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Wikipedia

Wikipedia is a free online encyclopedia in numerous languages. The entries are written by voluntary authors.

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A computer screen displays a notice blocking the Wikipedia website through an online news site in Islamabad, Pakistan

Pakistan lifts Wikipedia ban

Last week the online encyclopedia was blocked over what Pakistan's media regulator deemed "blasphemous material.
SocietyFebruary 7, 2023
Wikipedia logo

Pakistan blocks Wikipedia over 'sacrilegious' content

Pakistani authorities have banned the online encyclopedia Wikipedia for not removing content they call blasphemous.
Digital WorldFebruary 4, 2023
DW Shift 220305 |

Fighting for more diversity at Wikipedia

There's not enough content about women, or by women on Wikipedia––it is too male-heavy.
Digital WorldSeptember 2, 202201:47 min
The Wikipedia logo under a microscope

Wikipedia appeals Moscow court order to remove Ukraine pages

Russia is clamping down on Wikipedia's pages about the invasion of Ukraine.
Press FreedomJune 13, 2022
Symbolbild Twitter

Climate misinformation: How do we tackle it?

In this special episode, climate disinformation experts discuss how misleading information travels around the web.
Nature and EnvironmentApril 14, 202229:59 min
Gerhard Schröder und Wladimir Putin stand next to one another as Putin smiles.

German term 'Putinversteher' goes international

Used to describe Putin sympathizers, "Putinversteher" now has its own English Wikipedia page. What does it refer to?
CultureApril 6, 2022
Illustration of Wikipedia at 20

Wikipedia's 20, but how credible is it?

The user-compiled encyclopedia has been a boon for students and sometimes a bane for teachers. So how accurate is it?
TechnologyJanuary 14, 2021
Two people look at an illuminated screen

Tackling disinformation

The spread of disinformation is a growing problem around the world. We go behind the scenes of a Catholic radio station in Italy spreading conspiracy theories about COVID-19 and discuss Wikipedia's huge impact on the way we source information. Plus, a new project in Colombia is helping women access abortions and an artist has turned the debris from the Beirut explosion into a sculpture.
SocietyJanuary 13, 202129:59 min
The Wikipedia logo on a laptop

Extended interview: Wikipedia's past, present and future

Two decades on from its founding, Wikipedia has rapidly grown into one of the most popular open-source websites. In an extended interview, DW speaks with Dr. Bernie Hogan from the Oxford Internet Institute about Wikipedia's remarkable rise, its impact on the spread of misinformation in the digital age and what the future may hold for the world's biggest online encyclopedia.
SocietyJanuary 13, 202113:12 min
A smartphone showing the Wikipedia logo

20 years of Wikipedia

The year marks the 20th anniversary of Wikipedia. Every month, more than 1.7 billion people visit the open-source website in search of information about, well, just about anything! We speak with Dr. Bernie Hogan from the Oxford Internet Institute about Wikipedia's successes, where it fits into the discrimination crisis and the website's future.
SocietyJanuary 13, 202109:50 min
A laptop displaying the Google start page

Pakistan threatens legal action against Google, Wikipedia

Google and Wikipedia have been warned over caricatures of Prophet Mohammed and an "unauthentic" version of the Quran.
Human RightsDecember 26, 2020
Turkish Wikipedia page

Turkey lifts ban on Wikipedia

A Turkish court has lifted a nearly 3-year ban on Wikipedia.
SocietyJanuary 16, 2020
Äthiopien Lokale Zeitungen

Wikipedia's Wales laments local press die-offs

Wikipedia's co-founder Jimmy Wales has warned against declines in the local press worldwide.
PoliticsNovember 6, 2019
Putin speaking in front of a red backdrop

Putin proposes a 'reliable' Russian Wikipedia

Russia's president proposed the country develop its own version of Wikipedia with "reliable information."
PoliticsNovember 6, 2019
Wikipedia was paralyzed by a DDoS attack.

