it's difficult to find online sources that would have that information. Regards, AzureCitizen (talk) 17:43, 31 October 2018 (UTC)

The table is there for comparative purposes; greater details are found at the specific articles. The "semi-automatic" in front of the rifles and some pistols links in with the Weapons used section and serves to highlight that these weren't blot-action/muzzle-loading/etc rifles. That saying, leaving it off is fine if we don't know or multiple types were used. Gaia Octavia Agrippa ^Talk 19:49, 1 November 2018 (UTC)

Including perpetrator in total deaths

I don't think the perpetrator(s) should be included in the total number of deaths: it should only be victims. If you look at the table, for example, the Fort Hood shooting is below Columbine (13 victims plus 2 perps) and Binghamton shootings (13 victims plus 1 perp). This would allow for the deadliest shooting to be ordered by number of victims and would remove four from a sadly ever growing list. It would be simple enough to change "24 (inc. the perp.)" to "23 (plus 1 perp.)". Gaia Octavia Agrippa ^Talk 11:49, 8 November 2018 (UTC)

While I'm sympathetic to a degree for the sense that victims are the morally innocent persons who get wronged and killed when these things happen, the descriptor at the top of the column for what's being totaled is "deaths," which logically includes anyone who gets fatally shot in the incident (whether it's the perpetrator, or a responding police officer to the site, or a kid behind a wall that a stray bullet that just happens to pass through). From what I've seen of the individual mass shooting articles themselves, the consensus that developed was always to include the perpetrator(s) in the total number of deaths as well. As they are included there, it's difficult to argue that it should be handled differently here on the aggregated mass shootings table and it would also create a mismatch for the reader's eye. Regards, AzureCitizen (talk) 14:21, 8 November 2018 (UTC)

The total deaths would still be there, except the reader would have to do the maths themselves: "24 (inc. the perp.)" vs "23 (plus 1 perp.)", but they both still total 24. This change would mean an adjustment in the order of the table so that the total deaths of victims are "prioritised". At the moment, the counting of the death of both perpetrators in the San Bernardino attack and Columbine, bump them up the table when there was only 14 victims in each. Gaia Octavia Agrippa ^Talk 19:46, 8 November 2018 (UTC)

Not "Overwhelmingly White Males"

The 2013 NYT story that is cited says white males are "most commonly" mass shooters, not that mass shooters are "overwhelmingly white males". In any event, the NYT story is out of date; many mass shootings over the past 5 years were carried out by non-whites. The list of shootings on the page itself is evidence of that. For some reason, user Drmies wants to vilify white men. We may need to bring in the Arbritation Committee to sanction Drmies for racism. How is that done? — Preceding unsigned comment added by Buck12341 (talk • contribs) 02:19, 16 December 2018 (UTC)

To correct the text, you want some more recent reliable sources saying that, can you cite some? Sanctioning a well intentioned editor for a content dispute that isn't edit warring is pretty rare, in general we try to reach consensus rather than apply sanctions. You can see some reasonable discussions just above on this page, if you read them you should be able to see how consensus is reached. --GRuban (talk) 21:43, 17 December 2018 (UTC)

Based on this edit and this edit, I think we ought to discard this person's posts as mere trolling. NorthBySouthBaranof (talk) 22:08, 17 December 2018 (UTC)

Deaths table sorting

At the table, if I click "Deaths", it ranks from 58 49 32 27 et cetera.

• However, if I click "Injuries", obviously the Vegas Shooting ranks first. But, the problem is that 2012 Aurora shooting (70 injuries) is not ranked thereafter. Orlando nightclub shooting (53 injuries) is ranked a lot lower than it should be.
• Is it a programming bug? Can someone fix it please? Tony85poon (talk) 06:52, 20 February 2019 (UTC)

Is there a programming bug at the deadliest mass shootings' table? Tony85poon (talk) 06:55, 20 February 2019 (UTC)

@Tony85poon: Part of the problem seems to be inconsistent use of {{sort}}, but I don't think that's the whole story. Help:Sorting#Numerical sorting problems may help; failing that, post at WP:VPT directing people back here. Please note, this is not a WP:RFC matter. --Redrose64 🌹 (talk) 12:26, 20 February 2019 (UTC)

