First came the gesture, then the sub-controversies: Elon Musk taunting ‘Wikipedia’ and pushing for its defunding after a write-up on the outreach reads it as a possible Hitler salute on the site. Oh no now two of the internet’s great tech titans are at odds and it underscores the…

The gesture created controversy, but now there are even more debates: A description of his most recent action, interpreted by a few as a Hitler salute, posted on the site has Elon Musk mocking Wikipedia and advocating its defunding.

It puts two of the biggest tech giants online front and center in the war, underlining the opposing principles upon which Musk’s X social media platform and Wikipedia, founded by American entrepreneur Jimmy Wales, stand.

But most of all, it is through Musk that the recently strict moderation policies have been eased and information has been flowing freely on the social site, while at the same time maintaining a facade of being a staunch supporter of former President Donald Trump.

While Musk’s critique of Wikipedia seems to revolve around the hand gesture, in general, the platform’s dedication to factual neutrality presents it as a natural anti-X, now increasingly synonymous with intense cultural conflicts, hate speech, and misinformation.
Other media outlets, such as Wikipedia, which Musk has been critical of, present a barrier by holding him to account as he engages himself within US politics.

In an interview with New York magazine’s Intelligencer in December, Wales said that Wikipedia’s aim is for editors to produce ‘clear and recognizing the various perspectives available’ despite ‘the increasing divisiveness, partisanship, culture wars, and similar issues.
It is now deemed rather trustworthy as created by a chap of volunteers.

The conflict between Musk and Wales started when the billionaire drew attention on Monday with his gestures at a Trump inauguration event. Thanking the masses for returning Trump to the White House, Musk touched his right hand to his left chest and extended it to his left which was in line with turning his face towards the crowd behind him before repeating the gesture.

Both the Musk Wikipedia page and the entry, “Nazi salute” as of Wednesday cite the incident.
-Remove funding from Wikipedia-
On Tuesday, Musk posted what appeared to be a portion of that Wikipedia entry. Although, some changes have been made to the wording since Tuesday based on what appears on Wikipedia as of Wednesday.

G News provided its readers with open-source reportage when reporting that “Musk at Trump Inauguration Raised Arm Like Nazi Salute.” In comparison, all proper content indicated a CNN broadcast never once made such a claim.
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"What with Wikipedia taking old media propaganda as ‘official’ sources, it just slips into being a new outlet for the same stuff!”

He requested his followers to “defund” Wikipedia.

Elaborating on Musk’s purchase of x at $44 billion in 2022, Wales joked, “I think Elon’s mad Wikipedia isn’t for sale.

Wikipedia is a project of the non-profit Wikimedia Foundation, and it represents an anomaly in today's corporate-controlled online environment: “Google and Meta. Instead, it is the ‘‘early idealistic spirit of the web when open-source movements marshaled volunteers to create free access to information and resources.’’

Wales asked Musk, “Did you find anything that you believe is inaccurate in that description?” He also stated that it was not propaganda but rather: “Fact. Every element of it.”

The simple work, as he remarked within the Wikipedia community, “we simply keep working, aiming for neutrality and clarity.

In 2022, after acquiring Twitter, which he rebranded as X and breaking up the trust and safety teams, he launched Community Notes, a form of user-directed moderation the platform touts as letting users flesh out posts.

As there are no bans at least on X and other accounts that previously had been banned, which are known for their misinformation, the platform has now turned into a paradise for the same.