Press kit

The Wikimedia Press Kit  is a tool to provide journalists (and business partners, donors, sponsors etc.) with a variety of pieces of information about the Wikimedia India chapter, Wikimedia Foundation and its projects for related uses. It is designed to help them get to know us, to find the information they will find most useful about us, and to provide them with additional resources and contacts to learn even more. This Press kit attempts to provide a overview and introduction to various efforts surrounding Wikimedia projects in India. There tends to be confusion regarding who's who, and who does what. This information might be especially helpful for the Indian media. You may also have a look at the previous news stories in the media about Wikimedia, Wikipedia and Wikipedians in India.

Wikimedia India Chapter

 * What is a chapter? -- Wikimedia Chapters are independent organizations founded to support and promote Wikimedia projects within a country. Chapters are formed by people from within the community and enable volunteers to take their work beyond what they can do individually, besides providing the benefit of a formal organisational set-up. While independent, chapters are recognised by the Wikimedia Foundation.
 * The Wikimedia Chapter is an autonomous entity that does not have any editorial control over content on Wikipedia and its related projects. The Chapter does not have access to the servers hosted by the Wikimedia Foundation in the USA. Further, no individual or organization has control over content on Wikipedia and its related projects, and this content is only subject to the laws of the USA. 


 * What is the status of the Wikimedia India chapter? -- Wikimedia India was formally approved by the Board of Trustees, Wikimedia Foundation after the recommendation of the Chapters Committee in June 2010 and India became the 29th country to host a Wikimedia Chapter. The Wikimedia India chapter was registered (registered name: Wikimedia Chapter, Registration  documents.) vide  Registrar of Societies, Bangalore Urban District Certificate No: SOR/BLU/DR/1137/10-11 dt  03 Jan 2011. Note that Wikimedia India refers to the chapter, whether or not the word appears in the title.


 * Who are the people involved in the Wikimedia India chapter? -- The Wikimedia India chapter is led by its Executive Committee. It has several members from across India. It has become operational with the launch of events and conduct of first Annual General body meeting on Sep 24, in which three vacancies on the Executive Committee were filled through Elections. It is working to strengthen City/language Special interest groups of members to help in growing the movement at a faster pace.


 * How can I get in touch with the Wikimedia India chapter? --
 * Press Enquiries : Email us at : [mailto:press@wikimedia.in press@wikimedia.in]
 * Chapter : [mailto:chapter@wikimedia.in chapter@wikimedia.in]
 * Wikimedia India Chapter Executive Committee : [mailto:wikimedia-in-exec@lists.wikimedia.org wikimedia-in-exec@lists.wikimedia.org]

Wikimedia Community

 * What is the community and what does it do? -- The short answer is that the community is everything. Well, almost everything. The community refers to the people who make Wikipedia and other Wikimedia projects, people who edit, contribute to, organise, help and promote Wikimedia projects.


 * What are interest groups within communities? -- Often, groups of Wikipedians with common purpose will network online and offline; so you may hear of "Hindi Wikipedians" or "Kannada Wikipedians" or Wikimedians interested in flora and fauna in India, or people who are helping put out a newsletter for the Indian community, or the folks who organise meetups in a city like those that have happened in Bangalore, Mumbai,Kolkata, Pune and Delhi. These groups are not necessarily formal organisations and don't have to be: they are people united by a common purpose within Wikimedia.


 * How can I find out what the Wikimedia India community is up to? Check out our newsletter


 * How can I interview someone from the Wikimedia India community? You are free to directly contact any Wikip[m]edian in India. But drop us a mail to [mailto:press@wikimedia.in press@wikimedia.in], we could help you to connect with the wikipedians related to your news story.


 * How do I keep updated on Community related news and events in India? - Join WikimediaIndia general mailing list

More on FAQs @ FAQ booklet

Wikimedia Foundation

 * What exactly is the Wikimedia Foundation? -- The Wikimedia Foundation is USA-based non-profit organisation that is the legal home of all Wikimedia projects since 2003. Operating with staff who facilitate Wikimedia projects around the world, the Wikimedia Foundation is governed by a board of trustees and assisted by an advisory board.


 * I know Wikipedia: what are these other 'Wikimedia projects'? -- Wikipedia is the best-known project of the Wikimedia movement, but there are a lot more: Wikibooks, Wiktionary, Wikiquote, Wikisource, Wikispecies, Wikinews, Wikiversity, Wikimedia Commons and MediaWiki.


 * Who can I contact for a perspective on the Wikimedia Foundation? -- Email the [mailto:jwalsh@wikimedia.org Head of Communications : Jay Walsh : jwalsh@wikimedia.org ]


 * How can I contact Jimmy Wales directly? Answered here.

