Meet the Editors Tackling Wikipedia’s Arms Trade Pages

Volunteers and new recruits came together for a wikithon to enhance the public knowledge about the arms industry. The event took place last week in a classroom in central London, where two dozen participants gathered around laptops, enjoying free servings of vegan Ethiopian food.

The adage goes, "Anyone can edit Wikipedia," but in reality, only about 270,000 active volunteers contribute to the world's largest and most-read encyclopedia. This small group decides what topics deserve a digital page, often sidelining important subjects such as the global south and notable women. However, a new wave of Wikipedian recruits is focusing on a neglected topic: the arms industry.

The participants included both veteran editors in their 70s and young students who had never registered an account before. Their targets included significant subjects like Palantir, Project Maven, and Nitro-Chem. According to Agnes Cameron, the group’s co-founder, "Wikipedia pages about the arms industry, in general, are not always super-detailed."

The intention of the wikithon, initiated by fellows from the n-Space programme at Somerset House Studios, was to provide better quality and more organized information about the arms industry in the public domain. Attendees were trained in how to contribute to Wikipedia, which, while simple, raises ethical questions.

Cameron noted, "The interesting thing about Wikipedia editing is that you’re encouraged to edit things you care about. What it looks like to have a conflict of interest is an interesting question." Despite her personal interests in food, she acknowledged the political nature of the arms industry.