Wikipedia coverage of Donald Trump
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{{Use mdy dates|date=January 2025}}{{Use American English|date=January 2025}}
{{Multiple image
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| image1 = Donald Trump September 3 2015.jpg
| alt1 = Photograph of a man with his lips curved, staring at camera
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| image2 = TrumpWavingCropped.jpg
| alt2 = Photograph of a man in a black suit, smiling
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| image3 = Donald Trump August 19, 2015 (cropped).jpg
| alt3 = Photograph of a man in blue suit
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| footer = In a 2015 discussion, users debated between an image of Trump staring at the camera (left) and an image of Trump smiling at a CPAC event (center). Editors ultimately chose an alternative image: Trump "listening and expressionless" (right).
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Wikipedia coverage of Donald Trump has been a subject of controversy, largely on the English-language version, since 2015 after he launched his 2016 United States presidential campaign. Trump's Wikipedia article and related pages have sparked debate between Wikipedia editors, and have also often been vandalized. Both of these actions have resulted in increased media attention and subsequently some protection against editing by inexperienced and malicious editors to prevent further vandalism to the articles.
Wikipedia
=English Wikipedia=
==Statistics==
The English Wikipedia article for Donald Trump was created in 2004.{{Cite web |url=https://slate.com/technology/2019/05/donald-trump-wikipedia-page.html |title=Donald Trump's Wikipedia Entry Is a War Zone |date=May 28, 2019 |last=Mak |first=Aaron |work=Slate |access-date=April 1, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231029034456/https://slate.com/technology/2019/05/donald-trump-wikipedia-page.html |archive-date=October 29, 2023}} After Trump announced his 2016 United States presidential campaign in June 2015, his article began receiving an increase in edits. In 2015, Trump's article received thousands of edits more than the previous year, and received more edits in January 2016 than other candidates, including Bernie Sanders, Ted Cruz, Marco Rubio and Hillary Clinton.{{Cite web |url=https://observer.com/2016/01/donald-trumps-wikipedia-page-is-the-busiest-of-the-cadidates/ |title=Donald Trump's Wikipedia Page Is the Busiest of the Cadidates |date=January 22, 2016 |last=Dale |first=Brady |work=Observer |access-date=April 1, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231029034048/https://observer.com/2016/01/donald-trumps-wikipedia-page-is-the-busiest-of-the-cadidates/ |archive-date=October 29, 2023}} In total, Trump's article received over 10,000 edits from its creation to January 2016.{{Cite web |url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/jvchamary/2016/01/25/wikipedia-people/?sh=150600846ffb |title=Wikipedia's 100 Most Controversial People |date=January 25, 2016 |last=Chamary |first=JV |work=Forbes |access-date=April 1, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231029034037/https://www.forbes.com/sites/jvchamary/2016/01/25/wikipedia-people/?sh=150600846ffb |archive-date=October 29, 2023 |url-access=limited}} By September of that year, Trump's article had become the 28th most edited for a person on the site.{{Cite web |url=https://www.businessinsider.com/most-controversial-people-on-wikipedia-2016-9 |title=The 29 most controversial people on Wikipedia — including Donald Trump, Michael Jackson, and Albert Einstein |date=September 25, 2016 |last=McAlone |first=Nathan |work=Business Insider |access-date=April 1, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231029034027/https://www.businessinsider.com/most-controversial-people-on-wikipedia-2016-9 |archive-date=October 29, 2023}} The next month, The Washington Post reported that Trump's page was edited more times in an election cycle than other Republican nominees since 2004.{{Cite news |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/politics/2016-election/presidential-wikipedias/ |title=The most challenging job of the 2016 race: Editing the candidates' Wikipedia pages |date=October 27, 2016 |last=Alcantara |first=Chris |newspaper=The Washington Post |access-date=April 1, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231029033949/https://www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/politics/2016-election/presidential-wikipedias/ |archive-date=October 29, 2023}} In December, the Wikimedia Foundation noted that Trump's article was the second-most edited on the site in 2016, with 8,933 edits, behind the article for deaths in 2016, which had 18,230 edits.{{Cite web |url=https://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2016/12/21/506501985/wikipedia-announces-the-most-edited-articles-of-2016 |title=Wikipedia Announces The Most Edited Articles Of 2016 |date=December 21, 2016 |last=Penman |first=Maggie |work=NPR |access-date=April 1, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231029033810/https://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2016/12/21/506501985/wikipedia-announces-the-most-edited-articles-of-2016 |archive-date=October 29, 2023}} In May 2019, the Trump page had a total of over 28,000 edits. Simultaneously, the page had a total of 156 million views, the most for a biography since Wikipedia began tracking viewership data in December 2007.
