CINXE.COM

<!DOCTYPE html> <html class="client-nojs vector-feature-language-in-header-enabled vector-feature-language-in-main-page-header-disabled vector-feature-sticky-header-disabled vector-feature-page-tools-pinned-disabled vector-feature-toc-pinned-clientpref-1 vector-feature-main-menu-pinned-disabled vector-feature-limited-width-clientpref-1 vector-feature-limited-width-content-enabled vector-feature-custom-font-size-clientpref-1 vector-feature-appearance-pinned-clientpref-1 vector-feature-night-mode-enabled skin-theme-clientpref-day vector-toc-available" lang="en" dir="ltr"> <head> <meta charset="UTF-8"> <title>Wikipedia:Understanding Wikipedia's content standards - Wikipedia</title> <script>(function(){var className="client-js vector-feature-language-in-header-enabled vector-feature-language-in-main-page-header-disabled vector-feature-sticky-header-disabled vector-feature-page-tools-pinned-disabled vector-feature-toc-pinned-clientpref-1 vector-feature-main-menu-pinned-disabled vector-feature-limited-width-clientpref-1 vector-feature-limited-width-content-enabled vector-feature-custom-font-size-clientpref-1 vector-feature-appearance-pinned-clientpref-1 vector-feature-night-mode-enabled skin-theme-clientpref-day vector-toc-available";var cookie=document.cookie.match(/(?:^|; )enwikimwclientpreferences=([^;]+)/);if(cookie){cookie[1].split('%2C').forEach(function(pref){className=className.replace(new RegExp('(^| )'+pref.replace(/-clientpref-\w+$|[^\w-]+/g,'')+'-clientpref-\\w+( |$)'),'$1'+pref+'$2');});}document.documentElement.className=className;}());RLCONF={"wgBreakFrames":false,"wgSeparatorTransformTable":["",""],"wgDigitTransformTable":["",""],"wgDefaultDateFormat":"dmy", "wgMonthNames":["","January","February","March","April","May","June","July","August","September","October","November","December"],"wgRequestId":"58f07ddf-8548-4c3f-af9e-9f471283323a","wgCanonicalNamespace":"Project","wgCanonicalSpecialPageName":false,"wgNamespaceNumber":4,"wgPageName":"Wikipedia:Understanding_Wikipedia's_content_standards","wgTitle":"Understanding Wikipedia's content standards","wgCurRevisionId":928791177,"wgRevisionId":928791177,"wgArticleId":57802856,"wgIsArticle":true,"wgIsRedirect":false,"wgAction":"view","wgUserName":null,"wgUserGroups":["*"],"wgCategories":["Wikipedia essays","Wikipedia sources","Wikipedia consensus","Wikipedia essays explaining processes"],"wgPageViewLanguage":"en","wgPageContentLanguage":"en","wgPageContentModel":"wikitext","wgRelevantPageName":"Wikipedia:Understanding_Wikipedia's_content_standards","wgRelevantArticleId":57802856,"wgIsProbablyEditable":true,"wgRelevantPageIsProbablyEditable":true,"wgRestrictionEdit":[],"wgRestrictionMove":[], "wgNoticeProject":"wikipedia","wgCiteReferencePreviewsActive":false,"wgFlaggedRevsParams":{"tags":{"status":{"levels":1}}},"wgMediaViewerOnClick":true,"wgMediaViewerEnabledByDefault":true,"wgPopupsFlags":0,"wgVisualEditor":{"pageLanguageCode":"en","pageLanguageDir":"ltr","pageVariantFallbacks":"en"},"wgMFDisplayWikibaseDescriptions":{"search":true,"watchlist":true,"tagline":false,"nearby":true},"wgWMESchemaEditAttemptStepOversample":false,"wgWMEPageLength":10000,"wgRelatedArticlesCompat":[],"wgCentralAuthMobileDomain":false,"wgEditSubmitButtonLabelPublish":true,"wgDiscussionToolsFeaturesEnabled":{"replytool":true,"newtopictool":true,"sourcemodetoolbar":true,"topicsubscription":false,"autotopicsub":false,"visualenhancements":false,"visualenhancements_reply":false,"visualenhancements_pageframe":false},"wgDiscussionToolsFallbackEditMode":"source","wgULSPosition":"interlanguage","wgULSisCompactLinksEnabled":false,"wgVector2022LanguageInHeader":true,"wgULSisLanguageSelectorEmpty":false, "wgCheckUserClientHintsHeadersJsApi":["brands","architecture","bitness","fullVersionList","mobile","model","platform","platformVersion"],"GEHomepageSuggestedEditsEnableTopics":true,"wgGETopicsMatchModeEnabled":false,"wgGEStructuredTaskRejectionReasonTextInputEnabled":false,"wgGELevelingUpEnabledForUser":false};RLSTATE={"ext.globalCssJs.user.styles":"ready","site.styles":"ready","user.styles":"ready","ext.globalCssJs.user":"ready","user":"ready","user.options":"loading","ext.discussionTools.init.styles":"ready","oojs-ui-core.styles":"ready","oojs-ui.styles.indicators":"ready","mediawiki.widgets.styles":"ready","oojs-ui-core.icons":"ready","skins.vector.search.codex.styles":"ready","skins.vector.styles":"ready","skins.vector.icons":"ready","ext.wikimediamessages.styles":"ready","ext.visualEditor.desktopArticleTarget.noscript":"ready","ext.uls.interlanguage":"ready","wikibase.client.init":"ready","ext.wikimediaBadges":"ready"};RLPAGEMODULES=["site","mediawiki.page.ready","mediawiki.toc", "skins.vector.js","ext.centralNotice.geoIP","ext.centralNotice.startUp","ext.gadget.ReferenceTooltips","ext.gadget.switcher","ext.urlShortener.toolbar","ext.centralauth.centralautologin","mmv.bootstrap","ext.popups","ext.visualEditor.desktopArticleTarget.init","ext.visualEditor.targetLoader","ext.echo.centralauth","ext.discussionTools.init","ext.eventLogging","ext.wikimediaEvents","ext.navigationTiming","ext.uls.interface","ext.cx.eventlogging.campaigns","ext.checkUser.clientHints"];</script> <script>(RLQ=window.RLQ||[]).push(function(){mw.loader.impl(function(){return["user.options@12s5i",function($,jQuery,require,module){mw.user.tokens.set({"patrolToken":"+\\","watchToken":"+\\","csrfToken":"+\\"}); }];});});</script> <link rel="stylesheet" href="/w/load.php?lang=en&modules=ext.discussionTools.init.styles%7Cext.uls.interlanguage%7Cext.visualEditor.desktopArticleTarget.noscript%7Cext.wikimediaBadges%7Cext.wikimediamessages.styles%7Cmediawiki.widgets.styles%7Coojs-ui-core.icons%2Cstyles%7Coojs-ui.styles.indicators%7Cskins.vector.icons%2Cstyles%7Cskins.vector.search.codex.styles%7Cwikibase.client.init&only=styles&skin=vector-2022"> <script async="" src="/w/load.php?lang=en&modules=startup&only=scripts&raw=1&skin=vector-2022"></script> <meta name="ResourceLoaderDynamicStyles" content=""> <link rel="stylesheet" href="/w/load.php?lang=en&modules=site.styles&only=styles&skin=vector-2022"> <meta name="generator" content="MediaWiki 1.44.0-wmf.4"> <meta name="referrer" content="origin"> <meta name="referrer" content="origin-when-cross-origin"> <meta name="robots" content="max-image-preview:standard"> <meta name="format-detection" content="telephone=no"> <meta name="viewport" content="width=1120"> <meta property="og:title" content="Wikipedia:Understanding Wikipedia's content standards - Wikipedia"> <meta property="og:type" content="website"> <link rel="preconnect" href="//upload.wikimedia.org"> <link rel="alternate" media="only screen and (max-width: 640px)" href="//en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Understanding_Wikipedia%27s_content_standards"> <link rel="alternate" type="application/x-wiki" title="Edit this page" href="/w/index.php?title=Wikipedia:Understanding_Wikipedia%27s_content_standards&action=edit"> <link rel="apple-touch-icon" href="/static/apple-touch/wikipedia.png"> <link rel="icon" href="/static/favicon/wikipedia.ico"> <link rel="search" type="application/opensearchdescription+xml" href="/w/rest.php/v1/search" title="Wikipedia (en)"> <link rel="EditURI" type="application/rsd+xml" href="//en.wikipedia.org/w/api.php?action=rsd"> <link rel="canonical" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Understanding_Wikipedia%27s_content_standards"> <link rel="license" href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/deed.en"> <link rel="alternate" type="application/atom+xml" title="Wikipedia Atom feed" href="/w/index.php?title=Special:RecentChanges&feed=atom"> <link rel="dns-prefetch" href="//meta.wikimedia.org" /> <link rel="dns-prefetch" href="//login.wikimedia.org"> </head> <body class="ext-discussiontools-replytool-enabled ext-discussiontools-newtopictool-enabled ext-discussiontools-sourcemodetoolbar-enabled skin--responsive skin-vector skin-vector-search-vue mediawiki ltr sitedir-ltr mw-hide-empty-elt ns-4 ns-subject mw-editable page-Wikipedia_Understanding_Wikipedia_s_content_standards rootpage-Wikipedia_Understanding_Wikipedia_s_content_standards skin-vector-2022 action-view"><a class="mw-jump-link" href="#bodyContent">Jump to content</a> <div class="vector-header-container"> <header class="vector-header mw-header"> <div class="vector-header-start"> <nav class="vector-main-menu-landmark" aria-label="Site"> <div id="vector-main-menu-dropdown" class="vector-dropdown vector-main-menu-dropdown vector-button-flush-left vector-button-flush-right" > <input type="checkbox" id="vector-main-menu-dropdown-checkbox" role="button" aria-haspopup="true" data-event-name="ui.dropdown-vector-main-menu-dropdown" class="vector-dropdown-checkbox " aria-label="Main menu" > <label id="vector-main-menu-dropdown-label" for="vector-main-menu-dropdown-checkbox" class="vector-dropdown-label cdx-button cdx-button--fake-button cdx-button--fake-button--enabled cdx-button--weight-quiet cdx-button--icon-only " aria-hidden="true" ><span