Talk:Ruth Madoff

Did Ruth Madoff smoke cigarettes?

In Brian Ross's book, "The Madoff Chronicles", he talks about how "Little Rick" would go up to Spanish Harlem to score blow for the brokers/investment bankers and also marijuana for Ruth Madoff. My question: Did/does Ruth Madoff smoke cigarettes? She stayed remarkable trim all her life and is still quite trim (perhaps she is still smoking marijuana to deal with the mess), so it would make sense that she smokes. Does anybody know? If so, what brand? I haven't read all the books yet, so perhaps it is in one of those, or somebody who worked at Madoff Securities would know. Thanks in advance.Betathetapi545 (talk) 13:40, 24 March 2016 (UTC)

Doxing

By including her current address, this article effectively doxes her - and potentially subjects her to harassment for her late husband's crimes. I have removed the address from the page, and strongly suggest that it not be reverted. Steven Britton (talk) 17:33, 23 August 2021 (UTC)

I think it has happened again, so I will again remove that information. Furthermore, the source cited is a primary source that I think may also run afoul of policies against original research. Al83tito (talk) 07:08, 9 February 2023 (UTC)

@Scbritton @Al83tito The current revision of the article doesn't contain her address but it does specify who she lives with as of 2020, the property value, and her general location. I am personally of the opinion that the entire "Homes" section is written against the guidelines of BLP as it seems sensationalist and tabloid-esque to me. Would it not suffice to say, at the most, "Madoff has lived in several locations since the seizure of her assets in 2009 and currently resides with her former daughter-in-law in Connecticut" RookWeaver (talk) 18:26, 27 November 2023 (UTC)

@RookWeaver Thank you taking the time to look into this and assess quality. I think there have indeed been attempts to channel some grievances (which is understandable) by doxing or vilifying this person (which is unacceptable in Wikipedia). It is also understandable that people could doubt that she was unaware of her husband's shenanigans. Nevertheless, wittingly or unwittingly she did benefit from the ill-gotten wealth from her husband. So it is a fair journalistic and societal line of inquiry how much wealth is she enjoying after the conviction of her husband. On that light, noting in a biographical article what kinds of homes she lived in afterwards, is of interest. It just needs to be presented neutrally and without being vindictive. Wikipedia articles of celebrities do at times note the city of their residence, as well as its value. Ruth Madoff is not a celebrity in that sense, but a person of interest related to a financial fraud scandal.

So having said all this, my take is that the "Homes" section is not a blatant attack on her, but a somewhat detailed chronicle of what kinds of homes she has been living. It might have gotten a bit close to crossing the line, without doing so. I am inclined to say that the text can remain. However, I have never seen any other biographical article with a section just for "Homes". I think it could be best merged into one of the other existing sections, maybe under "Personal Life". I of course remain open to other considerations that I have not thought of. Al83tito (talk) 16:50, 28 November 2023 (UTC)

@Al83tito That sounds fair to me. I agree that having a separate section for it is unusual and I think it makes the information unnecessarily conspicuous, more like something in a tabloid and less like a dispassionate reflection of circumstances. I can work on integrating it into "Personal life" or "Assets" if you feel this is an appropriate change. RookWeaver (talk) 16:59, 28 November 2023 (UTC)

@RookWeaver Please go ahead, thank you! Al83tito (talk) 17:08, 28 November 2023 (UTC)