Wikipedia rejected 68% of new article submissions analysed in a report from Lumino Digital, a communications consultancy that advises clients on online reputation and visibility. The company said the figures point to a stricter environment for would-be contributors, with notability and sourcing remaining the main hurdles for approval. Startups and technology firms appeared to fare worst, while business executives also struggled to clear the platform's review process.

According to the report, the most common reason drafts were turned away was that they did not meet Wikipedia's notability standards. Lumino Digital said 57% of declines were tied to submissions that, in the editors' view, did not show enough independent coverage to justify a stand-alone entry. The firm also said startups and tech companies had an approval rate of just 6%, compared with 12% for business executives and 48% for arts and culture topics.

Rhiannon Ruff, founding partner at Lumino Digital, said many organisations still assume a polished draft is enough to win approval, especially now that AI tools can produce text quickly. She said editors were instead focusing on the volume and quality of media coverage behind a topic, rather than the quality of the prose alone.

The report also found that 16% of drafts were flagged over possible AI or large language model use, at a time when Wikipedia's editor community has moved to restrict AI-generated articles and rewrites. Lumino Digital said the findings reflect a wider editorial squeeze on the site, which it argues is being compounded by a shrinking pool of active editors and a small number of prolific reviewers handling a large share of submissions. The consultancy also pointed to Wikipedia's growing role in AI-driven search and information products as a reason the approval process matters beyond the platform itself.

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Source: Noah Wire Services