class="vector-icon mw-ui-icon-menu mw-ui-icon-wikimedia-menu"></span> <span class="vector-dropdown-label-text">Main menu</span> </label> <div class="vector-dropdown-content"> <div id="vector-main-menu-unpinned-container" class="vector-unpinned-container"> <div id="vector-main-menu" class="vector-main-menu vector-pinnable-element"> <div class="vector-pinnable-header vector-main-menu-pinnable-header vector-pinnable-header-unpinned" data-feature-name="main-menu-pinned" data-pinnable-element-id="vector-main-menu" data-pinned-container-id="vector-main-menu-pinned-container" data-unpinned-container-id="vector-main-menu-unpinned-container" > <div class="vector-pinnable-header-label">Main menu</div> <button class="vector-pinnable-header-toggle-button vector-pinnable-header-pin-button" data-event-name="pinnable-header.vector-main-menu.pin">move to sidebar</button> <button class="vector-pinnable-header-toggle-button vector-pinnable-header-unpin-button" data-event-name="pinnable-header.vector-main-menu.unpin">hide</button> </div> <div id="p-navigation" class="vector-menu mw-portlet mw-portlet-navigation" > <div class="vector-menu-heading"> Navigation </div> <div class="vector-menu-content"> <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"> <li id="n-mainpage-description" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Main_Page" title="Visit the main page [z]" accesskey="z"><span>Main page</span></a></li><li id="n-contents" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Contents" title="Guides to browsing Wikipedia"><span>Contents</span></a></li><li id="n-currentevents" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Portal:Current_events" title="Articles related to current events"><span>Current events</span></a></li><li id="n-randompage" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Special:Random" title="Visit a randomly selected article [x]" accesskey="x"><span>Random article</span></a></li><li id="n-aboutsite" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:About" title="Learn about Wikipedia and how it works"><span>About Wikipedia</span></a></li><li id="n-contactpage" class="mw-list-item"><a href="//en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Contact_us" title="How to contact Wikipedia"><span>Contact us</span></a></li> </ul> </div> </div> <div id="p-interaction" class="vector-menu mw-portlet mw-portlet-interaction" > <div class="vector-menu-heading"> Contribute </div> <div class="vector-menu-content"> <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"> <li id="n-help" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Help:Contents" title="Guidance on how to use and edit Wikipedia"><span>Help</span></a></li><li id="n-introduction" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Help:Introduction" title="Learn how to edit Wikipedia"><span>Learn to edit</span></a></li><li id="n-portal" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Community_portal" title="The hub for editors"><span>Community portal</span></a></li><li id="n-recentchanges" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Special:RecentChanges" title="A list of recent changes to Wikipedia [r]" accesskey="r"><span>Recent changes</span></a></li><li id="n-upload" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:File_upload_wizard" title="Add images or other media for use on Wikipedia"><span>Upload file</span></a></li> </ul> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </nav> <a href="/wiki/Main_Page" class="mw-logo"> <img class="mw-logo-icon" src="/static/images/icons/wikipedia.png" alt="" aria-hidden="true" height="50" width="50"> <span class="mw-logo-container skin-invert"> <img class="mw-logo-wordmark" alt="Wikipedia" src="/static/images/mobile/copyright/wikipedia-wordmark-en.svg" style="width: 7.5em; height: 1.125em;"> <img class="mw-logo-tagline" alt="The Free Encyclopedia" src="/static/images/mobile/copyright/wikipedia-tagline-en.svg" width="117" height="13" style="width: 7.3125em; height: 0.8125em;"> </span> </a> </div> <div class="vector-header-end"> <div id="p-search" role="search" class="vector-search-box-vue vector-search-box-collapses vector-search-box-show-thumbnail vector-search-box-auto-expand-width vector-search-box"> <a href="/wiki/Special:Search" class="cdx-button cdx-button--fake-button cdx-button--fake-button--enabled cdx-button--weight-quiet cdx-button--icon-only search-toggle" title="Search Wikipedia [f]" accesskey="f"><span class="vector-icon mw-ui-icon-search mw-ui-icon-wikimedia-search"></span> <span>Search</span> </a> <div class="vector-typeahead-search-container"> <div class="cdx-typeahead-search cdx-typeahead-search--show-thumbnail cdx-typeahead-search--auto-expand-width"> <form action="/w/index.php" id="searchform" class="cdx-search-input cdx-search-input--has-end-button"> <div id="simpleSearch" class="cdx-search-input__input-wrapper" data-search-loc="header-moved"> <div class="cdx-text-input cdx-text-input--has-start-icon"> <input class="cdx-text-input__input" type="search" name="search" placeholder="Search Wikipedia" aria-label="Search Wikipedia" autocapitalize="sentences" title="Search Wikipedia [f]" accesskey="f" id="searchInput" > <span class="cdx-text-input__icon cdx-text-input__start-icon"></span> </div> <input type="hidden" name="title" value="Special:Search"> </div> <button class="cdx-button cdx-search-input__end-button">Search</button> </form> </div> </div> </div> <nav class="vector-user-links vector-user-links-wide" aria-label="Personal tools"> <div class="vector-user-links-main"> <div id="p-vector-user-menu-preferences" class="vector-menu mw-portlet emptyPortlet" > <div class="vector-menu-content"> <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"> </ul> </div> </div> <div id="p-vector-user-menu-userpage" class="vector-menu mw-portlet emptyPortlet" > <div class="vector-menu-content"> <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"> </ul> </div> </div> <nav class="vector-appearance-landmark" aria-label="Appearance"> <div id="vector-appearance-dropdown" class="vector-dropdown " title="Change the appearance of the page's font size, width, and color" > <input type="checkbox" id="vector-appearance-dropdown-checkbox" role="button" aria-haspopup="true" data-event-name="ui.dropdown-vector-appearance-dropdown" class="vector-dropdown-checkbox " aria-label="Appearance" > <label id="vector-appearance-dropdown-label" for="vector-appearance-dropdown-checkbox" class="vector-dropdown-label cdx-button cdx-button--fake-button cdx-button--fake-button--enabled cdx-button--weight-quiet cdx-button--icon-only " aria-hidden="true" ><span class="vector-icon mw-ui-icon-appearance mw-ui-icon-wikimedia-appearance"></span> <span class="vector-dropdown-label-text">Appearance</span> </label> <div class="vector-dropdown-content"> <div id="vector-appearance-unpinned-container" class="vector-unpinned-container"> </div> </div> </div> </nav> <div id="p-vector-user-menu-notifications" class="vector-menu mw-portlet emptyPortlet" > <div class="vector-menu-content"> <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"> </ul> </div> </div> <div id="p-vector-user-menu-overflow" class="vector-menu mw-portlet" > <div class="vector-menu-content"> <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"> <li id="pt-sitesupport-2" class="user-links-collapsible-item mw-list-item user-links-collapsible-item"><a data-mw="interface" href="https://donate.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:FundraiserRedirector?utm_source=donate&utm_medium=sidebar&utm_campaign=C13_en.wikipedia.org&uselang=en" class=""><span>Donate</span></a> </li> <li id="pt-createaccount-2" class="user-links-collapsible-item mw-list-item user-links-collapsible-item"><a data-mw="interface" href="/w/index.php?title=Special:CreateAccount&returnto=Wikipedia%3AUnderstanding+Wikipedia%27s+content+standards" title="You are encouraged to create an account and log in; however, it is not mandatory" class=""><span>Create account</span></a> </li> <li id="pt-login-2" class="user-links-collapsible-item mw-list-item user-links-collapsible-item"><a data-mw="interface" href="/w/index.php?title=Special:UserLogin&returnto=Wikipedia%3AUnderstanding+Wikipedia%27s+content+standards" title="You're encouraged to log in; however, it's not mandatory. [o]" accesskey="o" class=""><span>Log in</span></a> </li> </ul> </div> </div> </div> <div id="vector-user-links-dropdown" class="vector-dropdown vector-user-menu vector-button-flush-right vector-user-menu-logged-out" title="Log in and more options" > <input type="checkbox" id="vector-user-links-dropdown-checkbox" role="button" aria-haspopup="true" data-event-name="ui.dropdown-vector-user-links-dropdown" class="vector-dropdown-checkbox " aria-label="Personal tools" > <label id="vector-user-links-dropdown-label" for="vector-user-links-dropdown-checkbox" class="vector-dropdown-label cdx-button cdx-button--fake-button cdx-button--fake-button--enabled cdx-button--weight-quiet cdx-button--icon-only " aria-hidden="true" ><span class="vector-icon mw-ui-icon-ellipsis mw-ui-icon-wikimedia-ellipsis"></span> <span class="vector-dropdown-label-text">Personal tools</span> </label> <div class="vector-dropdown-content"> <div id="p-personal" class="vector-menu mw-portlet mw-portlet-personal user-links-collapsible-item" title="User menu" > <div class="vector-menu-content"> <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"> <li id="pt-sitesupport" class="user-links-collapsible-item mw-list-item"><a href="https://donate.