The Skate Question aims to make skateboarding research accessible without overstating findings, distorting historical records or turning a compelling story into an unsupported fact.
Questions before conclusions
Every series starts with a question and follows the most relevant available sources, rather than selecting evidence to support a predetermined answer.
An engaging question should invite curiosity, not disguise a conclusion. We acknowledge mixed, limited or absent evidence.
How we use sources
One Paper. One Question. We examine a peer-reviewed paper's questions, sample, methods, findings and limits; a single study is not universal proof.
Skate Facts. We distinguish historical documentation, later recollections and disputed accounts.
The Spot Files. We consider specific locations, communities, access and local historical contexts.
Skate or Fiction? We compare relevant evidence and distinguish supported, unsupported, mixed and unresolved claims.
Peer review is important for research claims but does not make a study immune to criticism. Primary records, testimony and reporting serve distinct purposes.
Citations, attribution and context
We identify the original research, authors and dates behind substantive claims. The Research Library will grow with individual posts.
We separate quotations and observations from our interpretations, acknowledge contradictory evidence and qualify conclusions when limitations matter.
Older foundational work and recent scholarship may both be relevant; relevance and quality matter more than a fixed publication-year cutoff.
Images, fieldwork and research integrity
We credit photographers, artists and archives and assess the permissions relevant to the intended use. Online availability alone is not permission to reproduce or alter an image.
Documentary photographs will not knowingly be misidentified. Illustrations, reconstructions and AI-generated images should be labelled when they could otherwise mislead readers.
We do not present invented interviews, fabricated quotations or synthetic fieldnotes as empirical evidence, and we consider privacy and consent when contributors are identifiable.
Independence and interests
The project is curated by Athanasios Tsipis. When his research or work with collaborators is discussed, that relationship will be identified.
Sponsorships, gifted products and relevant collaborations, if introduced later, should be disclosed. Editorial conclusions are not for sale.
The project does not represent a university, organisation or community unless explicitly authorised.
Corrections and reader challenges
We welcome evidence-based correction requests at theskatequestion@outlook.com. Include a link or title, the specific claim and relevant supporting sources.
When a substantive error is confirmed, we aim to update it visibly where practical: a revised caption, slide, correction note or replacement post.
Reasonable scholarly disagreement is not automatically a factual error. New evidence may justify a qualified or revised conclusion; a reply to every submission cannot be guaranteed.
AI assistance and accountability
AI-assisted tools may help with drafting, editing or production but do not constitute evidence. References and quotations must be verified against the original source.
We aim not to publish invented citations, synthetic empirical evidence or misleading depictions. Final editorial responsibility remains with the curator.
Visitors and privacy
Our privacy and cookie practices must be explained in an accurate notice based on the actual deployed website.
We welcome suggestions but cannot guarantee publication. Private correspondence will not be attributed or published merely because someone contacted us.