Wikipedia Co-Founder Larry Sanger ‘Shocked’ by Katherine Maher’s Rejection of Free and Open Internet

Larry Sanger, co-founder of Wikipedia, expressed his shock at recent statements made by the former CEO of its parent organization Wikimedia, Katherine Maher, who now serves as CEO of NPR.

City Journal reports that in interview with Christopher Rufo, Larry Sanger, the co-founder of Wikipedia, reacted to recent statements made by the online encyclopedia’s former CEO, Katherine Maher. Maher’s explicit rejection of the principles of a “free and open” internet, her collaboration with government officials to censor dissent, and her spurning of objective truth in favor of left-wing relativism left Sanger, who proposed Wikipedia’s original rules encouraging users to “avoid bias” and maintain a “neutral point of view,” surprised that she would openly express such views.

“For the ex-CEO of Wikipedia to say that it was somehow a mistake for Wikipedia to be ‘free and open,’ that it led to bad consequences—my jaw is on the floor,” Sanger told Rufo. “I can’t say I’m terribly surprised that she thinks it, but I am surprised that she would say it.”

Larry Sanger on Tucker Carlson (Fox News)

Sanger also expressed concern about how Maher worked with governments to suppress “misinformation” on Wikipedia, given that the Wikimedia Foundation doesn’t have the authority to directly shut things down within the website’s system. He questioned how outside influences, such as government representatives, could exert control over Wikipedia’s content, suggesting that they may have accounts through which they can influence the platform.

Furthermore, Sanger noted suspicions about Maher’s ties to NGOs connected to U.S. intelligence services, citing research by Virgil Griffith showing a high number of Wikipedia edits originating from Langley, Virginia, back in 2007. He found it outrageous that a supposedly neutral public resource like Wikipedia has been co-opted by the government, stating, “That’s not a thing I would’ve imagined happening 20 years ago.”

Reflecting on the early days of Wikipedia, Sanger recalled the excitement surrounding the internet’s potential for anyone to publish content freely, with minimal restrictions on free speech. However, as a philosopher, he acknowledged that such freedoms were not automatic and could easily be lost.

When asked what should happen at NPR, given what is now known about its new CEO, Sanger maintained that if NPR truly valued free speech, ideological neutrality, and nonpartisanship, they would promptly remove Maher from her position. However, he expressed doubts that such action would be taken, stating, “They don’t listen to people like us. They don’t care what we think.”

Maher’s attitude and leadership at Wikipedia goes a long way in explaining how the site devolved from an online encyclopedia into a source of fake news and extreme leftist groupthink. Over the years, Breitbart News has investigated and reported on many fake news hoaxes that began life on Wikipedia, including one about Breitbart News itself:

Framing Breitbart

Breitbart News has also been the subject of a Wikipedia hoax on its own page where left-wing editor “Snooganssnoogans” added a claim in early 2017 that Breitbart promoted the “Pizzagate” conspiracy theory, which claims John Podesta’s e-mails about pizza are coded references to a child sex ring connected to the Clintons. The cited source doesn’t claim this and Breitbart’s only appearance in the article is an embedded tweet from its verified account, which mentioned one of Podesta’s pizza-related e-mails weeks before the conspiracy theories emerged.

However, editors kept the material even after it was challenged. An article in the Independent would later repeat this false accusation along with other negative material copied from Wikipedia’s Breitbart article. One editor suggested citing the article for other claims on the page. Breitbart News has never promoted the Pizzagate conspiracy theory, but justlikemanyothernewsoutlets, it has reported on the connection between the Clintons and the late accused sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Ironically, Breitbart has been banned from Wikipedia for nearly two years after editors deemed it “unreliable” in a discussion claiming Breitbart publishes “fake news” on its site.

Wikipedia co-founder Larry Sanger has been a particularly fierce critic of the site’s loss of balance, which again can be attributed to Maher’s leadership:

On May 14, Sanger published a blog piece titled “Wikipedia Is Badly Biased” and started by declaring Wikipedia’s “Neutral Point of View” policy dead. Having founded the online encyclopedia with Jimmy Wales and having been involved in the original drafting of the policy, Sanger offered particular insight into its development and its practice in recent years. On the current policy’s rejection of providing “equal validity” to different views, Sanger stated this went directly against the original policy’s intent and that “as journalists turn to opinion and activism, Wikipedia now touts controversial points of view on politics, religion, and science.”

Providing examples, Sanger noted former President Obama’s article excludes most notable scandals during his Administration, such as the bungled ATF Fast and Furious operation that armed Mexican cartels who killed a U.S. border agent or the targeting of Tea Party groups by the IRS. By contrast, Sanger pointed to Trump’s article containing overwhelmingly negative sections on the President regarding his “public profile” as well as investigations and impeachment. The sections critical of Trump and his presidency are nearly as long as those dealing with his presidency overall. He further criticized Wikipedia repeatedly saying Trump makes false statements rather than attributing such characterizations to sources.

Read more at City Journal here.

Lucas Nolan is a reporter for Breitbart News covering issues of free speech and online censorship.