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:FundraiserRedirector?utm_source=donate&utm_medium=sidebar&utm_campaign=C13_en.wikipedia.org&uselang=en"><span>Donate</span></a></li><li id="pt-createaccount" class="user-links-collapsible-item mw-list-item"><a href="/w/index.php?title=Special:CreateAccount&returnto=Wikipedia%3AUnderstanding+Wikipedia%27s+content+standards" title="You are encouraged to create an account and log in; however, it is not mandatory"><span class="vector-icon mw-ui-icon-userAdd mw-ui-icon-wikimedia-userAdd"></span> <span>Create account</span></a></li><li id="pt-login" class="user-links-collapsible-item mw-list-item"><a href="/w/index.php?title=Special:UserLogin&returnto=Wikipedia%3AUnderstanding+Wikipedia%27s+content+standards" title="You're encouraged to log in; however, it's not mandatory. [o]" accesskey="o"><span class="vector-icon mw-ui-icon-logIn mw-ui-icon-wikimedia-logIn"></span> <span>Log in</span></a></li> </ul> </div> </div> <div id="p-user-menu-anon-editor" class="vector-menu mw-portlet mw-portlet-user-menu-anon-editor" > <div class="vector-menu-heading"> Pages for logged out editors <a href="/wiki/Help:Introduction" aria-label="Learn more about editing"><span>learn more</span></a> </div> <div class="vector-menu-content"> <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"> <li id="pt-anoncontribs" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Special:MyContributions" title="A list of edits made from this IP address [y]" accesskey="y"><span>Contributions</span></a></li><li id="pt-anontalk" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Special:MyTalk" title="Discussion about edits from this IP address [n]" accesskey="n"><span>Talk</span></a></li> </ul> </div> </div> </div> </div> </nav> </div> </header> </div> <div class="mw-page-container"> <div class="mw-page-container-inner"> <div class="vector-sitenotice-container"> <div id="siteNotice"></div> </div> <div class="vector-column-start"> <div class="vector-main-menu-container"> <div id="mw-navigation"> <nav id="mw-panel" class="vector-main-menu-landmark" aria-label="Site"> <div id="vector-main-menu-pinned-container" class="vector-pinned-container"> </div> </nav> </div> </div> <div class="vector-sticky-pinned-container"> <nav id="mw-panel-toc" aria-label="Contents" data-event-name="ui.sidebar-toc" class="mw-table-of-contents-container vector-toc-landmark"> <div id="vector-toc-pinned-container" class="vector-pinned-container"> <div id="vector-toc" class="vector-toc vector-pinnable-element"> <div class="vector-pinnable-header vector-toc-pinnable-header vector-pinnable-header-pinned" data-feature-name="toc-pinned" data-pinnable-element-id="vector-toc" > <h2 class="vector-pinnable-header-label">Contents</h2> <button class="vector-pinnable-header-toggle-button vector-pinnable-header-pin-button" data-event-name="pinnable-header.vector-toc.pin">move to sidebar</button> <button class="vector-pinnable-header-toggle-button vector-pinnable-header-unpin-button" data-event-name="pinnable-header.vector-toc.unpin">hide</button> </div> <ul class="vector-toc-contents" id="mw-panel-toc-list"> <li id="toc-mw-content-text" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-1"> <a href="#" class="vector-toc-link"> <div class="vector-toc-text">(Top)</div> </a> </li> <li id="toc-What_the_rules_advise" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-1 vector-toc-list-item-expanded"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#What_the_rules_advise"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">1</span> <span>What the rules advise</span> </div> </a> <button aria-controls="toc-What_the_rules_advise-sublist" class="cdx-button cdx-button--weight-quiet cdx-button--icon-only vector-toc-toggle"> <span class="vector-icon mw-ui-icon-wikimedia-expand"></span> <span>Toggle What the rules advise subsection</span> </button> <ul id="toc-What_the_rules_advise-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> <li id="toc-Underlying_concepts" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-2"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Underlying_concepts"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">1.1</span> <span>Underlying concepts</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Underlying_concepts-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-New_articles" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-2"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#New_articles"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">1.2</span> <span>New articles</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-New_articles-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Content_within_articles" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-2"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Content_within_articles"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">1.3</span> <span>Content within articles</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Content_within_articles-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Content_style" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-2"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Content_style"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">1.4</span> <span>Content style</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Content_style-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-What_the_sources_confirm" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-1 vector-toc-list-item-expanded"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#What_the_sources_confirm"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">2</span> <span>What the sources confirm</span> </div> </a> <button aria-controls="toc-What_the_sources_confirm-sublist" class="cdx-button cdx-button--weight-quiet cdx-button--icon-only vector-toc-toggle"> <span class="vector-icon mw-ui-icon-wikimedia-expand"></span> <span>Toggle What the sources confirm subsection</span> </button> <ul id="toc-What_the_sources_confirm-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> <li id="toc-Acceptable_sources" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-2"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Acceptable_sources"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">2.1</span> <span>Acceptable sources</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Acceptable_sources-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Writing_from_sources" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-2"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Writing_from_sources"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">2.2</span> <span>Writing from sources</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Writing_from_sources-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Inaccurate_sources" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-2"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Inaccurate_sources"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">2.3</span> <span>Inaccurate sources</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Inaccurate_sources-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-How_editors_will_respond" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-1 vector-toc-list-item-expanded"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#How_editors_will_respond"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">3</span> <span>How editors will respond</span> </div> </a> <button aria-controls="toc-How_editors_will_respond-sublist" class="cdx-button cdx-button--weight-quiet cdx-button--icon-only vector-toc-toggle"> <span class="vector-icon mw-ui-icon-wikimedia-expand"></span> <span>Toggle How editors will respond subsection</span> </button> <ul id="toc-How_editors_will_respond-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> <li id="toc-Conflict_of_interest" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-2"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Conflict_of_interest"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">3.1</span> <span>Conflict of interest</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Conflict_of_interest-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Level_of_activity" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-2"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Level_of_activity"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">3.2</span> <span>Level of