If You Edit the King, You Best Not Miss
Governments and media figures alike have often been at odds with Wikipedia in recent months. The latest chapter involves a 17th Century king, an irate businessman, and the Stonehenge of data centers.
đ° In the News
Germany shuts down 'libel tourism' case, enhances editor protections
"Libel tourism"âthe practice of looking for a favorable venue to sue when someone publishes something about you that you don't likeâis a big problem for anyone in the media business, and Wikipedia is no exception. Controversial Pakistani businessman Shoaib Ahmed Shaikh, unhappy with his Wikipedia coverage, went so far as to rent offices in Germany to hopefully create legal standing to sue the Wikimedia Foundation (WMF) over his depiction on the encyclopedia. The Berlin civil court in which Shaikh filed ruled against the WMF in past casesâbut not this time.
In a celebratory announcement from the WMF legal team, the court ruled Germany was not the right venue for the suit because Shaikh neither actually resided there nor had significant ties to the country. It also noted the Wikipedia article content had nothing to do with Germany. Now there is a precedent, at least in Deutschland: if youâre forum shopping for a friendly jurisdiction to sue the WMF, youâll have to go elsewhere.
đ Wiki Briefing
King me: Indian film Chhaava leads to massive Wikipedia dispute
While an Indian court case targeting Wikipedia editors for political speech continues, Hindu elites are trying to make Wikipedia reflect their preferred narrative. In February, a new film about the life of 17th Century Indian king Sambhaji released, leading to a 340% increase in views of his Wikipedia article. An important figure in Hindu nationalism, alleged slights to Sambhajiâs character are not taken well by his followers. Subsequent debates raged between pro-Sambhaji editors and those who favored an academic point of view of the kingâs life.
Eventually, the Cyber Cell of the Maharashtra Police started building a case against a handful of editors after failing to hear back from the Wikimedia Foundation about their complaints. One Wikipedia user later reverted their edits following "legal issues" they experienced. Others suggested that the user be banned from editing about Sambhaji to protect English Wikipedia's integrity. It's the latest in a long line of efforts by the powerful of India to twist Wikipedia to suit their vision, and it wonât be the last
đ Research Report
Unequal Wiki coverage of gender driven by three key factors
A recent study by researchers at the University of Barcelona examined the past 15 years of scientific literature on Wikipedia's gender gap in both participation in editing and representation in articles. While many studies have identified various factors in isolation, these researchers found three common factors: women are less likely to contribute because they have comparatively less technical skill and higher standards for publishing; that articles about women and gender-nonconforming people are far less common due to longtime exclusion from academic and popular media sources, and that Wikipedia's culture and policies favor established editors (largely men) and are unwelcoming to newcomers.
English Wikipedia has been aware of this problem for years and established Women in Red in 2015, a group dedicated to closing the gap in biographical representation of women, to combat it. In December, Women in Red celebrated reaching the milestone of 20 percent of biographies on Wikipedia being about women.
𧩠Wikipedia Facts
Today, March 19, Wikipedia briefly went read-onlyâmeaning the encyclopedia anyone can usually edit was, in fact, editable by no one. It wasn't caused by the solar equinox, but the celestial event coincides with the twice-per-year switchover of the primary datacenter to perform needed maintenance. According to The Signpost, Wikipedia's internal newspaper, the switchovers always happen on the Wednesday of the week of the solar equinoxes, chosen because they have been a constant for all of humanity's existence.
đĄ Tips & Tricks
Programmer Maya Claire has created a brand-new way to explore Wikipedia: by turning articles into virtual museum exhibits. Pick a random article or choose a topic you're interested in, and start exploring the Museum of All Things (available as a free download on itch.io).
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