Wikipedia’s volunteer editors are fleeing online abuse. Here’s what that could mean for the internet (and you)

By Ivan Smirnov, University of Technology Sydney

We’re now sadly used to seeing toxic exchanges play out on social media platforms like X (formerly Twitter), Facebook and TikTok.

But Wikipedia is a reference work. How heated can people get over an encyclopedia?

Our research, published today, shows the answer is very heated. For example, one Wikipedia editor wrote to another:

i will find u in real life and slit your throat.

That’s a problem for many reasons, but chief among them is if Wikipedia goes down in a ball of toxic fire, it might take the rest of the internet’s information infrastructure with it.

The internet’s favourite encyclopedia

In some ways, Wikipedia is both an encyclopedia and a social media platform.

It’s the fourth most popular website on the internet, behind only such giants as Google, YouTube and Facebook.

Every day, millions of people worldwide use it for quick fact-checks or in-depth research.

And what happens to Wikipedia matters beyond the platform itself because of its central role in online information infrastructure.

Google search relies heavily on Wikipedia and the quality of its search results would decrease substantially if Wikipedia disappeared.

But it’s not just an increasingly authoritative source of knowledge. Even though we don’t always lump Wikipedia in with other social media platforms, it shares some common features.

https://twitter.com/Wikipedia/status/1724890297539121300?t=-6t4QVKXEpMIobRivmwfgg&s=19

It relies on contributors to create the content that the public will view and it creates spaces for those contributors to interact. Wikipedia relies solely on the work of volunteers: no one is paid for writing or editing content.

Moreover, no one checks the credentials of editors — anyone can make a contribution. This arguably makes Wikipedia the most successful collaborative project in history.

However, the fact that Wikipedia is a collaborative platform also makes it vulnerable.

A 2015 survey found 38% of surveyed Wikipedia users had experienced harassment on the platform.

What if the collaborative environment deteriorates, and its volunteer editors abandon the project?

Read Full Story https://theconversation.com/wikipedias-volunteer-editors-are-fleeing-online-abuse-heres-what-that-could-mean-for-the-internet-and-you-218517