User:Ahecht/A Ballad of the Simple Summaries Debate

ChatGPT summary of the discussion at Wikipedia:Village pump (technical)#Simple summaries: editor survey and 2-week mobile study.

A Ballad of the Simple Summaries Debate

Upon the village pump they came,

With hopes to spark the digital flame—

A simple box, a shortened tale,

Machine-made words that might prevail.

The Web Team wrote with earnest tone,

"A tool to help the readers roam.

A two-week test, a small debut,

A survey, too—we ask of you."

But thunder cracked from every side,

And editors, with furrowed pride,

Cried “Yuck!” and “No!” in chorus loud—

A storm of voices, strong and proud.

“Why must we ape what Google makes?

And risk the trust that’s ours to break?

A lead, well-crafted, serves us best—

Not AI's unverified jest.”

Some asked, “Can summaries help those

Who face long leads and language prose?”

Yet most declared, “It’s not the way—

Don’t sell our souls to Aya’s sway.”

The worries came in vivid streams:

Hallucinations, shattered dreams,

A brand once known for depth and care

Now risked a future built on air.

“Let’s fix the leads with human hands,

Not chase the trends from distant lands.

Don’t give the bots the writer’s role—

We’re stewards of a higher goal.”

Yet still some few, with cautious hope,

Explored how AI helps us cope.

“If well-reviewed, and rightly checked,

Could it assist—not just deflect?”

But voices rang, both far and wide:

“This isn’t something we can bide.

We write, we edit, we refine—

Wikipedia is by design.”

And so the talk went on for days,

In endless threads and winding ways.

But if one truth emerged from all:

Community must heed the call.

For in this tale of code and flame,

It’s not just bytes—but honor’s name.

A site of truth must not mislead—

Let humans still decide what’s read.