Wikis+in+the+newsroom

I had previously posted about wikis as journalistic tools where an Esquire author posted an article on Wikipedia filled with mistakes and watched the wiki community fix and improve his article. But what about the flip-side of that situation, with journalists using Wikipedia as sources?

Since Wikipedia launched in 2001, journalists appear to be using it more frequently as a source. That in itself wouldn't be so alarming except the select few journalists using Wikipedia don't appear to be source checking their information. For example, The Las Vegas Review Journal published that construction cranes were invented by ancient Greeks and powered by men and donkeys.

Despite this, the instances of Wikipedia being used as anything but a starting point are slim. The Washington Post copy editor, Phillip Blanchard, noted that "[the phrase] 'According to Wikipedia' has appeared only a couple of times in the Washington Post, once in a humor column and once in a movie review." While still a long ways away, so-called wiki journalism could be in our foreseeable future. Participatory journalism currently includes mediums such as blogs and would cover wikis under its umbrella.


 * Strengths of Wikijournalism** (from Wikijournalism, Pbworks.com, advantages)

1) **Wikijournalsim can effectively cover a complex news topic**

Stories that are too broad or too complex for one journalist to cover effectively (such as large events, travel guides, or local transport systems_ benefit from Wikijournalism.

2) **Wikijournalism allow for coordination and management of a large number of journalists**

News operations can benefit from a Wiki because it allows for organized collaboration between journalists, editors, and other invested parties.

3) **Wikijournalism can cut costs**

With the economic problems that traditional print news media is currently experiencing, Wikijournalism provides a way to save money by having users creating articles for free, in that there is one less person to pay.


 * Weaknesses of Wikijournalism** (Wikijournalism, Pbworks.com, disadvantages)

1) **Wikijournalism can be inaccurate**

With anybody being able to contribute, information that is untrue can be more easily deciminated.

2) **Wikijournalism can be mixed in terms of quality**

With anybody being able to contribute, the writing and journalistic skills among the contributors are mixed in quality, resulting in a mixed-quality Wiki.

3) **Wikijournalism can result in vandalism**

With anybody being able to contribute, articles can be vandalized with spam, irrelevant information, trolling, etc.

Sources: Lih, Andrew. [|"The Foundations of Participatory Journalism and the Wikipedia Project"]. University of Hong Kong. Toronto, Canada. 7 Aug 2004. Conference Presentation. Shaw, Donna. //[|Wikipedia in the Newsroom]//. American Journalism Review, February/March 2008. Web. 9 Nov. 2011. [|"Wiki journalism"]. Wikipedia.org. Wikipedia, 9 Jul 2007. Web. 9 Nov. 2011. [|"Wikijournalism"]. Pbworks.com. web. 6 December 2011. //Links//: [|Advantages], [|Disadvantages]