In the news: Wikipedia and the Pro Wrestler story

In summary, Wikipedia user Chris Benoit posted speculation about his wife's death on the website at least 13 hours before the police discovered the bodies.
  • #1
robphy
Science Advisor
Homework Helper
Insights Author
Gold Member
6,856
2,296
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,287194,00.html

"Web Time Stamps Indicate Nancy Benoit's Death Reported on Web at Least 13 Hours Before Police Found Bodies in Her Home"

en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Chris_Benoit&oldid=141250251
near the bottom:

"On June 28, FOXNews.com reported that news of Nancy Daus' death was posted on Wikipedia half a day before the police discovered the bodies. The phrase "stemming from the death of his wife Nancy" was added to the English Wikipedia's "Chris Benoit" article at 12:01 a.m. EDT on June 25,[104] whereas the Fayette County police reportedly discovered the bodies of the Benoit family at 2:30 p.m. EDT (14 hours, 29 minutes later). The IP address of the editor was traced to Stamford, Connecticut, which is also the location of WWE headquarters.[105]"

[added]
Here is the diff between two edits under discussion
en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Chris_Benoit&diff=prev&oldid=140442953
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Physics news on Phys.org
  • #2
maybe benoit edited wikipedia in his spare time?
 
  • #3
Adding a date & details of death to a still living person's article seems to be a fairly common form of wiki-vandalism. I know this isn't quite the same thing, but I wouldn't rule out something like that with the timing being mere coincidence.
 
  • #4
thats pretty a pretty specific coincedence there
 
  • #5
Yup. I'm just saying don't rule it out...
 
  • #6
matthyaouw said:
Adding a date & details of death to a still living person's article seems to be a fairly common form of wiki-vandalism. I know this isn't quite the same thing, but I wouldn't rule out something like that with the timing being mere coincidence.

And for some reason we can't trust the information on wikipedia...I wonder why...:uhh:

These people that do this wiki-vandalism, if they do exist, need to get a real life.
 
  • #7
G01 said:
And for some reason we can't trust the information on wikipedia...I wonder why...:uhh:

These people that do this wiki-vandalism, if they do exist, need to get a real life.

Well, at least they give me something to do on Wikipedia, as I, armed with my mighty wired mouse (with a mouseball) and my callulosed finger, take on the onslaught of the vandals.
 
  • #8
MadScientist 1000 said:
Well, at least they give me something to do on Wikipedia, as I, armed with my mighty wired mouse (with a mouseball) and my callulosed finger, take on the onslaught of the vandals.

Ahhh fighting the good fight I see! Personally I stay hear and try my best to help fend off the onslaught of crackpot ads.(I have an optical mouse though, I'm obviously not as hardcore as you...:biggrin:)
 
  • #9
That is pretty interesting. That would be one hell of a coincidence if it was just some random vandalism, but still possible.
 
  • #10
is the date and time as recorded on the central wikipedia server? or is it a user date... if the person was form a different time zone, their computer might have recorded an earlier hour. or the person might have changed the time on their computer or something.
 
  • #11
I recall reading somewhere that the time zone is Universal Standard Time (Greenwich?).
 
Last edited:
  • #12
moe darklight said:
is the date and time as recorded on the central wikipedia server? or is it a user date... if the person was form a different time zone, their computer might have recorded an earlier hour. or the person might have changed the time on their computer or something.
I would think not. It would only make sense to use Wikipedia's internal clock to track revisions. What you suggested would mean the story probably shouldn't be any big deal. Didn't the president of Wikipedia speak on this?
 
  • #13
How can you kill your own wife and child. Thats pretty disgusting and heartless.
 