 Fixed, here. I added "data-sort-type=number" to the two numeric columns, as suggested at Help:Sorting#Numerical sorting problems, so thanks for the tip on that. — Mudwater ^(Talk) 22:51, 20 February 2019 (UTC)

Nathanael's feedback

Really good article, I like how the tone of the article remains neutral throughout the discussion. I do happen to notice that you mention a couple studies made regarding the frequency of the shooting; however, I did not see anything other than the citation to help me understand what these studies primarily aimed to prove or the way they were conducted. Also, I do happen to notice that you provide a history of factors that can lead to people taking guns to school but I do feel like the discussion could of elaborated on each factor and provide the reader with a better understanding of what the impact of each of this factor has on this issue. Lastly, maybe I would recommend adding another section that talks about what are have been some of the step that the government and other institutions have taken to fix this issue. Thank you.Marquez94n (talk) 03:49, 13 March 2019 (UTC)

Deadliest mass shootings

This sentence caught my attention

Only incidents with ten or more victim fatalities are included.

I suggest that we expand the scope a little bit. As only 9 victims are killed during those 4 event, it is out of the scope of this list/table. However, as the name of the section is "Deadliest mass shootings...", I suggest to add more. What do you guys think?

It is because the perpetrator died too. Strictly speaking, the perpetrator is not a victim, but I think that (for the benefit of efficiency, you know, some readers are really curious to know about the next deadliest events) we should relax a bit.

Therefore, if an event was 8 (plus 2 perpetrators), or 7 (plus 3 perpetrators), or 6 (plus 4 perpetrators), or 5 (plus 5 perpetrators), those events can also be added. For now, I have drafted a table below for easy understanding.

	Incident	Year	Deaths	Injuries	Type of firearm(s) used	Ref(s)
1	James Edward Pough	1990	9 (plus 1 perp.)	6	gun type	ref
2	Mark O. Barton	1999	9 (plus 1 perp.)	unsure	gun type. Note: The perpetrator killed his wife + his two children earlier with a different weapon, hence the total kill number was 13 people.	ref
3	Red Lake shootings	2005	9 (plus 1 perp.)	5	gun type	ref
4	Umpqua Community College shooting	2012	9 (plus 1 perp.)	8	gun type	ref

Tony85poon (talk) 02:49, 5 March 2019 (UTC)

Should the scope of the "Deadliest mass shootings since 1949" list / table be expanded? Tony85poon (talk) 20:44, 12 March 2019 (UTC)

No. There is no need to expand the list. We need a cut off point, and double figures of victims is a logical one. The shooters should not be included in that figure; they aren't in reliable sources. Gaia Octavia Agrippa ^Talk 21:10, 12 March 2019 (UTC)

My suggestion does not move the "cut off point" too much, because there are only 4 relevant events. It is only a slight tweak. My suggestion allows the list to "grow" logically. It's not like, there is a hundred events with 10 deaths, and the list suddenly gets a lot bigger. Tony85poon (talk) 04:06, 13 March 2019 (UTC)

There are already 25 entries in the table, so another four jumps it to 29; it's an increase of 16%. In addition, reliable sources only count the victims in the total deaths rather than victims and perpetrators, so it has to be at least 10 victim deaths not victims + perp. The definition of a "mass shooting" is related to the number of victim deaths, not victims + perp. It therefore follows logically that only victim deaths count for the table. There are other articles (eg List of rampage killers (Americas)) that provide a more comprehensive list. The list in this article only concerns the worst shooting (defined by consensus as double digit deaths). Gaia Octavia Agrippa ^Talk 19:44, 13 March 2019 (UTC)

Why? R2 (bleep) 23:17, 13 March 2019 (UTC)

R2, what are you asking and who are you aiming the question at? Gaia Octavia Agrippa ^Talk 00:43, 14 March 2019 (UTC)

My question was directed by Tony85poon, but he won't be answering it for the next week while he's blocked. R2 (bleep) 03:48, 14 March 2019 (UTC)

...And he was just blocked for mass socking and block evasion. I'm going to go out on a (very small) limb and cancel the pointless RfC. R2 (bleep) 04:07, 14 March 2019 (UTC)

D.C. sniper attacks

Should we include this item in the deadliest shootings list? There were 17 fatalities. 2607:FEA8:1DE0:7B4:C486:B74F:DFAC:DEA3 (talk) 06:44, 1 June 2019 (UTC)

No, it doesn't qualify. It wasn't "within one event, and in one or more locations in close proximity". As the D.C. sniper attacks occurred over many weeks, rather than hours, and at different locations, it doesn't count as a mass shooting (for this article anyway). Gaia Octavia Agrippa ^Talk 14:11, 1 June 2019 (UTC)

Weird definition

So the article mentions the U.S has the most mass shootings in the world, over 2000.

