19 June 2006
BLAIR JOINS GOD AS A VICTIM OF CYBERNUTS
By Andy Tristem
TONY Blair has joined God and Michael Jackson on a special list of
subjects that need protected from cyber vandals.
Blair's entry in online encyclopedia Wikipedia has been vandalised with
"quite offensive" entries, say its owners.
Someone suggested that he is a liar. Another entry revealed "that he
spilt popcorn down his pyjamas last night".
Alison Wheeler, editor in chief at Wikipedia UK, said Blair's 11-page
entry had been given "semi-protection".
She said: "We have had an increase in the level of vandalism on Mr
Blair's entry. It's mostly quite offensive."
To edit semi-protected entries, users must be registered by Wikipedia
for at least four days.
Ms Wheeler added that it seemed more people had attacked Blair's entry
since George Bush was given "full protection".
Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales said the encyclopedia's principles were
not being undermined.
It boasts a giant internet database that anyone can edit.
The firm aims to offer free knowledge to anyone on the planet. It
contains 4 million entries and is the web's third most popular
information source.
An investigation by leading academic magazine Nature found Wikipedia
came close to Encyclopedia Britannica for accuracy in science entries.
But the firm is now being forced to protect a number of subjects from
vandals - which is undermining its commitment to freedom of expression.
FULLY PROTECTED ENTRIES: Cuba, Islamophobia, Elitism, Kosovo, George W
Bush, Christina Aguilera, Human rights in the People's Republic of
China, Military budget of the People's Republic of China, Messianic
Judaism, Islam and anti-Semitism.
SEMI-PROTECTED: Tony Blair, Michael Jackson, God, Emo, Shakespeare, Ku
Klux Klan, Christianity, 11 September 2001, Anarchism, Sex, Food,
Mahatma Gandhi, PlayStation 3, Boston, Massachusetts.
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