'Malicious attack' takes German Wikipedia offline

Users in Germany trying to access Wikipedia were faced with an error message and frustration.
TechnologySeptember 7, 2019
Wikipedia Wiki Women's Edit-a-thon 3

Making space for female scientists and experts

Female Wikipedia editors regularly face online harassment and abuse in response to their work.
ScienceJune 19, 2019
Camilla Warrender and Anurag Wakhlu from Newscoop

Newscoop: A Facebook for news

The Amsterdam-based startup aims to democratize news by leveraging a global network of citizen journalists.
BusinessMay 28, 2019
A pair of hands type on a computer keyboard

Translating Wikipedia pages into a local language in Ghana

A group of young Ghanians have taken part in a 'translatathon' to create Wikipedia articles written in Akan.
Digital WorldApril 3, 2019
An image of the German-language Wikipedia's homepage as the site takes part in a protest against planned changes to EU copyright law

German Wikipedia offline in EU copyright protest

German Wikipedia took to the "drastic measure" in the hopes that the EU will amend its reform of copyright law.
TechnologyMarch 21, 2019
Afrika China Gipfel in Peking

Africa Link on Air - 20 July 2018

Local business in Rwanda wary over upcoming visit of Chinese president+++Wikipedia to recruit more African contributors
PoliticsJuly 20, 201830:00 min
A person holds up a black t-shirt emblazoned with the words 'decolonise the internet' and an image of three hands holding smartphones

Africa only has 1,000 'Wikipedians'

Wikipedia wants more Africans contributors. For the first time they're holding their annual conference in Africa.
MediaJuly 19, 2018
A smartphone image

European Parliament rejects copyright law

EU lawmakers voted against the copyright law which would have imposed charges and required checks.
TechnologyJuly 5, 2018
Italian Wikipedia

Italian Wikipedia shuts down in protest of EU law

Wikipedia Italia has said that the bill puts "freedom of internet at risk."
TechnologyJuly 3, 2018
DW Made In Germany- Jimmy Wales, Gründer von Wikipedia

Digital visionary - Jimmy Wales

Exclusively for DW, Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales reveals how his non-profit foundation functions.
BusinessOctober 18, 201703:52 min
Illustration Wikipedia

Wikipedia - Knowledge Foundation

Wikipedia offers no-cost access to a vast trove of human knowledge. How does it actually work?
BusinessOctober 18, 201704:46 min
Jimmy Wales Wikipedia

Istanbul rescinds invite for Wikipedia founder

The reversal comes after Turkey's government blocked access to the online encyclopedia over the weekend.
PoliticsMay 2, 2017
Symbolbild Wikipedia

Turkey details grounds for blocking Wikipedia

The telecommunications agency has said Wikipedia access is blocked over content alleging Turkish support for terrorism.
MediaApril 30, 2017
Screenshot youtube türkische Show zuhal topal'la

More civil servant sackings in Turkey

Erdogan-run Turkey has sacked 4,000 more officials, banned television dating programs and blocked access to Wikipedia.
PoliticsApril 29, 2017
Symbolbild Wikipedia

Wikipedia seeks 'counsel' after Turkish site blocked

No official reason was given, but local media said the move was related to associating Turkey with terrorism.
Human RightsApril 29, 2017
Türkei Silhouette Tayyip Erdogan

Erdogan named 'Turkish dictator' on Wikipedia

The edit has since been removed and the Turkish president's English-language page is blocked from editing for a week.
PoliticsApril 16, 2017
Wikipedio logo, Copyright: dpa - Bildfunk

Wikipedia isn't a viable source for scientists, expert says

Fifteen years after its creation, Wikipedia still has flaws. Communication expert Rudolf Stöber explains why.
January 15, 2016
Illustration Wikipedia

Top Wikipedia articles 2015 (views in millions)

1. List of deaths by year (20.7) | 2. Wikipedia (12) | 3. Facebook (11) | 4. 'ISIS' | 5. Bollywood 2015 (10.2)
January 15, 2016
Screenshot Wikipedia Logo

