Wikipedia:Everything you need to know
 | This is an information page. It is not an encyclopedic article, nor one of Wikipedia's policies or guidelines; rather, its purpose is to explain certain aspects of Wikipedia's norms, customs, technicalities, or practices. It may reflect differing levels of consensus and vetting. |
 | This page in a nutshell: If you want to quickly understand some of Wikipedia's most important policies, then you're in the right spot. Please note that this is not a complete list of Wikipedia's policies. |
Articles
Notability
Articles generally require significant coverage
in reliable sources
that are independent of the topic.
Significant coverage
We need significant coverage. We need multiple sources that discuss the topic directly and in detail. Not: passing mentions, directory listings, government records, or any old thing that happens to have the topic's name in it.
Reliable sources
We need sources that are reliable. Usually this means that the publisher has a reputation for fact checking and the text must be approved by an editor before it is printed. For example: books from reputable publishing houses, mainstream newspapers, or other periodicals. Not: tabloids, discussion boards, fansites, social media, or most blogs.
Independent
We need sources that are independent from the subject of the article. Not: books or articles written by the subject (including interviews), articles paid for by the subject, press releases, a Q&A interview where virtually all of the information is just the subject or a spokesperson speaking for themselves.
Verifiability
Statements that may be challenged
require inline citations
to reliable sources.
Statements that may be challenged
Any material without a reliable source directly supporting it may be removed. How quickly this should happen depends on the content and the overall state of the article. For biographies of living people, unsourced or poorly sourced material must be removed immediately if it is contentious.
Inline citations
Inline citations allow the reader to associate a given bit of material in an article with the specific reliable source(s) that support the material. Inline citations are most commonly added using footnote references (long or short). If short footnotes are present, it should be followed by a list of the full bibliography citations to which they refer.
Reliable sources
We need sources that are reliable. Usually this means that the publisher has a reputation for fact checking and the text must be approved by an editor before it is printed. For example: books from reputable publishing houses, mainstream newspapers, or other periodicals. Not: tabloids, discussion boards, fansites, social media, or most blogs.
Neutral point of view
Provide due weight
to all significant viewpoints
avoiding any possible bias.
Due and undue weight
Giving due weight means representing views in proportion to their prominence in reliable sources. Articles should not give minority views the same emphasis as widely held views, and tiny minority views are generally omitted unless relevant to the topic. Neutrality requires fairly presenting all significant viewpoints published by reliable sources, without promoting any particular view.
Significant viewpoints
Is a viewpoint that has been published frequently by reliable sources.
Bias
This is when any statement states an opinion as a fact. i.e. "John Doe is the best baseball player", or when viewpoints are not represented proportionally to their sources.
No original research
Statements can not be unreferenced,
supported by original research,
or substantiated by the synthesis of published material.
Unreferenced claims
Are statements that are not adequately supported by references.
Original research
Any new analysis of primary sources by an editor. This is not allowed because the reader can't verify if the information is true or not.
Synthesis of published material
Do not combine material from multiple sources to reach or imply a conclusion not explicitly stated by any of the sources. If one reliable source says A and another reliable source says B, do not join A and B together to imply a conclusion C that is not mentioned by either of the sources.
Conflict of interest
Do not edit in your own interest,
declare any conflict of interest,
and always declare if you are being paid to edit.
A conflict of interest
A conflict of interest arises when editing Wikipedia about yourself, your family, friends, clients, employers, or other financial and personal relationships. Any external relationship can create a conflict of interest. Conflict of interest editing is strongly discouraged. It undermines public confidence in Wikipedia and can embarrass the individuals or organisations involved. Editors with a conflict of interest should avoid editing affected articles directly and instead propose changes on the article’s talk page or make an edit request.
Declaring your conflict of interest
Editors should declare if they have a conflict of interest in a particular topic area. Doing so shows transparency, earns trust from other editors, and allows you to request that others post or review material on your behalf.
Paid editing
As part of the Wikimedia Terms and Conditions, if you are being paid for your contributions to Wikipedia, you must declare who is paying you, who the client is, and any other relevant role or relationship. Payment does not have to be financial; it includes any compensation, such as goods, services, or other benefits.
Behaviour towards other editors
Assume good faith
Assume that others intend to improve the encyclopedia
unless you have clear evidence to the contrary.
Good-faith editing
Is a pattern of editing that was intended to improve the encyclopedia. This can include edits blatantly against Wikipedia policy. It also includes test edits, edits by the user to see if they can edit a page. i.e. page blanking.
