- SourceWatch
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SourceWatch 
URL SourceWatch.org Commercial? No Type of site Wiki, database Registration Available Available language(s) English Owner Center for Media and Democracy Created by Center for Media and Democracy Launched 2003 Current status active SourceWatch (formerly Disinfopedia) is an internet wiki site that is a collaborative project of the liberal[1] Center for Media and Democracy (CMD). According to the project's website, it "aims to produce a directory of public relations firms, think tanks, industry-funded organizations and industry-friendly experts that work to influence public opinion and public policy on behalf of corporations, governments and special interest groups."[2] The site is regularly referenced in mainstream news sources, such as the New York Times[3] and the Sunday Times.[4]
Contents
Organizational information
On behalf of the Center for Media and Democracy, the Center's then-Research Director Sheldon Rampton started SourceWatch on January 15, 2003 and launched it publicly with 200 articles created by the Center on March 10, 2003. According to SourceWatch's own statistics, it included almost 50,000 articles as of August 2010.[5] The site's content is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License.
The publisher of SourceWatch is Lisa Graves, the executive director of the Center for Media and Democracy and the managing editor of the site is Anne Landman.[6]
Editorial and security policies
The stated goals for registered users who are permitted to edit SourceWatch are "accuracy and fairness".[7] Its editorial guidelines stress the importance of maintaining the accuracy of its source citations and admonish its editors to create articles that are "fair, accurate, and documented".[8]
Sourcewatch is available on the web as a wiki, maintained by a community of interested users worldwide. When SourceWatch began, any visitor to the site could edit existing articles and create new ones. In April 2006, however, SourceWatch changed its policy, requiring users to register and log in before editing its articles and restricting unregistered visitors to reading articles only.[2]
The Center for Media and Democracy sets the editorial and "security policies" under which SourceWatch operates. SourceWatch provides recommended editorial guidelines to its users. Some users, designated as "sysops", can protect individual articles so that they can be edited only by other sysops, as in Wikipedia. Sysops can also block other users.[2][9]
Mission statement
According to SourceWatch, it aims:
to produce a directory of the people, organizations and issues shaping the public agenda. A primary purpose of SourceWatch is documenting the PR and propaganda activities of public relations firms and public relations professionals engaged in managing and manipulating public perception, opinion and policy. SourceWatch also includes profiles on think tanks, industry-funded organizations and industry-friendly experts that work to influence public opinion and public policy on behalf of corporations, governments and lobby groups. Over time, SourceWatch has broadened to include others involved in public debates including media outlets, journalists and government agencies. Unlike some other wikis, SourceWatch has a policy of strict referencing, and is overseen by a paid editor.[10]
Related organizations
Further information: Center for Media and DemocracySourceWatch is published by the Center for Media and Democracy (CMD), a nonprofit American-based news media research group founded in 1993 by environmentalist writer and political activist John Stauber. In addition to SourceWatch, CMD publishes PR Watch and BanksterUSA.
Format
The operation of SourceWatch depends on MediaWiki, a custom-made, free and open source wiki software platform written in PHP and built upon the MySQL database.
See also
- Center for Media and Democracy
- Media transparency
- Transparency (humanities)
- Watchdog journalism
References
- ^ O'Harrow, Robert (2008-05-31). "McCain Campaign Calls; a Nonprofit Steps In". The Washington Post. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/05/30/AR2008053003121.html. Retrieved 2010-07-17.
- ^ a b c "Editorial Policy," SourceWatch, last updated May 23, 2007, accessed June 25, 2007.
- ^ Cohen, Noam (27 Oct 2008). "Casting a ballot, and a wary eye". NYT. http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/27/business/worldbusiness/27iht-27link.17266736.html. Retrieved 21 April 2011.
- ^ Ahuja, Anjana (12 Feb 2007). "Read this before deleting...". The Sunday Times. http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/comment/article1368825.ece. Retrieved 21 April 2011.
- ^ http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=SourceWatch:Purpose.
- ^ http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=SourceWatch:ContactSourceWatch (accessed August 29, 2010).
- ^ SourceWatch: Article guidelines", SourceWatch, accessed June 25, 2007.
- ^ http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=SourceWatch:Contributing (accessed August 30, 2010)
- ^ For further information about editing and security policies, see also: "SourceWatch: How to Fix an Error", SourceWatch: "Errors and Complaints", and "Security", both accessed June 25, 2007.
- ^ About SourceWatch (Site history).
External links
- SourceWatch.org, SourceWatch is a collaborative project of the Center for Media and Democracy
- PRWatch.org, Center for Media and Democracy, Publishers of PRWatch.
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- Internet properties established in 2003
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