Edited Articles

1. 90

   wpcooperposted 4 months ago

   Wow.  I think I am sorely disappointed. I went back and looked at my article that I originally published four or five years ago here.  The changes that were made affected the entire tone of my original piece.  vocabularly edits, cutting down sentences, they totally tore apart my style.
   
   Has this happened to anyone else?  Are they using an AI editor?  It seems like they made it into something that sounds like it might be so.
   
   oh my

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   1. 93

      WriterJanisposted 3 months agoin reply to this

      To my knowledge, there is no AI editing.

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   2. 93

      Jan Stepanposted 3 months agoin reply to this

      I am more than convinced there's no AI involved in the editing process. After all, Hubpages doesn't allow AI. I am sorry to hear you're not pleased with the changes.
      
      In my case, I am generally happy with most of the edits made to my articles, but there are editors I agree with more than others.

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   3. STAFF

      Matt Wellsposted 3 months agoin reply to this

      Professional editors do all the editing. AI is never used.

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      1. 69

         Miebakagh57posted 3 months agoin reply to this

         That's great!

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   4. 89

      Gracchus Gruadposted 2 months agoin reply to this

      I agree. I just looked at one that I wrote that discussed work by directors, looking at their entire body of work. It had been changed to focus on one specific movie by each. If they wanted to make that article I feel like they should have just written it, but that's not the article I wrote. It actually undercut the entire point I was making.

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      1. 69

         Miebakagh57posted 2 months agoin reply to this

         So this seems very puzzling to the mind.                                           It has been talked about that in such casdr, editors should contact the author and get they consent before making such total changes.                                        I'm sorry for the torn, thorn, and tone it cause.

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      2. 90

         wpcooperposted 2 months agoin reply to this

         Yes they're a deviation stylistically and with content that I've observed. Sometimes the entire tone of the article is affected

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   5. 92

      Kenna McHughposted 2 months agoin reply to this

      I've only had one heavily edited article, and the editor coordinated with me on the process. I thought she did a good job, though she communicated her stress about ensuring the article was without mistakes. I enjoyed working with her. I wish I could remember her name. It was at least over three years ago.

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      1. 69

         Miebakagh57posted 2 months agoin reply to this

         That must be Samartha Cubbison, I presume. Now gone from hubpages.

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   6. 94

      OldRosesposted 2 months agoin reply to this

      Yup!  The "editing" that is done on my articles is so awful, that I have to revert all of the changes.  It's infuriating.  Not only do they get the facts wrong, but they do stupid things like removing the italics from Latin names of plants.  Or posting photos of the wrong plants.  I even had one editor demand that I include information on a plant that was completely unrelated to the one I was discussing just because the common name was similar.  I just let them demote my articles from the niche sites to HubPages now.  I'm tired of fighting with them.  We are expected to respect the editors because they are so knowledgeable, but none of them respects the fact that I am a professional horticulturist with specialized knowledge.

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      1. 92

         paolaenergyaposted 2 months agoin reply to this

         Professional horticulturist = immediate follow from me!

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         1. 94

            OldRosesposted 2 months agoin reply to this

            Thanks for the follow but I haven't published anything new here for a while.  My style doesn't fit with the style they want for the niche sites.  I'm old and cranky and refuse to change the way I present material.  I teach horticulture so I know what information beginners need to successfully grow plants.

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            1. 92

               paolaenergyaposted 2 months agoin reply to this

               That's such a shame, after publishing more than 300 articles... but I totally understand how you are feeling.

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               1. 95

                  PaulGoodman67posted 2 months agoin reply to this

                  The original idea for the site was everyday folk imparting their wisdom. We could write what we wanted and there wasn't an editor in sight.
                  
                  As time has passed, the site has moved further and further away from that original vision. To be fair, the changes have mainly been driven by Google. HP has had little choice but to react.
                  
                  I think most of us miss the freedom that we once had, though, and one's sense of ownership just isn't the same when articles are reworked by someone else.
                  
