Recently, Wikimedia discovered the iniquitous background of their Chief Operating Officer and it's sent them reeling. In 2006, Carolyn Bothwell Doran had been sent to Wikimedia by a temp., agency to work as their part time bookkeeper for the foundation that is responsible for accepting and processing all their donations.
The Wikimedia foundation was dumbfounded when they first heard the information, which came to light just as they are preparing for more fund raising - in the hopes that it can expand itself beyond the unmeticulous startup.
Charles Ainsworth who contributes regularly to their articles, had been ready to donate and support Wikipedia, but says he "won't unless they clearly get things fixed."
Surprisingly, this certainly points towards poor management within the Wikimedia/Wikipedia organizations.
In light of Wikimedia's ignorance, Doran even signed the small non-profit's tax return, which listed more than $1.3 million (EU900,000) in donations.
Didn't Wikipedia have the foresight and common sense to do a background check on someone in this position?
Didn't they know how important it is to check people's backgrounds out - especially in the area of handling any money, let alone company money? It's as easy as looking on the internet and picking a place. My first result on searching Google was: IntegraScan.
To me this is just pure common sense, why wasn't it to Wikimedia? It's not as if they hired someone with a few parking tickets under the belt, this woman is really a piece of work.
I have to wonder if the execs., story behind the real story, is actually the whole truth. Doran's criminal time line is just amazing and would effortlessly have been discoverable in any number of ways. It seems that Wikimedia just didn't bother.
In 1990 Doran wounded her boyfriend, (the father of their son,) by shooting him in the chest.
2004 saw Doran on probation for a hit-and-run in Virginia where she received only seven months in prison for her trouble. She killed the other person in the accident and sped away from the scene of the crime. It incenses me, when people who commit felonies, receive only token sentences when they have a criminal history.
The woman who has convictions in three states, has been convicted of multiple DUI incidents. Doran has also had multiple incidents of theft and writing bad checks - in fact she's just an all around constitutional nightmare, for herself and her employers Wikimedia, who have been dodging not only media fire for the past few days, but also from its contributors.
Naturally, those on the Wikimedia Board are desperately back-pedaling and deny having ever known anything. Founder Jimmy Wales has at least been appropriately remorseful, offering to cover any losses that turned up in the current audit.
How come it took an English technology web site - The Register, to first report these findings? Associated Press then dug further with their own investigations, turning up even more information.
May 20th, 2004: Doran was arrested again, after yet another DUI and driving with a suspended license. She was released on a bond of USD$5,250. In August of the same year, she was arrested for the violation of her probation and extradited to Virginia to be jailed.
2005: Doran was hired by Wikimedia.
2006: Unbelievably, Doran was promoted ... yes, promoted from bookkeeper to Chief Operating Officer. Who gets that kind of a promotion? What were Wikimedia thinking?
Interestingly, both Doran's husband and father once worked for the CIA. Her husband, an Air Force major, drowned on their honeymoon in the Cayman Islands in 1999. Apparently there has been some suspicion surrounding his death, though no names have been mentioned.
It's going to be very interesting to see what Wikimedia's audit reveals.
This was Carolyn Doran's job description with Wikimedia.
With so many good people (with higher qualifications) wanting and needing such jobs - I say shame on you Wikimedia.
It only goes to show, you lie down with dogs and you get up with fleas.
~ Swan
Sources:
Photograph of Carolyn Doran
© Associated Press
