Wikipedia is one of the tops searched websites on the internet. People use this platform to search about various things. According to Statista, Wikipedia is visited by approximately 4.9 billion people globally from September 2021 to February 2022.
The heavy traffic on the site ensures that the profiles have a great chance of attracting readers. And if you are a journalist and want to create a profile on Wikipedia, then it is a good idea. By this, you can increase your credibility and allow the readers to understand your background. But how to create a Wikipedia page for journalists? To know the answer, continue reading below.
The International Federation of Journalists has 600,000 registered media professionals from 187 organizations in more than 140 countries. The journalist must have a Wikipedia page to present himself to the world. Especially if they want to be a member of IFJ, then it is better to have a Wiki page. It seems more professional for the journalist.
How To Create A Wikipedia Page For Journalist?
Creating a Wikipedia page requires some knowledge and a complete guideline. Follow the below steps to make your Wikipedia page as a journalist.
Things To Add To Your Wikipedia Profile
First, determine what you have to write on your Wikipedia page. It should include all the information relevantly and collectively.
A Brief Introduction
First, write a brief introduction about yourself, your place and date of birth, nationality, and the position you held before and now as a journalist is good for a brief introduction.
Early Life And Education
The next thing to add is about your early life and education. You can include your early days and education here. You can write everything in detail from high school to getting a degree.
While writing a Wikipedia page, make sure the tone must be formal. Don’t make it too dramatic – be neutral.
Career
Now write about your career, from your first job to the last one. You can create a timeline of the jobs that you have done through the years. Or you can also categorize each job you have done for any organization or institute.
Make sure to write down everything in chronological order here so it will be easy for the readers to understand your work timeline.
Affiliations
If the journalist is affiliated with a high prestige institute, it is a must to add this on your Wikipedia page. You can briefly describe it or also can talk about it in detail.
Personal Life
Although personal life is not much needed on the Wikipedia page, if you are a popular public figure, people will want to know about your personal life. Journalists can add a section about their personal life with details they want their readers to know. It is up to you.
Appearances
Media people, especially journalists, are often featured in political magazines and interviews. If the journalist has a remarkable presence, they should add this section to their page.
Honorary And Recognition
The most important part of your webpage is that you show how you as a journalist got recognition and honorary degrees for your work. This section includes national and international awards, titles, degrees, and other pieces that appreciate your work.
Profile Pictures With Some Special Moments Images
A profile picture is needed, along with some pictures of your special moments, like interviewing some famous personalities or receiving awards or recognition.
Steps To Create The Wikipedia Page For Journalist
Now you know what to write about yourself on the Wikipedia page. So, let’s head to the next stage of how to make a Wikipedia page for journalist. There are some steps to create a page without any trouble.
Do Research
Proper research is always the first step before doing anything. The same goes for creating a page on Wikipedia. Research is a journalist’s hobby, so it might don’t take the journalist hours to do some research about the platform. Know about the ins and outs of Wikipedia. Go through the guidelines and policies and read them thoroughly so you can create the writing according to the terms. It will lessen the chances of rejection.
Create An Account
Although You can read and edit Wikipedia pages for free without creating an account, you must create an account on the platform to create your page as a journalist. So, first, you have to create an account on Wikipedia.
- search “create Wikipedia account.”
- Click the link to Wikipedia’s official website.
- Click “create an account now.”
- Now enter all the details related to your account.
- Please verify your account, and it is ready to use.
Edit The Pages
After creating an account, edit some of the existing pages. This will improve your editing skills and give you an idea about the CMS system. Also, Wikipedia trail all the changes made through user accounts. So, with these editing under your username, you can reach the “autoconfirmed user” level.
Write Your Content
After practicing for a while and getting familiar with the platform’s CMS, you can move on to the writing phase. If you are still unsure about your writing style or about what you should write and how, then you can avail of Wikipedia page writing services. The process will be easy for you if you avail of a writing service. You just have to provide them with your basic information, and they will put it together for you. But if you want to do it by yourself, make sure to follow the writing guidelines you researched before.
