Rep. James Comer and Rep. Nancy Mace sent a formal request to the Wikimedia Foundation seeking documents and communications related to volunteer Wikipedia editors who may have violated platform policies by adding content that portrays Israel negatively. The letter addressed Wikimedia CEO Maryana Iskander and asked for help identifying individuals or specific accounts and for information about possible involvement by nation state actors or academic institutions in organized editing efforts. A Wikimedia spokesperson said the foundation is reviewing the request and welcomed the chance to respond. The inquiry echoes efforts by the Heritage Foundation alleging anti-conservative bias and seeking to unmask editors.
On Wednesday, Rep. James Comer (R-Ky.), chair of the House Oversight Committee, and Rep. Nancy Mace (R-S.C.), chair of the House Subcommittee on Cybersecurity, Information Technology, and Government Innovation, sent a letter to the Wikimedia Foundation, the nonprofit that owns the free encyclopedia. The representatives asked Wikimedia's CEO, Maryana Iskander, for "assistance in obtaining documents and communications regarding individuals (or specific accounts) serving as Wikipedia volunteer editors who violated Wikipedia platform policies as well as your own efforts to thwart intentional, organized efforts to inject bias into important and sensitive topics."
The letter requested information about "nation state actors" or "academic institutions" that may have been involved in efforts to "edit or influence content identified as possibly violating Wikipedia policies." A spokesperson for the Wikimedia Foundation told that they were reviewing the request. "We welcome the opportunity to respond to the committee's questions and to discuss the importance of safeguarding the integrity of information on our platform," the spokesperson said.
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