But previously, it mentions that a mass shooting is defined as four people being shot or something. Pretty much no other developed nation uses this definition, as accidents happen all the time with no malicious intent. Most of the time, people aren't even killed. Just injured.

Sorry for not grabbing source, I'm short on time and don't have any.49.148.89.227 (talk) 02:01, 27 July 2019 (UTC)

Does this claim include all the gang shootings in Mexico, or have those been defined away out of existence? How many parties in Mexico have been shot up? There was one not long ago in Playa de Carmen by Cancun in a bar, the Blue Stork or something named like that. (PeacePeace (talk) 21:15, 5 August 2019 (UTC))

Please edit the floating [1] at the bottom of the page

I think this might be a source, but it should probably have a heading. Trilotat (talk) 02:53, 6 August 2019 (UTC)

White males vs whites

I think this sentence is wrong: "According to most analyses and studies however, the proportion of mass shooters in the United States who are white and male is not considerably greater than the proportion of white males in the general population of the US." The source states that the proportion of mass shooters in the United States who are white is not considerably greater than the proportion of white people in the general population of the US. There are many more males of all races and ethnicities among mass shooters than in the general population, where they are only about 50%. BrightRaven (talk) 10:01, 6 August 2019 (UTC)

I don't recall all the sources off the top of my head but here is what I've taken away from various sources over time. First, mass shooters are predominately male, far in excess of the make percentage of the population. In terms of ethnicity, the percentage that are Caucasian is in proportion to the portion of Caucasians in the general population. This means most mass shooters are Caucasians. However what is perhaps more significant is that Caucasians are under represented in most other violent crime/homicide statistics. This raises the question why do the factors that cause Caucasians to be under represented in other crime statistics not apply here. It would be a meaningful addition to the article if we could find a source that discussed this last bit. Springee (talk) 11:22, 6 August 2019 (UTC)

@Gaia Octavia Agrippa: You restored a wording that states that "the proportion of mass shooters in the United States who are white and male is not considerably greater than the proportion of white males in the general population of the US." The source states the exact opposite about the gender distribution of mass shooters: "On the other hand, [the data] do back up the notion that these killers are nearly always men. In the Mother Jones database, 97 percent of the listed killers are men; in the one from USA Today, that number is 94 percent. This is not a phenomenon that’s unique to mass shootings—most killers of all types are men. It’s a huge, overall effect: According to the BJS statistics, men committed 90 percent of all homicides between 1980 and 2008, as well as 92 percent of those involving guns. While it may be true that men are even more overrepresented among mass shooters and mass killers than they are among “normal” killers, blaming those differences—slivers of the data, really, between 90, 92, and 94 percent—it seems wrong to blame mass killings in particular on toxic masculinity. That’s because male rage can be deadly at any time or any place, and at every level of analysis." BrightRaven (talk) 08:19, 7 August 2019 (UTC)

Maybe we could add something like: "the proportion of mass shooters who are male is not considerably greater than the proportion of males among killers of all types.", which would be true. BrightRaven (talk) 08:27, 7 August 2019 (UTC)

This reverted edit does not contain "political sniping commentary"

It contains reality.

https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Mass_shootings_in_the_United_States&diff=909849753&oldid=909847587

soibangla (talk) 02:10, 8 August 2019 (UTC)

Sorry, this is undue and exactly the sort of political sniping edit that was being discussed as problematic here [[7]]. A few recent quotes selected for political purposes don't add to the better understanding of this topic. The material you added was UNDUE. Springee (talk) 02:23, 8 August 2019 (UTC)

(1) Springee should not be canvassing (the editor linked to this content dispute among likely-sympathetic editors). (2) I think it can be fleshed out a bit more to be more historical (e.g. "since the Columbine shooting, it has been posited that video games contribute to mass shootings. Prominent person A said B at time C... After shooting D, it was argued that E... In 2019, some Republicans insisted XYZ... There is no evidence that video games contribute to mass shootings". Snooganssnoogans (talk) 02:55, 8 August 2019 (UTC)

