Timeline of Wikipedia–U.S. government conflicts

For related articles that are broader in scope, see Censorship in the United States and Censorship of Wikipedia.

Wikipedia—hosted by nonprofit organization the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc. (WMF)—has been involved with various conflicts with the federal government of the United States. Conflicts have included conflict of interest editing by the FBI and CIA, legal threats from the FBI, allegations of NSA mass surveillance of Wikipedia editors, and proposed laws affecting Wikipedia that have been met with significant backlash.

Since the 2024 United States presidential election, Wikipedia has more frequently been the target of political pressure by government officials in the second Trump administration, especially over allegations of antisemitism due to alleged pro-Palestinian bias during the Gaza war. In August 2025, House Republicans opened an investigation into Wikipedia, requesting unique characteristics of accounts—such as account names and IP addresses—of Wikipedia editors subject to ArbCom actions. This followed a series of actions by the government beginning in April 2025, which applied political pressure to Wikipedia after Trump-affiliated think tank the Heritage Foundation's Project Esther was noted as containing plans to dox Wikipedia editors using strategies such as phishing attacks.

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