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[[File:Wikipedia logo.png|226x226px|Wikipedia - ''the free encyclopedia''|right|frameless]] | [[File:Wikipedia logo.png|226x226px|Wikipedia - ''the free encyclopedia''|right|frameless]] | ||
'''Wikipedia''' is | '''Wikipedia''' is a multilingual online encyclopedia created in 2001 by the [[bourgeois]] [[Libertarianism|libertarians]] [[Jimmy Wales]] and [[Larry Sanger]]. Wikipedia is maintained by a predominantly white male population, of which about 1% are responsible for 80% of edits. It has also been linked to corporate and governmental manipulation and [[Imperialism|imperialist]] agendas, including the [[United State Department of State|U.S. State Department]], [[The World Bank|World Bank]], and [[Central Intelligence Agency|CIA]].<ref name=":5">{{Web citation|author=[[Ben Norton]], [[Max Blumenthal]]|newspaper=[[The Grayzone]]|title=Meet Wikipedia’s Ayn Rand-loving founder and Wikimedia Foundation’s regime-change operative CEO|date=2020-06-11|url=https://thegrayzone.com/2020/06/11/meet-wikipedias-ayn-rand-loving-founder-and-wikimedia-foundations-regime-change-operative-ceo/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220816135825/https://thegrayzone.com/2020/06/11/meet-wikipedias-ayn-rand-loving-founder-and-wikimedia-foundations-regime-change-operative-ceo/|archive-date=2022-08-16|retrieved=2022-09-10}}</ref> | ||
Its popularity means that it | Its popularity means that it's a prime target for misinformation campaigns by state actors or corporate interests. This, in part, is the reasoning behind starting [[ProleWiki]]. | ||
Wikipedia uses the same software that ProleWiki and [[EcuRed]] | Wikipedia uses the same software that ProleWiki and [[EcuRed]] uses, called [[MediaWiki]]. | ||
== Concept == | == Concept == | ||
Wikipedia claims its main purpose | Wikipedia claims its main purpose to be:<blockquote>"benefit readers by acting as a '''widely accessible and free encyclopedia'''; a comprehensive written compendium that contains information on all branches of knowledge."<ref name=":3">{{News citation|newspaper=Wikipedia|title=Wikipedia:Purpose|url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Purpose|retrieved=2022-7-16}}</ref></blockquote>It further claims that it seeks to create the more expansive and widely-available encyclopedia ever to have been created, It further states:<blockquote>"The goal of a Wikipedia article is to present a neutrally written summary of [[Bourgeois media|existing mainstream knowledge]] in a fair and accurate manner with a straightforward, [[Bourgeois media|"just-the-facts style"]]. Articles should have an encyclopedic style with a formal tone instead of essay-like, argumentative, promotional or opinionated writing."<ref name=":3" /></blockquote>It also claims:<blockquote>"Wikipedia's content is governed by three principal core content policies - [[Liberalism|neutral point of view]], verifiability, and no original research."<ref name=":3" /></blockquote>However, these statement are all [[idealism]], considering the "mainstream" sources of knowledge are controlled almost totally by the [[Bourgeois media|capitalist media]], its users almost entirely come from [[Dictatorship of the bourgeoisie|liberal regimes]], and Wikipedia's policies permit capitalist groups to pay people to edit particular pages.<ref name=":4" /> | ||
== | == Bias == | ||
[[File:Wikipedia-biased-sources.png|alt=Screenshot of wikipedia sources many of which are anti-communist|thumb|Western | [[File:Wikipedia-biased-sources.png|alt=Screenshot of wikipedia sources many of which are anti-communist|thumb|Western anti-communist sources are prevalently used on English Wikipedia. ]] | ||
=== Administration and users === | === Administration and users === | ||
==== Founder Jimmy Wales ==== | ==== Founder Jimmy Wales ==== | ||
Wikipedia's founder, Jimmy Wales, is a self-described [[Ayn Rand]] [[Libertarianism|libertarian]] and [[Anarcho-capitalism|anarcho-capitalist]]<ref name=":5" /> who also | Wikipedia's founder, Jimmy Wales, is a self-described [[Ayn Rand]] [[Libertarianism|libertarian]]<ref name=":0">Sophia Norton and Max Blumenthal. </ref> and [[Anarcho-capitalism|anarcho-capitalist]]<ref name=":5" /> who also willfully participates in imperialist operations at the request of the US government. In a 2007 US Senate Committee, Wales stated: | ||
:I am grateful to be here today to testify about the potential for the Wikipedia model of collaboration and information sharing which may be helpful to government operations and homeland security.<ref | :I am grateful to be here today to testify about the potential for the Wikipedia model of collaboration and information sharing which may be helpful to government operations and homeland security.<ref name=":0" /> | ||
