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Wales: Wikipedia Changes Exaggerated

Only a few posts will be delayed for approval

By Nick McMaster, Newser Staff

Posted Sep 30, 2009 5:30 PM CDT

(Newser) – Wikipedia's editorial changes aren't so sweeping after all, says co-founder Jimmy Wales. Reports that the open-source encyclopedia would restrict edits to entries on all living people are “just completely wrong," he tells Time. Instead, the site will adopt “flagged revision”—in which edits are checked by a Wikipedia veteran before being posted—but only for a small number of articles selected on a case-by-case basis.

Think Barack Obama, George W. Bush, and Britney—entries prone to hoaxes. Users can still recommend changes; they just won't see the light of day until approved. For all other entries, it's business as usual. Wales blamed the misinformation on Wikimedia’s fractured volunteer organization—in fact, a Wikimedia spokesman, when asked of Wales’ view of the policy, said it was “the first I’ve heard of it.”

Internet entrepreneur Jimmy Wales, the founder of Wikipedia, attends the iBreakfast forum on Tuesday, May 8, 2007 in New York. (AP Photo/Mark Lennihan)

Jimmy Wales, founder of Wikipedia, answers a question during an interview with the Associated Press Friday, June 29, 2007, in St. Petersburg, Fla. (AP Photo/Chris O'Meara)

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Wikipedia • Jimmy Wales • editor • open source • encyclopedia • Wikimedia

MOST POPULAR STORIES

[ By Views ]

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More Newser Stories

Wikipedia to Go Dark in SOPA Protest

Make sure you don't need to look anything up Wednesday

PR Firm Rewrites Clients' Wikipedia Entries

Wiki co-founder slams 'ethical blindness,' suspends writer access

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Online encyclopedia struggling to find fresh blood, says Jimmy Wales

Wikipedia Relaxes Editing Rules on Touchy Topics

Entries on George Bush, etc., more open

Porn Battle Rocks Wiki

Co-founder axes images, complaints erupt

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Newser By Users

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