It turns out that the conservative think tank Heritage Foundation is promoting a plan to identify and target anti-Semitic Wikipedia editors
The Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank in the United States, is promoting a plan to 'target Wikipedia editors,' according to The Forward, America's largest Jewish newspaper.
Scoop: Heritage Foundation plans to 'identify and target' Wikipedia editors – The Forward
The Forward has also published documents that it says it obtained independently.
Wikipedia Editor Targeting
(PDF file)
According to the document, the operation outlines 'identifying and targeting Wikipedia editors who abuse their positions through analysis of text patterns, usernames, and technical data via data breach analysis, fingerprinting, HUMINT , and technical targeting.' The Heritage Foundation reportedly explained to potential donors that the plan is 'part of our efforts to combat anti-Semitism.'
It is unclear what specific 'anti-Semitism' the initiative will address, but some Jewish groups have expressed dissatisfaction with the content of Wikipedia articles that were updated in response to the October 2023 war between Israel and Hamas.
In June 2024, Wikipedia editors classified the Anti-Defamation League (ADL), the largest Jewish organization in the United States, as a 'generally unreliable source,' a list of sources that are banned or partially banned from being used as sources. Editors who participated in the discussion surrounding the decision stated that 'because the ADL acts as a pro-Israel organization and has a tendency to label legitimate criticism of Israel as anti-Semitic, it should not be cited as factual information about anti-Semitism.'
ADL faces Wikipedia ban over reliability concerns on Israel, antisemitism - Jewish Telegraphic Agency
https://www.jta.org/2024/06/18/united-states/adl-faces-wikipedia-ban-over-reliability-concerns-on-israel-antisemitism
Then, in the fall of 2024, a reference to 'colonization' was added to an article on ' Zionism ,' sparking outrage from Jewish scholars and pro-Israel activists.
At the time of writing, this topic is not available on the Japanese Wikipedia, but there is a separate article titled 'Wikipedia and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict' in seven other languages, including English.
Wikipedia and the Israeli–Palestinian conflict - Wikipedia
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia_and_the_Israeli%E2%80%93Palestinian_conflict
The Forward sent questions to the Heritage Foundation, such as 'What does targeting mean?', but did not receive a response.
According to Wikipedia editor Tamzin Hadassah Kelly, ' doxing ,' an attempt to identify editors, is not uncommon, and it can be difficult for editors to maintain anonymity. Doxing techniques aimed at Wikipedia editors include sharing personal information via fake user accounts and sending tracking links that can identify individuals. However, this is believed to be the first large-scale attempt to identify such people.
Journalist Molly White told The Forward, 'The documents don't specify what they'll do with the target, but I can't think of anything good to say about it.'
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