Elon Musk calls Wikipedia 'woke' and urges boycott
On December 24, 2024, Elon Musk shared a post on X (formerly Twitter) urging users to boycott Wikipedia. Musk sharply criticized the online encyclopedia and referred to it as "Wokepedia". The word "woke" means "sensitive to social injustice". However, critics often use the term pejoratively to describe a supposedly exaggerated political correctness or ideological bias.
Musk urged users to stop donating to Wikipedia until its editorial stance becomes more balanced. His post responded to the previous financial year’s Wikimedia Foundation budget, which highlighted investments in areas like "Equity" and "Safety & Inclusion." Musk also accused Wikipedia of unfairly portraying conservative figures in a more negative light compared to liberal ones, seemingly referencing a Manhattan Institute study that identified political bias in Wikipedia articles.
The boycott call sparked sharp divisions. Supporters of Musk demanded reforms in the comments on X, accusing Wikipedia of bias. In contrast, many actively opposed his stance, with numerous Reddit users claiming they donated to Wikipedia specifically to counter his criticism. The majority of commenters defended Wikipedia, viewing it as an invaluable resource. They rejected Musk’s accusations and criticized him for leveraging his platform to push personal ideologies and manipulate public opinion.