1. I'm not canvasing. I'm noting a discussion that specifically was targetting the sort of edits in question here. 2. This sort of "GOP" targeting discussion, is pure POV pushing BS. If the intent were to talk about the various times people have looked at, ie the research, the links between mass shootings then I think a case could be made. It could be part of the causes of mass shootings discussion. As was added, no, it's in the same terrible bucket as the edit rejected here [[8]]. Springee (talk) 03:17, 8 August 2019 (UTC)

"Type of firearm(s) used" column

In the table of mass shootings since 1949 with ten or more fatalities, in the "Type of firearms(s) used" column one of the types listed is "semi-automatic pistol". I think that should be changed to "pistol". A pistol is a semi-automatic handgun -- as opposed to a revolver, which is a handgun that is not semi-automatic -- so by definition, all pistols are semi-automatic. This is in contrast to rifles, some of which are semi-automatic and some of which (e.g. bolt-action, single-shot, or fully-automatic rifles) are not. In other words, it makes sense that the table has a type of "semi-automatic rifle", and another type of "rifle", but we should change the type of "semi-automatic pistol" to "pistol". — Mudwater ^(Talk) 13:49, 4 August 2019 (UTC)

I think your comment is generally true... but. "Pistol" will 99% of the time refer to a semi automatic handgun. But there are single shot and the very rare bolt action pistols. I think the real question should be are we doing a better job communicating to readers if the article says "pistol" vs semi-auto pistol. In general usage semi-auto pistol will be redundant but not all readers may realize that. It doesn't harm to include the extra descriptor. Springee (talk) 15:45, 4 August 2019 (UTC)

Agreed. This is a case where the extra specificity is useful and there is really no downside to it. Rusty Lugnuts (talk) 18:22, 8 August 2019 (UTC)

Mark O. Barton

Should Mark O. Barton’s killing spree be listed here? He murdered 12 people, but only 9 of them w/a gun. Blaylockjam10 (talk) 21:47, 9 August 2019 (UTC)

Table not sorting

The table in section 6, "Deadliest mass shootings since 1949", does not sort when clicking on any of the column headers. Clicking on any header results only in the first column (which lists the ordinal of each entry) separating each grouped ordinal (i.e. 11, 14, 19 and 23)out to each line. Subsequent clicks do nothing. I've tested this in Firefox, Chrome and Opera, both with and without extensions/addons. Rusty Lugnuts (talk) 18:11, 8 August 2019 (UTC)

Fixed Mad Dog Fargo (talk) 06:31, 10 August 2019 (UTC)

Removal of the Gun Violence Archive stat from frequency section

There have been a bit of back and forth on the inclusion of a stat based on the Gun Violence Archive. I removed the material here [[9]] for the following reasons.

We actually reference the same source in the lead to offer a different number over a different time.

It conflicts with reference 7 (Washington Post) reference.

It's out of place in a discussion of frequency where the rest of the topic is about yearly increases/decreases.

It seems odd to include information that appears to be self dating without a frequent manual update.

span. I would propose synchronizing the GVA time frame with the WashPo's time frame and contrast the two different results. I think it's very informative that the number of mass shootings depends greatly on your definition. The reference that we currently have that says X shootings since 2013 should be closed ended since a reader isn't likely to know when the information was added. So I'm in favor of inclusion in general but not the specific was it was added in the edit I reverted. Springee (talk) 01:50, 12 August 2019 (UTC)

I'd restored it because the editor had stated "unreliable/biased information" while removing it, which is not true. I agree that it would be good to contrast the different count numbers, but we'll have to be careful not to WP:OR it. I can't find where "2,128 mass shootings since 2013" has come from because its not from the ref cited for it. The Guardian has 1,875 deaths between Jan 1, 2013 and Feb 15, 2018 which would provide a defined range, and one per day comes from CBS.

The 2,128 figure was added by User:Ottoshade: Ottoshade, where did the number come from? Gaia Octavia Agrippa ^Talk 12:54, 12 August 2019 (UTC)

I agree that "unreliable/biased" is probably not true. If true it certainly justifies removing it but that would require proof and then we would want to remove both references. I still think we should keep the text I removed out but I would support adding the references you are mentioning so long as they explain what the source/method is. It's good to show how different definitions result in different reported stats.

