I have been told that the free online encyclopedia Wikipedia is considered one of the most essential collaborative efforts on the Internet. Wikipedia is a not-for-profit organization that owns one of the largest wikis, a website that allows users to edit content collaboratively on the Internet. The most famous is Wikipedia.
During my educational journey, I have received mixed information about whether Wikipedia articles are credible sources for assignments.
At College of the Canyons, the community college I attended before ASU, Wikipedia was not trusted or used as a source. The school cited collaborative community editing as a reason not to trust the site. Using Wikipedia was considered academic fraud.
Imagine my surprise when I arrived at Arizona State and discovered they allowed Wikipedia to be used in assignments. They partnered with organizations like CTRL-F, which taught students how to use it to help build digital literacy skills and combat misinformation.
With these competing viewpoints, I have decided to test whether Wikipedia is a trusted source by signing up for the site and editing an article myself.
Step one was to identify an article that was missing information or needed an edit. That was not easy. Most articles on the site were up to date, with few to no errors. However, after a few attempts, I was on a page that did not contain a significant new development.
X2, a fourth-dimensional steel rollercoaster that features 360-degree spinning cars at Six Flags Magic Mountain, was recently the subject of a wrongful death lawsuit. In the claim, a 22-year-old from Garden Grove suffered a traumatic brain injury in 2022 after riding X2. Multiple credible news organizations, including the Los Angeles Times, have reported on the story.
Let’s update the page to reflect this new development.
Step two involves starting the editing process. You must seek feedback from the editing community before submitting an edit or change to a Wikipedia article. To do this, click the ‘Talk’ tab and then post an explanation of what you plan to add or change to get feedback on whether the changes are appropriate and meet guidelines. Once feedback is given, you can start making your edits.
After a day on the Talk page, my request did not receive feedback, so I decided to move forward with the post.
The editing process is straightforward and no different from using WordPress for blogging. After hitting the edit button, you can add and adjust almost anything on the page. You can create a new headline and image or correct text if you cite a credible source. Once you’re finished, hit’ Post,’ just like I do on WordPress for this blog, and watch the site update.
Trust in online media is challenging in today’s world. Much of what we read online is biased or misrepresented. Transparency is key to trusting media, and this activity has confirmed my belief that Wikipedia is a trusted source of information. The process requires citations from reliable sources and empowers other users to edit and make changes if an error occurs. The process is transparent and easy to use. The sources are easily accessible at the bottom of any Wikipedia page, allowing digitally literate users to verify any claim on the site personally.
Want to see my edit, click here
