citogenesis
English
Etymology
From cite + -o- + -genesis, probably inspired by cytogenesis. Coined by American cartoonist and engineer Randall Munroe in 2011 in his webcomic xkcd.[1]
Pronunciation
- (UK) IPA(key): /ˌsaɪt.əʊˈdʒɛn.ə.sɪs/
- Homophone: cytogenesis
Noun
citogenesis (uncountable)
- (informal, Wikimedia jargon) A circular form of citation where various sources report each other.
- 2018, David Coady; James Chase, editors, The Routledge Handbook of Applied Epistemology, Routledge, →ISBN:
- Relatedly, Wikipedia has been a locus of ‘citogenesis’: “the creation of ‘reliable’ sources through circular reporting” […] In citogenesis, information is added to Wikipedia, which is then picked up in media reports, which are in turn used as ‘independent’ sources to support the original information in Wikipedia.
- 2020, Joseph Reagle; Jackie Koerner, editors, Wikipedia @ 20: Stories of an Incomplete Revolution, MIT Press, →ISBN, page 27:
- It was at this time that the first cases of “citogenesis”—circular and false reporting originating from Wikipedia—appeared.
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Derived terms
- citogenetic
See also
- epistemic circularity
References
- Randall Munroe (16 November 2011), “Citogenesis”, in xkcd
Further reading
Circular reporting § Circular reporting on Wikipedia on Wikipedia.Wikipedia
Anagrams
- ictogenesis