An anonymous person changed Edward Snowden’s Wikipedia entry so that it called him “an American traitor” rather than “an American dissident.” The editor’s IP address is from a block assigned to the US Senate.
Government employees editorializing entries isn’t uncommon. In fact, there’s an entire Wikipedia entry devoted to the subject. But editorializing by editors using government IP addresses rarely goes unnoticed. Now, whoever did this may feel Snowden is a traitor but the verdict is still out (quite literally) on that. He’s been charged with espionage but until there’s actual court proceedings, he’s nothing more than a “dissident” (although that term has its problems as well), albeit one the government would like to have back in the US as soon as possible.
Why bother pointing out such a petty edit? Well, if it wasn’t for the IP address, no one would care. But it’s a bit obnoxious when someone in the Senate offices somehow feels the government doesn’t have enough power and takes it upon themselves to “set the record straight” by taking a swing at Snowden via Wikipedia.
Someone Using A US Senate IP Address Edits Wiki Entry To Change Ed Snowden From ‘Dissident’ To ‘Traitor’ [Tim Cushing/Techdirt]