FishbowlNY - Turning the Page For New York Media
Friday, Jun 27

Why is Killing Someone on Wikipedia Just So Darn Addictive?

russwiki.pngOver at the Globe and Mail (which recently and finally dropped its subscription policy...Margaret Wente for everyone!) Ivor Tossell is confessing that he too succumbed to the same siren call of Wikipedia as the kid who got fired for preemptively reporting Tim Russert's death on the site two weeks ago. In fact, it seems Tossel was up to much the same thing.


I saw the updated Wikipedia article before NBC made its announcement — because I was busy doing much the same thing. But when I visited the Wikipedia page of Meet The Press, the flagship political show he helmed on Sundays, I found it in pristine condition. Why I was compelled to be the one to change it, I couldn't tell you, but that's what I did. I added a "2008" as an ending date on his tenure at the show. I changed everything else to the past tense. And I did so post-haste.
What motivated this journalist to make accurate a public web page so quickly (or, in his words, "kill Tim Russert on Wikipedia?")? Tossell assures us it did not "stem from a desire to make sure that the public was well-informed," more likely it was driven by the same "primal instinct that makes people shout "First!" on online forums." As to whether Wikipedia should have lost its general appeal by now, as Tossell suggests, well, why bother becoming a journalist (or murderer) when you can play one on Wikipedia?

new on mediabistro.com

The Future of Social Media with Chris Anderson

The editor of Wired explains how to create a social network that works.
Watch the video

Email This Post

Fill out the following information and click on the Send button in order to send this post, Why is Killing Someone on Wikipedia Just So Darn Addictive?, to a friend.
Friend's name
Friend's email address
Your name
Your email address
Note to your friend (optional, max 200 Characters)

Read more on FishbowlNY >

Turning the Page For New York Media
FishbowlNY in Your Inbox
Mobile Version
RSS Feed
Our Blog Network

BayNewser

WebNewser

TVNewser

PRNewser

MediaJobsDaily

GalleyCat

UnBeige

MobileContentToday

AgencySpy

FishbowlDC

FishbowlLA

FishbowlNY

FishbowlNY Staff
Editor:
Amanda Ernst

Contributing Editor:
Drew Grant

Columnist:
Diane Clehane

About FishbowlNY
Follow FishbowlNY
Email FishbowlNY

Anonymous Tips
Topics

About

About Us - Modules

Acquisitions

Advertising

Alternative Weeklies

AMC 2006

AMC 2007

AMC 2008

Awards

Beijing Olympics

Books

Bottom Feeding

Breaking News

Circulation

Daily Angle

Dissecting NPR

DNC '08

Election '08

Ellies '08

Fashion Week

Fishbowl Initiatives

FishbowlNY Poll

Inauguration '08

International

Keith Kelly Distilled

Legal Trouble

Lunch

Magazines

Markets & Media

Media Companies

Media Events

Media Lookbook

Media Minutiae

Media People

Mediabistro Circus

Memopad Distilled

Menu

Movies

New Media

News

Newspapers

NYT in 90 Seconds

Obituaries

Parties

Pop Culture

Radio

RNC '08

Scandals

Scholarly Pursuits

Strike Watch

SXSWi '08

The Crystal Ball

The Internet Presidency

The Revolving Door

The State of Journalism

Time 100

Trends

TV

Video

Archives

November 2009

October 2009

September 2009

August 2009

more...

Links

AdAge

Beet.tv

BusinessWeek | Fine on Media

Buzz Machine/Jarvis

The Colbert Report

The Corsair

Daily Show

Editor & Publisher

Ed2010

Folio:

Gawker

Gothamist

Guardian America | Media

HuffPo

IWantMedia

Marketwatch | Friedman

Mediaite

Mediapost

Media Wire Daily

NY Daily News

NY Mag | Daily Intelligencer

NY Observer | The Media Mob

NY Post | Keith Kelly

NYT | Media Decoder

The Onion

Paid Content

Poynter | Romenesko

Silicon Alley Insider

Slate | Jack Shafer

Wall Street Journal

WaPo | Media Notes

James Wolcott

WWD | Memo Pad

Job Listings

Featured Listings

Naming Specialist
Landor Associates
New York, NY

Assistant/Junior Media Buyer
Advertising Agency
New York, NY

Content Designer-InStyle.com
Time Inc.
New York, NY

Media Relations Specialist
Hunter Public Relations
New York, NY

Upcoming


Get Over Your Writer's Block
November 30
New York

On-Camera Media Training
December 4
New York

Create Order Through Simplicity
December 5
New York


ADVERTISEMENT


mediabistro.com l Member Benefits l Jobs l Freelance Marketplace l Courses l Events l Forums l Content
mediabistro Blogs: Media News l TVNewser l GalleyCat l UnBeige l FishbowlNY l FishbowlLA l FishbowlDC l PRNewser l AgencySpy
MobileContentToday l WebNewser l BayNewser l MediaJobsDaily l mbToolbox
Site Map l Advertising/Sponsorships l Partners l About Us l Contact Us/Help

internet.commediabistro.comJusttechjobs.comGraphics.com

Search:

WebMediaBrands Corporate Info

Legal Notices, Licensing, Reprints, Permissions, Privacy Policy.
Advertise | Newsletters | Shopping | E-mail Offers