For no reasons other than my own demonstrated affinity for the works of David Foster Wallace and recent fixation with the alleged pseudonymous works of Mike Murphy, I would like to present an excerpt of a limited panel strip drawn in 2005 by webcomic artist Mike Russell1.
The following is based on one brief passage from “Up, Simba!”, Wallace’s not-so-brief 2000 Rolling Stone article about his time aboard the Straight Talk Express with the “anti-candidate” and the traveling press corps, recently republished as a short book with the dreadful title “McCain’s Promise: Aboard the Straight Talk Express with John McCain and a Whole Bunch of Actual Reporters, Thinking About Hope”2:
- Oh, all right. As long as I’m talking about Wallace, you’ll have to excuse the use of footnotes. Anyway, I asked Russell if I could use this, and he pointed out that because he drew it on spec using copyrighted material, he couldn’t actually make any money off it, so I was free to “go nuts” with it. However, he did want the point made clear that he is “totally unaffiliated” with Wallace or any publishers of the text wherefrom he derived the above-printed comic excerpt. And I’m happy to do so.
Thing is, most of Wallace’s titles are far better than his editors’. For a (very long (and very funny)) comic essay about a week on board a luxury cruise, which of the following sounds like a better title: “A Supposedly Fun Thing I’ll Never Do Again” or “Shipping Out: On the (nearly lethal) comforts of a luxury cruise”? Yet the latter is what Harper’s called it, and the former is what Wallace was able to call it once he published the full-length version (approx. 100 pages) in his eponymous (the essay, not his name) first collection of nonfiction.
I don’t actually have a third item, and there’s no corresponding third footnote above, I just thought w/r/t footnotes, three would be a nice round number.
For the record, this page will not be covering Flavor of Love (season 3), Deaths in 2008, 2008 UEFA Champions League Final or a handful of other articles that may have made the top-edited list but for the fact that I’m not entirely sure whether I copied the list of top articles for the week or just for Sunday.
I’m only a human and WikiRage is only a program which as yet does not allow one to look at charts in the past. But in the interests of Wikipedia trivia, let’s keep this feature moving forward. And in the interests of posterity, all apologies to Indiana Jones, who may have been the rightful owner of the top slot this week.
Article: Eurovision Song Contest 2009
Why: The Eurovision Song Contest is something like the Olympics for pop groups of various European nations, held annually. I’d wager most Americans have never heard of it, but it’s actually entering its 53rd year.
Detail: It’s not easy to see where all those edits went in this first week. The page is not very long, and only a few participants are yet confirmed. The best explanation is that new pages being prepared to expand greatly according to pre-established rules are the locus of numerous tiny edits and adjustments. Glancing over the meticulous, country by country, week by week charting on the article for 2008’s installment, I expect the 2009 page will make this list in subsequent weeks.
- Article: Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull
Why: This is no time for Wikipedia, Dr. Jones! The fourth installment in the Lucas/Spielberg/Ford series is the biggest movie in the world at the moment.
Detail: Through no real particular linking effort, this article is the third non-news listing on Wikipedia when the title is used as a search term. If your search term is “Indy 4″ it’s the second result. And in terms of length and citations, this page resembles nothing so much as two chart-topping articles from the past few weeks: 2008 Sichuan earthquake and Cyclone Nargis.
Article: Stanley Cup
Why: Yes, the NHL championship is under way now, but the article about the trophy itself was the Featured Article on May 25.
Detail: Is it surprising that Canada’s national sport a target of relentless Wikipedia vandals? Perhaps not when you consider how frequently recent “South Park” episodes make this list.
- Article: Dima Bilan
Why: The Russian pop artist won the 2008 Eurovision song contest.
Detail: Apparently the beginning of the new season brings the trolls out, as they make a recent, unscheduled appearance on the Talk page. But the attention also brought out the copyright hounds, who noted there was no rationale cited for the fair use image of Bilan in the article, and removed it.
- Article: Eurovision Song Contest
Why: The flagship article for the aforementioned annual European diva-off.
Detail: I kind of hope I did grab the wrong list of articles, becuase I’m not sure if I get interested enough in the contest to cover it week in and out.
- Article: UFC 84
Why: This weekend the MGM Grand in Las Vegas hosted the latest battle royale between the leading practitioners of what has apparently come to be known as “mixed martial arts.”
Detail: The title makes it sound like this event has been going for 84 years, but in fact UFC 83 was only in April, and UFC 85 will be in June. The only other thing I can say is that the Brazilians do exceptionally well.
- Article: Union of South American Nations
Why: You know the unification of North America raised by conspiracy theorists obsessed with the “NAFTA superhighway”? Yeah, well they did it South America.
Detail: I’m kidding, sort of. The newly created union aims to create a single market not unlike the European Union, but it’s not quite a reimagination of borders as drastic as the Organization of North American Nations from “Infinite Jest”, even if the name sort of implies it.
