Wikipedia Biography Controversy
The Wikipedia biography controversy, also called the Seigenthaler incident, was a series of events that began in May 2005 with the anonymous posting of a hoax article in the online encyclopedia Wikipedia about John Seigenthaler, a well-known American journalist. The article falsely stated that Seigenthaler had been a suspect in the assassinations of U.S. President John F. Kennedy and Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy. Then 78-year-old Seigenthaler, who had been a friend and aide to Robert Kennedy, characterized the Wikipedia entry about him as "Internet character assassination".
The hoax was not discovered and corrected until September 2005, after which Seigenthaler wrote about his experience in USA Today. The incident raised questions about the reliability of Wikipedia and other websites with user-generated content that lack the legal accountability of traditional newspapers and published materials. After the incident, Wikipedia co-founder Jimmy Wales stated that the encyclopedia had barred unregistered users from creating new articles.
Read more about Wikipedia Biography Controversy: Hoax, Detection and Correction, Anonymous Editor Identified, Seigenthaler's Public Reaction, Other Reactions, Wikimedia Foundation Reaction
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