Musk urged users to stop donating to Wikipedia until its editorial position becomes more balanced. His message followed the Wikimedia Foundation’s budget for the previous fiscal year ( ), which highlighted investments in areas such as equity and security and inclusion which highlighted investments in areas such as “fairness” and “safety and inclusion” Mr. Musk also accused Wikipedia of unfairly portraying conservative figures in a more negative light than liberal ones, apparently referring to a study by the Manhattan Institute ( ) of Manhattan Institute, which put highlighting political bias in Wikipedia articles.
The call for a boycott has sparked sharp divisions. Musk’s supporters have demanded reforms in comments on X, accusing Wikipedia of bias. On the other hand, many actively oppose his position, with many Reddit users claiming to have donated to Wikipedia for the specific purpose of countering his criticism. The majority of commenters defended Wikipedia, considering it an invaluable resource. They rejected Musk’s accusations and criticized him for using his platform to promote personal ideologies and manipulate public opinion.