activity</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Level_of_activity-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Differing_perspectives" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-2"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Differing_perspectives"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">3.3</span> <span>Differing perspectives</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Differing_perspectives-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Finding_consensus" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-2"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Finding_consensus"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">3.4</span> <span>Finding consensus</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Finding_consensus-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Conclusion" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-1 vector-toc-list-item-expanded"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Conclusion"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">4</span> <span>Conclusion</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Conclusion-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> </ul> </div> </div> </nav> </div> </div> <div class="mw-content-container"> <main id="content" class="mw-body"> <header class="mw-body-header vector-page-titlebar"> <nav aria-label="Contents" class="vector-toc-landmark"> <div id="vector-page-titlebar-toc" class="vector-dropdown vector-page-titlebar-toc vector-button-flush-left" > <input type="checkbox" id="vector-page-titlebar-toc-checkbox" role="button" aria-haspopup="true" data-event-name="ui.dropdown-vector-page-titlebar-toc" class="vector-dropdown-checkbox " aria-label="Toggle the table of contents" > <label id="vector-page-titlebar-toc-label" for="vector-page-titlebar-toc-checkbox" class="vector-dropdown-label cdx-button cdx-button--fake-button cdx-button--fake-button--enabled cdx-button--weight-quiet cdx-button--icon-only " aria-hidden="true" ><span class="vector-icon mw-ui-icon-listBullet mw-ui-icon-wikimedia-listBullet"></span> <span class="vector-dropdown-label-text">Toggle the table of contents</span> </label> <div class="vector-dropdown-content"> <div id="vector-page-titlebar-toc-unpinned-container" class="vector-unpinned-container"> </div> </div> </div> </nav> <h1 id="firstHeading" class="firstHeading mw-first-heading"><span class="mw-page-title-namespace">Wikipedia</span><span class="mw-page-title-separator">:</span><span class="mw-page-title-main">Understanding Wikipedia's content standards</span></h1> <div id="p-lang-btn" class="vector-dropdown mw-portlet mw-portlet-lang" > <input type="checkbox" id="p-lang-btn-checkbox" role="button" aria-haspopup="true" data-event-name="ui.dropdown-p-lang-btn" class="vector-dropdown-checkbox mw-interlanguage-selector" aria-label="This article exist only in this language. Add the article for other languages" > <label id="p-lang-btn-label" for="p-lang-btn-checkbox" class="vector-dropdown-label cdx-button cdx-button--fake-button cdx-button--fake-button--enabled cdx-button--weight-quiet cdx-button--action-progressive mw-portlet-lang-heading-0" aria-hidden="true" ><span class="vector-icon mw-ui-icon-language-progressive mw-ui-icon-wikimedia-language-progressive"></span> <span class="vector-dropdown-label-text">Add languages</span> </label> <div class="vector-dropdown-content"> <div class="vector-menu-content"> <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"> </ul> <div class="after-portlet after-portlet-lang"><span class="uls-after-portlet-link"></span><span class="wb-langlinks-add wb-langlinks-link"><a href="https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Special:NewItem?site=enwiki&page=Wikipedia%3AUnderstanding+Wikipedia%27s+content+standards" title="Add interlanguage links" class="wbc-editpage">Add links</a></span></div> </div> </div> </div> </header> <div class="vector-page-toolbar"> <div class="vector-page-toolbar-container"> <div id="left-navigation"> <nav aria-label="Namespaces"> <div id="p-associated-pages" class="vector-menu vector-menu-tabs mw-portlet mw-portlet-associated-pages" > <div class="vector-menu-content"> <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"> <li id="ca-nstab-project" class="selected vector-tab-noicon mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Understanding_Wikipedia%27s_content_standards" title="View the project page [c]" accesskey="c"><span>Project page</span></a></li><li id="ca-talk" class="vector-tab-noicon mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Wikipedia_talk:Understanding_Wikipedia%27s_content_standards" rel="discussion" title="Discuss improvements to the content page [t]" accesskey="t"><span>Talk</span></a></li> </ul> </div> </div> <div id="vector-variants-dropdown" class="vector-dropdown emptyPortlet" > <input type="checkbox" id="vector-variants-dropdown-checkbox" role="button" aria-haspopup="true" data-event-name="ui.dropdown-vector-variants-dropdown" class="vector-dropdown-checkbox " aria-label="Change language variant" > <label id="vector-variants-dropdown-label" for="vector-variants-dropdown-checkbox" class="vector-dropdown-label cdx-button cdx-button--fake-button cdx-button--fake-button--enabled cdx-button--weight-quiet" aria-hidden="true" ><span class="vector-dropdown-label-text">English</span> </label> <div class="vector-dropdown-content"> <div id="p-variants" class="vector-menu mw-portlet mw-portlet-variants emptyPortlet" > <div class="vector-menu-content"> <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"> </ul> </div> </div> </div> </div> </nav> </div> <div id="right-navigation" class="vector-collapsible"> <nav aria-label="Views"> <div id="p-views" class="vector-menu vector-menu-tabs mw-portlet mw-portlet-views" > <div class="vector-menu-content"> <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"> <li id="ca-view" class="selected vector-tab-noicon mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Understanding_Wikipedia%27s_content_standards"><span>Read</span></a></li><li id="ca-edit" class="vector-tab-noicon mw-list-item"><a href="/w/index.php?title=Wikipedia:Understanding_Wikipedia%27s_content_standards&action=edit" title="Edit this page [e]" accesskey="e"><span>Edit</span></a></li><li id="ca-history" class="vector-tab-noicon mw-list-item"><a href="/w/index.php?title=Wikipedia:Understanding_Wikipedia%27s_content_standards&action=history" title="Past revisions of this page [h]" accesskey="h"><span>View history</span></a></li> </ul> </div> </div> </nav> <nav class="vector-page-tools-landmark" aria-label="Page tools"> <div id="vector-page-tools-dropdown" class="vector-dropdown vector-page-tools-dropdown" > <input type="checkbox" id="vector-page-tools-dropdown-checkbox" role="button" aria-haspopup="true" data-event-name="ui.dropdown-vector-page-tools-dropdown" class="vector-dropdown-checkbox " aria-label="Tools" > <label id="vector-page-tools-dropdown-label" for="vector-page-tools-dropdown-checkbox" class="vector-dropdown-label cdx-button cdx-button--fake-button cdx-button--fake-button--enabled cdx-button--weight-quiet" aria-hidden="true" ><span class="vector-dropdown-label-text">Tools</span> </label> <div class="vector-dropdown-content"> <div id="vector-page-tools-unpinned-container" class="vector-unpinned-container"> <div id="vector-page-tools" class="vector-page-tools vector-pinnable-element"> <div class="vector-pinnable-header vector-page-tools-pinnable-header vector-pinnable-header-unpinned" data-feature-name="page-tools-pinned" data-pinnable-element-id="vector-page-tools" data-pinned-container-id="vector-page-tools-pinned-container" data-unpinned-container-id="vector-page-tools-unpinned-container" > <div class="vector-pinnable-header-label">Tools</div> <button class="vector-pinnable-header-toggle-button vector-pinnable-header-pin-button" data-event-name="pinnable-header.vector-page-tools.pin">move to sidebar</button> <button class="vector-pinnable-header-toggle-button vector-pinnable-header-unpin-button" data-event-name="pinnable-header.vector-page-tools.unpin">hide</button> </div> <div id="p-cactions" class="vector-menu mw-portlet mw-portlet-cactions emptyPortlet vector-has-collapsible-items" title="More options" > <div class="vector-menu-heading"> Actions </div> <div class="vector-menu-content"> <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"> <li id="ca-more-view" class="selected vector-more-collapsible-item mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Understanding_Wikipedia%27s_content_standards"><span>Read</span></a></li><li id="ca-more-edit" class="vector-more-collapsible-item mw-list-item"><a href="/w/index.php?title=Wikipedia:Understanding_Wikipedia%27s_content_standards&action=edit" title="Edit this page [e]" accesskey="e"><span>Edit</span></a></li><li id="ca-more-history" class="vector-more-collapsible-item mw-list-item"><a href="/w/index.php?title=Wikipedia:Understanding_Wikipedia%27s_content_standards&action=history"><span>View