Clear evidence
If you wish to express doubts about the conduct of fellow Wikipedians, please substantiate those doubts with specific diffs and other relevant evidence, so that people can understand the basis for your concerns. Although bad conduct may seem to be due to bad faith, it is usually best to address the conduct without mentioning motives, which might worsen resentments all around.
No personal attacks
Comment on the contributions of editors,
not the editors themselves.
Comment on contributions
If you have a comment to make on a user's contribution, please do it civilly. Be kind and explain what your reason for the comment is, whether that be a question, an argument against their edit, or a thought. Do not comment on the editor; comment on their contribution.
Don't comment on the editors
Do not make a public comment about a user that could hurt their feelings. Instead, give constructive criticism: adequately, tell them what they could do to improve. Even if the user is doing something incorrectly, be civil. Rudeness and/or insults towards other users are unacceptable.
No harassment
Do not behave in a way that targets or "hounds" others,
edit to stop others from enjoying editing Wikipedia,
or post undisclosed personal information of another editor.
Hounding
Hounding is the singling out of one or more editors, and joining discussions on multiple pages or topics they may edit or multiple debates where they contribute, to repeatedly confront or inhibit their work. This is with an apparent aim of creating irritation, annoyance, or distress to the other editor. Hounding usually involves following the target from place to place on Wikipedia.
Stopping editors from enjoying themselves
Any action that intentionally makes editing unenjoyable for others is not acceptable. This includes, but is not limited to; making threats, repeated annoying and unwanted contact, repeated personal attacks, intimidation, or posting personal information.
Posting of undisclosed personal information (Outing)
Posting another editor's personal information is harassment, unless that person had voluntarily posted their own information, or links to such information, on Wikipedia. Personal information includes legal name, date of birth, identification numbers, home or workplace address, job title and work organization, telephone number, email address, or other contact information, whether any such information is accurate or not. Posting such information about another editor is an unjustifiable and uninvited invasion of privacy and may place that editor at risk of harm outside of their activities on Wikipedia. This applies to the personal information of both editors and non-editors. Any edit that "outs" someone must be reverted promptly, followed by a request for oversight to delete that edit from Wikipedia permanently. If an editor has previously posted their own personal information but later redacted it, it should not be repeated on Wikipedia; although references to still-existing, self-disclosed information is not considered outing. If the previously posted information has been removed by oversight, then repeating it on Wikipedia is considered an outing.
No legal threats
Do not use Wikipedia to notify or threaten legal action.
Legal threats
Any threat of litigation to Wikipedia, or its holding organization Wikimedia; Wikimedia users or readers is considered a legal threat, and will result in your account being blocked. To notify the Wikimedia Foundation of litigation, use this page.
No sockpuppetry
Do not abuse multiple accounts, or recruit anyone;
to circumvent administrative actions,
breach Wikipedia policy,
or to create the illusion of greater support for a position.
Multiple accounts
It is recommended that contributors do not use multiple accounts without good reason. For example, a user may wish to create an alternate account for use on public computers as a precaution to keep their primary account more secure. Contributors operating any sort of automated editing process should do so under an alternative bot account. It is recommended that multiple accounts be identified as such on their user pages; templates such as {{User alternative account}} or one of a selection of user boxes may be used for this purpose.
Recruiting others (meat puppetry)
Do not recruit your friends, family members, or communities of people who agree with you to come to Wikipedia and support your side of a debate. In Wikipedia terminology, this is called canvassing. If you feel that a debate is ignoring your voice, remain civil, and seek comments from other Wikipedians or pursue dispute resolution.
Administrative actions
Administrative actions are any sanctions such as blocks, or bans that were introduced by Administrators, the community, or the Arbitration Committee. If blocked you can usually appeal on your talk page, which is only blocked if abused. If you cannot edit your talk page then you must appeal via the Unblock Ticket Request System or by emailing the Arbitration Committee, here.
Wikipedia policy
Wikipedia's policies and guidelines are pages that serve to document the good practices that are accepted in the Wikipedia community. Wikimedia policies, such as Wikimedia: Terms of Use & Wikimedia: Privacy policy can never be overridden by local policies.
Creating the illusion of greater support for an argument
Making multiple accounts to support your side of an argument is not allowed. If you use your alternative account to comment in a discussion, announce that you're commenting for your main account.
