Wikispooks:Wikipedia+
A short explanation of WP+ at [28C3], 2011-12-29
Wikipedia+ is a tool for Wikipedia users unhappy with only a single narrative. It is an open source browser extension to augment your Wikipedia experience. It notes where you're browsing and silently checks the alternative websites you have chosen to see if they contain matching information. If so, Wikipedia+ pops up a notification containing links to the matching pages, so alternative points of view are only one click away.
Rationale
Wikipedia is in one sense a victim of its own success; it has effectively become a mainstream media source, and as such it shares a well-established bias:
To the extent that a subject is judged threatening to established power and the widespread acceptance of 'official narratives' of events, the reliability and ultimate accuracy of Wikipedia articles touching on it is likely to be compromised. At the extremes of power and perceived threat, Wikipedia's 'Neutral-Point-of-View' [1] principle pretty much guarantees that the compromise will be fundamental. (See The Problem with Wikipedia for a fuller discussion)
Those who control mainstream media choose to exclude certain opinions. This lack of publication in what Wikipedia calls 'credible sources' in turn provides justification for their exclusion from Wikipedia. Wikipedia+ allows you to get round this censorship by choosing to supplement your Wikipedia experience with automatic cross-references to Wikispooks (or other sites of interest).
Technical Aspects
- Wikipedia+ requires Mozilla Firefox, version 3 or above.
- The latest version is available here.
- By default, it is configured for Wikispooks users
- When browsing Wikipedia, a notification bar will appear from time to time with links to Wikispooks or other sites of interest