history</span></a></li> </ul> </div> </div> <div id="p-tb" class="vector-menu mw-portlet mw-portlet-tb" > <div class="vector-menu-heading"> General </div> <div class="vector-menu-content"> <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"> <li id="t-whatlinkshere" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Special:WhatLinksHere/Wikipedia:Understanding_Wikipedia%27s_content_standards" title="List of all English Wikipedia pages containing links to this page [j]" accesskey="j"><span>What links here</span></a></li><li id="t-recentchangeslinked" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Special:RecentChangesLinked/Wikipedia:Understanding_Wikipedia%27s_content_standards" rel="nofollow" title="Recent changes in pages linked from this page [k]" accesskey="k"><span>Related changes</span></a></li><li id="t-upload" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:File_Upload_Wizard" title="Upload files [u]" accesskey="u"><span>Upload file</span></a></li><li id="t-specialpages" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Special:SpecialPages" title="A list of all special pages [q]" accesskey="q"><span>Special pages</span></a></li><li id="t-permalink" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/w/index.php?title=Wikipedia:Understanding_Wikipedia%27s_content_standards&oldid=928791177" title="Permanent link to this revision of this page"><span>Permanent link</span></a></li><li id="t-info" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/w/index.php?title=Wikipedia:Understanding_Wikipedia%27s_content_standards&action=info" title="More information about this page"><span>Page information</span></a></li><li id="t-urlshortener" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/w/index.php?title=Special:UrlShortener&url=https%3A%2F%2Fen.wikipedia.org%2Fwiki%2FWikipedia%3AUnderstanding_Wikipedia%2527s_content_standards"><span>Get shortened URL</span></a></li><li id="t-urlshortener-qrcode" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/w/index.php?title=Special:QrCode&url=https%3A%2F%2Fen.wikipedia.org%2Fwiki%2FWikipedia%3AUnderstanding_Wikipedia%2527s_content_standards"><span>Download QR code</span></a></li> </ul> </div> </div> <div id="p-coll-print_export" class="vector-menu mw-portlet mw-portlet-coll-print_export" > <div class="vector-menu-heading"> Print/export </div> <div class="vector-menu-content"> <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"> <li id="coll-download-as-rl" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/w/index.php?title=Special:DownloadAsPdf&page=Wikipedia%3AUnderstanding_Wikipedia%27s_content_standards&action=show-download-screen" title="Download this page as a PDF file"><span>Download as PDF</span></a></li><li id="t-print" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/w/index.php?title=Wikipedia:Understanding_Wikipedia%27s_content_standards&printable=yes" title="Printable version of this page [p]" accesskey="p"><span>Printable version</span></a></li> </ul> </div> </div> <div id="p-wikibase-otherprojects" class="vector-menu mw-portlet mw-portlet-wikibase-otherprojects emptyPortlet" > <div class="vector-menu-heading"> In other projects </div> <div class="vector-menu-content"> <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"> </ul> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </nav> </div> </div> </div> <div class="vector-column-end"> <div class="vector-sticky-pinned-container"> <nav class="vector-page-tools-landmark" aria-label="Page tools"> <div id="vector-page-tools-pinned-container" class="vector-pinned-container"> </div> </nav> <nav class="vector-appearance-landmark" aria-label="Appearance"> <div id="vector-appearance-pinned-container" class="vector-pinned-container"> <div id="vector-appearance" class="vector-appearance vector-pinnable-element"> <div class="vector-pinnable-header vector-appearance-pinnable-header vector-pinnable-header-pinned" data-feature-name="appearance-pinned" data-pinnable-element-id="vector-appearance" data-pinned-container-id="vector-appearance-pinned-container" data-unpinned-container-id="vector-appearance-unpinned-container" > <div class="vector-pinnable-header-label">Appearance</div> <button class="vector-pinnable-header-toggle-button vector-pinnable-header-pin-button" data-event-name="pinnable-header.vector-appearance.pin">move to sidebar</button> <button class="vector-pinnable-header-toggle-button vector-pinnable-header-unpin-button" data-event-name="pinnable-header.vector-appearance.unpin">hide</button> </div> </div> </div> </nav> </div> </div> <div id="bodyContent" class="vector-body" aria-labelledby="firstHeading" data-mw-ve-target-container> <div class="vector-body-before-content"> <div class="mw-indicators"> </div> <div id="siteSub" class="noprint">From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia</div> </div> <div id="contentSub"><div id="mw-content-subtitle"></div></div> <div id="mw-content-text" class="mw-body-content"><div class="mw-content-ltr mw-parser-output" lang="en" dir="ltr"><div class="shortdescription nomobile noexcerpt noprint searchaux" style="display:none">Essay on editing Wikipedia</div><style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1238436933">.mw-parser-output .ombox{margin:4px 0;border-collapse:collapse;border:1px solid #a2a9b1;background-color:var(--background-color-neutral-subtle,#f8f9fa);box-sizing:border-box;color:var(--color-base,#202122)}.mw-parser-output .ombox.mbox-small{font-size:88%;line-height:1.25em}.mw-parser-output .ombox-speedy{border:2px solid #b32424;background-color:#fee7e6}.mw-parser-output .ombox-delete{border:2px solid #b32424}.mw-parser-output .ombox-content{border:1px solid #f28500}.mw-parser-output .ombox-style{border:1px solid #fc3}.mw-parser-output .ombox-move{border:1px solid #9932cc}.mw-parser-output .ombox-protection{border:2px solid #a2a9b1}.mw-parser-output .ombox .mbox-text{border:none;padding:0.25em 0.9em;width:100%}.mw-parser-output .ombox .mbox-image{border:none;padding:2px 0 2px 0.9em;text-align:center}.mw-parser-output .ombox .mbox-imageright{border:none;padding:2px 0.9em 2px 0;text-align:center}.mw-parser-output .ombox .mbox-empty-cell{border:none;padding:0;width:1px}.mw-parser-output .ombox .mbox-invalid-type{text-align:center}@media(min-width:720px){.mw-parser-output .ombox{margin:4px 10%}.mw-parser-output .ombox.mbox-small{clear:right;float:right;margin:4px 0 4px 1em;width:238px}}body.skin--responsive .mw-parser-output table.ombox img{max-width:none!important}@media screen{html.skin-theme-clientpref-night .mw-parser-output .ombox-speedy{background-color:#310402}}@media screen and (prefers-color-scheme:dark){html.skin-theme-clientpref-os .mw-parser-output .ombox-speedy{background-color:#310402}}</style><table class="plainlinks ombox ombox-notice" role="presentation"><tbody><tr><td class="mbox-image"><span typeof="mw:File"><span><img alt="" src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/7e/Essay.svg/30px-Essay.svg.png" decoding="async" width="30" height="36" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/7e/Essay.svg/45px-Essay.svg.png 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/7e/Essay.svg/60px-Essay.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="35" data-file-height="42"/></span></span></td><td class="mbox-text"><div style="padding-top: 6px; padding-bottom: 5px;"><b>This is an <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Essays" title="Wikipedia:Essays">essay</a>.</b><br/><div style="font-size: 90%;">It contains the advice or opinions of one or more Wikipedia contributors. This page is not an encyclopedia article, nor is it one of <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Policies_and_guidelines" title="Wikipedia:Policies and guidelines">Wikipedia's policies or guidelines</a>, as it has not been <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Consensus#Levels_of_consensus" title="Wikipedia:Consensus">thoroughly vetted by the community</a>. Some essays represent widespread norms; others only represent minority viewpoints.