- Article: Rob Knox
Why: Article about an 18-year-old British actor killed by stabbing outside a bar in suburban London.
Detail: Wait a few days, and you may miss it. The article has been nominated for deletion, although early indications from the Talk page are that it will stay.
- Article: Lion
Why: Featured Article for May 24, 2008.
Detail: Lions are not greater targets for vandalism than Canadian hockey trophies, but as charismatic megafauna, they’re still a target.
Article: Manuel Marulanda
Why: Not Bill Frist’s former counsel but a leader of the FARC terrorist group reported to have died this week of a heart attack.
Detail: A fair point from a newbie, not yet taken up: “Im kinda new here. Is it good to have the Video section have a link to a site selling a video?You cannot watch it free. Seems a bit too commercial.”
Holdovers this week: You know, let’s just pretend Deaths in 2008 made the list. In the second week of this feature, we honored Herb Peterson, inventor of the Egg McMuffin, so it would be wrong now if we did not reflect briefly on the life of J.R. Simplot, the man behind the McDonald’s french fry.
Falling off the list: Everything from last week.
Recurring themes: Weekly-elimination musical competitions, televised non-Olympic fighting events, long articles about current events with 100-plus citations.
Honorable mention: American Idol. It’s #11 for the week as of Monday, and may have been on the list as of last night. I suppose we’ll never know. But considering that the American TV series has concluded just as it has helped Fox become the #1 network in the United States for the first full season ever, I’ll throw it a bone.
Images courtesy Banlon1964, Dunechaser and Heaven’s Gate (John) on Flickr.
It’s time once again to turn our attention to what Wikipedians turned their attention to this week, according to the most-edited list at WikiRage.
- Article: Suleiman the Magnificent
Why: This fourteenth century Ottoman sultan was the Featured Article on April 8.
Detail: As usual, the front-paging of an article results in some vandalism. But the overall effect is salutary, as the article gets closer scrutiny by serious editors. In the meantime, you get enjoyable debates like this: “Article says: ‘Suleiman married a harem girl Roxelana, who became Hürrem Sultan’.
I understand that PC or indifference thereto is a controversial subject, but is ‘harem girl’ (although perhaps literally correct) really the best way for us to phrase this? … As a female member of the household, she would still have been part of the harem. I don’t really see a problem with the term. I suppose we could change ‘girl” to ’slave,’ if that’s what the problem is.”
- Article: J.K. Rowling
Why: The children’s author who is wealthier than the Queen was the Featured Article on April 11.
Detail: At 23:42 GMT on April 12, David4674 reduced the entire article to… nothing. His edit summary was surprisingly forthright: “Blanked the page.” But don’t worry, David4674 isn’t a real editor: he’s a sock puppet of… Dan 689. Both appear to have been banned.
- Article: Deaths in 2008
Why: Passing this week: Monk’s psychiatrist and numerous people I’ve never heard of.
Detail: Abu Ubaidah al-Masri, an al Qaeda operative in Pakistan is believed to have died of hepatitis in December 2007, but U.S. government sources didn’t announce this until just the past week, hence his inclusion in the list.
- Article: Victoria Cross
Why: Not a television actress from the 1980s, but in fact the highest military decoration in the British Commonwealth. Featured Article? Good guess! It was on April 9.
Detail: Only the Talk page will tell you that Major General Candy in “The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp” was a fictional recipient of the VC, if it matters, and I am not sure it does.
- Article: Yi So-yeon
Why: As of April 8, this 29 year-old astronaut is the first Korean and second Asian woman in space
Detail: If you’re envious now, just wait until she starts doing TV commercials. Although you might have to be in South Korea to see them, I’m sure the money is just as good.
- Article: 2008 Summer Olympics torch relay
Why: The ceremonial relay has been in the news for controversy: Human rights protesters have targeted the ceremony, even snuffing out the flame a couple times in France.
Detail: Not yet making the page: Complaints about the environmental impact of carrying the torch around the globe.
- Article: Chrono Trigger
Why: Not that Wikipedians are opposed to editing video game articles already, but this was the Featured Article on April 10.
Detail: When the article appeared on Wikipedia’s main page on Thursday, the box art was not included, even though it is included in the article. I’m not sure I quite follow the reasoning, but Wikipedia is lately in the habit of keeping fair use images off the front page, only including an image if it is free use.
- Article: Tomb of Antipope John XXIII
Why: The only question is, when was it the Featured Article? The answer is April 6.
Detail: I have to admit, this question from the Talk page crossed my mind, too: “If he’s the anti pope, does that mean he worships the anti christ?”
- Article: American Idol (seaon 7)
Why: It’s dominating the iTunes top 10 list, so why shouldn’t it be on the Wikipedia top ten list?
