Here he is, Elon Musk, the man who dons controversies like others do mismatched socks. This time, it’s Wikipedia that bears the brunt of the verbal assaults from the head of Tesla and X (formerly Twitter). He has chosen to rename the collaborative encyclopedia "Wokipedia," denouncing what he calls a progressive ideological bias. And because one jab isn’t enough, the billionaire added: "I’ll give you a billion dollars if you change the name to Dickipedia. Seriously." The offer has yet to find a taker.
A Musk on the attack, a foundation that dodges
This unlikely war began after the publication of a financial report by the Wikimedia Foundation. According to the report, 31 million dollars out of an annual budget of 177 million are dedicated to equity initiatives. For Musk, it’s wokism gone wild: "Why so much money when you can download all of Wikipedia onto a USB stick?" he quipped on X. Yes, Elon, and you can also fit the entire Ikea catalog on a Post-it, but that doesn’t build a library.
For its part, the Wikimedia Foundation responded with disarming seriousness, explaining that this money is used to include underrepresented communities in the production and dissemination of knowledge. A noble justification, but one that doesn’t pass through Musk’s sarcasm filter.
Jimmy Wales: stoic in the face of verbal missiles
In this saga, Jimmy Wales, co-founder of Wikipedia, embodies Olympian calm. Asked about the billionaire’s verbal eruption, he simply stated that Wikipedia would remain true to its mission: "To provide neutral and verified knowledge, not a platform for billionaires seeking buzz." With that, Musk probably added a mental post-it: "Create my own encyclopedia. Code name: Muskypedia."
Ironically, Elon Musk’s Wikipedia page mentions his conspiratorial statements and other controversial outbursts. One more reason for the head of SpaceX to see red. But Wikipedia does not tremble. With 7 billion monthly visits, it is a digital fortress that even Musk cannot crack, despite his 209 million followers on X (and three bots among them).
The Musk strategy: satire, provocation, and buzz
Elon Musk’s outbursts on X are to communication what spice is to cooking: it stings and leaves a mark. By renaming Wikipedia "Wokipedia," he not only criticizes a platform: he polarizes, he divides, he electrifies public debate. And all this, of course, while multiplying sales of flamethrowers from the Boring Company.
But this strategy has its pitfalls. Under the pretext of fighting ideological biases, Musk often finds himself accused of tolerance towards fake news on X. And here, surprise: while Wikipedia strives to diversify its sources and correct its errors, X becomes a jungle where a tweet claiming the Moon is made of cheese can garner 10,000 likes before breakfast.
The eternal quarrel of wokism
Beyond the punchlines, this clash reflects a deeper debate. On one side, a platform seeking to open up to diverse contributors to reflect the world’s diversity. On the other, an entrepreneur waving the banner of "neutrality," without really specifying what he means by it. One thing is certain: for Musk, neutrality looks suspiciously like a screen where everyone is free to say anything and everything.
Meanwhile, the digital world watches, half-amused, half-weary. Will Musk win his arm-wrestling match against Wikipedia, or will he end up inadvertently fueling the resilience of the encyclopedia? One thing is certain: in this war, it’s mostly the internet users who bear the brunt… with a bowl of popcorn, of course.
