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

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EVERYTHING YOU WANTED TO KNOW ABOUT WIKIPEDIA BUT WERE TOO EMBARRASSED TO ASK

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MY CREDENTIALS

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The Continental Pool Lounge Arlington, Virginia 2007

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16 That’s how many years I’ve been helping clients navigate Wikipedia.

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5 That’s how many services I offer. 1. Create 2. Edit 3. Consult 4. Monitor 5. Train

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WHY WIKIPEDIA MATTERS

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Reason #1

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Reason #1

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Reason #2

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Reason #3

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The Bottom Line

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THE 6 CRITERIA FOR SOURCING

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Pillars Policies Guidelines RULES STANDARDS BEST PRACTICES

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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

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“Unreliable”

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MEDIA COVERAGE

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Are you “notable”? Create Edit Are your sources “reliable”?

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CRITERION #1 Your Media Coverage Must Come From a Media Outlet

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“Unreliable”

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No content

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“Unreliable”

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Q&A

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Q&A Press Release

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WAIT!

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“Are you saying there’s a blanket ban on all Q&As?”

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Interview “I employ 600 people.” Q&A “I employ 600 people.” Reported Article “According to Rick, he employs 600 people.”

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WAIT!

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“Does this mean that all broadcast hits are useless?”

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Television

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Podcasts

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Interviews Reportage

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YES, BUT

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No content

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CRITERION #2 Both the Outlet and the Content Must Be Independent From You

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FreeEnterprise.com O utlets

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Content

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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.

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CRITERION #3 The Media Outlet Must Be Notable

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ARLnow.com Patch Local Pubs

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The Executive Communication Report The Washington Business Journal P.R. Daily Nextgov Trade Pubs

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WAIT!

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“Trades are arbiters of the given trade; nobody knows me better than my peers.”

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The cadre of news outlets that collectively make up the mainstream media are classified green for reliable. Here are 26 such outlets. • A.B.C., the B.B.C., C.B.S., C.N.N., M.S.N.B.C., N.B.C., N.P.R. • A.F.P., the Associated Press, Reuters • The Atlantic, the Economist, New York, the New Yorker, Time, Vanity Fair • Axios, Slate, Vox • The Globe and the Mail, the Financial Times, the Los Angeles Times, the New York Times, U.S.A. Today, the Washington Post, the Wall Street Journal

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The Mainstream Media

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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”

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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”

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CRITERION #4 The Coverage Must Focus on You

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3,500 Words 6,000 Words 11,000 Words Individuals

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3,500 Words 4,000 Words 9,000 Words Companies

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“What about an article that quotes me — even extensively — or cites my work?” WAIT!

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CRITERION #5 Your Coverage Must Be Available Online

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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”

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CRITERION #6 Your Coverage Must Be Sustained

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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”

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“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”

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APPENDIX A Cheat Sheet

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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?

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Let’s Recap Criterion #1: Your media coverage must come from a _____ outlet. 1/6

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Let’s Recap Criterion #1: Your media coverage must come from a media outlet. 1/6

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Let’s Recap Criterion #2: Both the outlet and the content must be ___________ from you. 2/6

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Let’s Recap Criterion #2: Both the outlet and the content must be independent from you. 2/6

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Let’s Recap Criterion #3: The media outlet must be _______. 3/6

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Let’s Recap Criterion #3: The media outlet must be notable. 3/6

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Let’s Recap Criterion #4: The coverage must focus on ___. 4/6

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Let’s Recap Criterion #4: The coverage must focus on you. 4/6

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Let’s Recap Criterion #5: The coverage must be available ______. 5/6

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Let’s Recap Criterion #5: The coverage must be available online. 5/6

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Let’s Recap Criterion #6: The coverage must be _________. 6/6

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Let’s Recap Criterion #6: The coverage must be sustained. 6/6

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QUESTIONS YOU DIDN’T KNOW WERE QUESTIONS

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QUESTION #1 Isn’t Media Coverage a Flawed Gold Standard?

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📝 Editors ⚖ Lawyers 🎯 Fact Checkers

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QUESTION #2 Can I Work on a Page for a Client (or, for That Matter, My Employer)?

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QUESTION #3 Must I Subject Myself to the Disclosure Gauntlet?

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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