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It was an idea that defied logic: an online encyclopedia that anyone could edit.
You didn’t need to have a PhD or even use your real name – you just needed an internet connection. Against all odds, it worked. Today, billions of people use Wikipedia every month, and studies show it’s about as accurate as a traditional encyclopedia.
But how? How did Wikipedia not just turn into yet another online cesspool, filled with falsehoods, partisanship and AI slop? Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales wrote a book called The Seven Rules of Trust, where he explains how he was able to build that rarest of things: a trustworthy source of information on the internet. In an era when trust in institutions is collapsing, Wales thinks he’s found a blueprint – not just for the web, but for everything else too.
Mentioned:
The Seven Rules of Trust by Jimmy Wales and Dan Gardner
A False Wikipedia ‘Biography’ by John Seigenthaler (USA Today)
Machines Like Us is produced by Mitchell Stuart. Our theme song is by Chris Kelly. Video editing by Emily Graves. Our executive producer is James Milward. Special thanks to Angela Pacienza and the team at The Globe and Mail.
Photo Illustration The Globe and Mail/Brendan McDermid/Reuters