Jimmy Wales
Jimmy Wales (born 1966; popularly known as 'Jimbo') is an entrepreneur best known for co-founding the free on-line encyclopedia Wikipedia with Larry Sanger; today, Wales is the de facto head of the website and is regularly described in the media as a highly influential figure. He is the co-founder of Wikia, a web hosting service, and also started Nupedia, a precursor to Wikipedia.
Wales, who has a beard, has argued that some features that distinguish Wikipedia from Citizendium - for example, the possibility of contributing to Wikipedia anonymously - will not lead to a better, more reliable encyclopedia. In August 2007 he was reported as saying "I think there's basically zero problems that can be solved by eliminating anonymity."[1] This was after the 'Essjay scandal', in which an anonymous contributor was found to have faked credentials on Wikipedia.[2] Wales had initially defended 'Essjay' (Ryan Jordan) and supported Jordan's position as a salaried employee within Wikia, but withdrew support when he learned how Jordan had used false qualifications to further himself in disputes over article content.[3]
Other controversies involving Jimmy Wales include his claim to be the sole founder of Wikipedia[4] and the manner in which he is reported to have ended his relationship with conservative journalist Rachel Marsden.[5]
Footnotes
- ↑ Sydney Morning Herald: 'Identification not required'. August 24 2007.
- ↑ Slashdot: 'Academic Credentials and Wikiality'. March 1 2007.
- ↑ WikiEN-l: 'EssJay situation'. March 3 2007.
- ↑ Sydney Morning Herald: 'Citizendium founder Sanger says he co-started Wikipedia, but don't tell that to Jimmy Wales'. March 26 2007.
- ↑ The Times: 'Fury of a woman scorned – on Wikipedia'. March 4 20008.