In addition to [[United States imperialism|U.S. imperialism]], Wales supported [[State of Israel|Israel]]'s bombing of [[Gaza Strip|Gaza]] in 2018.<ref name=":5" /> | In addition to [[United States imperialism|U.S. imperialism]], Wales supported [[State of Israel|Israel]]'s bombing of [[Gaza Strip|Gaza]] in 2018.<ref name=":5" /> | ||
While the website is technically managed by the Wikimedia foundation, it was created by Wales himself | While the website is technically managed by the Wikimedia foundation, it was created by Wales himself and he remains on the board of trustees<ref>[https://wikimediafoundation.org/profile/jimmy-wales/ Jimmy Wales profile]. Wikimedia Foundation.</ref> and is still seen as a "benevolent dictator, constitutional monarch, digital evangelist and spiritual leader".<ref>Noam Cohen. “[https://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/17/technology/17wikipedia.html Open-Source Troubles in Wiki World]”. ''New York Times'', 17 March 2008.</ref> | ||
====CEO Katherine Maher==== | ====CEO Katherine Maher==== | ||
Katherine Maher, the | Katherine Maher, the current CEO of the foundation, previously worked for the World Bank, specifically in the African and Middle-East divisions.<ref>[https://wikimediafoundation.org/profile/katherine-maher/ Katherine Maher profile]. Wikimedia Foundation.</ref> She also worked at the [[National Democratic Institute]] and is a fellow at the Truman National Security Project. In a June 2020 article from ''[[The Grayzone]]'', authors Ben Norton and Max Blumenthal delved deeper into Maher's connections to regime-change operatives and unearthed her whole résumé which links her to more imperialist organisations and institutes.<ref name=":0" /> In April 2017, she participated in a briefing for the U.S. State Department and appeared in a panel with the former director of the [[Central Intelligence Agency|CIA]] and NSA in 2018. She is now on the advisory board of the Open Technology Fund, which was created by CIA propaganda outlet [[Radio Free Asia]].<ref name=":5" /> | ||
In April 2017, she participated in a briefing for the U.S. State Department and appeared in a panel with the former director of the [[Central Intelligence Agency|CIA]] and NSA in 2018. She is now on the advisory board of the | |||
====User demographics==== | ====User demographics==== | ||
While Wikipedia boasts that anyone can contribute, in | While Wikipedia boasts that anyone can contribute, in truth only 1% of accounts are responsible for 80% of all edits.<ref>Grace Lisa Scott. [https://www.inverse.com/article/38302-wikipedia-one-percent “Wikipedia Study Reveals a Surprising Stat About Who Edits It”]. ''Inverse,'' 9 August 2017.</ref> Famously, the most prolific editor on Wikipedia (Steven Pruitt), who has edited 1/3rd of all articles, works for the US department of border control, with previous employment at the TSA and [[United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement|ICE]].<ref>http://archive.ph/ix7kx</ref> Other accounts in this 1% figure are people such as Philipp Cross, who posts without fail every single day from 6AM to 10PM, for an average of 30 edits.<ref>Craig Murray. [https://www.craigmurray.org.uk/archives/2018/05/the-philip-cross-affair/ “The Philip Cross Affair”], 18 May 2018.</ref> The user also mostly makes pro-war edits,<ref name=":2">Media Lens. [https://www.mintpressnews.com/phillip-cross-the-mystery-wikipedia-editor-targeting-anti-war-sites/250824/ “Phillip Cross: The Mystery Wikipedia Editor Targeting Anti-War Sites”]. ''Mint Press News,'' 17 October 2018.</ref> which highly suggests that the account is a [[sockpuppet]] managed by a whole governmental team, likely the British.<ref name=":2" /> | ||
Other accounts in this 1% figure are people such as | |||
====Administrators==== | ====Administrators==== | ||
Administrators on the site are editors with user-management powers (such as banning people, or preventing articles from being edited). In | Administrators on the site are editors with user-management powers (such as banning people, or preventing articles from being edited). In a perhaps lighter example, it was found in 2020 that Scots Wikipedia was almost solely edited and managed by a 19-year-old US citizen who was not a fluent speaker of Scots.<ref>Libby Brooks, Alex Hern. [https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2020/aug/26/shock-an-aw-us-teenager-wrote-huge-slice-of-scots-wikipedia “Shock an aw: US teenager wrote huge slice of Scots Wikipedia”]. ''The Guardian,'' 26 August 2020.</ref> He was responsible for defacing almost half of Scots Wikipedia, and it is interesting to see here how easily administrator privileges are given to random users by other administrators, suggesting a widespread problem in the hierarchy. There have been various examples in the past of administrators who used their privileges to prevent their articles from being edited (therefore presenting their biased opinion as fact), or even asking for payment to let an edit through. | ||
