List of Wikipedia controversies: Difference between revisions
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Revision as of 17:01, 15 April 2013
Ever since its launch in January 2001, Wikipedia's open nature has led to various concerns, such as the quality of writing,[1] the amount of vandalism, and the accuracy of information. The media have been drawn to cover various controversial events related to Wikipedia, owing to either articles containing false or inconsistent information, or some of the personalities associated with Wikipedia becoming embroiled in contentious behavior.
2005
- September 2005 – The Seigenthaler incident,[2] was a series of events that began in May 2005 with the anonymous posting of a hoax article in the online encyclopedia Wikipedia about John Seigenthaler, a well-known American journalist. The article falsely stated that Seigenthaler had been a suspect in the assassinations of U.S. President John F. Kennedy and Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy. Then 78-year-old Seigenthaler, who had been a friend and aide to Robert Kennedy, characterized the Wikipedia entry about him as "Internet character assassination".[3] The hoax was not discovered and corrected until September 2005, after which Seigenthaler wrote about his experience in USA Today.
2007
- March 2, 2007 – The Essjay controversy was an incident concerning a prominent Wikipedia participant and salaried Wikia employee, known by the username Essjay,[4] who later identified himself as Ryan Jordan. Jordan held trusted volunteer positions within Wikipedia known as "administrator", "bureaucrat", "arbitrator", and "mediator". On July 24, 2006, a thread titled "Who is Essjay?" (later retitled "Who is Essjay?, Probably he's Ryan Jordan" after Jordan's self-disclosure) was started on forum site Wikipedia Review,[5] the ensuing discussion bringing to light the contradictions, yet five days later The New Yorker published an interview with the "professor".[6] Wikipedia Review found definitive proof that Jordan made false claims about his academic qualifications and professional experiences on his Wikipedia user page.
2009
- February 2009 – In February 2009, Scott Kildall and collaborator Nathaniel Stern created Wikipedia Art,[7] a performance art piece as a live article on Wikipedia. Site editors quickly concluded that the project violated Wikipedia's rules and opted to delete it 15 hours after it was initially posted. A month later, Kildall and Stern received a letter from a law firm representing the Wikimedia Foundation, claiming the domain name, wikipediaart.org, infringed on their trademark.[8] The ensuing controversy was reported in the national press.[9] Wikipedia Art has since been included in the Internet Pavilion of the Venice Biennale for 2009.[10] It also appeared in a revised form at the Transmediale festival in Berlin in 2011.[11]
See also
References
- ^ "Wikipedia:About – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia". English Wikipedia. Retrieved 2012-07-05.
- ^ Cohen, Noam (August 24, 2009). "Wikipedia to Limit Changes to Articles on People". The New York Times. Retrieved April 7, 2012.
- ^ Seigenthaler, John. "A false Wikipedia 'biography'." USA Today. November 29, 2005. Retrieved on September 14, 2009.
- ^ See: Wikipedia userpage of Essjay
- ^ "Who is Essjay?, Probably he's Ryan Jordan"
- ^ Schiff, Stacey. "Know it all: Can Wikipedia conquer expertise?", The New Yorker, July 31, 2006.
- ^ "Wikipedia Art". Wikipedia Art. 2011. Retrieved 3 March 2011.
- ^ "Giga Law Firm Letter" (PDF). Wikipedia Art. 2011. Retrieved 3 March 2011.
- ^ Mijuk, Goran (2009, July 29). "The Internet as Art". Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 3 March 2011.
{{cite news}}: Check date values in:|date=(help) - ^ Bruce, Sterling (2009, May 30). "The Internet Pavilion at the Venice Biennale". Wired. Retrieved 3 March 2011.
{{cite news}}: Check date values in:|date=(help) - ^ "Transmediale: Open Web Award 2011 Nominees Announced!". Transmediale. 2011. Retrieved 3 March 2011.