When you type “Why do academics?” as an open question into Google, the autocomplete algorithm offers several suggestions. “Why do academics hate Wikipedia?” was the fifth option in my September 2018 search, nestled between “use macs” and “dress so badly.” (“Write so badly” was first.) Completing the search yields articles such as “Why do teachers hate Wikipedia?” and “Do some academics feel threatened by Wikipedia?” Wikipedia itself offers at least one clue: “citation of Wikipedia in research papers may be considered unacceptable, because Wikipedia is not a reliable source.”1 

Wikipedia's status as the world's fifth most visited website should nevertheless give music scholars pause.2 “Aretha Franklin” was the site's most visited page from August 12 to 18, 2018, which should not be surprising given her death on August 16.3 Over a sixty-day period between July 18 and September 16, 2018, page views for the Queen of Soul...

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