National Archives Hires 'Wikipedian In Residence'

from the but-wikipedia-sucks,-right? dept

Fri, Jun 10th 2011 6:34pm — Mike Masnick

Didn't see this coming. Via Glyn Moody, we learn that the National Archives has hired its first "Wikipedian in Residence" -- though it appears to only be a summer internship position.

The Archives says [Dominic] McDevitt-Parks has more than seven years of Wikipedia editing experience. His job will be to foster collaboration between the Wikipedia community and the National Archives. That could include using some of Wikipedia�s tools for ongoing digitization projects at the archives.

It would be interesting to hear the Wikipedia-haters' take on this. It seems to me that this is yet another sign of Wikipedia's place in our current culture.

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Filed Under: wikipedia
Companies: national archives

12 Comments

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ChurchHatesTucker (profile), 10 Jun 2011 @ 7:39pm

Hrm.
It would be interesting to hear the Wikipedia-haters' take on this. It seems to me that this is yet another sign of Wikipedia's place in our current culture.

The problem is going to be if he's seen as an 'editor.' Not that WikiP doesn't have those, but they tend to garner reaction from the base. Still, random South African BBQ joints are seen as notable, so who knows?
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Anonymous Coward, 10 Jun 2011 @ 9:41pm

They also hire interns to make coffee. Obviously, Starbucks should be worried.
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Chargone (profile), 10 Jun 2011 @ 10:08pm

i've never understood the hate for Wikipedia.
it's no more inacurate than any other encyclopeida, and tends to stay up to date.

and, like any other encyclopedia, should be a starting point for getting a general overview and finding more specific issues/sources to look into, not the entirity of one's research for anything serious. (in fact, i'd go so far as to say it's Better than other encyclopeidas for this... the references are right there on the article, and the articles are often a Lot larger due to lack of page limitations. and i don't care how well indexed and cross referenced your hardcopy book is, hyperlinks are better.)
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Lawrence D'Oliveiro, 11 Jun 2011 @ 12:22am

Apropos ...
{{Template:POV}}
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Jeni (profile), 11 Jun 2011 @ 5:14am

Lacks Credbilitity
I don't "hate" it by any means but don't have much respect for it or give it much credibility ever since they allowed a 14 year old kid to post a bunch of tripe that was so far from the truth it wasn't funny. This occurred several years ago.

Many of us involved in the matter contacted them for corrections, showed them where to find the accurate information, yet the BS still stands. So I just pass it by.

As for all those reference links...they'd better hope none link to any "infringing content" or they're going to get bitch slapped with a heap of lawsuits of "ProtectIP" goes through. This new hire will have his work cut out for him.
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LindaJoyAdams (profile), 11 Jun 2011 @ 10:41am

Wikipedia expert at national Archives
Expert help? just as long as historical documents aren't altered when digitized as was done in Orwell's 1984.
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darryl, 11 Jun 2011 @ 1:50pm

and THIS ONE - - it's the Glyn Moody show - brought to your by Masnick
Via Glyn Moody,

Again Mike, even has an original thought ? or do you just respond to the puppet master (Glyn) pulling on your strings ?
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- Lawrence D'Oliveiro, 11 Jun 2011 @ 5:58pm
  
  Advice to Darryl
  This empty sniping makes you look like a child.
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  - Bnesaladur (profile), 12 Jun 2011 @ 12:49pm
    
    Re: Advice to Darryl
    Probably is and the only way he can feel cool is by coming here and bashing Mike rather than becoming involved in an intelligent debate. I don't agree with everyone who posts here but most of them at least have intelligent posts that can be disagreed with intelligently. It is one thing to disagree, another to disagree and toss around some harassment but something different entirely to prove your lack of intellect by tossing around harassment and failing to even provide an argument. The last can only be responded too with disdain.
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- Anonymous Coward, 11 Jun 2011 @ 10:26pm
  
  Re: and THIS ONE - - it's the Glyn Moody show - brought to your by Masnick
  Could you hurry up and graduate from 1st grade, Darryl?
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- Marcus Carab (profile), 12 Jun 2011 @ 9:54am
  
  Re: and THIS ONE - - it's the Glyn Moody show - brought to your by Masnick
  Again Darryl, even has a sentence good ?
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Anonymous Coward, 12 Jun 2011 @ 12:53pm

Wikipedia is very biased. I would hate to see them involved in anything where facts are important.
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