Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) sent a letter to the nonprofit operator of Wikipedia alleging a pattern of liberal bias in articles on the collaborative encyclopedia.
"I write to request information about ideological bias on the Wikipedia platform and at the Wikimedia Foundation," Cruz wrote to Wikimedia Foundation CEO Maryana Iskander in a letter dated October 3. "Wikipedia began with a noble concept: crowdsource human knowledge using verifiable sources and make it free to the public. That's what makes reports of Wikipedia's systemic bias especially troubling."
Citing research from the conservative Manhattan Institute, Cruz wrote that "researchers have found that articles on the site often reflect a left-wing bias." Cruz alleged that "bias is particularly evident in Wikipedia's reliable sources/perennial sources list" because it describes "MSNBC and CNN as 'generally reliable' sources, while listing Fox News as a 'generally unreliable' source for politics and science. The left-wing Southern Poverty Law Center gets a top rating, but the Heritage Foundation, a prominent conservative think tank, is a 'blacklisted' and 'deprecated' source that Wikipedia's editors have determined 'promotes disinformation.'"
Cruz asked for "documents sufficient to show how the Wikimedia Foundation or the Wikipedia Community determines the categorization of sources on the reliable sources/perennial sources list." A Wikipedia page says the categorization is "determined through public discussion and consensus," and that Fox News had its rating lowered in 2020 "because Fox News downplayed the COVID-19 pandemic, because of allegations that it spread misinformation about climate change, and because it reported on the false concept of 'no-go zones' for non-Muslims in British cities."
Cruz accused the foundation of "financially support[ing] left-wing organizations that contribute to Wikipedia content," and said that "a coordinated group of editors pushed antisemitic narratives on Wikipedia while whitewashing the activities of groups like Hamas." Wikipedia responded to edit wars on the Israeli–Palestinian conflict by banning eight editors in January.
Cruz acknowledged that the organization took action on the allegations of biased editing, but questioned its motives. "The Wikimedia Foundation has said it is taking steps to combat this editing campaign, raising further questions about the extent to which it is intervening in editorial decisions and to what end," Cruz wrote.
The Wikimedia Foundation provided a statement when contacted by Ars today.
"We can confirm receipt of a letter from Senator Ted Cruz," the statement said. "Wikipedia is supported by strong safeguards and high-quality volunteer oversight; it is a living encyclopedia that is always improving. We welcome the opportunity to further educate policymakers on the important work of Wikipedia, and the Wikimedia Foundation stands by its unwavering commitment to protect editors' exercise of free expression. Through rigorous policies, editorial standards, user privacy protections, and transparent processes, nearly 260,000 volunteers have created over 65 million articles in 300 languages. Wikipedia seeks to inform, not persuade."