Edit-a-thon

An edit-a-thon (sometimes written editathon) is an organized event where editors of online communities such as Wikipedia, OpenStreetMap, and LocalWiki edit and improve a specific topic or type of content, typically including basic editing training for new editors. They often involve meetups, but can be distributed as well. The word is a portmanteau of "edit" and "marathon". An edit-a-thon can either be "in-person" or virtual/online or a blended version of both. If it is not in-person, it is usually called a "virtual edit-a-thon" or "online edit-a-thon".

The 72 horas con Rodin edit-a-thon in Mexico City is the longest ever held, recognized by Guinness World Records.
Cross section of participants at the Igbo Wiktionary virtual edit-a-thon in August 2020
Attendees at the 2013 Women in the Arts Edit-a-thon in Washington, DC
An edit-a-thon in São Paulo, Brazil, aimed at creating and improving Wikipedia articles relating to feminism, women's rights and notable women


Wikipedia edit-a-thons have taken place at Wikimedia chapter headquarters; accredited educational institutions, including Sonoma State University, Arizona State University, Middlebury College,[1] and the University of Victoria; scientific research institutions such as the Salk Institute for Biological Sciences[2]; and cultural institutions, such as museums or archives. The events have included topics such as cultural heritage sites, museum collections, women's history, art, feminism, narrowing Wikipedia's gender gap, and social justice issues.[3][4][5][6][7][8] Women, African Americans, and members of the LGBT community are using edit-a-thons to bridge the gap in Wikipedia's sexual and racial makeup[9] and to challenge the underrepresentation of Africa-related topics.[10]

Some have been organized by Wikipedians in residence. The longest edit-a-thon took place at the Museo Soumaya in Mexico City from June 9 to 12, 2016, where Wikimedia Mexico volunteers and museum's staff edited during 72 continuous hours. The record was recognized by Guinness World Records.[11][12] The OpenStreetMap community has also hosted several edit-a-thons.[13][14] In August 2018, Future Climate for Africa and the Climate and Development Knowledge Network convened the first African Wikipedia edit-a-thon on climate change in Cape Town South Africa.

Since 2014, Art+Feminism has held world-wide edit-a-thons annually to expand the histories of women, feminism, and arts found on Wikipedia, and to dismantle the biases on how women are represented online. 2019 marks the expansion of the movement to include "gender non-binary activists and artists".[15]

See also
Click on "►" below to display subcategories:
► Wikipedia meetups

References
  1. "Feminists Strengthen Wikipedia's Content about Women". Middlebury College. April 18, 2017. Retrieved April 24, 2018.
  2. "Wikipedia Edit-a-Thon - September 7, 2019". Salk Institute for Biological Studies. Retrieved 2019-09-09.
  3. Lavin, Talia (2016-03-11). "A Feminist Edit-a-Thon Seeks to Reshape Wikipedia". The New Yorker. ISSN 0028-792X. Retrieved 2016-07-30.
  4. Content, Sara Boboltz Associate Editor of Viral; Post, The Huffington (2015-04-15). "Editors Are Trying To Fix Wikipedia's Gender And Racial Bias Problem". The Huffington Post. Retrieved 2016-07-30.
  5. "Social Justice Wikipedia Edit-a-thon workshop - University of Victoria". www.uvic.ca. Retrieved 2016-07-30.
  6. Smith, Michelle R. (16 October 2013). "Female scientists getting their due on Wikipedia". Associated Press. Retrieved 2016-07-30.
  7. Katzner, Ben (1 February 2014). "SCSU group participates in edit-a-thon for Wikipedia website". St. Cloud Times. Archived from the original on 2 August 2016. Retrieved 5 February 2014.
  8. Koh, Adeline (30 May 2013). "How to Organize Your Own Wikipedia Edit-a-Thon". The Chronicle of Higher Education. Retrieved 5 February 2014.
  9. Reynosa, Peter (3 December 2015). "Why Don't More Latinos Contribute to Wikipedia?". El Tecolote. Retrieved December 4, 2015.
  10. Wexelbaum, Rachel S., Katie Herzog, and Lane Rasberry. "Queering Wikipedia." (2015).
  11. "México ganó un nuevo récord Guinness y seguro te va a ser útil". Dinero en Imagen.com (in Spanish). 13 June 2016. Retrieved 2016-06-13.
  12. Cruz y Corro, Andrés; Fernanda López, María (22 July 2016). "Wikipedia edit-a-thon, 72 hours long, is recognized with a Guinness World Record". Wikimedia Blog. Retrieved 2016-07-30.
  13. Villeda, Ian (12 April 2013). "OpenStreetMap #Editathon at MapBox". Retrieved 7 April 2014.
  14. Foster, Mike (18 October 2013). "Fall 2013 OpenStreetMap Editathon". Archived from the original on 8 April 2014. Retrieved 7 April 2014.CS1 maint: BOT: original-url status unknown (link)
  15. "ART+FEMINISM — Announcing Our Year 6 Campaign: Gender + The..." ART+FEMINISM. Retrieved 2019-03-08.
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