Detail: Let’s be clear about this: “Also, regarding David Hernandez: As far as I’ve read, only incriminating pictures of him working at the bar were released. I have NEVER heard about any nude pics floating around out there on the net. Could anyone find a source to prove this? (And a link to these alleged ‘nude’ pictures. Not even for personal reasons. I’m just pretty certain only clothed pics of him with the name of the bar he works at were at VFTW and that’s it.)”
- Article: Olympic Flame
Why: See #5.
Detail: I find all this torch business a little silly, but did you know that in a ceremony involving eleven “priestesses” the torch is lit by the sun’s rays using a parabolic mirror? That’s kind of cool.
Holdovers this week: Deaths in 2008, articles related to controversy involving China and the Olympics (returning from week 2)
Falling off the list: April 1, 2008; Ima Hogg; Celine Dion; April Fool’s Day; Canada on Strike; Earth Hour; NATO; Google’s hoaxes; Bette Davis
Recurring themes: Featured Articles being the most-edited of the week.
Honorable mention: Eek, a Penis! was the episode of South Park this week, and even though it was edited 220 times this week, somehow that wasn’t enough to make the top 100. I’m suspicious; #100 was controversial talk show host Randi Rhodes, and her page was edited less than 100 times in the past week. Hmm.
Today Blog P.I. launches a new feature, or what I hope will actually become one: a look at the Top 10 most-edited pages on the English-language Wikipedia for the past week, with an explanation for why each page made the top ten. Some will be obvious to anyone who keeps tabs on current events, so rather than giving a terse “duh” I’ll endeavor to pull a non-obvious detail or amusing factoid from the edit history.
This would be completely impossible without WikiRage, an online resource keeping track of the most-edited pages for various time periods and categories. We’ll be using the previous week and the raw number of edits. Also, credit for the concept goes to the podcast Wikipedia Weekly which has done something similar before. However, as I count just three episodes 2008 YTD, it is weekly in name only. Let’s hope that doesn’t happen to us. With that, let’s look at the list for the week of March 16-22:
- Article: Arthur C. Clarke
Why: The celebrated author of “2001: A Space Odyssey” and many other science fiction stories passed away this week at age 90.
Detail: His death loosed a number of obituaries and many, many edits clarifying many aspects of his life and stories.
- Article: 2008 unrest in Tibet
Why: It’s more than a current event; it’s the worst political turmoil in mainland China since the 1989 Tiananmen Square demonstrations.
Detail: Despite China’s attempts to keep the lid on news coverage it has generated plenty, and no small amount of disagreement about what belongs in the article.
- Article: Deaths in 2008
Why: Among the notables passing away in the past week: Science fiction writer Clarke, film director Anthony Minghella, actor Paul Scofield, former child aviator Vicki Van Meter.
Detail: Not currently evident from the page, an editing skirmish over whether to include Abigail Taylor, a six-year-old Minnesota girl who drew headlines when her intestines were partially sucked out by the drain of a public swimming pool.
- Article: Britney’s New Look
Why: It was the new episode of South Park this week. It was also about Britney Spears, which must count for something.
Detail: Fans of the show take the plot summaries very seriously.
- Article: Bear Stearns
Why: Facing imminent collapse, the brokerage firm sold to JP Morgan Chase for $2 a share, down from $30 the week before and $172 at its height.
Detail: Bear Stearns has its defenders; the “Controversy” section dealing with the crisis itself is still yo-yoing between deletion and re-inclusion. Who will win? I’d bet on a slightly toned-down and retitled version of that section. One can’t argue the plunge in share price and sale is not a key event in the company’s history.
- Article: David Paterson
Why: Not only is he the new governor of New York, but he’s already embroiled in a controversy over whether he abused state resources in conjunction with admitted romantic affairs.
Detail: Prior to taking over for Eliot Spitzer this week, Paterson was said to be the first legally blind governor of any U.S. state. However, that may be a matter of dispute.
- Article: 2008 NCAA Men’s Division I Basketball Tournament
Why: Productivity plummets (not really) as March Madness sweeps office spaces across the country.
Detail: This page is amazingly detailed. Whomever designed the bracket templates, I salute you.
- Article: Horton Hears a Who! (film)
Why: It was the number one movie at the U.S. box office this week.
Detail: Now that the film has been released, moviegoers are building out the entry. Oh, the things some people see fit to add to Wikipedia entries.
- Article: Sir Gawain and the Green Knight
Why: This staple of college-level English courses hasn’t changed in 500 years… right?
Detail: Turns out there is a new translation of the poem out. At least, that’s where I think what is causing a number of edits aiming to emphasize Freudian and homoerotic subtext in the tale. However, other Wikipedians disagree — and both have been debated on the discussion page. Literary fight! Then again, some vandals want others to confuse it with Monty Python.
- Article: Brian Posehn
Why: On March 19, the comedian and actor mentioned editing his own Wikipedia entry on Late Night with Conan O’Brien
Detail: It’s amusing how would-be Wikipedia editors can’t even agree on what Posehn actually said.
Well, that’s it for this week. If you have questions or comments about this feature, please let us know.