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A cabal is a number of people united in some close design, usually to promote their private views and interests in a church, state, or other community, often by intrigue. On Wikipedia the term is often used loosely to describe real or imagined collectives of users who have chosen to group inside or outside of the mainspace or Wikipedia: project space in order to pursue an interest. Whether any given cabal actually exists usually is impossible to determine conclusively. Often the existence of a cabal is posited by a group (dare one say, cabal) holding opposite views to those of the supposed cabal.
Cabals can be roughly divided into four or five (or maybe six, or more) types:
Secret cabal - This type of cabal is restricted in its membership and secretive about its functions or existence. The aims of such groups may be disruption of the project, promotion of its members to become Wikipedia functionaries, or canvassing and/or meatpuppetry and/or tag teaming, possibly to impress a specific point of view on the encyclopedia. While conspiracy theories abound about how much influence such groups have over the encyclopedia, social groups are a fact of life, and some users have been known to use off-wiki means (IRC, e-mail, external websites, etc.) to coordinate their actions on-wiki.
Leet cabal - This type of cabal has had the most discussion on Wikipedia.[citation needed] In August 2005, a group was formed called Esperanza with the idea of fellowship and strengthening WikiLove.[1] The main concern about Esperanza was that it was bureaucratic and elitist and this was a strong concern when the group was brought to Mfd.[2] In December 2006, the group was disbanded.
Joke cabal - Wikipedia is often accused of operating hierarchical cabals which most editors would not know the existence of. To satirize the theory a number of editors formed joke cabals. Some examples are The Bathrobe Cabal, The Rouge Admin Cabal and The Penguin Cabal. They can offer light relief to editors especially after periods of heavy editing.
Secret page cabal - This is a variety of joke cabal where users create secret pages on their user talk pages. Typically with a statement saying "wow, you've found my secret page and add your signature." or suchlike. The issue was raised at Mfd Secret Pages and it was deemed that every secret page should be judged on its own merits. Wikipedia is not Myspace is the most relevant Wikipedia policy on whether such activity has a place on Wikipedia.
Dadaist cabal - This cabal is one that some people take seriously as a threat (or benefit) to Wikipedia, while others consider the proposition that such a cabal exists to be prima facie absurd.
Conclusion
Whether secret or leet cabals exist or not they are a bad thing because they exclude editors.[O RLY?– discuss] Joke cabals and secret page cabals are generally tolerated until they affect the project, at which point the matter often is taken up at one of the administrative noticeboards. Wikipedia pages used by individuals who are solely here to socialize, not contribute, may be raised at WP:MFD.
^ "This highlights a perennial and worrying problem about Esperanza: that they constantly set themselves apart. They say they give Wikipedians hope – but who has any interaction with Esperanza who isn’t Esperanzan? Why is there even a special term for someone who's in Esperanza? This organization ought to be deleted because they’re targeting new and vulnerable users, who then see everything on Wikipedia through green-tinted lenses, and it is not good. It does lead to superiority complexes, regardless of what the front page says. Esperanzans, at least the active ones, see themselves as Esperanzans first and foremost. We have to delete Esperanza for their own good, to show them what Wikipedia is like outside the wall of their sub-culture" (from the Esperanza MfD)
