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Everything You Wanted to Know About Wikipedia B...

Everything You Wanted to Know About Wikipedia But Were Too Embarrassed to Ask

Here’s a paradox: Everyone wants a Wikipedia page for themselves, their C.E.O., or their organization, yet few people know what it takes to create one.

In this workshop, I’ll explain how to bridge that gap. Specifically, we’ll run down the six rules of Wikipedia sourcing.

Jonathan Rick

October 11, 2022
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Transcript

  1. 5 That’s how many services I offer. 1. Create 2.

    Edit 3. Consult 4. Monitor 5. Train
  2. Wikipedia: Neutral point of view Wikipedia: Verifiability Wikipedia: Reliable sources

    Wikipedia: Conflict of interest Wikipedia: Consensus Wikipedia: Biographies of living persons Wikipedia: Notability Wikipedia: Sock puppetry Wikipedia: Edit war W ikipedia: No original research Wikipedia: Wikipuffery Wikipedia: Advocacy Wikipedia: Articles for deletion Wikipedia: Citation overkill Wikipedia: Vandalism W ikipedia: Assum e good faith Wikipedia: What Wikipedia is not
  3. Q&A

  4. Interview “I employ 600 people.” Q&A “I employ 600 people.”

    Reported Article “According to Rick, he employs 600 people.”
  5. Forbes “The Forbes.com article, posted in 2013, praised Epstein as

    ‘one of the largest backers of cutting-edge science around the world’ while making no mention of his criminal past.
  6. To be part of the mainstream media, an outlet needs

    to do three things: 1. Employ editors. 2. Disclose conflicts of interest. 3. Issue corrections when it makes a mistake. “Reliable Sources”
  7. A reliable publication is reliable because it has a reputation

    for fact-checking and accuracy. In general, the more people who are engaged in the following three activities, the more that readers can trust that publication: 1. Checking facts. 2. Analyzing legal issues. 3. Scrutinizing the writing. “Reliable Sources”
  8. Wikipedia is what economists call a “lagging indicator.” A topic

    is Wikipedia-worthy only if the outside world has already taken notice of it. “No Original Research”
  9. Recentism occurs when a Wikipedia page has an inflated or

    imbalanced focus on recent events. A recentist page lacks a long-term, historical view. “Recentism”
  10. “Wikipedia’s stated goal is to be an encyclopedia, not a

    newspaper, which generally means the project should focus on the information that will be historically significant for the long term.” —STEPHEN HARRISON “Wikipedia Is Not a Newspaper”
  11. Source Significant? Independent? Reliable? Pass /Fail? Is the coverage of

    you in the given article significant? Being cited or even quoted a few times in an article is not particularly helpful. Being quoted extensively is better, but still not a deal maker. What you’re looking for are full-fledged profiles where you’re the focus. Is the publication completely independent from you? This rules out news releases, sponsored content, and Q&As. Does the publication have a reputation for fact- checking and accuracy? Does it employ editors, disclose conflicts of interest, and issue corrections when it makes a mistake?
  12. Source Significant? Independent? Reliable? Pass /Fail? Is the coverage of

    you in the given article significant? Being cited or even quoted a few times in an article is not particularly helpful. Being quoted extensively is better, but still not a deal maker. What you’re looking for are full-fledged profiles where you’re the focus. Is the publication completely independent from you? This rules out news releases, sponsored content, and Q&As. Does the publication have a reputation for fact- checking and accuracy? Does it employ editors, disclose conflicts of interest, and issue corrections when it makes a mistake? Remy Tumin, “How M.T.V. Broke News for a Generation,” New York Times, May 11, 2023. Yes Yes Yes Pass
  13. QUESTION #2 Can I Work on a Page for a

    Client (or, for That Matter, My Employer)?
  14. N.Y.P.D. Caught Trying to Edit “Police Brutality” Out of Its

    Wikipedia Page North Face Forced to Issue Grovelling Apology After It Was Caught Editing Wikipedia Pages to Boost Its Results on Search Sites Political Staffers Tried to Delete the Senate Scandal (and Other Bad Behavior) From Wikipedia Congress Banned From Editing Wikipedia After Staff Caught Trolling Senator Doug Mastriano Caught Editing Wikipedia Page With Sock-Puppet Accounts