==Debates==
During the 2016 United States presidential election, features of Trump's article were frequently debated. The infobox for Trump's article, for instance, featured an image of Trump staring at the camera with lips slightly turned down at the corners. In November 2015, editors debated an alternative image of Trump smiling at a Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) event, with accusations of pro-Trump bias towards editors who supported the new image. Ultimately, editors chose a third image lacking expression.{{Cite web |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2016/02/02/us/politics/wikipedia-donald-trump-2016-election.html |title=On Wikipedia, Donald Trump Reigns and Facts Are Open to Debate |date=February 1, 2016 |last=Merrill |first=Jeremy |work=The New York Times |access-date=April 1, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231029033225/https://www.nytimes.com/2016/02/02/us/politics/wikipedia-donald-trump-2016-election.html |archive-date=October 29, 2023 |url-access=subscription}} In early 2016, several other images were debated, although editors often pointed out drawbacks with each image, such as an unusual expression, a perceived "turkey neck", and objects within the foreground.
Trump's first presidency caused significant gridlock on his article. In one such instance, editors debated the inclusion of the 2018 Russia–United States summit, with administrators ultimately supporting its inclusion. In the lead section of the article, some editors took issue with the sentence, "Many of his comments and actions have been characterized as racially charged or racist", believing that "racially charged" was ambiguous and potentially euphemistic.
==Loser.com redirect==
Following Trump's loss to Ted Cruz in the Iowa Republican presidential caucus in February 2016, the domain Loser.com was changed to redirect to Trump's article.{{Cite magazine |url=https://time.com/4204929/donald-trump-trolled-loser-wikipedia/ |title=Loser.com Now Redirects to Donald Trump's Wikipedia Page |date=February 2, 2016 |last=White |first=Daniel |magazine=Time |access-date=April 1, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231029032448/https://time.com/4204929/donald-trump-trolled-loser-wikipedia/ |archive-date=October 29, 2023}} Brian Connelly, who registered the domain in 1995, changed the domain following Trump's proposed travel ban against Muslim majority countries. Although the domain rarely redirected to figures for political purposes, Connelly felt that the "definition of a loser" was "a man who attacks Muslims" and "pushes fear and doubt".{{Cite news |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-intersect/wp/2016/02/02/man-behind-the-updated-loser-com-donald-trump-is-the-definition-of-a-loser/ |title=Man behind the updated Loser.com: Donald Trump 'is the definition of a loser' |date=February 2, 2016 |last=Dewey |first=Caitlin |newspaper=The Washington Post |access-date=April 1, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231029032627/https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-intersect/wp/2016/02/02/man-behind-the-updated-loser-com-donald-trump-is-the-definition-of-a-loser/ |archive-date=October 29, 2023 |url-access=limited}} By May 2016, Loser.com no longer redirected to the article.{{Cite web |url=https://www.snopes.com/news/2016/02/02/loser-com-donald-trump/ |title=Loser.com Redirects to Wikipedia Page for Donald Trump |date=February 2, 2016 |last=Mikkelson |first=David |work=Snopes |access-date=April 1, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231029032801/https://www.snopes.com/news/2016/02/02/loser-com-donald-trump/ |archive-date=October 29, 2023}} When Trump lost the 2020 presidential election in November, the domain once again redirected to Trump's article.{{Cite web |last=Evon |first=Dan |date=November 11, 2020 |title=Does Loser.com Redirect to Trump's Wikipedia Page? |url=https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/loser-com-trump-wikipedia-page/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231029032903/https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/loser-com-trump-wikipedia-page/ |archive-date=October 29, 2023 |access-date=April 1, 2023 |work=Snopes}}
