Criticising Wikipedia is the new Black

Everytime I read yet another academic-type spouting about Wikipedia I always think "Damn bitch, shut up." Not very academic, granted. Still, I find their insights about WP dull. Its clear, usually by their affiliation, that they made up their mind about WP before ever giving it a shot and I doubt any of them were ever regular contributers or ever watched an article.

I have an account I use semi-regularly and I have plenty of criticisms about Wikipedia. Not some vague fear about the fact that anyone can edit anything, or inaccuracy or whatever. That's all garbage. Anyone who has followed an article for any length of time realizes that an article is always under tension from all sides, and a sense of balance arises from this.

If WP is subject to bias it's rarely on an individual scale. Sure, there's always the occasional line that was written by an axe-grinder but they're usually long gone, and if you put some time into the article and improve it, others will usually respond and suddenly the article is aspark with all kinds of constructive contributions (yes, goddamnit. ASPARK). The scent of bias tends to magnetize dozens or hundreds of minds around the issue. Wars break out and wars die down. That many people can't fight forever--compromise comes often just by exhaustion.

My problems with it are that you sometimes get the feel that its becoming entangled in self-righteous disputes. Oh wait, that's not just WP its the Internet at large. What I mean is I feel like its "openness" is becoming comprimised by an inner calcification I have trouble explaining.

One aspect is the class-system present among users. There are big fish and there are small fish. Big fish hang out in the IRC channel, summon each other for support during disputes, manipulate application of WP:Laws in order for their perspectives to dominate. Unpopular small fish get leveraged out of debates, get their accounts restricted--each over technicalities. Sometimes I feel like a public defender when I'm helping someone new to WP maneuver their way through a dispute. As in a courtroom, there is an esoteric process to getting your way.

Some say this happens throughout all systems and may even call it "natural". I'd even agree. Considering the level of corruption and flagrant self-interest that people have come to joke about and expect out of government, its really no surprise--but that's a tangent for a different day. My beef with WP is that, despite all its fanfair, as far as power-systems go its really no different.