Do you think it makes sense to include it in a frequency discussion? I think it could if done as a comparison of methods paragraph in the frequency paragraph it would be good. As added it reads as just a random factoid. Springee (talk) 13:22, 12 August 2019 (UTC)

Number comes from sum of https://www.gunviolencearchive.org/past-tolls for 2014-2018, the front page for 2019, and for 2013, https://www.gunviolencearchive.org/reports/mass-shootings/2013 Ottoshade (talk) 07:37, 13 August 2019 (UTC)

This whole article is wrong and needs a rework.

wrong thread.

That article is the "List of mass shootings in the united states in 2019" - it reads as a propaganda page with definitions nobody in the real world uses.

— Preceding unsigned comment added by Katfactz (talk • contribs) 12:49, 21 August 2019 (UTC)

Where do you see Four teenagers were wounded after an argument escalated during a potential party in a hotel room? That wouldn't fit the definition used as they didn't die, and it hasn't been established there was one shooter. Anyhow, you have provided no sources or definition. O3000 (talk) 13:04, 21 August 2019 (UTC)

Defining Mass Shootings in a an objective way. 100 victims required? What is a mass of people?

It seems obvious that defining mass shooting as 3 or 4 victims is absurd propaganda. Suppose it were reported that a mass of people attended a political rally, then it came out that 3 or 4 people were there! I would like to see an article tracing the history of mass shootings by civilians in USA where the definition of mass is 20 or more people shot. Even then, if you reported 20 persons attending a football game as a mass of people, you should get snickers. Perhaps the only such mass shooting in USA was that of Stephen Paddock in Los Vegas. (PeacePeace (talk) 21:11, 5 August 2019 (UTC))

The FBI defines mass murder as 4 or more victims, hence a mass shooting is 4 or more fatalities (not including the shooter). Regards, AzureCitizen (talk) 21:19, 5 August 2019 (UTC)

Context is important. The weight of attendance at a poltical rally or football game is far different than when discussing deaths by homicide. Rusty Lugnuts (talk) 18:19, 8 August 2019 (UTC)

If 100 dead are required than there has never been a Mass Shooting in United States history, if 100 dead/injured are required than there have only been 2 in US History, the "Las Vegas shooting" and the "Orlando nightclub shooting". — Preceding unsigned comment added by 2601:4a:400:114f:b851:d564:c317:f49b (talk) 00:02, 6 August 2019 (UTC)

Calling it "absurd propaganda" indicates an agenda, a lack of objectivity, and a lack of willingness to abide by Wikipedia policy. If you're here to inject your personal opinions into articles then you're in the wrong place. -- Jibal (talk) 03:58, 24 August 2019 (UTC)

income inequality as contributing factor

[10] — Preceding unsigned comment added by 46.142.197.182 (talk) 21:26, 13 December 2019 (UTC)

Contributing Factors - Focus Unclear

The section leads with a sentence establishing that the list of factors are speculated to contribute to why the US has more mass shootings than other countries. Within the context of this article, that makes sense. However, the factors themselves meander into reasons why mass shootings might be increasing in recent years (#2 ends with this, #3 reference trends in reason years) and general factors not specific to the US as to why they occur at all (#3 desire for revenge, #4 gap between expectations for self and actual achievement, #5 desire for fame or notoriety, #6 the copycat phenomenon). I can understand the case as to why some of these might generally be more prevalent in the US (e.g. it's not that the desire for fame & notoriety is necessarily any more pronounced in Americans, but that as media coverage of mass shootings increases so to does the perceived amount of fame & notoriety to be gained by mass shooters; in other words, it's not the desire that is the characteristic unique to the US, but the heightened stakes) or serve to compound each other (e.g. the copycat phenomenon is not specific to the US, but given that the number of copycat cases is relative to the number of original or first-order cases, then it stands to reason that an already sizable margin separating the US from other countries in number of mass shootings could be increased considerably). But as it is currently written, the implication is that each of these is something unique to the US. --Byron Bligh (talk) 11:37, 28 June 2020 (UTC)

Consider renaming perp to suspect in list

I personally believe that perp accurately describes the seriousness of mass shooting thats why it should be renamed to suspect (susp) or possibly shooter. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 24.252.57.99 (talk) 21:56, 13 October 2020 (UTC)

What does "better policing, better economy" mean?

