A company founded by British Prime Minister Keir Starmer's communications chief, Tim Allan, has been accused of editing Wikipedia profiles to make them more favorable towards clients, including Qatar, The Guardian reported on Saturday.
Portland Communication, a PR agency founded by Allan, has been linked to these edits, which investigators classified as "Wikilaundering."
An investigation launched by the Bureau of Investigative Journalism (TBIJ) revealed that Portland Communications had an outsourced team of Wikipedia editors available as a service to some of its clients.
The company allegedly worked to launder Qatar's image ahead of the 2022 World Cup, which was held in the Gulf State, with part of the strategy involving edits to the country's Wikipedia page.
Wikilaundering Qatar's image
The main objective, according to the report, was to bury references to critical reporting against the international soccer competition held in Qatar.
TBIJ claimed it had conclusive proof that Portland Communications made edits to its clients' Wikipedia pages between 2016 and 2024, with the one made between 2016 and 2021 by a separate firm called Web3 Consulting.
The report claimed that as early as 2012, Portland Communications worked on behalf of the company that produces Stella Artois to remove references on Wikipedia to an unwanted nickname, “wife beater."
“No one said: ‘We should stop doing this’. The question was how we could keep doing it without getting caught," former employees told TBIJ reporters, as quoted by The Guardian.
The Wikipedia Foundation, the non-profit that supports the online encyclopedia, states in its terms of service that it is forbidden to perform undisclosed paid advocacy on Wikipedia, also known as “black hat” editing.
Portland Communications denied the outlet's claims.
“Portland does not have a relationship with the firm mentioned and has a policy of strict adherence to the guidelines on all social media platforms,” a spokesperson told The Guardian in a statement.
There is no evidence of Allan's involvement in the matter; he sold most of his shares to the company in 2012 and left it entirely in 2019.