Editor Emeritus of @wikisignpost, words @ElReg, @dailydot, quoted in @washingtonpost @Newsweek @thesundaytimes @Vice @Telegraph @Salon @Slate @lemondefr
Joined March 2012
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Andreas Kolbe retweeted
In the latest Signpost:
▸ Wikimedia staff demand voluntary union recognition, WMF refuses and insists on vote
▸ Is Larry Sanger the co-founder of Wikipedia?
▸ Meet the Wikimedians of the Year 2026
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipe…
Andreas Kolbe retweeted
In the new Signpost:
* Court orders redaction of Caesar DePaço article
* Most-translated article revealed as single largest self-promotion operation in Wikipedia’s history
* Mass use of checkuser tool by WMF employee triggers investigation, policy changes
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipe…
ALT David Woodard (Seattle, 2013) (by Barun H., CC BY-SA 3.0)
German Wikipedia articles – Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung says 20% are outdated, and a similar number contain errors of fact archive.md/U1UpS
Andreas Kolbe retweeted
A new Signpost is out!
* Saudi Wikipedian released from prison
* Wikimedia Foundation launches review of Wikipedias' NPoV (Neutral Point of View) policies
* Wikipedia probably not among the victims of Google's "AI Overviews"
and more:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipe…
ALT Osama Khalid and Ziyad Alsufyani (cropped) (by Fjmustak, CC BY-SA 4.0)
The War of Images. The German and Hebrew Wikipedias share the dubious distinction of showing no pictures of Palestinian suffering in their articles on the Gaza war. (The Arabic Wikipedia, conversely, shows no pictures of Israeli suffering.)
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Different languages, different images, different realities:
German: de.wikipedia.org/w/index.php…
Spanish: es.wikipedia.org/w/index.php…
English: en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php…
(X can't handle the links for Arabic and Hebrew; these can be accessed from the English article via the left sidebar.)
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Andreas Kolbe retweeted
Osama Khalid, a medical doctor and @Wikipedia administrator, worked to make well-sourced knowledge freely available on the site.
He is currently serving a 32-year prison term on trumped up charges including of “swaying public opinion”.
Saudi authorities must release him now.
Andreas Kolbe retweeted
🕊️ Ziyad al-Sufiani has been released after over four and a half years of arbitrary imprisonment.
He was an Arabic @Wikipedia administrator, arrested for editing pages like that of Saudi WHRD Loujain al-Hathloul.
His fellow Wikipedian Osama Khalid (see below) remains in prison.
Andreas Kolbe retweeted
A powerful conservative think tank is targeting one of the last good things on the internet. slate.trib.al/lxqWc7Z
Stephen Harrison is always worth reading on Wikipedia: theguardian.com/commentisfre…
Renewed discussions of Wikimedia fundraising banner and email texts. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipe…
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Wikimedia Foundation asked community to come up with a "movement charter" in order to share money and power more equitably. Volunteers invest literally years of work. Outcome? Wikimedia Foundation decides it didn't really want to share power THAT way. lists.wikimedia.org/hyperkit…
Those 33% for volunteer support are sketchy as hell. See "News and notes" section.
In the new Signpost:
• Form 990: WMF's net assets reach a quarter billion dollars
• @nytimes, @NPR and @Reuters block Wikipedia editors from citing their articles
• New Page Patrol receives a much-needed software upgrade
and more:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipe…
Andreas Kolbe retweeted
In the new Signpost:
• How paid editors squeeze you dry: Victims say they lost thousands of dollars to "Elite Wiki Writers"/"Wiki Moderator"
• The long road of a featured article candidate
• Saudi Wikipedian Osama Khalid celebrates 30th birthday in jail en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipe…
ALT Photo of Wikimedians Osama Khalid and Ziyad Alsufyani in 2016 (by Fjmustak, CC BY-SA 4.0)
Andreas Kolbe retweeted
Many Happy Returns to my friend Osama Khalid, spending his 30th birthday in jail in Saudi Arabia, along with our mutual friend & fellow Wikipedian Ziyad Al-Sufyani.
No fair trial; charges against them unknown.
They should be free.
dco-tn.org/f/birthday-in-jai…
Useful summary and backgrounder on #Wikimedia finances and the annual #Wikipedia fundraising campaign
📬 Schweizer Wikipedia bettelt trotz großem Vermögen
#Internet #MartinSteiger #TidesFoundation #WikimediaCH #WikimediaEnterprise #WikimediaFoundation sc.tarnkappe.info/e89fe6
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ICYMI (like I did): Good article from @harrisonstephen on (English) Wikipedia's coverage of the war in Israel–Hamas war.
Link in the reply to feed the algorithm.
slate.com/technology/2023/10…
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Andreas Kolbe retweeted
The new Signpost is out! Stories include:
• Wikimedia Foundation's revenue grew to $180m last year
• Wikipedia's billion-year lunar backup to be updated
• WikiConference North America receives bomb threat
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipe…
ALT Bing Image Creator (DALL-E 3) image for 'an astronaut standing outside of a Carnegie library on the moon, holding a book'