Wikimedia India Program Trust

 * What is Wikimedia India Program Trust? -- 'Wikimedia India Program Trust is an independent public trust functioning to catalyze the growth of the Wikimedia community in India. The Trust will focus its activities on the Wikimedia movement’s strategy and will have a prescribed strategy that it follows. The Trust will cooperate with the Wikimedia India Chapter and will not seek to take on roles that the Chapter is well positioned to fulfill. It is expected that the Trust will operate until such a time as the Chapter and/or other groups in the community can provide sustainable support for the Wikimedia community in India. More details here


 * I thought the Wikimedia Foundation was based in San Francisco: why are they hiring staff in India? -- Over the last year, the Wikimedia Foundation facilitated a strategic plan with the input of hundreds of movement members, and one of the results was an increased focus on key regions, including India. For more on the Wikimedia Foundation's plans in India, see emails from the Chief Global Development Officer regarding the rationale and hiring of a National Director. More details @ Wikimedia Foundation - India Programs
 * Who can I contact regarding the Wikimedia Foundation team in India? -- Hisham Mundol, India Programs, Wikimedia Foundation ([mailto:hmundol@wikimedia.org Email: hmundol@wikimedia.org]). Questions relating to the Foundation's plans in India/  Wikimedia India Program Trust should be directed to him.


 * How big is the Wikimedia India Program Trust / WMF India team ? -- Currently there are three Consultants : Hisham Mundol, who heads the India Programs, and Nitika Tandon ( Consultant, Participation) & Shiju Alex (Consultant, Indic Programs) who reports to Hisham.  The full time staff are proposed as 5, and there may be a total of 10 Fellowships are suggested.


 * Where is the Wikimedia India Program Trust office in India ?  -- It is proposed to set up the office in New Delhi (or the NCR / Gurgaon) region. More announcements are expected later.


 * How is Wikimedia India Program Trust different from The Wikimedia India Chapter? -- The Wikimedia India Chapter is a volunteer-led and volunteer-created organization that supports public outreach efforts to increase the participation of Wikipedia and its sister projects in India.  The Wikimedia India Program Trust is also an independent organization, which aims to support mutually beneficial efforts along with the Wikimedia India Chapter to increase participation in our projects.  The Wikimedia India chapter has representation from throughout India with a dedicated membership, whereas the Wikimedia India Program Trust has one specific location/administration.  More details


 * Is this the first office of Wikimedia Foundation outside United States? -- This is the first administration/office of its kind outside of the Wikimedia Foundation's offices in the USA, however there a several growing Wikimedia chapter offices around the world already - several of which have paid staff working to support outreach efforts for our projects in their respective geographic regions


 * How will the Wikimedia Foundation support programs in India? -- Currently, Wikimedia Foundation (WMF) has engaged a few independent consultants, under the guidance of Hisham Mundol, to develop and manage a series of program activities that will support the growth of the Wikimedia editing community in India.  WMF plans to provide the Wikimedia Trust with grant funds, once the appropriate approvals are in place.  WMF is also strongly committed to supporting the Wikimedia India Chapter and Wikimedian Community in India.

Terminology: Things to watch out for

 * The Wikimedia Community consists of Wikimedians or Wikipedians, who are sometimes named by the interest group that brings them together, for example, a language or subject or project.


 * Wikimedia India refers to the Wikimedia India chapter, which is a formal non-profit organisation recognised by the Wikimedia Foundation and registered in India, consisting of members of the community; it exists to further the goals of the Wikimedia movement in/around/about India.


 * The Wikimedia Foundation is a non-profit organisation based in San Francisco, USA, that serves as the legal home of the Wikimedia movement and all Wikimedia projects.


 * The Wikimedia Foundation team in India, shortly to commence, will be an off-shoot of the Wikimedia Foundation; the India team is intended to serve as a catalyst to the chapter and community in India, a country which has special strategic significance to the Wikimedia movement.

WikiLeaks and WikiMapia are NOT Wikimedia projects
WikiLeaks or Wikimapia are not affiliated with Wikipedia or the Wikimedia Foundation (which operates Wikipedia). Wikimedia Foundation operates only the following projects: Wikipedia, Wiktionary, Wikiquote, Wikibooks, Wikisource, Wikispecies, Wikinews, Wikiversity, Wikimedia Commons and MediaWiki. More information here

"Wiki" is a generic word that anyone can use; it is not a brand name or trademark. A wiki is any website that allows the creation and editing of interlinked webpages via a web browser. There are many wikis in existence, run by various organizations, which contain various types of content; thus, albeit one of the largest and most well-known examples, Wikipedia is only one wiki among many. The term "wiki" was coined in 1994-1995 by Ward Cunningham, the inventor of the concept, who also created WikiWikiWeb,its first implementation. The term was thus already in existence prior to the advent of Wikipedia (6-7 years later, in 2001), and the Wikimedia Foundation therefore does not claim ownership of the term in any way.

The Wikimedia Foundation has officially stated that there is no relationship between WikiLeaks and Wikipedia or Wikimedia. In an 11 August 2010 article in The Daily Telegraph (London), Wikipedia's co-founder Jimmy Wales was reported as stating that he has had no connection with the Wikileaks.org website. Despite its name, since at least May 2010, WikiLeaks no longer includes wiki features, including editing or commenting by readers.

WikiMapia is a privately owned, online map and satellite imaging resource that combines Google Maps  with a wiki system, allowing users to add information, in the form of a note, to any location on Earth. Wikimapia is also not a Wikimedia project.