Common knowledge? an ethnography of Wikipedia - Jemielniak, Dariusz (Stanford University Press, 2014)
Includes bibliographical references and index
Wikipedia in short : numbers, rules, and editors -- Formal roles and hierarchy : a cabal that rules the world -- Conflict resolution on Wikipedia : why die for Danzig? -- Bureaucracy and control : Big Brother is watching -- Trust in people and trust in procedures : the truth is out there -- Between anarchy and bureaucracy : Wikimedia governance -- Leadership transformed : the pros and cons of benevolent dictatorship -- The knowledge revolution at the gates
This study describes the results of a six-year ethnographic research project on Wikipedia. It explains how Wikipedia's theoretically ahierarchical system may increase Wikipedians' perception of inequality in practice and how hierarchy is enacted through community elections. Although Wikipedia is sometimes portrayed as collaborative and peaceful, it often breaks into conflicts and disputes. The book describes how the gradual increase in editing participation determines its attractiveness, addictiveness, and, ultimately, its level of conflict