</div></div></td><td class="mbox-imageright"><style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1252059228">.mw-parser-output .module-shortcutboxplain{float:right;margin:0 0 0 1em;border:1px solid var(--border-color-base,#a2a9b1);background-color:var(--background-color-base,#fff);padding:0.3em 0.6em 0.2em 0.6em;text-align:center;font-size:85%}.mw-parser-output .module-shortcutboxleft{float:left;margin:0 1em 0 0}.mw-parser-output .module-shortcutlist{display:inline-block;border-bottom:1px solid var(--border-color-base,#a2a9b1);margin-bottom:0.2em}.mw-parser-output .module-shortcutboxplain ul{font-weight:bold}.mw-parser-output .module-shortcutanchordiv{position:relative;top:-3em}.mw-parser-output li .module-shortcutanchordiv{float:right}.mw-parser-output .mbox-imageright .module-shortcutboxplain{padding:0.4em 1em 0.4em 1em;line-height:1.3;margin:0}</style><div class="module-shortcutanchordiv"><span id="WP:STANDARDS"></span><span id="WP:CONTSTAND"></span></div><div class="module-shortcutboxplain noprint" role="note"><div class="module-shortcutlist"><a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Shortcut" title="Wikipedia:Shortcut">Shortcuts</a></div><style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1126788409">.mw-parser-output .plainlist ol,.mw-parser-output .plainlist ul{line-height:inherit;list-style:none;margin:0;padding:0}.mw-parser-output .plainlist ol li,.mw-parser-output .plainlist ul li{margin-bottom:0}</style><div class="plainlist"><ul><li><span class="plainlinks"><a class="external text" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Wikipedia:STANDARDS&redirect=no">WP:STANDARDS</a></span></li><li><span class="plainlinks"><a class="external text" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Wikipedia:CONTSTAND&redirect=no">WP:CONTSTAND</a></span></li></ul></div></div></td></tr></tbody></table> <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238436933"><table class="plainlinks ombox ombox-notice nutshell" role="presentation"><tbody><tr><td class="mbox-image"><span typeof="mw:File"><span><img alt="" src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f6/Walnut.png/30px-Walnut.png" decoding="async" width="30" height="30" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f6/Walnut.png/45px-Walnut.png 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f6/Walnut.png/60px-Walnut.png 2x" data-file-width="192" data-file-height="192"/></span></span></td><td class="mbox-text"><b>This page in a nutshell:</b> Wikipedia has no formal process for deciding what content is acceptable but, in any given situation, the three most important factors are: what the relevant content guidelines say, what publicly available sources confirm, and what is the general consensus of Wikipedia editors who choose to get involved.</td></tr></tbody></table> <p>New Wikipedia editors often have a difficult time understanding how decisions are made to determine what material is allowed or not. As previous readers of Wikipedia, they are already aware that the site's content can be exceptional, but also very poor. Its rules are sometimes crystal clear, and other times seemingly incomplete. Resolving these apparent contradictions and understanding the uncoordinated, emergent model of creation, revision, and exclusion of content on Wikipedia is the focus of this essay. </p><p>Among the first things new contributors have likely learned is that Wikipedia is an open collaborative project maintained by a community of volunteers who write and organize the encyclopedia according to a <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:List_of_policies_and_guidelines" title="Wikipedia:List of policies and guidelines">great many rules</a> about appropriate content and editor behavior. But synthesizing this into a big picture version of how Wikipedia actually works can be very confusing, especially when there is so much inconsistency across the project. To understand better how any specific content one wishes to add to (or change, or remove from) Wikipedia will be received, think about it in terms of these three questions: </p> <ol><li>What do the rules advise?</li> <li>What can your sources confirm?</li> <li>How will Wikipedia editors respond?</li></ol> <p>This essay describes what you need to understand about answering these questions. It cannot answer these questions for you, nor can it address every possible circumstance, but it will put you in the right frame of mind to find the correct answers. </p> <meta property="mw:PageProp/toc"/> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2 ext-discussiontools-init-section"><h2 id="What_the_rules_advise" data-mw-thread-id="h-What_the_rules_advise"><span data-mw-comment-start="" id="h-What_the_rules_advise"></span>What the rules advise<span data-mw-comment-end="h-What_the_rules_advise"></span></h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Wikipedia:Understanding_Wikipedia%27s_content_standards&action=edit&section=1" title="Edit section: What the rules advise"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="Underlying_concepts" data-mw-thread-id="h-Underlying_concepts-What_the_rules_advise"><span data-mw-comment-start="" id="h-Underlying_concepts-What_the_rules_advise"></span>Underlying concepts<span data-mw-comment-end="h-Underlying_concepts-What_the_rules_advise"></span></h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Wikipedia:Understanding_Wikipedia%27s_content_standards&action=edit&section=2" title="Edit section: Underlying concepts"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>Wikipedia's basic philosophy can be found in a short page called the <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Five_pillars" title="Wikipedia:Five pillars">five pillars</a>, and it's a must-read for orienting yourself to Wikipedia's style of thinking. These principles inform the two main types of rules that Wikipedia editors have written for themselves: <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Policies_and_guidelines" title="Wikipedia:Policies and guidelines">policies and guidelines</a>. Policies must be followed closely, and failure to do so risks restriction from editing. Guidelines should almost always be followed, and failure to do so risks censure. Both types of rules cover the content of articles as well as the behavior of contributors. There is also a third type of rule which is not strictly enforceable: <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Essays" title="Wikipedia:Essays">essays</a>. Technically, these are the opinions only of the editors who write them, but some carry the equivalent weight of a guideline if they are widely accepted. </p><p>You should also be aware of Wikipedia's three <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Core_content_policies" title="Wikipedia:Core content policies">core content policies</a>. They include writing from a <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:NPOV" class="mw-redirect" title="Wikipedia:NPOV">neutral point of view</a>, writing only about information that is publicly <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:V" class="mw-redirect" title="Wikipedia:V">verifiable</a>, and permitting <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:NOR" class="mw-redirect" title="Wikipedia:NOR">no original research</a> to be included in Wikipedia articles. But that still leaves many questions about what a Wikipedia page should look like, so there is both a page with prescriptive advice about <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Writing_better_articles" title="Wikipedia:Writing better articles">writing better articles</a> and a long list of proscriptive advice about <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:What_Wikipedia_is_not" title="Wikipedia:What Wikipedia is not">what Wikipedia is not</a> supposed to include. </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="New_articles" data-mw-thread-id="h-New_articles-What_the_rules_advise"><span data-mw-comment-start="" id="h-New_articles-What_the_rules_advise"></span>New articles<span data-mw-comment-end="h-New_articles-What_the_rules_advise"></span></h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Wikipedia:Understanding_Wikipedia%27s_content_standards&action=edit&section=3" title="Edit section: New articles"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>A key guideline which often comes up for those just getting started is one about when you want to write a new article that doesn't exist. This is called <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Notability" title="Wikipedia:Notability">notability</a>, and it is a fairly dense explanation of an ambiguous concept that tries to answer a difficult question: which topics are suitable for a Wikipedia entry? The simplest possible answer is: a lot of in-depth coverage from well-regarded news sources demonstrating public interest in the topic. Because this is so complicated, there are separate pages explaining how it relates to, among other things, <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Notability_(organizations_and_companies)" title="Wikipedia:Notability (organizations and companies)">companies and organizations</a> as well as <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Notability_(people)" title="Wikipedia:Notability (people)">people</a>. It's hard not to see this as a measure of "importance", especially considering the guideline is called <i>Notability</i>. But you should try: Wikipedia cannot cover all kinds of things that are important within their own field, but do not meet Wikipedia's specific requirements. These topics may be worth including in another directory or database, such as <a href="https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/" class="extiw" title="wikidata:">Wikidata</a>, which has a much lower threshold for inclusion. </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="Content_within_articles" data-mw-thread-id="h-Content_within_articles-What_the_rules_advise"><span