Wikipedia:Wikipedia Signpost/2015-09-30/In the media



Jim Walsh biography: Wikipedia's revenge?
In a follow-up to an earlier story describing how an IP traced to Ireland's legislature, the Oireachtas, had removed controversial content from the biography of Irish politician Jim Walsh (see previous Signpost coverage), the Irish Independent reports (Sept. 27) that Jim Walsh has admitted making the edits, saying he believed "a person from the gay lobby groups" had edited his biography.

More than half of Walsh's 950-word biography is currently focused on "controversies" relating to his views about gay marriage and civil partnerships, including a 90-word paragraph about his attempt to remove related material from his biography.

Walsh made his comments to the Sunday Times, which provided further examples of politicians editing their own entries. AK

The flat white
The Sydney Morning Herald reports (Sept. 27) on a long-running argument over whether the flat white was invented in Australia or New Zealand. The Wikipedia article has repeatedly flip-flopped between the two theories. The Herald quotes Australian Alan Preston complaining about his putative New Zealand adversaries:

Since the Herald article (also carried by other outlets including the Brisbane Times and goodfood.com.au) has appeared, there has been another flurry of edits in the article, and the Australian claim is – for now – in the ascendancy. AK

When trolls attack
Sports site Fansided reports (Sept. 24) on edits made to the Wikipedia biography of Lane Kiffin, repeating various rumors currently circulating in social media about Kiffin's private life and his continued employment as a member of the coaching staff for the University of Alabama's Crimson Tide football team.

Fansided's Stu White was not impressed: White also criticized some of the edits for their inherent sexism. AK

Non-profits, venues and businesses edit-a-thon in South Bend
The South Bend Tribune notes (Sept. 26) a Wikipedia editing event organized by the "South Bend Office of Innovation and enFocus, in partnership with the St. Joseph County Chamber of Commerce and University of Notre Dame Hesburgh Libraries".

The event, which took place this Tuesday, aimed "to teach residents how to edit Wikipedia pages to increase the representation of South Bend non-profits, venues, and businesses online".

Local TV station WSBT-TV covered the edit-a-thon (Sept. 29). AK 

In brief

 * Clinton Global Initiative: Wikimedia Foundation Executive Director Lila Tretikov was on the list of speakers for the Clinton Global Initiative (CGI) 2015 Annual Meeting (Sept. 26–29). AK
 * Wiki Loves Monuments: Israeli news site Arutz Sheva highlights (Sept. 27) the international Wiki Loves Monuments photo competition. Noting that upheaval like the current situation in Syria often leads to the destruction of heritage sites, Dror Lin of Wikimedia Israel explained to Arutz Sheva: "the images are meant to preserve our culture." AK
 * NSA lawsuit's day in court: Outlets including the Baltimore Sun, The Guardian and usnews.com report on the NSA lawsuit's first day in court (Sept. 25). The Obama administration has asked that the case, brought by a coalition of organizations including the Wikimedia Foundation, be dismissed, arguing that it was "speculative" and the plaintiffs lacked standing; lawyers representing the plaintiffs have asked the judge to rule against this request. The judge's ruling on the motion to dismiss is expected in a few weeks' time. The Wikimedia Foundation also provided a write-up on its blog (Sept. 28). AK

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