==Vandalism==
In July 2015, vandals erased Trump's page, receiving media attention.{{Cite web |url=https://www.theverge.com/2015/7/22/9014525/someone-just-deleted-donald-trumps-entire-wikipedia-page |title=Someone just deleted Donald Trump's entire Wikipedia page |date=July 22, 2015 |last=Popper |first=Ben |work=The Verge |access-date=April 1, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231029032322/https://www.theverge.com/2015/7/22/9014525/someone-just-deleted-donald-trumps-entire-wikipedia-page |archive-date=October 29, 2023}} In one such instance, an editor replaced the contents of the page with "Lets{{sic}} be fair, nobody cares about him."{{Cite news |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-switch/wp/2015/07/22/donald-trumps-wikipedia-page-was-deleted-today-twice/ |title=Donald Trump's Wikipedia page was deleted today. Twice. |date=July 22, 2015 |last=Peterson |first=Andrea |newspaper=The Washington Post |access-date=April 1, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231029032213/https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-switch/wp/2015/07/22/donald-trumps-wikipedia-page-was-deleted-today-twice/ |archive-date=October 29, 2023 |url-access=limited}} In March 2016, an IP address used by the Correctional Service of Canada edited the article to state Trump was homosexual, and later homosexual and transgender.{{Cite web |url=https://globalnews.ca/news/2625511/donald-trump-homosexual-wikipedia-edits-made-from-corrections-canada-computer/ |title=Donald Trump 'homosexual' Wikipedia edits made from Corrections Canada computer |date=April 7, 2016 |last=Kohut |first=Tania |work=Global News |access-date=April 1, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231029032112/https://globalnews.ca/news/2625511/donald-trump-homosexual-wikipedia-edits-made-from-corrections-canada-computer/ |archive-date=October 29, 2023}} Other edits made include replacing mentions of Trump's name with Drumpf, deleting the page and replacing it with profanities, and editing Trump's birthplace to be hell. In spite of this, editors have been able to keep the page stable, preventing a hoax claiming Trump had died of a heart attack from appearing on the page.{{Cite web |url=https://www.vice.com/en/article/4w54bd/a-wikipedian-told-us-how-wikipedia-stays-reliable-in-the-fake-news-era |title=A Wikipedian Explains How Wikipedia Stays Reliable in the Fake News Era |date=November 24, 2016 |last=Pearl |first=Mike |work=Vice |access-date=April 1, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231029032011/https://www.vice.com/en/article/4w54bd/a-wikipedian-told-us-how-wikipedia-stays-reliable-in-the-fake-news-era |archive-date=October 29, 2023}}
On November 22, 2018, the infobox image for Trump was replaced with a penis. The image was returned by Siri when pulling up information on Trump, such as his age.{{Cite web |url=https://www.theverge.com/tldr/2018/11/22/18108195/apple-siri-iphone-donald-trump-penis-wikipedia-fail-vandalism-editing |title=Siri thinks Donald Trump is a penis |date=November 22, 2018 |last=Warren |first=Tom |work=The Verge |access-date=April 1, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231029031912/https://www.theverge.com/tldr/2018/11/22/18108195/apple-siri-iphone-donald-trump-penis-wikipedia-fail-vandalism-editing |archive-date=October 29, 2023}}{{cite news|last=Gander|first=Kashmira|date=November 23, 2018|url=https://www.newsweek.com/someone-hacked-donald-trumps-wikipedia-page-replaced-photo-image-penis-1228571|title=Someone Hacked Donald Trump's Wikipedia Page, Replaced Photo With Image of Penis|work=Newsweek|access-date=December 8, 2024}} In response, Apple changed Siri to refer to WolframAlpha rather than Wikipedia.