Talk:List of Eastern Bloc agents in the United States

Untitled

This list must be checked for consistency with other WP articles and reduced. Biophys 04:05, 24 May 2007 (UTC)

Agree to a certain extent but sometimes it should go the other way where persistent defenders are trying to maintain a shadow of doubt in the article but haven't twigged to the existence of the list where well established guilt is accepted. TMLutas 18:43, 31 July 2007 (UTC)

All red links should be sourced in the list

I assume the blue links are sourced in the corresponent articles. All red links should be sourced in the list Alex Bakharev 01:14, 25 May 2007 (UTC)

O'K, I will do it ASAP. These references are easy to find.Biophys 02:05, 25 May 2007 (UTC)

I have removed a few unreferenced redlinks, please, please reference the other Alex Bakharev (talk) 03:57, 27 June 2008 (UTC)

Louis Adamic a Soviet agent?

Adamic was accused of being a spy, but I'm not aware that this was ever corroborated, and he was certainly never convicted. The Wikipedia article on Adamic does not mention any treason or spying. It seems to me that no one should be listed as a Soviet Agent without a great deal of evidence and some degree of consensus among historians. This seems especially true of a significant figure like Adamic, since the accusation tends to bring his beliefs and causes (e.g., cultural pluralism) into disrepute. Bartokian (talk) 19:23, 25 June 2009 (UTC)

I should add that the rap against Adamic (again, as far as I know) comes from a single 1945 FBI deposition by Elizabeth Bentley (see Haynes and Klehr, Venona: Decoding Soviet Espionage in America, p. 371, n. 1). To me, that does not seem definitive proof, sufficient to state categorically, as this list page does, that a person was a spy. It isn't as if Adamic's name came up in a Venona cable. Witnesses were sometimes mistaken--as was the FBI sometimes, for that matter. Bartokian (talk) 19:40, 25 June 2009 (UTC)

Mistakes

Article calls "Soviet agents" but it also lists Warshaw pact countries agents which is not the same. Also there is no mentioning that this list is not complete. Which is oibvious, but not for liberals ;-).--Oleg Str (talk) 12:34, 29 July 2009 (UTC)

• These lists are not credible.

minimal—virtually no—supporting references

individuals are listed in multiple groups

the groups have no associated time frame

names are not listed alphabetically

Elizabeth Bentley is NOT in Silvermaster group & IS in Sound/Myrna DEddy (talk) 01:39, 19 April 2010 (UTC)

Severe NPOV issues

This is partly an WP:NPOV issue and partly a matter of citation and original research. NPOV occurs where the contributor to the article assumes that Person X is a Soviet agent because one or more uncorroborated accusation has been made against that person. I suspect, too, that one or more contributors has concluded that since Person Y was shown to hold communist views or belong to the Communist Party USA, that Person Y "must" be a Soviet agent. That, too, is often (but not always) incorrect. This is an encyclopedia, and requires citation. Citation cannot merely be to "Whittaker Chambers said John Doe was a spy." That citation is merely to Whittaker Chambers' opinion or allegation. Citations must point to court convictions, spy exchanges, historical consensus, or evidence (e.g., Venona transcripts, independent documents, etc.). Where there is still dispute over a dead person's status as a spy, the person probably should be included here but the text of the list should make mention of this dispute and provide citations and explanation (preferably in the text, but definitely in a footnote). For living people, there is no discusion: WP:BLP requires the highest level of care, citation, and proof. - Tim1965 (talk) 14:51, 27 November 2010 (UTC)

Strong agreement that this article is seriously distorted. Just because someone's name appears in VENONA cable traffic does not show or prove they were "under control" of Soviet Union. DEddy (talk) 21:29, 27 November 2010 (UTC)

• We have articles about almost every person in this list where they are described as "Soviet agents". If not, let's fix it. My very best wishes (talk) 05:22, 6 September 2012 (UTC)

Definition of "under control"?

I'd like to see the definition—and proof—of "under control" as offered in the opening paragraph. This is classic 1950s McCarthy era language that made for great stories & the classic movie "Manchurian Candidate". Was there ever reputable evidence that it actually meant something? DEddy (talk) 03:44, 30 November 2010 (UTC)

Move

I realize that this article was moved. Why? It includes only people definitely identified as Soviet agents in multiple reliable sources (usually books), Western and Russian. Note that a lot of them are considered heroes in Russia. If there are concerns about sourcing any specific person, please tell who that is, and let's fix the problem. The list of people only accused of espionage would be much bigger. Thanks, My very best wishes (talk) 05:07, 6 September 2012 (UTC)

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