{"id":963,"date":"2019-02-26T15:38:27","date_gmt":"2019-02-26T15:38:27","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/thinking.is.ed.ac.uk\/wir\/?p=963"},"modified":"2019-02-26T15:54:07","modified_gmt":"2019-02-26T15:54:07","slug":"diversifying-wikipedia-for-the-festival-of-creative-learning-2019","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thinking.is.ed.ac.uk\/wir\/diversifying-wikipedia-for-the-festival-of-creative-learning-2019\/","title":{"rendered":"Diversifying Wikipedia for the Festival of Creative Learning 2019"},"content":{"rendered":"

Wikipedia is the 5th most visited website in the world\u00a0and is an important first stop when looking up any topic \u2013 it is truly an incredible resource. But its power can be dangerous. It lacks diversity both in its editorship and its articles. This means that its systemic biases can have a large impact on the way we think. Wikipedia, like most mainstream publishing and media, is very disproportionately white and male. However, unlike traditional information resources, Wikipedia\u2019s users can have a direct positive impact on its content<\/b>. This is why Information Services held a Diversithon<\/strong> event for the Festival of Creative Learning on the afternoon of 20th February 2019:<\/p>\n

“To increase the diversity of voices, genders, and cultures among its contributors and editors, the Wikimedia Foundation has made it a strategic goal to recruit and foster more women, people of colour, and other underrepresented individuals\u2014including LGBT+ populations… the Wikimedia Foundation recognizes that the majority of its Wikipedia contributors and editors are disproportionately male, under 22 years old, and (most likely white and straight) from \u201cthe Global North\u201d. They also admit that Wikipedia\u2019s coverage is skewed toward the interests, expertise, and language skills of the people who created it…”<\/i>\u2014\u2009Wexelbaum, Herzog, & Rasberry, “Queering Wikipedia” (2015).<\/b><\/cite><\/p>\n

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The Diversithon<\/b><\/big>\u00a0was a Wikipedia editing event held in a social and supportive setting to celebrate diversity for LGBT+ History Month 2019 and Black History Month.<\/p>\n

This event trained its attendees in the skills required to contribute to and improve Wikipedia – a useful skill for anyone to have – and focused on creating new articles to include notable Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic professionals; LGBT+ professionals; as well as continuing our work to address the systemic gender gap on Wikipedia where only 17.83% of biographies are about notable women.<\/p>\n

The Diversithon in a nutshell:<\/h5>\n