He was responsible for defacing almost half of Scots Wikipedia, and it is interesting to see here how easily administrator privileges are given to random users by other administrators, suggesting a widespread problem in the hierarchy. There have been various examples in the past of administrators who used their privileges to prevent their articles from being edited (therefore presenting their biased opinion as fact), or even asking for payment to let an edit through. | |||
Wikipedia is purposely kept difficult to edit (providing only a plain-text markup editor, resolving conflicts through talk pages that have been filling up since 2010, etc.) so that administrators, most of whom have been editing Wikipedia since it became famous in 2003, can keep problematic users out | Wikipedia is purposely kept difficult to edit (providing only a plain-text markup editor, resolving conflicts through talk pages that have been filling up since 2010, etc.) so that administrators, most of whom have been editing Wikipedia since it became famous in 2003, can keep problematic users out. | ||
Administrators are the supreme decision-making authority, making them very worthwhile friends to have. They are also not accountable to anyone and can freely pick new people to join their ranks. It is not rare for users going against the agenda set out by the administrators to simply be banned on frivolous grounds. Around | Administrators are the supreme decision-making authority, making them very worthwhile friends to have. They are also not accountable to anyone and can freely pick new people to join their ranks. It is not rare for users going against the agenda set out by the administrators to simply be banned on frivolous grounds. Around 1000 IP addresses are banned by Wikipedia administrators every day. There is little privacy and users may be traced and tracked by Wikipedia administrators.<ref>[http://fullmeasure.news/news/cover-story/the-dark-side-of-wikipedia “The Dark Side of Wikipedia”]. ''Full Measure,'' 21 August 2016.</ref> | ||
====Anonymous or non-prolific users==== | ====Anonymous or non-prolific users==== | ||
New users who do not take time to learn of the obscure templates, navigate through the very strict (and sometimes absurd) editorial guidelines or do not socialize with other users will often see their edits reverted in mere minutes, no matter how accurate or labour-intensive | [[File:Wikipedia paid-editor policy example..png|thumb|366x366px|Wikipedia permits people paid by pro-capitalist organizations to edit on their articles.<ref name=":4">{{News citation|newspaper=Wikipedia|title=Wikipedia:Paid-contribution disclosure|url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Paid-contribution_disclosure|retrieved=2022-6-28}}</ref>]] | ||
New users who do not take time to learn of the obscure templates, navigate through the very strict (and sometimes absurd) editorial guidelines or do not socialize with other users will often see their edits reverted in mere minutes, no matter how accurate or labour-intensive they are. | |||
The Wikimedia foundation will still claim that their encyclopedia is "community-created". This is mainly a convenient lie for Wales to make it seem like his libertarian principles can work on a large scale. This has prompted Ben Norton to call Wikipedia a scam<ref> | The Wikimedia foundation will still claim that their encyclopedia is "community-created". This is mainly a convenient lie for Wales to make it seem like his libertarian principles can work on a large scale. This has prompted Ben Norton to call Wikipedia a scam<ref>https://twitter.com/BenjaminNorton/status/1227725961975803905</ref> (in the interest of Jimmy Wales' bourgeois, libertarian interests). In truth, much like [[libertarianism]] itself, it remains controlled by corporate elites and imperialist organisations. | ||
=== | ===Sexism=== | ||
Women have been speaking about the sexism they faced on Wikipedia for many years, as about 90% of the user base is male (as per Wikipedia's own study).<ref>https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b7/LE15_Gender_overall_in_2018.png</ref> | |||
Women are generally discouraged from participating through widespread bullying and harassment.<ref>Emma Paling. [https://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2015/10/how-wikipedia-is-hostile-to-women/411619/ “Wikipedia's hostility to women”]. ''The Atlantic,'' 21 October 2015.</ref> Notably, several women were brought on board various projects aimed at reducing "gender bias" (Wikipedia's technical term for its sexist atmosphere), and all left after facing repeated harassment. This issue has been brought to the Wikimedia foundation's attention, to which founder Jimmy Wales responded, in one case: | |||
:“I’m afraid I don’t know enough about the specific details here to be able to make a meaningful comment.”<ref>https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/User_talk:Jimbo_Wales/Archive_178#Said_at_GGTF_arbitration</ref> | |||
