At a recent gathering, the idea surfaced to mirror Wikipedia as a model for an Information portal in Russia. Vicky. In remarks tied to that initiative, Vladimir Medinsky, Vice President of the Russian Federation, spoke during a meeting of the Russian society named Information.
Medinsky pointed out that while Wikipedia hosts over 70 million articles, the Russian portal contains only about 22 thousand entries. He framed the challenge plainly: building content from scratch would be slow and difficult to catch up with existing global references.
According to his view, the best course is to gather and repurpose content from other sources, effectively copying and pasting material from Wikipedia as a practical shortcut. He described this approach as a straightforward solution to scale quickly while leveraging established information pools.
Medinsky asserted that the vast majority of Wikipedia articles are neutral and informative, representing roughly 99 percent of the material and posing no real harm. He acknowledged that about 1 percent of Wikipedia content may include slander or disinformation, but he emphasized that the overall value remains high for public information channels.
Earlier, Medinsky addressed criticism of a new history textbook in which he is one of the authors. He argued that negative reactions stem from groups he labeled as displacers, immigrants, refugees, and traitors, framing the dissent as political in nature rather than educational concerns.
In describing the new history textbook, Medinsky highlighted a chapter on the Northern Military District that is presented as a dialogue with an 11th grade student. The format portrays a capable young Russian who already possesses knowledge and skills, inviting readers to consider how they would act in leadership roles given the surrounding circumstances and state responsibilities.
Earlier remarks from Medinsky suggested that the new social studies textbook was approaching its final stage, signaling readiness for broader distribution and classroom use.