Billionaire Elon Musk recently stated that he would pledge $1 billion to Wikipedia on the condition that they alter their name. He took to X, previously known as Twitter, and tweeted, "I will offer them a billion dollars if they change their name to Dickipedia," clarifying that he would do so "in the interests of accuracy." When a user encouraged Wikipedia to proceed with the name change, Musk established another requirement. "@Wikipedia, Do it! You can always change it back after you collect," the user suggested. To this, the billionaire responded, "One year minimum. I mean, I'm not a fool lol."
Now, Paytm Founder Vijay Shekhar Sharma has proposed that the owner of Tesla and SpaceX should create a "Wiki equivalent reference point destination" using the microblogging site's Community Notes feature.
Sharma expressed his idea on the platform, saying, "Why not create a Wiki equivalent reference point destination, based on community notes? Open for the web." This suggestion came in response to a conversation between X users and Musk about the distinction between Wikipedia and Community Notes. Musk, in a post, explained that despite being a shareholder of X, he cannot influence the outcome of a note, unlike Wikipedia, where "anyone can edit nearly any page and improve articles immediately."
He stated, "Wikipedia is inherently hierarchical and, as a result, susceptible to the biases of higher-ranking editors, regardless of their qualifications. @CommunityNotes requires individuals with historically different viewpoints, based on how they have rated and written Notes, to reach a consensus for Notes to be displayed to the public. All code and data are open source, allowing you to recreate the outcome on your own. Importantly, even I, as the controlling shareholder of the company, cannot alter the outcome of a Note. This is a profound distinction."
Another user added, "The real problem with Wiki is that, for the editors, being a Wikipedia editor and accumulating cred like Barnstars is *their entire life.* One positive aspect of Community Notes is the absence of ranking and influence for those who get it right. The ability to continue accessing the feature is the sole reward," to which the billionaire affirmed, "Exactly. This is a significant development."
Previously, Musk had shared a screenshot of Wikipedia's homepage that included the phrases "Wikipedia is not for sale" and "a personal appeal from Jimmy Wales." He further commented, "Have you ever wondered why the Wikimedia Foundation wants so much money? It certainly isn't needed to operate Wikipedia. You can literally fit a copy of the entire text on your phone! So, what's the money for? Inquiring minds want to know..."
In a subsequent post, he inquired about the possibility of adding a cow and a poop emoji to his Wikipedia page.
In a prior incident, Jimmy Wales, the founder of Wikipedia, rebuked Musk for his decision to censor critics of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan shortly before a critical election. Musk had complied with Turkey's request to restrict content, a move that didn't sit well with Wales. He highlighted that Wikipedia had confronted a similar situation but had steadfastly defended freedom of expression, even taking the matter to the Turkish Supreme Court to protect it.
In response, Musk remarked, "The choice is either to completely throttle Twitter or restrict access to some tweets. Which option would you prefer?"
It's worth noting that Wikipedia had been inaccessible in Turkey for more than two years due to the country's regulations that permitted the blocking of websites considered obscene or a threat to national security.
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