Usually the only wiki we associate with Edward Snowden is WikiLeaks. However, in a hilarious turn of events, an IP address linked to the United States Senate was caught defacing Edward Snowden's Wikipedia article last evening. The "less than neutral" edit was to change the lead sentence from this:
Edward Joseph Snowden (born June 21, 1983) is an American dissident who leaked details of several top-secret United States and British government mass surveillance programs to the press.
to this:
Edward Joseph Snowden (born June 21, 1983) is an American traitor who leaked details of several top-secret United States and British government mass surveillance programs to the press.
When this was discovered by Wikipedia staffers, it was quickly edited back, but the fact that a United States Senate staffer has the time to deface Wikipedia entries does not bode well for our democracy. Get back to work, Government, and stop spying on us when you should be doing your real jobs.
Comments
Who sits in their office
late on a Friday night and defaces a Wikipedia page? If you're at work that late, at least be productive. If not, go have a drink.
now it says fugitive... sigh...
ROFL
As someone I know pointed out, "Hey, if you idiots in the senate are going to do to dumb shit like this, at least learn to use proxies!"
I've rarely seen better evidence that the US government can't even understand what it's dealing with, let alone do any kind of competent job Keeping Us Safe. :-)
Watch the Wiki editors discuss this :-)
The usertalk link is https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/User_talk:156.33.241.5. Very amusing discussion going on there right now among the Wikipedia editors:
- I guess we know who's paying him. -Amitabho Chattopadhyay (talk) 01:24, 3 August 2013 (UTC)
- That's an assumption of bad faith. People sometimes edit in their personal capacity from a work computer. The real issue is that the edit violates WP:NPOV. Jehochman Talk 15:48, 3 August 2013 (UTC)
- The following is a personal opinion based on my own ideas of what is true: A prime example of Government entities trying to influence the thoughts and opinions of their own citizens and others through any means necessary. Wake up United States Senate, people are learning the truth for themselves no matter how hard you try to sweep it under the rug. Not only that, but the mere fact that you are trying so desperately to discredit Edward Snowden only shows how deep your web of internet surveillance runs. If your ultimate goal is and truly was to protect American citizens, wouldn't you be spending more of your time and resources defending yourselves rather than using it to sling mud at a so called "traitor"? GoldenWolfMuse (talk) 10:00, 3 August 2013 (UTC)
- As an experienced wikipedian and a site administrator, I can tell you that such things have happened in the past, and all they accomplished was to embarrass the person or persons behind the edits. If that was your goal, keep it up. If it was not, I suggest you find a better use for your time. See U.S. Congressional staff edits to Wikipedia for more information on past incidents of this nature. Beeblebrox (talk) 15:40, 3 August 2013 (UTC)
- Good lord, is the US government even trying to be subtle here? --Veyneru (talk) 17:34, 3 August 2013 (UTC)
democracy? What democracy?
"...but the fact that a United States Senate staffer has the time to deface Wikipedia entries does not bode well for our democracy...."
Please stop referring to our republic as a democracy. The failure to understand the difference is at the root of our current political morass.
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