Submitted by Roger Harris07.18.2008
Wikipedia may be rethinking its editing model. Rumor has it that the the online user-edited encyclopedia wants to prevent new edits from most users showing up on the site until someone with "authority" approves the edits.
According to a July 18 report in Techdirt, the system is currently being tested. One option is to color-code new edits until approval so that users can exercise caution before accepting the info as true. A similar plan was originally rolled out a year ago, so implementing the new system might be imminent.
The move seems to be a response to various scandals. For example, when an esteemed editor, thought to be a theology professor, turned out to be a fake.
But there is some resistance. Users object that "requiring approval before edits go live seems like it would take away much of the spirit that made Wikipedia what it is today." So maybe Wikipedia will see the light and junk the idea. Or maybe not.
The prediction is that Wikipedia will introduce some kind of approval system by the year's end. The prediction will be deemed to have come true whether it's a system requiring pre-approval or whether new edits will be color-coded. Any significant change to the present system will be considered a positive outcome of this prediction.
Suggested Odds50.00%
Prediction Close Date:12.31.2008 (EST)
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Comments
Here's the Techdirt article: http://techdirt.com/articles/20080717/1906271714.shtml
I like the suggestion.
"The move seems to be a response to various scandals. For example, when an esteemed editor, thought to be a theology professor, turned out to be a fake."
How would Wikipedia's proposed change help prevent the described problem? If he was an esteemed editor he'd likely be on the approved authority list. Wouldn't that just make the scandal (to the extent it was one) that much worse?
Good point Bradley.
That's the conundrum Wikipedia faces. Hence it's not a foregone conclusion that they will introduce an approval system. It rather negates the open source character of Wikipedia. Yet, how do they keep out the fraudsters?
Tough call, I'd say. That's why I posted the prediction!
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