This article has less to do with public affairs per se, instead I focus on increasing the capacity and representation of women online. A recent article on the NYT’s highlights the lack of female contributions to Wikipedia articles, which currently hovers at 15%.
The reason given?
Jane Margolis, co-author of a book on sexism in computer science, “Unlocking the Clubhouse,” argues that Wikipedia is experiencing the same problems of the offline world, where women are less willing to assert their opinions in public. “In almost every space, who are the authorities, the politicians, writers for op-ed pages?” said Ms. Margolis, a senior researcher at the Institute for Democracy, Education and Access at the University of California, Los Angeles.
The article goes on to say that though Sue Gardner, Executive Director of the Wikipedia Foundation acknowledges this problem she is hesitant to recruit women head on, as it can trigger strong reactions for numerous individuals.
Read the full article here: Wikipedia Ponders Its Gender-Skewed Contributions – NYTimes.com.
I argue that the relevance and growing value of Wikipedia [see article statistics] makes it all the more important for women to contribute to. Not only does it increase the technological capacity of its contributers (I think all of our Board members in launching the WIPA blog can testify to that) but it ensures equal representation on article content, tone and emphasis. As Wikipedia becomes a growing reference source for internet users equal gender representation among it’s contributers becomes increasingly important.
Question: Have you ever contributed to a Wikipedia article? Thought about contributing? If so, what was your experience? If not, what prevented you?
I am not surprised that there’s a higher male contribution to Wikipedia – but only 15% by women? That’s shocking! Also, I am not sure I completely buy the “willingness to assert opinions in public”point. After all, Wikipedia is meant to be a community encyclopedia which is less about opinions and more about facts. And is it really true that there is a general bias in media? I had the impression that – at least in Continental Europe – media is a female dominated field. Maybe not so much with the leading positions (the old and key problem) but across all positions.
To answer your question – No and no. Why? Because I do not feel “expert enough” at this point. So for me it is more about age / experience than gender. However, I have contributed to “wikis” of various networks that I am in. I covered the LSE MPA for example
Sure, these focused “wikis” are a different thing, but here I felt comfortable enough to write something that I feel represented facts and that others would find helpful.
I agree, I thought that the comment about women not being as willing to assert their opinions was not accurate. I might agree with the argument that women can tend to be more thoughtful about their responses but this is by no means a blanket statement, nor would it prevent women from participating.
I’ve edited Wikipedia once or twice when I’ve seen something that obviously wrong but the formatting and html coding can make it a little intimidating to get involved. Usually if I want to edit something, I want to do it right, meaning that I will only do it if I know I have the additional time to look up the proper html editing codes and formatting. It would be great if the Wikipedia interface was a little bit more user friendly. Additionally there are threads attached to each page where editors can discuss changes to a page but I have yet to figure out how that works. I don’t see why it needs to be that difficult. If you and I can edit a wordpress blog, including minor coding edits, then Wikipedia should be a breeze! But, for me at least, this is far from the case.
According to an article I just found on The Telegraph , Wikipedia is now setting a recruitment target for female contributers. They are now hoping increase the presence of women contributers from 15% to 25%. Not huge, but a step in the right direction.
I am not surprised that there’s a hgheir male contribution to Wikipedia but only 15% by women? That’s shocking! Also, I am not sure I completely buy the willingness to assert opinions in public point. After all, Wikipedia is meant to be a community encyclopedia which is less about opinions and more about facts. And is it really true that there is a general bias in media? I had the impression that at least in Continental Europe media is a female dominated field. Maybe not so much with the leading positions (the old and key problem) but across all positions. To answer your question No and no. Why? Because I do not feel expert enough at this point. So for me it is more about age / experience than gender. However, I have contributed to wikis of various networks that I am in. I covered the LSE MPA for example Sure, these focused wikis are a different thing, but here I felt comfortable enough to write something that I feel represented facts and that others would find helpful.