Theories that Wikipedia will break down or become obsolete
"Will Wikipedia exist in 20 years?", a 2017 discussion between academic Yochai Benkler and Wikimedia Foundation executive director Katherine Maher
Various publications and commentators have predicted the end of Wikipedia since it rose to prominence. Multiple potential dangers have been proposed, such as poor quality control and inconsistent editors/administrators.
Many online encyclopedias exist. Some have been proposed as replacements for Wikipedia, including Google's since-closed Knol,[1][2] WolframAlpha,[3] and AOL's since-closed Owl.[4] The development of artificial intelligence and artificial intelligence in Wikimedia projects has prompted predictions that AI applications which consume Wikipedia's free and open content will also replace Wikipedia.[5]
In a 2013 article for the MIT Technology Review, Tom Simonite listed issues such as hoaxes, vandalism, an imbalance of material, and inadequate quality control on articles.[6] Christopher Dawson wrote on vulgar content and absence of sufficient references on articles in a 2008 article on ZDNET.[7] Others suggest that the unwarranted deletion of useful articles from Wikipedia may portend its end. That brought about the creation of Deletionpedia, which itself ceased to exist in 2008 and was relaunched in 2013.[8][9]
However, contrary to these predictions, Wikipedia has constantly grown in both size and influence.[10][11][12][13]
^Helft, Miguel (23 July 2008). "Wikipedia, Meet Knol". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 24 October 2017. Retrieved 23 October 2017.
^Dawson, Christopher (28 July 2008). "Google Knol – Yup, it's a Wikipedia killer". ZDNet. CBS Interactive. Archived from the original on 15 May 2021.
^Dawson, Christopher (17 May 2009). "Wolfram Alpha: Wikipedia killer?". ZDNet. CBS Interactive. Archived from the original on 26 October 2021.
^Techcrunch (18 January 2010). "Is Owl AOL's Wikipedia-Killer?". www.mediapost.com. Archived from the original on 24 October 2017. Retrieved 23 October 2017.
^Gertner, Jon (18 July 2023). "Wikipedia's Moment of Truth". The New York Times.
^Simonite, Tom (22 October 2013). "The Decline of Wikipedia". MIT Technology Review. Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
^Dawson, Christopher (9 December 2008). "Will Virgin Killer be a Wikipedia killer?". ZDNET. CBS Interactive.
^Sankin, Aaron (29 December 2013). "Archive of deleted Wikipedia articles reveals site's imperfections". The Daily Dot. Archived from the original on 10 September 2018. Retrieved 13 December 2019. Wikipedia, which has an entry on fart jokes, still deems some topics unworthy of inclusion.
^"Main Page - Deletionpedia.org". Deletionpedia. Archived from the original on 18 August 2022. Retrieved 20 August 2022.
^"Wikipedia is 20, and its reputation has never been higher". The Economist. 9 January 2021. ISSN 0013-0613. Retrieved 2 April 2021.
^Gebelhoff, Robert (19 October 2016). "Opinion: Science shows Wikipedia is the best part of the Internet". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Archived from the original on 12 October 2017. Retrieved 6 December 2023.
^Cooke, Richard (17 February 2020). "Wikipedia Is the Last Best Place on the Internet". Wired. Retrieved 24 November 2021.
^Greene, Tristan (20 September 2017). "Forget what your school says, MIT research proves Wikipedia is a source for science". The Next Web. Retrieved 2 April 2021.
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