                  When I joined HP, the internet was still very much the Wild West. It's a very different place nowadays. Here at HP, we have to abide by numerous restrictions to stand any chance of success. It's like Goldilocks, the article can't be too long or too short, the images can't be too small or too big, virtually every aspect has to be just right...
                  
                  I say that as an observation, I don't know what, if anything, can be done about it.

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                  1. 69

                     Miebakagh57posted 2 months agoin reply to this

                     I agree with you, Paul Goodman.                                   But an editor editing an entire article, should do so with the topic of the author in mind.                                             Other than that, it frustates and pained the mind of the author(s).

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                     1. 95

                        PaulGoodman67posted 2 months agoin reply to this

                        I think one issue is that because search engines are constantly updating, regular editing is needed.
                        
                        When editors come in, they are often unfamiliar with the subject area (they can't be expected to be experts on everything) and this has led to factual errors in some cases.
                        
                        This used to happen to me. I would get comments from readers pointing out glaring errors made by editors. It could still be happening to me now but I wouldn't know because the comments are broken.
                        
                        I'm not saying that it happened a lot but I understand OldRoses' upset.

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                        1. 69

                           Miebakagh57posted 2 months agoin reply to this

                           A year or two ago, I said something to the effect that editors should specialized in a subject, or core area.                                                 This can enable them to leverage well in their area.                                    Is this being done at hubpages? I think not.

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                           1. 92

                              Kenna McHughposted 2 months agoin reply to this

                              I might be going on a limb here, but Dengarden editor(s) have made valid corrections.

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                              1. 69

                                 Miebakagh57posted 2 months agoin reply to this

                                 Kenna, I've never land on Dengarden. But CONGRATULATIONS! to these like editors.

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                                 1. 92

                                    Kenna McHughposted 2 months agoin reply to this

                                    Thank you!

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                                    1. 69

                                       Miebakagh57posted 2 months agoin reply to this

                                       I appreciated you.

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            2. 95

               Solarasposted 2 months agoin reply to this

               Where are you writing now? Medium?

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               1. 94

                  OldRosesposted 2 months agoin reply to this

                  I'm writing about politics on Medium and Substack.

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      2. 92

         Kenna McHughposted 2 months agoin reply to this

         How frustrating!!! Editors and staff need some recourse in place.

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      3. 69

         Miebakagh57posted 2 months agoin reply to this

         That's awful or terrible.

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      4. 90

         wpcooperposted 2 months agoin reply to this

         Yes sometimes the article is written in a way on purpose. It may not be editorially acceptable but it is a work of art in itself. I've had things removed because they might be offensive to some but are actually very innocuous. I've had other references removed and such

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2. 92

   Kenna McHughposted 2 months ago

   Your guess is better than mine. She lives in Seattle, Washington. I can remember where she lives but not her name.

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   1. 69

      Miebakagh57posted 2 months agoin reply to this

      Kenna, the Samantha Cubbison I had in mind lives Oakland, California.

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      1. 92

         Kenna McHughposted 2 months agoin reply to this

         Okay. It must have been someone else editing my work.

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         1. 95

            PaulGoodman67posted 2 months agoin reply to this

            I believe that Samantha's role was dealing with the HP community, I don't think she was an editor.

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            1. 69

               Miebakagh57posted 2 months agoin reply to this

               Perhaps like a laison officer? Or like Matt Wells?                                  Don't the later ever edited articles, even if it were not his specific function? Seems all hubpages editors got their input from Matt?

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            2. 92

               Kenna McHughposted 2 months agoin reply to this

               That's right.

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3. 69

   Miebakagh57posted 2 months ago

   That's great.

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4. 82

   Genna Eastposted 2 months ago

   It happened to one of mine.  I have a naive question -- what is "AI editor"?

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   1. 93

      WriterJanisposted 2 months agoin reply to this

      Basically artificial intelligence versus a real person.

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5. 69

   Miebakagh57posted 2 months ago

   I read somewhere else an actor-influecer,an oscar winner, torn to piece, an AI edited or generated speech half way during a function.                                                 Many mwadays aqe getting the gist to do away with AI.

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