Wikigate '07 - Much Ado About Nothing

The informational integrity of Wikipedia has long been debated throughout the ranks of academia, business communities, and the like. While some cynicism can be lent to the validity of the online reference guide's volume of information, today's blogosphere explosion may represent a bit of an overreaction. Or, to put it a little more bluntly, people are going out of their mind for no good reason over this whole Microsoft/Wikipedia thing. By the tone of all the articles I've read on the subject today, you would think that this whole thing is a conspiracy of epic proportions designed to brainwash citizens the world over with pro-Microsoft propaganda. The sensationalism throughout the headlines and articles on this non-event is bordering on ridiculous, even from the most liberal of journalistic standards. So, instead of offering up some hatemongering post designed to inspire fear and paranoia, I will present the facts of the matter, if nothing else for the sake of objectivity. Rick Jelliffe is the author in question whose services were requisitioned for the Wikipedia entry. Here are some his own Again, the whole arrangement seems perfectly legitimate with well-meaning intentions by Mr. Mahugh. These posts are not classified information. Everyone who has written about this story in the last 24-48 hours has either directly read or had a link to this information, but has conveniently chosen to either ignore the facts or embellish them in order to create a juicier headline. Unfortunately, Microsoft was pretty much in a no-win situation with this Wikipedia entry to begin with. By trying to outsource a neutral third party to correct the information, sensationalist writers automatically make snap analyses and throw around words like "conspiracy" and "corruption" like they are cheap candy. And if the company decided to edit the entry themselves? Of course, the very same writers would cry foul again, claiming that the information was biased and couldn't be verified as credible. Mostly, this whole thing just stinks. Perhaps we, as journalists, should be willing to admit that sometimes there is no story behind the story. Maybe we could even concede that sometimes things are what they seem. But then again, maybe I'm aiming just a little too high. Add to Del.icio.us | Digg | Reddit | Furl Joe is a staff writer for latest ebusiness news