Wikipedia is getting shellacked on traffic at the moment. This decrease comes from the increasing influence of generative artificial intelligence and social media on how people interact with content and search for information. Miller, who is an influential leader in the group as well as an NYC resident, directly faces these struggles. He makes an urgent case to defend content authenticity and promote innovative work in this new environment.
Recent months saw Wikipedia suffer the largest loss of traffic in its history. This shift was first noticed when database updates were applied to the site’s bot detection systems. Miller details AI-powered search summaries and how they’ve changed how we get information. She outlines in detail the effect of social video content on the way people consume information. He contends that this change is occurring, but it does not make Wikipedia any less relevant. Wikipedia has established itself as the most influential and trusted reference resource in history.
What Miller wants everyone to walk away with is a renewed wariness when looking up information online. In addition to creating a way to find the citation-filled work, Greg urges users to read cited works and original source materials.
“When you search for information online, look for citations and click through to the original source material,” – Miller
He makes a very important argument about the need to talk to our peers about the value of a few curated knowledge. Miller thinks it’s really important to know where generative AI content comes from. This story comes from the amazing people you empower every day when you support open knowledge platforms like Wikipedia.
“Talk with the people you know about the importance of trusted, human curated knowledge, and help them understand that the content underlying generative AI was created by real people who deserve their support.” – Miller
Even more alarmingly, Miller cautions that if this trend continues it may threaten Wikipedia’s volunteer army, and ultimately their funding, in a larger context. He states,
“With fewer visits to Wikipedia, fewer volunteers may grow and enrich the content, and fewer individual donors may support this work.” – Miller
In light of these competitive distractions and challenges, Wikipedia has created two specialized teams entirely focused on new audiences. The organization is in fact desperately looking for new volunteers to help grow its content and keep up its nonpartisan reputation.
Miller has enjoyed a stellar career in journalism. Previously, he’s been a tech reporter at Adweek, a senior editor at VentureBeat, and reported on local government for the Hollister Free Lance. His past experience as the vice president of content at a venture capital incubator has come into play.
Wikipedia is continuing to respond and evolve to the shifts in user behavior. It has been developing a new framework to more properly license and attribute content from the encyclopedia. This new effort is meant to improve transparency and further strengthen the credibility of the information shared through the platform.