Under "Frequency" this article states: "The decrease in firearm homicides has been attributed to better policing, a better economy and environmental factors such as the removal of lead from gasoline", and references a Washington post article that in turn references controversial research on 1990s the NYC crime drop. So while it's not incorrect to say that it's been attributed to those things, the growing body of research on the global crime drop indicates the reality is more complicated. And more importantly "better economy" and especially "better policing" don't actually mean anything. I think that this section should be revised to reflect the complexity of this issue and should link to crime drop 4and3and2and1 (talk) 23:52, 2 February 2021 (UTC)

Thoroughly sourced amendment that provides crucial details speciously/maliciously rolled back - blamed on grammar issues

Whoever you are, I'm going to undo your rollback. The amendments were worded accurately (even correcting earlier issues) and well-formulated. Your rollback can only be motivated by politics, going to hope that you're blocked.

Hi, I believe that you are referring to this rollback by me. Going back to my revert, I would say that (in the edit) the statement made by Mother Jones is has no inline citations. The New York Times article does not mention Mother Jones in the piece, I think that the part with the gun violence archive is relatively alright, but the last section contains "Sewhichashows that even with correcting for mass murders, yo l" so I choose to revert. Looking back, I probably should've added the part about the gun violence archive back in and not reverted that part (which is what I'm gonna do right now) Justiyaya 09:53, 25 July 2021 (UTC)

Removal of peer-reviewed research

A peer-reviewed study from the leading political science journal, American Political Science Review, was removed by the editor Springee with the claim that it was a "Primary source" and that it needs a "secondary source".[11] This is a misreading of Wikipedia's WP:RS guidelines which clearly identify peer-reviewed publications as "usually the most reliable sources". While we would ideally want to use comprehensive literature reviews by the National Academy of Sciences, Annual Reviews (publisher) or something along those lines, there is nothing in the Wikipedia guidelines that advises against the use of other forms of peer-reviewed publications. Snooganssnoogans (talk) 14:23, 9 November 2021 (UTC)

I saw that edit, too, because it was on my Watchlist. Springee's revert explanation didn't make any sense to me, either, so I re-read WP:PRIMARY just to make sure. The citation Springee objected to is labelled a research article with 3 authors and over 90 citations. Around 6 of those citations use 1 or more combination of the same 3 authors, meaning they have been published before but are not relying heavily on their prior works in this article. The article was published in American Political Science Review, a peer-reviewed journal. Nothing in the abstract indicates this is a primary source, and certain wording ("The literature on..." and "difference in differences") indicates it is far from it.

@Springee: perhaps you can come here and further explain your thinking on this. Platonk (talk) 15:09, 9 November 2021 (UTC)

I see several issues here. The first is this is a brand new study so we don't know if it will be considered good or bad over the long term. A brand new study hasn't shown that it's conclusions are accepted by others via citations or external, 3rd party discussions of the results. This is why we treat review journal papers differently than papers that produced primary research. That doesn't mean such material is never used in wiki articles but it when used it's typically part of a section on a topic. In this case the entire politics section of this article was solely sourced to a single, just released paper. That certainly is a WEIGHT issue. If you look at this article as is has stood for some time, there isn't a subtopic discussing the politics of mass shootings nor the impact of shootings on things like elections. That means, thus far, editors have felt that isn't within the scope of this wiki article. That isn't to say it should or shouldn't be, only that thus far it hasn't been. Perhaps the political fall out of mass shootings should be part of this topic. However, in that case it needs to be a comprehensive addition that discusses the topic over the same time span as the rest of the article and cites multiple sources. A section that is a single sentence sourced to a single, recent article is something we should never encourage. If this were added as part of a more comprehensive review of the topic I think the young age of the article wouldn't be such a concern as it's results could be compared/contrasted with other sources on the topic. With this explanation I guess I should have said UNDUE. I do appreciate that Snoogans followed BRD and requested a more complete explanation. Springee (talk) 15:33, 9 November 2021 (UTC)

