On Tue, Apr 1, 2014 at 7:47 AM, Andreas Kolbe jayen466@gmail.com wrote:
I have no problem *at all* with the fact that the Wikimedia Foundation paid an academically qualified expert to make edits to Wikipedia. In fact, I find it disheartening that the Foundation now feels it has to state that nothing like this will ever happen again. This is throwing out the baby with the bathwater.
Perhaps. As I've said in the past, I think it'd be best for any such ethical paid editing work to be conducted within a completely different organizational context, with that org's sole focus being to support and enable it being done well. Organizations need focus, and this isn't ours for good reasons. In fact, nobody would stop you - or anyone - from setting up such an organization and seeking funding for it. I do think there's an inherent risk with situating paid editors within specific institutions, because there may be a tendency that comes with that to attach undue weight to that institution's work.
Erik