Articles about famous women are often deleted or see their edits reverted, putting them off the spotlight. Edits by women themselves are often reverted as well, no matter how good the quality may be. | |||
=== Racism and white supremacy=== | |||
Since most Wikipedia editors are white, it follows that Wikipedia will promote white supremacist points. | |||
=== | ===Corruption=== | ||
Although Wikipedia purports to be a reliable and neutral source of knowledge, it has been mangled by several known cases of corruption, involving paid editors hired to whitewash their clients' reputation. Former lawyer, user '''edsussman''' has been hired by [[Meta Platforms, Inc.|Facebook]] PR, news companies Axios and [[National Broadcasting Company|NBC]] to tweak pages related to the respective client in a favorable manner, all while adhering to the rules of the site.<ref>Ashley Feinberg. [https://www.huffpost.com/entry/wikipedia-paid-editing-pr-facebook-nbc-axios_n_5c63321be4b03de942967225 “Facebook, Axios And NBC paid this guy to whitewash Wikipedia pages”]. ''The Huffpost,'' 14 March 2019.</ref> | |||
=== | ===Imperialist interests=== | ||
Wikipedia | Wikipedia, being a popular and trusted source of information, has often ben used by the US government to spread imperialist and anti communist propaganda while maintaining a veneer of independence and legitimacy [[File:Wikipedia imperialist censorship.png|alt=Wikipedia censorship of trustworthy news media.|thumb|These are news sources which Wikipedia considers unreliable. Highlighted in yellow are actually trustworthy sources of information which disputes the US imperialist propaganda narrative.]] | ||
===Bias by design=== | |||
Ultimately, Wikipedia is designed to promote imperialist interests; it naturally follows that Wikipedia will also promote white supremacist, anti-Semitic, fascist and sexist viewpoints in their articles. | |||
Not only are most edits made by accounts managed by/for corporations and government agencies, the whole website structure is made to keep this agenda in place and going strong. Yet the Wikimedia Foundation would like to make people believe that Wikipedia is edited by "anyone" and that every article is therefore trustworthy. | |||
====Congolese genocide denial==== | |||
The article on the genocide that happened in the Congo Free State<ref name=":1">https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Atrocities_in_the_Congo_Free_State&oldid=986289478<br>Quoting the article in question:<blockquote>''"The significant number of deaths under the Free State regime has led some scholars to relate the atrocities to later genocides, though understanding of the losses under the colonial administration's rule as the result of harsh economic exploitation rather than a policy of deliberate extermination has led others to dispute the comparison; '''there is an open debate as to whether the atrocities constitute genocide'''."''</blockquote>We have also a [https://prolewiki.org/images/6/61/Wikipedia_Congolese_genocide_denial.png full page print] if Wikipedia ever decides to take the article down. This cited quote was taken from the section ''Historiography and the term "genocide"''.</ref> (the Belgian colony of the Congo), is actually called ''Atrocities in the Congo Free State'', following a dispute between white and minority users over the previous name, ''Congolese Genocide''. | |||
User '''Brigade Piron''',<ref>https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/User:Brigade_Piron</ref> a white Belgian nationalist editor, claims that the term genocide is contested and currently, the article contradicts itself, first making it seem like the Congolese Genocide was caused mainly by disease, later saying it was caused by "harsh economic exploitation, rather than a policy of deliberate extermination".<ref name=":1" /> Most edits of the article come from another white European, user '''Indy Beetle''', from Switzerland.<ref>https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Atrocities_in_the_Congo_Free_State&offset=&limit=500&action=history<br>Contains more than 160 edits by Wikipedia user Indy Beetle.</ref> | |||
==Ties to | ==Ties to US government organizations== | ||
