WHACKYPEDIA'S credibility [Surely an oxymoron? - Ed] took a further tumble this week after it appeared that founder Jimmy Wales was trousering donations on the promise of giving people positive entries.

Jeff Merkey, a former computer scientist at Novell, claimed Wales told him in 2006 that in exchange for a substantial donation, he would re-edit his uncomplimentary Wonkipedia entry.

He paid Wales $5000 and Wales personally made changes to the entry after wiping it and ordering editors to start again. After it was corrected it was placed under Wales' special protection so that it could only be edited by Wikipedia administrators.

Wales has denied the claims which were posted on a Whackypedia mailing list. Wales claims a donation would not buy someone special editorial treatment in the encyclopaedia. But admits that he did wipe Merkey's entry around the time he made a donation because it was so unpleasant.

It is the second claim in a few weeks against Wales, who was last week accused by a former Wikipedia executive and girlfriend Rachel Marsden of changing her Wikipedia entry.

If this is all true, then it looks like the way for the INQ to have saved the Everywhere Girl and Mike Mageek's full Whackypedia entry was not to argue with its self appointed false penis experts, but just to turn over green folding stuff to Wales. µ

L'Inq
Sydney Morning Herald