In 20 years, Wikipedia has become an indispensable part of our daily lives. Gone are the World Book Encyclopedia of yesteryear. Jimmy Wales and Larry Sanger created a website where amateur and professional experts from all over the world can educate others through a living encyclopedia. Today, we open up an app on our phones and instantly have information on whatever topic comes to mind, however, dubious that information potentially may be.
Teachers everywhere warn you that the site is not a valid source for reports. Strict teachers tell you to avoid Wikipedia altogether and hit the library. More lenient teachers admit that Wikipedia is a valuable source, but should not be cited. They’re the ones who let you in one a secret: Wikipedia itself is not a reliable source, but Wikipedia’s sources found at the bottom of each article often are accurate sources. Do your due diligence on Wikipedia sources and you may be rewarded.
Wikipedia poses an uncomfortable conundrum. It is usually correct, yet anyone can edit unlocked pages and the hive mind can lead to articles filled with misinformation that isn’t always immediately corrected. Occasionally, those errors or jokes aren’t corrected quickly because Wikipedia editors don’t know any better. The only requirements to become a Wikipedia editor are dedication and time. The most horrifying example of a rogue editor occurred on Scots Wikipedia, which almost led to the wiki’s complete shut down, when someone who did not speak Scots created over 20,000 articles. Linguists are still concerned that the random American teenager may have harmed a language they are trying to prevent from dying and that is spoken by less than 2 million people, since language learners use Wikipedia as a tool and anyone using it to learn Scots would not have accurately learned the language.
While the Scots Wikipedia edits are serious, the site’s administrators know human nature combined with anonymity will lead to people vandalizing the website. Notably, “Weird” Al Yankovic and Atlantic Records had a falling out over a parody of James Blunt’s “You’re Beautiful” called “You’re Pitiful.” In his video for “White and Nerdy,” “Weird” Al jokingly vandalizes Atlantic Records’ Wikipedia page with “YOU SUCK,” an act that “Weird” Al fans repeated in real life so many times that Wikipedia still has the article semi-protected over 10 years later. Because the Wikipedia community has a good sense of humor, particularly funny or clever vandalism cases are moved to Silly Things or “Bad Jokes and Other Deleted Nonsense”, a separate wiki, and preserved for posterity and giggles.
Naturally, there are at-home comedians who don’t want to be banned from editing Wikipedia, so they find a home at Uncyclopedia or the more controversial Encyclopedia Dramatica; both wiki’s place total emphasis on funny and have no desire to educate the masses.
When the site isn’t a source for humor, it’s impact on the internet becomes clearer. TV Tropes, a wiki itself, has The Wiki Rule, which states that no matter how niche a topic is there is a wiki dissecting its every nuance. Diehard fans and wiki lovers have made sure that there are wikis dedicated to Star Wars, Star Trek, Lady Gaga, Katy Perry, travel, and more. The Wikimedia Foundation also hosts other wikis dedicated to quotes (Wikiquote), vocabulary (Wiktionary), and media in the Creative Commons (Wikimedia Commons).
Wikipedia turned 20 years old on January 15, 2020. However, like Google, it isn’t going anywhere. The internet without Wikipedia is now an unimaginable place. Whole Earth Catalog editor Stewart Brand said that information wants to be free and expensive. Those desires are at odds with each other, but the site has certainly contributed greatly toward making information free.
