Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia that anyone can change, is looking to reinvent its image by color coding false information on the Web site.
Wikipedia.org is often the first prompted source when conducting a search on the net. The problem is users of this site can edit the information of any article, which can discredit Wikipedia as a reliable source for doing research.
"One issue with Wikipedia is people intentionally putting misleading information on the site," said Charles A. Israel, chair of the history department at Auburn University. "The bigger issue is what is thought of as right and wrong information, because there is rumor, idea and interpretation of what is considered reliable."
The decision to color code and not delete the false content was made to retain the concept of allowing anyone to edit information. The Wikimedia Foundation calls the new philosophy "flagged revisions."
"This system cannot determine what is true or wrong," said Professor David Monniaux, a Wikipedia volunteer. "Instead, this system tries to gauge the credibility of the person who wrote such or such part of an article."
The color coding is an optional feature that is part of a tool called "WikiTrust." This tool will monitor an author's editing and the amount of complaints or objections from other editors. The fewer objection an author gets, the more his or her reputation as a reliable source will grow. The color orange will highlight the most questionable information. As an edit gets more trustworthy the page will fade from orange to white.
"I like to use Wikipedia to get a basic idea of what I am researching, but I never depend on the information 100 percent," said Mark Rodgers, a senior in kinesiology.
Professors and high school teachers will probably not change their opinion of Wikipedia. When it comes to research, educators expect more effort from students than clicking a site that may or may not have reliable and creditable content.
"I teach my students that any source can be legitimate depending on what information you are looking at, and even the most legitimate sources can be falsified," said Rhonda Powers, an instructor in the English department.
More reputable sources would include university sites, online library databases and books from a library.
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