Wales: Wikipedia Changes Exaggerated

(NEWSER) - After riding its users to popularity, Wikipedia is now moving to rein them in, the New York Times reports, by mandating editorial review for articles about living people. The feature, called “flagged revisions,” means an experienced editor will check updates to the free, user-generated online encyclopedia. The change should take effect within weeks, says the nonprofit board that governs the site. More»

Online encyclopedia struggling to find fresh blood, says Jimmy Wales

(NEWSER) - Wikipedia is in danger of wasting away as contributors jump ship and aren't replaced by new ones, founder Jimmy Wales says. "We are not replenishing our ranks," he tells the AP . "It is not a crisis, but I consider it to be important." Wales—who describes the average contributor as "a 26-year-old geeky male" who eventually moves on to other things—says the online encyclopedia is working to simplify its "convoluted" editing procedures to keep contributors on board. More»

Co-founder axes images, complaints erupt

(NEWSER) - Wikipedia's founders are battling against contributor objections to ax images they believe are pornographic from Wiki sites. Wikimedia Commons, a media file used by Wikipedia, last week deleted hundreds of images after co-founder Jimmy Wales said many of them appealed "solely to prurient interests." The action followed estranged Wiki co-founder Larry Spanger's complaints to the FBI that Wikimedia was "knowingly distributing child pornography," reports the BBC . But Wales reinstated some images following contributor complaints that the decision was made too quickly and without consultation. More»

Site considers blocking users from direct edits

(NEWSER) - The greatly exaggerated deaths of Sens. Robert Byrd and Ted Kennedy last week on Wikipedia has sparked a push for a radical change in how the site's information is edited, Wired reports. The edits, traditionally open to all users, gave the false impression that both lawmakers had died. Founder Jimmy Wales is calling for "flagged revisions" which would ensure that changes made by unregistered users are first reviewed by editors before they appear on the site. More»

Site struggles with funding, charges of impropriety

(NEWSER) - Forget dot-com excesses: A piece of printer paper taped to the door and cut-price desks and chairs from eBay and Craigslist are all that distinguish the new San Francisco office of the nonprofit that runs Wikipedia. "We are about as unsophisticated as we could possibly be," its executive director told the LA Times. Facing new claims of impropriety by its founder, Wikipedia is undergoing a crisis of both finance and confidence. More»