Wikimedia Foundation/Communications/Unblock campaigns

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Unfortunately, our desire to share in the sum of all knowledge with every single human being is sometimes met with restrictive actions by government entities. While the reasons and methods vary from situation to situation, the Wikimedia Foundation consistently works to have these restrictions removed as promptly as possible.

In extreme situations, these restrictions block access to all or parts of Wikipedia, or other Wikimedia projects, in an entire region or country. Consistent with our desire to expand access to free knowledge rather than restrict it, the Foundation at times engages in campaigns to raise awareness of these blocks and seek their removal.

The Wikimedia Foundation invites the community and our supporters to join us in these campaigns.

Turkey - January 2020 unblocked news - social media toolkit[edit]

Overview[edit]

On Wednesday, 15 January 2020, the Wikimedia Foundation started to receive reports that the block of Wikipedia in Turkey is being lifted, data which is also indicated by our internal traffic reports.

This toolkit contains social media captions and graphics to help you and your organization celebrate this exciting news. We hope you will do so today or in the coming days and weeks.

Blog posts[edit]

Facebook message[edit]

  • The best present we got on Wikipedia's birthday? Being unblocked in Turkey. https://wikimediafoundation.org/news/2020/01/15/access-to-wikipedia-restored-in-turkey-after-more-than-two-and-a-half-years/

Twitter thread[edit]

  • The best present we got for Wikipedia's birthday was being unblocked in Turkey. 🇹🇷 (thread)
  • A dedicated community of volunteer editors from all over the globe write and maintain more than 50 million articles on Wikipedia.
  • They are united by one powerful vision: a world where every single person can freely access the sum of all knowledge.
  • Wikipedia represents a rich source of knowledge on a wide range of topics, from history to medicine to technology.
  • The over 335,000 articles on the Turkish Wikipedia provide knowledge for millions of people about Turkey’s history, culture, and geography—written for Turkish speakers, by Turkish speakers.
  • Freedom of information is a foundation of free knowledge, and we believe that free access to knowledge is a human right. Wikipedia articles are better, more neutral, and more accurate when everyone can contribute to them.
  • We are thrilled that the people of Turkey will once again be able to participate in the largest global conversation about the culture and history of Turkey online. #WelcomeBackTurkey! https://wikimediafoundation.org/news/2020/01/15/access-to-wikipedia-restored-in-turkey-after-more-than-two-and-a-half-years/

Instagram message[edit]

  • Wikipedia has been unblocked in Turkey! 🇹🇷 // Türkiye'deki Wikipedia engeli kaldırıldı! 🇹🇷
  • The best present we got for Wikipedia's birthday was being unblocked in Turkey. This action followed a recent ruling from the country's top court that the block was unconstitutional. We celebrate that the people of Turkey can once again participate in the largest global conversation about the culture and history of their country on Wikipedia. #WelcomeBackTurkey!
  • Wikipedia'nın doğum gününde aldığımız en iyi hediye? Türkiye'de engelin kaldırılması! Geçtiğimiz günlerde ülkenin en üst mahkemesinin engeli anayasaya aykırı bulmasının ardından engel kaldırıldı. Türkiye'den kullanıcıların dünyadaki en büyük küresel diyalogda ülkelerinin kültürel ve tarihi hakkında yeniden katkıda bulunabilmesini kutluyoruz! #TekrarHoşGeldinTürkiye

Social media graphics[edit]

Turkey - July 2019 social media toolkit[edit]

Overview[edit]

On Monday, July 22nd, the Wikimedia Foundation announced some exciting news about our case against Turkey’s block on Wikipedia that is before the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR). The Court has selected the case for priority status.

This means our case is moving forward more quickly in the Court. This is important because a decision in our case may help set a precedent for how information is shared online.  

We would love to have the support of Wikimedia Foundation supporters in spreading the good news about this next step in our case, and more broadly, in reiterating the importance of supporting free knowledge around the world.

This toolkit contains social media captions and graphics to help you and your organization amplify this news. We hope you’ll do so today or in the coming days and weeks.

Social media specifics[edit]

Hashtags: The campaign hashtag we are using is #ForFreeKnowledge, which both explains why we brought the case to ECHR, and what work like this is meant to support. Please use it in all posts so we can build momentum and track impact.