That paper was vetted via the peer review process of the leading political science journal. That is precisely why peer-reviewed publications are "usually the most reliable sources". I disagree with your assertion that content sourced to peer-reviewed publications should be omitted from articles unless editors perform a comprehensive edit adding all relevant research – that is not Wikipedia policy. Wikipedia is a collective work in progress. It's not the responsibility of individual editors to write every article from scratch within a single edit. Snooganssnoogans (talk) 15:37, 9 November 2021 (UTC)

First, the primary vs secondary question comes up a lot. As an example, here is a recent RSN discussion on the topic [12]. However, that doesn't address the bigger issue which is WEIGHT. Presenting this and only this article as as the sum of all discussions of the political impact of mass shootings totally fails WEIGHT unless you are arguing that this single sentence summarizing a single article perfectly sums up the entire topic of the impact of mass shootings on politics (something that, thus far, editors have kept out of the scope of this article). Springee (talk) 15:46, 9 November 2021 (UTC)

Your views on primary vs secondary sources seem wrong. I've created a discussion on the RS noticeboard.[13] Snooganssnoogans (talk) 16:07, 9 November 2021 (UTC)

• Agree with Platonk and Snooganssnoogans here. This peer-reviewed study is an excellent source. The removal seems predicated to me on fundamental misreading of encyclopedia policy. I find it frankly bizarre to try to remove something like APSR in this context, especially given the wave of low-quality sources being used elsewhere throughout the encyclopedia. Neutrality^talk 16:14, 9 November 2021 (UTC)

• You feel that it's reasonable to attribute the whole of the politics section, something this article currently doesn't have, to a single study that was released earlier today is an example of complying with DUE? Springee (talk) 16:37, 9 November 2021 (UTC)

• I don't know what you mean by "attribute the whole of the politics section." Yes, it's obviously reasonable to faithfully represent recent, properly cited social science in this article. That is what readers expect of an encyclopedia. If you'd like to add other relevant, on-topic studies, you're free to add them, consistent with due-weight and other principles. Neutrality^talk 17:00, 9 November 2021 (UTC)

• @Springee: WP:UNDUE would only apply if the source in question represented a WP:FRINGE viewpoint, or even a minority viewpoint (when compared to other writings on the subject). Wikipedia is a world of incremental edits, and nothing in the single-sentence edit violated WP:NPOV. If the content to be added has no other section it would fit into, then someone has to start a new section. As I look at the article Mass shootings in the United States, I see material on causation (contributing factors), frequency, demographics, what/when and specific incidents, however what I do NOT see is any section covering "fall out", effect, or consequences of 'mass shooting incidents'.

Perhaps you are objecting to the new heading "Political impact" when what it should say (in a more perfect world) is "Impact" or "Effect on society" and the new section would be filled with content about the psychological ramifications of those on scene, their families, the wider community, the country, the whole world, commercial and legislative rammifications, new security measures for schools and children, etc. But that is beyond an 'incremental edit', which this clearly was.

So unless you can show that the content and citation represents a WP:FRINGE viewpoint, or even a minority viewpoint (when compared to other writings on the subject, not compared to the history of current content of the Wikipedia article Mass shootings in the United States), then due/undue/weight doesn't apply in this case and does not recommend removing this source or content. Platonk (talk) 19:10, 9 November 2021 (UTC)

UNDUE specifically applies to relative emphasis, "Neutrality requires that mainspace articles and pages fairly represent all significant viewpoints that have been published by reliable sources, in proportion to the prominence of each viewpoint in the published, reliable sources." (emphasis mine). If we are going to create a politics section, and I don't see a reason not to, then it needs to be done with a balanced overview of the views related to this subject Featuring only this one, brand new article is the very definition of UNDUE. That policy says we have to consider all significant views. Making this one sentence 100% of the politics section means it absolutely violates UNUDE. In a properly written politics section this would be a supporting source, not the only source. Springee (talk) 19:18, 9 November 2021 (UTC)

• What alternate "viewpoint" are you specifically contending is unrepresented? This is an empirical study, properly attributed. This is not a case, so far as I am aware, where study X comes to one conclusion but study Y comes to an opposite, or differing, conclusion. Neutrality^talk 19:29, 9 November 2021 (UTC)