Wikipedia's 15 years old

Wikipedia was started 15 years ago. Today, it's one of the internet‘s most frequently visited sites.
January 12, 2016
DW Shift Sendungslogo

Shift - Living in the Digital Age

Wikipedia’s 15 years old. An internet satire of Jihadis. And in Exit: a bird's eye view of London.
January 12, 2016
Screenshot DW Shift 15 Jahre Wikipedia

Wikipedia's 15 years old

Wikipedia was started in 2000. Today, it's one of the internet's most frequently visited sites.
ScienceJanuary 11, 201604:18 min
Illustration Wikipedia

Wikimedia sues NSA

The owner of the online encyclopedia Wikipedia has sued the US National Security Agency for violating privacy rights.
March 10, 2015
A screenshot of the African Traditions Online Encyclopedia

Africa's Wikipedia

A look at some of the challenges and opportunities in the plans for an African online encyclopedia.
July 11, 2014
external

Inside Wikipedia - Attack of the PR Industry

Founded in 2001, Wikipedia is the world’s largest online encyclopedia. It’s fast and free, but not without its flaws.
BusinessJune 30, 201407:13 min
Google data center

The right to be forgotten

The US search engine is switching from algorithms to grey matter to comply with new regulations in Europe. But requests to delete information have raised some tough issues.
May 30, 2014
LOGO WIKIPEDIA

Shift Ranking of January 2: Most Viewed Articles on English Wikipedia 2013

1. Facebook (30m view counts) / 2. Deaths in 2013 (21m) / 3. Breaking Bad (17,18m) / 4. G-force (17,17m) / 5. Google (16m) / Source: Wikipedia
January 2, 2014
An African holds a mobile phone against a backdrop of fruits.

Wikipedia Zero

In Africa, the Wikipedia Zero project is hampered by exorbitant mobile data prices.
December 18, 2013
Two schoolkids behind a tablet and notebook computer Photo: Fotolia/contrastwerkstatt #45994445

E-book learning

An e-textbook site lets teachers tailor books specifically to their lessons and students.
September 11, 2013
THAIER AL-SUDANI/AFP/Getty Images)

Shift Ranking of July 22: The most controversial articles in the English language version of Wikipedia

1. George W. Bush│ 2. Anarchism│ 3. Muhammad│ 4. List of World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. employees│ 5. Global Warming
July 22, 2013
Ranga Yogeshwar and Frank Schirrmacher Fotocredit Claudia Ast/ Ralf Juergens

Digital disobedience

How much longer can we allow secret US surveillance programs to continue? A debate.
July 2, 2013

Attempted Manipulation on Wikipedia

Wikipedia continues to grow in significance. The English-language version of the online encyclopedia racks up several million hits per hour. But there appear to be increasing signs of attempted manipulation - meaning a lot of extra work for the Wikipedia community.
LifestyleMay 28, 201304:05 min
Linux Logo (Copyright: Larry Ewing, Simon Budig, Anja Gerwinski) Der Urheber gestattet jedermann jede Form der Nutzung, unter der Bedingung der angemessenen Nennung seiner Urheberschaft. Weiterverbreitung, Bearbeitung und kommerzielle Nutzung sind gestattet. http://de.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Datei:Tux.svg&filetimestamp=20120923175502

Open source software

The explosion of web platforms and business can be credited to the push for open source software.
December 12, 2012

The Dark Side of Wikipedia

Wikipedia is one of the most popular sites on the Internet. The online encyclopedia is so beloved because it's free -- and also completely free of advertising. Nonetheless, founder Jimmy Wales still profits from Wikipedia.
LifestyleSeptember 25, 201203:48 min
Megaupload screenshot

Cyber crackdown

US authorities crack down on piracy by arresting the German founder of Megaupload and co-workers.
January 20, 2012
A screenshot of blacked out websites

Powerful protest

With major websites like Wikipedia offline in protest, US representatives rethink anti-piracy bils.
January 19, 2012
Wikipedia blacked out site

Online protest

Wikipedia stops service for 24 hours to protest two bills being debated in the US Congress.
January 18, 2012