week9： read Wikipedia in culture --LAOXINYI

1）Summary

 This paragraph talks about the presence of Wikipedia in popular culture. Unexpectedly, it is not just a website for looking up information, but has become a part of cultural symbols.

Some people use it as a "status symbol" - for example, being on Wikipedia is considered "famous"; there are artists who built statues in Poland to commemorate Wikipedia volunteers; comedians also make fun of it, such as Stephen Colbert who invented "wikiality" (meaning "consensus is truth") to satirize people who change entries at will. What's more interesting is that some people use the format of Wikipedia to make spoofs, such as the "Battle of Techno House 2022" stalk, which turned the failure of Russian soldiers to hit the door into a "battle", where the loser is the person and the winner is the door.


2）Interesting Point

What interests me most is the word "wikiality". Colbert said in the show: "As long as enough people agree with a statement on Wikipedia, it becomes the truth." This sentence is ironic, but to be honest, it really makes sense.

We usually regard Wikipedia as an authority, but its content is actually the result of a group of volunteers who are constantly discussing, modifying, and negotiating. This "consensus mechanism" is the core charm of Wikipedia, but it is also a risk. Because it is difficult to guarantee that the "consensus" reached by everyone is always the fact. And Colbert pointed out this danger with exaggeration and humor: when "truth" becomes "who says it more", then who should we believe?

3）Discussion

Are we too dependent on this seemingly open but actually complex system?

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