Wikiality is the new reality: Wikipedia founder admits that Wikipedia is not objective

As fans of The Colbert Report know, Stephen’s feud with Wikipedia has been simmering ever since he introduced the concept of “Wikiality” (reality, or truth, based on popular consensus) back on July 31st, 2006. He was subsequently blamed as a “vandal” by many proponents of Wikipedia when nearly all entries referencing elephants were changed to reflect Stephen’s suggestion that the elephant population had tripled in the last ten years. On the January 29th, 2007 episode, Stephen’s WØRD was “Wikilobbying,” a reference to the mini-controversy surrounding Microsoft’s plan to pay for Wikipedia edits. Stephen used the opportunity to announce that “Reality has become a commodity” and, for a few moments, Wikipedia’s own “Reality” entry supported his statement. That entry, and many others, have been protected (at least temporarily) to prevent further Colbert-inspired tampering.

Given this history, I was amused to see this article about Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales in the BBC News. Although the feud between The Colbert Report and Wikipedia is not the focus of the article, these sections caught my eye:

Wikipedia’s idealism, that some would argue is essentially flawed in that verifiability and not “objective” truthfulness is the standard by which entries are judged, has been heavily lampooned on American television in the last few months, by the satirist Stephen Colbert.

In his persona as a polemical and bombastic news anchorman, Colbert lampooned the idea of allowing enthusiasts to form a consensus amongst themselves on what is fact, or not, coining the word “Wikiality”.

It has become a running joke, and the site’s administrators have intervened to stop some of the show’s fans from altering entries.

Unphased [sic]

Wales himself is unfazed by how easy it is for unregistered readers to make instant changes on Wikipedia – sometimes for the good, but often out of mischief. Constant upheaval and occasional “vandalism” of the site, is a price worth paying, he believes.

. . .

Ultimately however, some wonder whether the collectivist world of Wiki, might not become more and more untrustworthy and cultish as the web expands. It is a danger that Wales himself seems to be aware of.

Speaking at the University of Pennsylvania in June last year, he reportedly said that Wikipedia should not be used by college students to conduct serious research, and if students continue to believe in the objectivity of Wikipedia, they only have themselves to blame. [Emphasis added]

Full text of article

Sounds to me like Jimmy Wales just admitted to the truthiness of Wikiality.

Speaking of “Wikiality”, do we have any proof that Stephen Colbert is hosting the Grammy awards other than the Wikipedia entry (which, btw, has been modified to no longer include this information) yet? No? Yeah, that’s what I thought.

• Wikipedia’s “Colbert Alert” missed this one
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