• Are you saying that one sentence is a reasonable summary of all the politics associated with mass shootings in the US? No other ink/bits have been spilled on the subject prior to this morning? Springee (talk) 20:07, 9 November 2021 (UTC)

• But it is. You are in effect claiming that all view points have been represented sufficient to satisfy DUE. For that to be correct that one sentence needs to be sufficient coverage of this topic. Look, at this point we can say there is a local consensus against my removal. Restore it if you wish but it would be better to actually create a proper discussion of the topic and cover the range of political implications/reactions, not just this one and perhaps using papers have have been out for at least a week. Springee (talk) 20:38, 9 November 2021 (UTC)
• Not responsive to my question. Neutrality^talk 20:25, 9 November 2021 (UTC)

• Springee: UNDUE is about comparing something to other widely-accepted ideas, and then cautioning WP editors to not place minority views prominently. The conclusions of this study are neither novel nor minority. Take a peruse at the titles and dates of other published writings from the 90+ list of citations in this study. The topic (violent incidents and subsequent voting behaviors) is far from new. Platonk (talk) 19:42, 9 November 2021 (UTC)

• Presenting a single study, released this morning as 100% of the topic is undue. Perhaps finding and reviewing a number of those other sources would be a good start to a more comprehensive subsection. Certainly we could come up with something better. If this is all we have then we should leave it out as it has been for many years (as editors we can agree to the scope of an article). Springee (talk) 20:07, 9 November 2021 (UTC)

• It's probably worth adding that this paper is studying school shootings, not mass shootings. Certainly there is an overlap but they aren't the same. Snoogans's disputed edit didn't specific what type of shooting is being discussed. The edit in question is effectively SYNTH because it leaves out critical information like this was research related to "rampage-style school shootings". Is it acceptable to present this as if it were true for all "mass shootings". Springee (talk) 20:48, 9 November 2021 (UTC)
  • No, it is not. Crossroads ^-talk- 15:08, 11 November 2021 (UTC)
• I came here from RSN and want to clarify something for the record. WP:PRIMARY states: a scientific paper documenting a new experiment conducted by the author is a primary source on the outcome of that experiment. A lot of scientific experiments result in multiple research papers using that data, and social science often uses "natural experiments" like this. This paper is primary research, not a review article. Such sources can still be used, but if used, they do have to be used with caution. It is much better to look for and cite review articles. Crossroads ^-talk- 15:08, 11 November 2021 (UTC)
• I'm also here from WP:RSN. I mostly concur with Crossroads and Springee here regarding WP:PSTS. I'll also reiterate what I wrote at the noticeboard discussion: This specific paper was published online less than a week ago. There hasn't even been time for other research papers to cite it ... It's definitely a primary source regarding "a remarkable shift in an age of partisan polarization", which is simply the author's opinion. --Sangdeboeuf (talk) 01:17, 16 November 2021 (UTC)

Wiki Education Foundation-supported course assignment

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Demographics

The article says, According to The New York Times, the majority of perpetrators they have published stories about are white males who act alone. Looking at the cited reference, it says:

As convenient as it would be, there is no one-size-fits-all profile of who carries out mass shootings in the United States.

About the only thing almost all of them have in common is that they are men.

But those men come from varying backgrounds, with different mental health diagnoses and criminal histories. Examining past New York Times coverage of mass shootings reveals some shared tendencies of the gunmen, including the fact that they are most commonly white, but such traits also describe thousands of law-abiding Americans who don’t become murderous.

So perhaps the article would more accurately represent the source if it said something like this: According to The New York Times, almost all of the perpetrators they have published stories about are men, most commonly white men.

— Mudwater ^(Talk) 12:11, 7 February 2022 (UTC)

Organization/sections

At a glance, the organization and headings of this article are a bit surprising. The table at the bottom dominates the page, and much of the subject is compressed into an unordered list under "contributing factors". There were also a couple awkward subsections based on single sources that I've incorporated into the existing content. The only one on the "factors" that's really elaborated upon is mental health. That's concerning, since it's often a go-to way to dismiss the shooters as "other" (related to the "there's no understanding it -- it's just pure evil" approach). Unclear if I'll have the capacity to work on it, but before I do, is there context I should be aware of? This page has been on my watchlist for a while but I haven't paid close attention to the history. — Rhododendrites ^talk \\ 20:14, 25 May 2022 (UTC)