Wikipedia news stories on Newser

First 'Wikipedia Town' Launches in Wales

Fri, 18 May 2012 16:30:05 CDT

A small Welsh town where English King Henry V was born is about to make history again by becoming the world's first "Wikipedia town." Starting tomorrow, visitors will be able to use smartphones to scan bar codes at points of interest in Monmouth, instantly bringing up a Wikipedia page about...

What's It Take to Get a Wikipedia Page? Try $300

Dustin Lushing — Sat, 05 May 2012 07:20:10 CDT

If you're important enough to warrant your own Wikipedia page, it should, in theory, just kind of appear on its own. But sometimes, giving it a $300 nudge doesn't hurt. Two Brooklyn entrepreneurs charge that much to craft an in-depth entry for you or your business on the free online...

Gingrich Aide Defends Edits in Wikipedia

Neal Colgrass — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 16:08:05 CST

Notice that Newt Gingrich's image on Wikipedia has gotten cleaner lately? The site's editors raised a fuss over it—and Gingrich's communications director, who made the changes, issued a statement defending them. "I stopped making direct edits in May 2011 because I was alerted to the [conflict of interest] rules,...

SOPA Protest Hails Web's 'Coming of Age'

Matt Cantor — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 07:54:14 CST

Yesterday, we witnessed the power of the Internet to influence policy, as countless websites went dark to protest SOPA and PIPA. It did the job: Congress faced an onslaught of complaints about the controversial online piracy measures—which were born of traditional lobbying and heavy corporate spending, writes James Temple...

Wikipedia Editors Blast Blackout

Kate Schwartz — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 08:46:19 CST

Switzerland: It's not just an entry on Wikipedia—it's what some volunteer editors would like to be in the SOPA ruckus. In a word, neutral. In light of today's SOPA/PIPA blackout , the AP speaks with editors who aren't too pleased with the site's foray into advocacy, which they believe undermines...

Websites Go Dark to Protest SOPA

Rob Quinn — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 07:52:23 CST

Even the LOLcats are going on strike. The "Cheezburger Network" is among an estimated 7,000 websites shutting down today to protest two Internet-regulation bills making their way through Congress, the Washington Post reports. Wikipedia went dark at midnight Eastern time and was soon joined by Reddit, Raw Story, WordPress,...

Wikipedia to Go Dark in SOPA Protest

Kevin Spak — Mon, 16 Jan 2012 14:13:28 CST

"Student warning! Do your homework early. Wikipedia protesting bad law on Wednesday!" With that tweet, issued earlier today, Jimmy Wales revealed that Wikipedia will be joining up with Reddit, I Can Haz Cheezburger, and several other websites in their Jan. 18 protest against the Stop Online Piracy Act . Wikipedia's English-language...

Vatican Lifts Bios for New Cardinals From ... Wikipedia

Evann Gastaldo — Mon, 09 Jan 2012 08:21:05 CST

Well, this is embarrassing: The Vatican was recently caught lifting biographical information for its own cardinals from Wikipedia. The biographies for 22 new cardinals appointed Friday were sent to journalists, who noticed that the information had been taken from the Italian-language version of Wikipedia with no attribution. The Guardian notes...

Reddit's Next SOPA Target: Paul Ryan

Matt Cantor — Fri, 30 Dec 2011 07:59:01 CST

Behold the power of Reddit: Users fuming over Paul Ryan's alleged support of a controversial online piracy bill have prompted a clarification from the congressman. "Contrary to false reports, Congressman Paul Ryan is not a cosponsor of HR 3261, the Stop Online Piracy Act," said a rep, though he stopped...