data-mw-comment-start="" id="h-Content_within_articles-What_the_rules_advise"></span>Content within articles<span data-mw-comment-end="h-Content_within_articles-What_the_rules_advise"></span></h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Wikipedia:Understanding_Wikipedia%27s_content_standards&action=edit&section=4" title="Edit section: Content within articles"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>Determining what content is allowed in articles is more complex still. A good place to start is a section of the <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Neutral_point_of_view#Due_and_undue_weight" title="Wikipedia:Neutral point of view">neutral point of view</a> policy about <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Neutral_point_of_view#Due_and_undue_weight" title="Wikipedia:Neutral point of view">due and undue weight</a>, meaning how to regard the proportionality of specific information in relation to the larger topic. Also relevant is the essay about including <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Criticism" title="Wikipedia:Criticism">criticism</a> in Wikipedia articles, which you may be surprised to learn specifically recommends <i>against</i> including <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Criticism#"Controversy"_section" title="Wikipedia:Criticism">"controversy" sections</a> in most circumstances. </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="Content_style" data-mw-thread-id="h-Content_style-What_the_rules_advise"><span data-mw-comment-start="" id="h-Content_style-What_the_rules_advise"></span>Content style<span data-mw-comment-end="h-Content_style-What_the_rules_advise"></span></h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Wikipedia:Understanding_Wikipedia%27s_content_standards&action=edit&section=5" title="Edit section: Content style"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>The specific style of writing content for Wikipedia is governed by the site's <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Manual_of_Style" title="Wikipedia:Manual of Style">manual of style</a>, which itself has a multitude of sub-pages governing everything from the correct way to <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Article_titles" title="Wikipedia:Article titles">title articles</a> to Wikipedia's preference for <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Gender-neutral_language" title="Wikipedia:Gender-neutral language">gender-neutral language</a> to explaining when you should <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Manual_of_Style/Capital_letters#Capitalization_of_"The"" title="Wikipedia:Manual of Style/Capital letters">capitalize the word "The"</a>. </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2 ext-discussiontools-init-section"><h2 id="What_the_sources_confirm" data-mw-thread-id="h-What_the_sources_confirm"><span data-mw-comment-start="" id="h-What_the_sources_confirm"></span>What the sources confirm<span data-mw-comment-end="h-What_the_sources_confirm"></span></h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Wikipedia:Understanding_Wikipedia%27s_content_standards&action=edit&section=6" title="Edit section: What the sources confirm"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>The <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Verifiability" title="Wikipedia:Verifiability">verifiability</a> guideline requires that anything you want to add to Wikipedia needs to be publicly available information, which usually means bringing a citation to back up your claims. But it's not nearly so simple: Wikipedia requires these sources to meet a certain threshold for integrity, hence a very important guideline about <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Identifying_reliable_sources" class="mw-redirect" title="Wikipedia:Identifying reliable sources">identifying reliable sources</a>, described below. </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="Acceptable_sources" data-mw-thread-id="h-Acceptable_sources-What_the_sources_confirm"><span data-mw-comment-start="" id="h-Acceptable_sources-What_the_sources_confirm"></span>Acceptable sources<span data-mw-comment-end="h-Acceptable_sources-What_the_sources_confirm"></span></h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Wikipedia:Understanding_Wikipedia%27s_content_standards&action=edit&section=7" title="Edit section: Acceptable sources"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>Like the question of notability, there is no clear line separating the acceptable from unacceptable. For most non-historical and non-scientific topics, well-respected news organizations writing for a general audience are best, provided the cited source is written by a full-time employee, and not an op-ed or an interview where the interviewee is not presumed to be fact-checked. Peer-reviewed academic journals are even better, but harder to come by. Most anything else is of very limited use: press releases, industry analyst reports, unpaid contributor blogs even at big publications (<i>Forbes</i> contributor posts, for example) are not accepted. Social media accounts are right out. For more information about how Wikipedia thinks about these things, there's a useful essay that explains how Wikipedia evaluates <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Identifying_and_using_independent_sources" class="mw-redirect" title="Wikipedia:Identifying and using independent sources">independent sources</a>. </p><p>You might be surprised to learn that government reports, hearing testimony, 10-K filings of public companies, and other documents created through bureaucratic processes are best avoided. But they're reliable, right? Likely so, but the question Wikipedia editors will ask is: which specific details from this report are worthy of mention? Wikipedia effectively outsources these judgment calls to journalists and experts (who aren't connected to the subject) published in reliable sources. The underlying principles are covered in the policy about <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:No_original_research" title="Wikipedia:No original research">original research</a> and depend on the concepts of <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:No_original_research#Primary,_secondary_and_tertiary_sources" title="Wikipedia:No original research">primary and secondary sources</a>: the government report is a primary source, and the publication whose editorial staff contextualizes it is the secondary source. Wikipedia <i>strongly</i> prefers secondary sources. (There are also tertiary sources, including textbooks and encyclopedias—like Wikipedia—but for most topics, these are much less common.) </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="Writing_from_sources" data-mw-thread-id="h-Writing_from_sources-What_the_sources_confirm"><span data-mw-comment-start="" id="h-Writing_from_sources-What_the_sources_confirm"></span>Writing from sources<span data-mw-comment-end="h-Writing_from_sources-What_the_sources_confirm"></span></h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Wikipedia:Understanding_Wikipedia%27s_content_standards&action=edit&section=8" title="Edit section: Writing from sources"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>An all-too common mistake in writing new content for Wikipedia is to begin with what you want to say, and then to go looking for sources that confirm the details. Very often, you won't find they say exactly what you want. Or, if you try to combine two articles to imply something neither quite comes right out and says, you'll run into the admonition against <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:No_original_research#Synthesis_of_published_material" title="Wikipedia:No original research">synthesis of published material</a>. The source must say it clearly, or you can't. </p><p>The best thing to do is to begin from research, and write about only what you find in reliable sources. Use Google, Google News, Lexis-Nexis, HighBeam, or any such news archive or database to which you have access. Copy everything to a text document, highlight the relevant parts, organize the salient details, and rewrite it <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Close_paraphrasing" title="Wikipedia:Close paraphrasing">in your own words</a>, in an even-handed manner, free of opinion and jargon. Also, learn how to use <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_templates" title="Wikipedia:Citation templates">citation templates</a>. You may not get every detail you want, but you'll be a lot closer to success than starting from your idealized version. </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="Inaccurate_sources" data-mw-thread-id="h-Inaccurate_sources-What_the_sources_confirm"><span data-mw-comment-start="" id="h-Inaccurate_sources-What_the_sources_confirm"></span>Inaccurate