The Wikiscanner tracing program has revealed that the CIA and FBI edited Wikipedia articles on the [[Iraq War]] and [[Guantánamo Bay detention camp|Guantánamo Bay]] prison.<ref>{{News citation|author=Randall Mikkelsen|newspaper=[[Reuters]]|title=CIA, FBI computers used for Wikipedia edits|date=2007-08-16|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-security-wikipedia/cia-fbi-computers-used-for-wikipedia-edits-idUSN1642896020070816|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220411092828/https://www.reuters.com/article/us-security-wikipedia/cia-fbi-computers-used-for-wikipedia-edits-idUSN1642896020070816|archive-date=2022-04-11|retrieved=2022-05-24}}</ref> | The Wikiscanner tracing program has revealed that the [[Central Intelligence Agency|CIA]] and [[Federal Bureau of Investigation|FBI]] edited Wikipedia articles on the [[Iraq War]] and [[Guantánamo Bay detention camp|Guantánamo Bay]] prison.<ref>{{News citation|author=Randall Mikkelsen|newspaper=[[Reuters]]|title=CIA, FBI computers used for Wikipedia edits|date=2007-08-16|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-security-wikipedia/cia-fbi-computers-used-for-wikipedia-edits-idUSN1642896020070816|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220411092828/https://www.reuters.com/article/us-security-wikipedia/cia-fbi-computers-used-for-wikipedia-edits-idUSN1642896020070816|archive-date=2022-04-11|retrieved=2022-05-24}}</ref> | ||
===Funding=== | ===Funding=== | ||
In spite of Wikipedia systematically and regularly requesting its readers to donate | In spite of Wikipedia systematically and regularly requesting its readers to "donate," Wikipedia, along with its parent organisations, makes over $100 million each year, far more than the basic amount for its upkeep.<ref name=":5" /> Furthermore, the Wikimedia Foundation has ties with Western megacorporations, such as [[Amazon.com, Inc.|Amazon]],<ref>{{News citation|author=Andreas Kolbe|newspaper=Daliy Dot|title=Wikipedia is swimming in money—why is it begging people to donate?|date=2021-5-24|url=https://www.dailydot.com/debug/wikipedia-endownemnt-fundraising/|retrieved=2022-7-30|quote=Just five years later, the endowment passed $90 million, and the $100 million mark, now described as an “initial goal,” will be reached this year. Major donations from Amazon, Google, Facebook, and others have been supplemented by legacy gifts—and $25 million from the WMF itself. | ||
It’s noteworthy that money donated to the endowment is not included in the WMF’s reported net assets ($180 million as of last June) or annual revenue ($130 million). Money the WMF pays into the endowment, however, is recorded under expenditures (“Awards and Grants”). These two facts disguise that the WMF has effectively operated with a far larger surplus for the past five years than its financial statements indicate—they “only” show a $100 million increase in net assets over that time period. In reality, the WMF’s total funds have increased by twice as much. | It’s noteworthy that money donated to the endowment is not included in the WMF’s reported net assets ($180 million as of last June) or annual revenue ($130 million). Money the WMF pays into the endowment, however, is recorded under expenditures (“Awards and Grants”). These two facts disguise that the WMF has effectively operated with a far larger surplus for the past five years than its financial statements indicate—they “only” show a $100 million increase in net assets over that time period. In reality, the WMF’s total funds have increased by twice as much. | ||
The endowment is not the only money Wikimedia funnels to the Tides Foundation. Last year, when the WMF literally had more money than it knew what to do with, with community events canceled due to the pandemic, it transferred another $8.7 million to a new “Tides Advocacy” fund.}}</ref> and some of its largest donors are [[Google Inc.|Google]], [[Microsoft Corporation|Microsoft]], and [[Apple Inc.|Apple]].<ref name=":5" /> | The endowment is not the only money Wikimedia funnels to the Tides Foundation. Last year, when the WMF literally had more money than it knew what to do with, with community events canceled due to the pandemic, it transferred another $8.7 million to a new “Tides Advocacy” fund.}}</ref> and some of its largest donors are [[Google Inc.|Google]], [[Microsoft Corporation|Microsoft]], and [[Apple Inc.|Apple]].<ref name=":5" /> | ||
==References== | ==References== | ||
<references /> | <references /> | ||
==External Links== | |||
''please use these external links to improve this page'' | |||
*EcuRed ([https://www.ecured.cu/Wikipedia Spanish], [https://translate.google.com/translate?hl=en&sl=es&tl=en&u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.ecured.cu%2FWikipedia English auto translated)] ([[EcuRed|about]]) | |||
*[https://thegrayzone.com/2020/06/10/wikipedia-formally-censors-the-grayzone-as-regime-change-advocates-monopolize-editing/ Grayzone: «Wikipedia formally censors The Grayzone as regime-change advocates monopolize editing»] | |||
* https://www.cbsnews.com/news/meet-the-man-behind-a-third-of-whats-on-wikipedia/ (One person, who works at U.S. Customs and Border Protection "records and information", has edited ⅓ of English Wikipedia.) | |||
*http://helenofdestroy.com/index.php/49-wikipedia-rotten-to-the-core «Wikipedia : Rotten to the Core » ] | |||
[[Category:Wikis]] | [[Category:Wikis]] | ||
[[Category:Online encyclopedias]] | [[Category:Online encyclopedias]] | ||
[[Category:Capitalist progaganda]] | [[Category:Capitalist progaganda]] | ||