Reading Response #4

Reading Response #4

“Can Wikipedia Ever Make the Grade?”
By: Brock Read

This article by Brock Read is based on the accuracy of Wikipedia. This article gives great points on why the accuracy of Wikipedia is being questioned. These points include the sites refusal of giving priority to professors and established scholars. Another point is that of Wikipedia’s editing process. Anyone with access to the website can simply edit anything within an article about any topic. The editing process of Wikipedia is being stated as a “free-for-all” posting ground. Although the article is not completely negative towards Wikipedia, it also shows a comparison between Encyclopedia Britannica and Wikipedia. The comparison showed that the two encyclopedias were surprisingly close in accuracy. The Encyclopedia Britannica articles averaged about three errors while Wikipedia posts on the same subjects had about four errors.
Wikipedia is popular with its users because it gives everyone a chance to share their own individual knowledge. Their knowledge is shared with the world without having to be an expert or professor. When it comes to my own experience with encyclopedias, I have usually been told to avoid Wikipedia by my professors. They have given the same reasons as why to avoid it; it may or may not be accurate information. I believe Wikipedia should not be used as a credible source but as a primary base. I believe Wikipedia should be used to get a basic idea on a certain topic or subject, since it is somewhat accurate and because of its convenience. Once Wikipedia has been used to get a general understanding about a topic then the more scholarly and credible sources should be used.