  • #14
Supposedly the person that did it came forward and said it was just a coincidence... According to

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chris_Benoit#Wikipedia_controversy

and

http://en.wikinews.org/w/index.php?..._to_body_being_found&diff=449245&oldid=449236

poster said:
I posted the comment we are all talking about and I am here to explain that it was A HUGE COINCIDENCE and nothing more

Hey everyone. I am here to talk about the wikipedia comment that was left by myself. I just want to say that it was an incredible coincidence. Last weekend, I had heard about Chris Benoit no showing Vengeance because of a family emergency, and I had heard rumors about why that was. I was reading rumors and speculation about this matter online, and one of them included that his wife may have passed away, and I did the wrong thing by posting it on wikipedia to spite there being no evidence. I posted my speculation on the situation at the time and I am deeply sorry about this, and I was just as shocked as everyone when I heard that this actually would happen in real life. It is one of those things that just turned into a huge coincidence. That night I found out that what I posted, ended up actually happening, a 1 in 10,000 chance of happening, or so I thought. I was beyond wrong for posting wrongful information, and I am sorry to everyone for this. I just want everyone to know it was stupid of me, and I will never do anything like this again. I just posted something that was at that time a piece of wrong unsourced information that is typical on wikipedia, as it is done all the time.

Nonetheless, I feel incredibly bad for all the attention this got because of the fact that what I said turned out to be the truth. Like I said it was just a major coincidence, and I will never vandalize anything on wikipedia or post wrongful information. I've learned from this experience. I just can't believe what I wrote was actually the case, I've remained stunned and saddened over it.

I wish not to reveal my identity so I can keep me and my family out of this since they have nothing to do with anything. I am not connected to WWE or Benoit at all in anyway. I am from Stamford as the IP address shows, and I am just an everyday individual who posted a wrongful remark at the time that received so much attention because it turned out to actually happen. I will say again I didn't know anything about the Benoit tragedy, it was a terrible coincidence that I never saw coming.

I hope this puts an end to this speculation that someone knew about the tragedy before it was discovered. It was just a rumor that I had heard about from other people online who were speculating what the family emergency Chris was attending to. I made a big mistake by posting this comment on his page, since all we had were what we thought was going on and nothing about what actually was going on yet, and sadly what happened turned out to be my speculation at the time. I assumed wiki would edit out my information, which they did, so that's why I didn't go back to edit it out myself.

I know I keep repeating it but I feel terrible about the mainstream coverage this has received, since it was only a huge coincidence and a terrible event that should of never happened. I am not sure how to react, as hearing about my message becoming a huge part of the Benoit slayings made me feel terrible as everyone believes that it is connected to the tragedy, but it was just an awful coincidence. That is all I have to say, I will never post anything here again unless it is pure fact, no spam nothing like that. Thank you, and let this end this chapter of the Benoit story, and hopefully one day we will find out why this tragedy ever actually happened.

blah blah blah
 
Last edited:
  • #15
Wow, what a weird story.
 
  • #16
Looks like matthyaouw was right all along, a crazy coincidence indeed. (maybe he is the one who edited it )
 
  • #17
I woulda got away with it too if it weren't for you pesky kids!
 

1. What is the Pro Wrestler story on Wikipedia?

The Pro Wrestler story on Wikipedia refers to an incident in which a professional wrestler's profile was edited multiple times with false information and personal attacks. The changes were made by an anonymous user and were eventually removed by Wikipedia editors.

2. Why is this story newsworthy?

This story gained attention due to the subject's fame and the controversial nature of the edits. It also highlighted the potential for misinformation and cyberbullying on open-source platforms like Wikipedia.

3. How did Wikipedia handle this situation?

Wikipedia editors quickly removed the false information and personal attacks, as per their policies against vandalism and harassment. They also publicly addressed the incident and reminded users to follow the platform's guidelines and principles of neutrality and reliable sourcing.

4. What measures does Wikipedia have in place to prevent similar incidents?

Wikipedia has various measures in place to prevent similar incidents, including a system for tracking and reverting vandalism, community-driven monitoring of pages, and strict content policies. They also have a team of volunteers and staff who work to ensure the accuracy and reliability of information on the platform.

5. How can individuals help maintain the integrity of information on Wikipedia?

Individuals can help maintain the integrity of information on Wikipedia by following the platform's guidelines and principles when editing or creating pages. This includes citing reliable sources, avoiding personal attacks, and not adding false or biased information. Users can also report any vandalism or harassment they come across to Wikipedia's editorial team.

Similar threads

Replies
4
Views
1K
  • General Discussion
Replies
10
Views
3K
Back
Top