Online Hoax: Fake Wikipedia Entry on Bicholim Conflict Finally Deleted After Five Years
From PC World:
Wikipedia’s volunteer editors recently removed an elaborate article that purported to describe the “Bicholim Conflict.” The 4,500-word article spoke of an undeclared war between colonial Portugal and India’s Maratha Empire that eventually ended in a peace treaty, laying the groundwork for the independent Indian state of Goa.
As the Daily Dot reports, that story is completely bogus. There was no Bicholim Conflict. The article’s footnotes cited books that don’t exist. And yet, the entry was labeled a “Good Article” by editors just two months after its creation in July 2007.
Read the Complete PC World Article
See Also: After a half-decade, massive Wikipedia hoax finally exposed (via The Daily Dot)
See Also: The 10 Biggest Hoaxes in Wikipedia’s First 10 Years (via Network World)
See Also: Important Read: Archivist Jason Scott Has A Lot to Say About Wikipedia (December 12, 2012)
About Gary Price
Gary Price (gprice@gmail.com) is a librarian, writer, consultant, and frequent conference speaker based in the Washington D.C. metro area. He earned his MLIS degree from Wayne State University in Detroit. Price has won several awards including the SLA Innovations in Technology Award and Alumnus of the Year from the Wayne St. University Library and Information Science Program. From 2006-2009 he was Director of Online Information Services at Ask.com.
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