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sandtreeSo last year for Canadian History class, I had to do an assignment on Martin Frobisher. I went to Wikipedia to find out who exactly this guy was, and found that someone had messed with his article.
THIS is Martin Frobisher. I had thought that the articles of men from the 1500s who explored Canada might be obscure enough to not be targeted, but clearly I underestimated the power of bored school children.
Vastly underestimated.
This is the first edit I found. I think it's from about February 2007.
Until tonight, I had thought that was it. But, out of curiosity, I went back into the history of the article, and found more edits. Many more:
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What you say.
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Oh really.
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That's not very nice.
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The first appearance of 'Mike' Frobisher.
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Someone edits the vandalism to correct the capitalization.
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Elizabeth I herself could not have put it more eloquently.
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No!
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This is why teachers tell you not to use Wikipedia as a source. Even for something as seemingly innocent as Martin Frobisher.
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Return of the moose.
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More tomfoolery. Note that his father's name is still set as 'Mike Frobisher'. These edits were taking place over a period of months. Annoyed members of Wikipedia were erasing the vandalism, but they failed to catch 'Mike Frobisher'.
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***
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Oh dear.
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Five hundred rapidly increases to five million, his father is still Mike Frobisher, and someone has helpfully added a table of contents for what appears to be a Spider-man video game.
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The 'Justin and Kerri' period.
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Kerri mysteriously disappears.
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Really?
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The Martin Frobisher fanclub arrives.
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That's nice.
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***
***
***
***
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Hi.
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I thought he was a very nice man?
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I know, man, doesn't Martin Frobisher ~blow your mind~?
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Someone deleted his comment, so he felt the need to repeat himself.
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...I'm not sure what this one's trying to say. That the article isn't true? Maybe it's Martin Frobisher returned from the grave to tell us that 'this shit is wack'.
***
And finally:
These edits all occurred between February 2007 and around September 2008. There could have been earlier edits, but I didn't go that far back. One day perhaps I will, if I can work up the courage.
THIS is Martin Frobisher. I had thought that the articles of men from the 1500s who explored Canada might be obscure enough to not be targeted, but clearly I underestimated the power of bored school children.
Vastly underestimated.
This is the first edit I found. I think it's from about February 2007.
Until tonight, I had thought that was it. But, out of curiosity, I went back into the history of the article, and found more edits. Many more:
***
What you say.
***
Oh really.
***
That's not very nice.
***
The first appearance of 'Mike' Frobisher.
***
Someone edits the vandalism to correct the capitalization.
***
***
Elizabeth I herself could not have put it more eloquently.
***
***
No!
***
This is why teachers tell you not to use Wikipedia as a source. Even for something as seemingly innocent as Martin Frobisher.
***
Return of the moose.
***
More tomfoolery. Note that his father's name is still set as 'Mike Frobisher'. These edits were taking place over a period of months. Annoyed members of Wikipedia were erasing the vandalism, but they failed to catch 'Mike Frobisher'.
***
***
***
Oh dear.
***
Five hundred rapidly increases to five million, his father is still Mike Frobisher, and someone has helpfully added a table of contents for what appears to be a Spider-man video game.
***
***
***
The 'Justin and Kerri' period.
***
Kerri mysteriously disappears.
***
***
Really?
***
The Martin Frobisher fanclub arrives.
***
That's nice.
***
***
***
***
***
***
Hi.
***
I thought he was a very nice man?
***
***
***
I know, man, doesn't Martin Frobisher ~blow your mind~?
***
Someone deleted his comment, so he felt the need to repeat himself.
***
...I'm not sure what this one's trying to say. That the article isn't true? Maybe it's Martin Frobisher returned from the grave to tell us that 'this shit is wack'.
***
And finally:
These edits all occurred between February 2007 and around September 2008. There could have been earlier edits, but I didn't go that far back. One day perhaps I will, if I can work up the courage.
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no subject
Date: 2008-11-13 01:07 pm (UTC)Thank you, you just killed me with laughter. xD
no subject
Date: 2008-11-13 05:15 pm (UTC)It's good to know that Martin Frobisher is one of the children of Abraham. A particularly disliked one, though, it seems.
no subject
Date: 2008-11-13 09:04 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2008-11-15 08:57 pm (UTC)"verginaty"
this will haunt me forever.
That and all the "moose"-related comments. It's like some thirteen-year-old had just watched Monty Python and the Holy Grail for the first time and somehow their first instinct was to go vandalize Wikipedia articles with to let the world know.
no subject
Date: 2009-01-11 10:41 pm (UTC)I like the moose era the best :'D