Tagging:

Wikimedia Foundation can be tagged in posts as:

Wikipedia can be tagged in posts as:

Link: The Wikimedia Foundation has created a blog post on what the case means for free knowledge that can be linked to here: https://wikimediafoundation.org/news/2019/07/22/our-legal-case-against-turkeys-block-of-wikipedia-has-been-expedited-heres-what-that-means/

Social media graphics[edit]

Explainer graphics
#ForFreeKnowledge graphic

Sample social media posts[edit]

This sample social media copy mirrors the messaging we are using to announce the news, and to more broadly promote the fight for free knowledge. We recommend copying in part, or using it as a guide as you write your own copy. Please let us know if there are other ways we can be helpful as you develop your copy and assets.

Note: We have high-resolution versions of the graphics along with the social media tool kit for posting on social media.

Twitter Big news in the @Wikimedia ECHR case to get @Wikipedia unblocked in Turkey that may have major implications in the fight #ForFreeKnowledge: https://wikimediafoundation.org/news/2019/07/22/our-legal-case-against-turkeys-block-of-wikipedia-has-been-expedited-heres-what-that-means/ I stand #ForFreeKnowledge because _____. (Fill in the blank with your explanation)

[For Free Knowledge graphic]

Facebook Big news in the @Wikimedia Foundation ECHR case to get @Wikipedia unblocked in Turkey that may have major implications in the fight #ForFreeKnowledge: https://wikimediafoundation.org/news/2019/07/22/our-legal-case-against-turkeys-block-of-wikipedia-has-been-expedited-heres-what-that-means/ I stand #ForFreeKnowledge because _____. (Fill in the blank with your explanation)

[For Free Knowledge graphic]

Instagram New developments in the ECHR case to get @Wikipedia unblocked in Turkey! These could have major implications in the fight #ForFreeKnowledge. #UnblockWikipedia.

[Explainer graphic]

I stand #ForFreeKnowledge because _____. (Fill in the blank with your explanation)

[For Free Knowledge graphic]

Turkey - May 2019 campaign[edit]

Campaign animated graphic with English text

On 23 May 2019, the Wikimedia Foundation announced the filing of a petition in the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR), the international court hearing cases of human rights violations within Europe, seeking to lift the more than two-year block of Wikipedia in Turkey.

We invite affiliates, community, and the rest of the world to join us in amplifying the guiding basis for this action in Turkey, "knowledge is a human right," through a social media campaign.

The focal point of our social media channels during the launch will be on raising awareness of Wikipedia being blocked in Turkey, and educating people on why we took the step of filing with the ECHR. We will also tie into the broader narrative around “knowledge is a human right” to make clear the ECHR filing is one of many steps we need to take to ensure Wikipedia is accessible to everyone.

We invite you to join us in amplifying the messages of the campaign on social media and sharing our statement and plans with your networks. We ask that messages focus on the theme of the campaign - "Knowledge is a human right" and reflecting on a world without Wikipedia.

Get involved[edit]

Volunteers and affiliates are invited to join the Wikimedia Foundation in asking the authorities to support unblocking of Wikipedia.

Translate the messages[edit]

We need your help translating these key messages into multiple languages for use in social media graphics! You can do so by using the "Translate this page" setup to translate this section of the page. You are able (and invited) to translate the entire page, but translating this section will be particularly helpful to the campaign.

Please note that words in bold will be crossed out when used. Please use bold in your language accordingly so the message translates correctly in the animated graphic version as well.
Animated graphic message
Wikipedia has been blocked in Turkey for more than 2 years.
Free knowledge is a fundamental human right. Set knowledge Free. Unblock Wikipedia.
Social media hashtags
#UnblockWikipedia
#WithoutWikipedia

Spread the messages[edit]

Share our key messages across social media platforms:

Share your own message about "Knowledge is a human right" and reflecting on a world without Wikipedia!

Share your story[edit]

#WithoutWikipedia: If you live in an areas where Wikipedia is blocked, tell the world your story of what that has been like! If you are fortunate to still have access to Wikipedia, imagine what life would be like for you if your access to Wikipedia was censored.

Past campaigns[edit]

Poster from #WeMissTurkey campaign
In March 2018, we conducted a week-long social media campaign to express why #WeMissTurkey and re-energize the conversation around Wikipedia in Turkey and galvanize public opinion to support unblocking the site.