alt Hacker NewsWikipedia is actually the secondary source when someone reads a page on it, and it requires primary sources (like factbooks) to cite to exist.
Replies
Loughla • today at 2:51 PM
The problem is who checks the sources. Of the what billions of sources, how many have actually been verified?
➕ show 2 replies
tokai • today at 4:15 PM
Encyclopedias are by definition tertiary sources.
This is incorrect. Wikipedia relies primarily on secondary sources, which makes it a tertiary source, and it describes itself this way.[1] The World Factbook does not collect the information it provides, making it a secondary source.
[1]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/WP:PSTS