What's the Diff? | Vol. 3: Wikipedia's Invisible Workforce
What's the Diff? is our series of data visualizations about how Wikipedia actually works, and this is our roundup of recent issues. Volume 2 was about Wikipedia's scale—how it dwarfs the encyclopedias that came before it, and why the second-largest language edition isn't the one you'd guess. It ended with a first look behind the curtain, at the talk pages where editors hash out what every article should say.
This volume stays back there. The first issue maps the territory: a sprawl of discussion pages, project pages, and administrative machinery that outnumbers the articles nine to one. The second finds out who's doing all that behind-the-scenes work, and what they're actually working on (hint: it isn't glamorous). The third climbs the ladder to the tiny group of volunteers—and it is tiny—holding Wikipedia's most powerful permissions.
A new issue goes up most Tuesdays. Follow Bill Beutler on LinkedIn to catch them as they drop, and if you need help with Wikipedia—or with presenting data so people actually get it—we'd love to talk!
Issue 7
Wikipedia's Backrooms
Articles make up barely a tenth of Wikipedia's 65 million pages. What's in the rest?
Issue 8
Wikipedia's Busiest Volunteers
Hundreds of volunteer "wikiprojects" keep Wikipedia organized. Guess what the most active one does all day?
Issue 9
Who Actually Holds the Keys to Wikipedia
53 million registered accounts. The most powerful permissions belong to just 40 people.
