Happy birthday, Wikipedia
It was 20 years ago today, Jimmy Wales taught the band to play. The band being the internet, and the song being Wikipedia, of course. You may not have seen much coverage of this noteworthy anniversary locally – although internationally the site that killed Encarta is much celebrated. That’s partly because there’s a desperate shortage of editors from Africa and the rest of the Global South. The Economist (paywalled) has a good breakdown of where edits come from and what language they are in, and why it thinks a recruitment drive in new areas is necessary
(Image – The Economist)
Adam Oxford is a freelance journalist, media consultant and civic tech enthusiast. He also works closely with startups developing solutions to access to justice problems.