{{Cite web |url=https://gizmodo.com/siri-pulls-up-image-of-an-actual-dick-when-asked-about-1830613448 |title=Siri Pulls Up Image of an Actual Dick When Asked About Trump |date=November 22, 2018 |last=Keck |first=Catie |work=Gizmodo |access-date=April 1, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231029031805/https://gizmodo.com/siri-pulls-up-image-of-an-actual-dick-when-asked-about-1830613448 |archive-date=October 29, 2023}} The article was fully protected, meaning that only administrators could edit it, from its previous extended confirmed protection status, requiring editors to have a specified number of edits and time on the site. In the days that followed, attackers used hacked user accounts, including of an administrator, to replace the image.{{Cite web |url=https://www.theverge.com/2018/11/24/18110545/wikipedias-trump-penis-vandalism-account-hacking |title=Wikipedia's Trump penis vandals have struck again |date=November 25, 2018 |last=Brandom |first=Russell |work=The Verge |access-date=April 1, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231029031631/https://www.theverge.com/2018/11/24/18110545/wikipedias-trump-penis-vandalism-account-hacking |archive-date=October 29, 2023}} The vandalism occurred several days after the Wikimedia Foundation overhauled its security for administrators; two-factor authentication was made mandatory for some administrators, although the latter still did not prevent the attacks. In response, the Wikimedia Foundation changed its rules to prevent administrators from unblocking themselves. Termed the "nuclear option", the move attracted significant controversy.{{Cite web |url=https://www.theverge.com/2018/12/4/18125359/wikipedia-trump-admin-account-security-hack |title=Wikipedia engages the 'nuclear option' after Trump penis hack |date=December 4, 2018 |last=Brandom |first=Russell |work=The Verge |access-date=April 1, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231029031420/https://www.theverge.com/2018/12/4/18125359/wikipedia-trump-admin-account-security-hack |archive-date=October 29, 2023}}
=Chinese Wikipedia=
In June 2017, students at Northwestern University and the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, presented a research paper on article-as-concepts. The article for Trump's family was used as an example of the drawbacks of Wikipedia articles-as-concepts. On Chinese Wikipedia, the article for Trump's family did not exist, leaving the only source of family information as the article for Trump himself. In comparison, English Wikipedia covers the family in far greater detail.{{sfn|Yilun Lin|Yu|Hall|Hecht|2017|pp=6–15}}
Wikimedia Commons
In June 2017, a Wikimedia Commons user claimed that the White House's official portrait of Trump for his first presidency was not the work of the United States government, but rather a photographer known as Doug Coulter, and thus did not qualify for public domain status.{{Cite web |url=https://www.dailydot.com/debug/donald-trump-official-portrait-wikipedia-copyright/ |title=Someone is trying to get Trump's official portrait deleted from Wikipedia |date=June 5, 2017 |last=Wyrich |first=Andrew |work=The Daily Dot |access-date=April 1, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231029010846/https://www.dailydot.com/debug/donald-trump-official-portrait-wikipedia-copyright/ |archive-date=October 29, 2023}}
See also
Citations
{{Reflist}}
Works cited
- {{Cite conference |url=https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b6/Problematizing_and_Addressing_the_Article-as-Concept_Assumption_in_Wikipedia.pdf |title=Problematizing and Addressing the Article-as-Concept Assumption in Wikipedia |last1=Yilun Lin |first1=Allen |last2=Yu |first2=Bowen |last3=Hall |first3=Andrew |last4=Hecht |first4=Brent |date=2017 |publisher=Wikimedia Foundation |conference=Wikimedia Research |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231029010644/https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b6/Problematizing_and_Addressing_the_Article-as-Concept_Assumption_in_Wikipedia.pdf |archive-date=October 29, 2023}}
{{Donald Trump}}
{{Wikipedia}}
Category:Criticism of Wikipedia