Discussion Questions: Jimmy Wales Is Not an Internet
Billionaire
Sydney Heyler
Section 310
1. What do you think the article means when it
calls Wales the “Benevolent Dictator for Life” or B.D.F.L.? How much power/influence over Wikipedia do
you think Wales has actually exercised? Is this an appropriate title for Wales?
2. Do you
agree with the article when it says that using advertisements would cause
members of the Wikipedia “community” to revolt?
What do you think of Michael J. Wolf’s paradox: “That what makes
Wikipedia so valuable for users is what gets in its way of becoming a valuable,
for-profit enterprise”? How do these
concepts tie together?
3. Do you agree with the article that Wale’s
celebrity “relies largely on being the guy who made the sum of the world’s
information free without making a penny himself”? Does the public truly recognize and appreciate
this aspect of Wales or do you think he is largely criticized for “leaving
money on the table”?
4. Wikipedia prides itself in giving anonymous
volunteers with the same power as established experts. What do you think of this approach? Has it been successful for Wikipedia?
5. How has
the “community’s” view/opinion of Wales changed over the years? Do you think Wales has stayed true to
Wikipedia’s original “higher purpose” or shifted to other motivations since
starting his company?
No comments:
Post a Comment