Editing Your Content
Whether you are writing your content by yourself or hiring a professional to do the work, it is necessary to go through the drafts and do editing if required. Edit and cut out things that look like unnecessary information, or add anything you think is not added. Once you are done with the editing phase, move to the next stage.
Submit Your Page
Now you have to submit your page. After submitting your page to Wikipedia, now wait for a while to get approved. It usually takes days to weeks to get approval from the site.
And when your page goes live, always check out for updates. The editors of Wikipedia changed the page titles and made other utilitarian edits. That is why it is important to monitor your page continuously.
Some Facts About Wikipedia
You, as a journalist, should know some facts about Wikipedia.
- The platform currently features more than fifty-five million articles. (mashable)
- There are twenty-seven million users who contribute to more than one billion edits across 17.6 million articles. (wired)
- Wikipedia has 327 editions, with 316 active and 11 closed. (Wikipedia)
- Wikipedia has articles featured in more than 300 languages. (mashable)
- Wikipedia is neutral and doesn’t have a single point of view about any topic.
Things To Avoid While Writing A Wikipedia Page For Journalists
Writing a Wikipedia page for a journalist is a crucial task to do. Make sure you are on the right path throughout the journey so your page doesn’t get rejected. Here are a few things to avoid when writing a Wikipedia page or journalist.
This is Not An Autobiography
Wikipedia is used to share information about you. Avoid writing the page like it is a biography. The journalist should add the information related to himself and his work in a neutral way. You cannot add each and everything about yourself. The journalist must follow the rules and regulations regarding the information that has to be uploaded on Wikipedia.
As mentioned before, Wikipedia is not a personal blog site, meaning no one can write an autobiography here. But as a journalist, you will definitely have something worthy and notable information for the readers. Give information about your achievement as a journalist with accurate facts and figures.
Insufficient Information
Wikipedia is an online encyclopedia. It means the main and only purpose of this website is to provide information. Provide as much information about yourself as possible, but make sure the information is worth reading. The nature of information is also important. On Wikipedia, people don’t want to read about your hardship and struggles; they want to read about the information related to your jobs, the organization you work for, your education, and your achievements.
Don’t leave anything out. Add every information that is required to be on the page.
Content Against The Policies
Whenever you are involved with an organization, you read their terms and conditions to see what they like and what they do not. It is the same case with Wikipedia too. Most journalists write the content and submit it to the platform without going through the policies. It is always recommended that the journalist must read the terms and regulations before writing the page.
Wikipedia is selective when it comes to publishing content. A single mistake will cause rejection. The platform doesn’t publish any content without any form or logical information. The poorly written page, the content that can cause vandalism and is promoted, will also be rejected. So, before submitting, make sure your information is up to the terms and conditions of Wikipedia.
Referencing
What most journalists do is they prepare the article very well, but their reference is poor. There are some references at the bottom of each Wikipedia page. Wikipedia only states facts, and it requires some proof. If you are adding references at the end of your page, ensure they are included properly.
Referencing has certain rules, and you can’t site your own website or social media post. If you are adding references, make sure that the third party is a book, news article, or any other genuine piece. It is better to avoid this mistake because if the editor feels a false claim in your writing, your page will be rejected.
Not Doing Proper Research
Never start writing your page if you don’t do proper research. As a journalist, you must research everything. But still, several journalists believe in their power of knowledge and start writing like they know everything.
But it is not a good idea. If you do not research, you can’t know about the platform you will write on. And other things like how to write a journalist page for Wikipedia or what to write. So, research is an important factor.
Conclusion
You might now get an idea of how to make a Wikipedia page for journalist with the proper steps and things to add to your profile. Apart from this, there are also mentioned that you should avoid while writing a journalist page for Wikipedia. Now you can write your own Wikipedia page as a journalist easily.