sources<span data-mw-comment-end="h-Inaccurate_sources-What_the_sources_confirm"></span></h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Wikipedia:Understanding_Wikipedia%27s_content_standards&action=edit&section=9" title="Edit section: Inaccurate sources"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>But what if you find that a supposedly reliable source is wrong? Alas, this isn't as rare as it should be. While Wikipedia's editors are well aware that even reliable sources get things wrong, their assumption is that a news publication's intellectual independence means it's usually trustworthy. In most cases, if the sources are wrong, and if you can't find another reliable source that gets it right, you will probably have to live with it. If in doubt, leave it out. For more about this widely acknowledged conundrum, look to a somewhat controversial essay about how Wikipedia favors <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Verifiability,_not_truth" title="Wikipedia:Verifiability, not truth">verifiability, not truth</a>. And know this: you're not alone in finding this a point of frustration. Wikipedia editors want to get it right—but they still have to play the odds. </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2 ext-discussiontools-init-section"><h2 id="How_editors_will_respond" data-mw-thread-id="h-How_editors_will_respond"><span data-mw-comment-start="" id="h-How_editors_will_respond"></span>How editors will respond<span data-mw-comment-end="h-How_editors_will_respond"></span></h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Wikipedia:Understanding_Wikipedia%27s_content_standards&action=edit&section=10" title="Edit section: How editors will respond"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="Conflict_of_interest" data-mw-thread-id="h-Conflict_of_interest-How_editors_will_respond"><span data-mw-comment-start="" id="h-Conflict_of_interest-How_editors_will_respond"></span>Conflict of interest<span data-mw-comment-end="h-Conflict_of_interest-How_editors_will_respond"></span></h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Wikipedia:Understanding_Wikipedia%27s_content_standards&action=edit&section=11" title="Edit section: Conflict of interest"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>At long last, we arrive at a major topic not yet discussed: <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Conflict_of_interest" title="Wikipedia:Conflict of interest">conflict of interest</a>. It's a familiar term, and on Wikipedia it nearly always refers to the question of whether a contributor has a financial motivation for editing an article or proposing a change: on behalf of a client, an employer, or even oneself. Wikipedia has an explanatory page about what to do in this situation, called the <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Plain_and_simple_conflict_of_interest_guide" title="Wikipedia:Plain and simple conflict of interest guide">plain and simple conflict of interest guide</a>, but its length suggests that it's anything but. Read it before you try. </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="Level_of_activity" data-mw-thread-id="h-Level_of_activity-How_editors_will_respond"><span data-mw-comment-start="" id="h-Level_of_activity-How_editors_will_respond"></span>Level of activity<span data-mw-comment-end="h-Level_of_activity-How_editors_will_respond"></span></h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Wikipedia:Understanding_Wikipedia%27s_content_standards&action=edit&section=12" title="Edit section: Level of activity"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>Another factor affecting the success or failure of your intended change relates to how often the article in question is edited by others. Is the page edited every day, a few times a week, or much less often? In the first two instances, lots of eyeballs will be on your edit, so if another editor doesn't like it, they may undo—or "<a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Reverting" title="Wikipedia:Reverting">revert</a>"—your change. But on less-traveled pages, your edit may stand for a long time—<a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Silence_and_consensus" title="Wikipedia:Silence and consensus">until someone shows up</a> and decides otherwise. Or, is the page about a controversial subject? If so, check the article's <a href="/wiki/Help:Talk_pages" title="Help:Talk pages">discussion page</a> first to see if your idea has been considered and rejected, and why. If not, then you may have a freer hand to make or suggest changes. </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="Differing_perspectives" data-mw-thread-id="h-Differing_perspectives-How_editors_will_respond"><span data-mw-comment-start="" id="h-Differing_perspectives-How_editors_will_respond"></span>Differing perspectives<span data-mw-comment-end="h-Differing_perspectives-How_editors_will_respond"></span></h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Wikipedia:Understanding_Wikipedia%27s_content_standards&action=edit&section=13" title="Edit section: Differing perspectives"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>Notwithstanding all of the above, sometimes it is possible to be quite certain that you have it right by the rules and the sources, and you still find a Wikipedia editor disagrees with you. Maybe they don't know as much about the subject, maybe they have an agenda of their own, or maybe you've both come to the topic in good faith, but have nevertheless arrived at different conclusions. You can review their <a href="/wiki/Help:User_contributions" title="Help:User contributions">contribution history</a> to try to understand their previous activity, but Wikipedia's editors are not required to give much information about themselves, so you may never know for sure. </p><p>Generally speaking, questions of fact are easier to resolve than matters of perspective. Anytime judgments not strictly informed by guidelines come into play, such as phrasing, or selecting specific points from a news story to highlight, the ultimate determinant is which editors choose to participate, what their views on the subject may be, and <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:What_is_consensus%3F" title="Wikipedia:What is consensus?">what compromise they can agree on</a>. If you have ever wondered why there can be such a discrepancy between Wikipedia's stated rules and the actual results, this is often why. </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="Finding_consensus" data-mw-thread-id="h-Finding_consensus-How_editors_will_respond"><span data-mw-comment-start="" id="h-Finding_consensus-How_editors_will_respond"></span>Finding consensus<span data-mw-comment-end="h-Finding_consensus-How_editors_will_respond"></span></h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Wikipedia:Understanding_Wikipedia%27s_content_standards&action=edit&section=14" title="Edit section: Finding consensus"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>Unfortunately, Wikipedia's rules can't anticipate everything, and into this gap steps another key principle: <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Consensus" title="Wikipedia:Consensus">consensus</a>. Joining <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Notability" title="Wikipedia:Notability">notability</a> and <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:IRS" class="mw-redirect" title="Wikipedia:IRS">reliability</a> as fuzzy concepts, this is the notion that it's best for Wikipedia editors to agree on page content, and recommends methods for working together to achieve this. You'll want to know the <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Talk_page_guidelines" title="Wikipedia:Talk page guidelines">discussion page guidelines</a>, because consensus usually emerges through conversation. Also familiarize yourself with the <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:BOLD,_revert,_discuss_cycle" title="Wikipedia:BOLD, revert, discuss cycle">"bold, revert, discuss" cycle</a> of edits and discussion, which is treated as policy and aims to prevent <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Edit_warring" title="Wikipedia:Edit warring">edit wars</a>. Being willing to find a compromise is one of the most important, and sometimes most difficult, principles of being an effective Wikipedia editor. </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2 ext-discussiontools-init-section"><h2 id="Conclusion" data-mw-thread-id="h-Conclusion"><span data-mw-comment-start="" id="h-Conclusion"></span>Conclusion<span data-mw-comment-end="h-Conclusion"></span></h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Wikipedia:Understanding_Wikipedia%27s_content_standards&action=edit&section=15" title="Edit section: Conclusion"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>Everywhere throughout Wikipedia, the outcome of any specific change—to add, modify, or remove information—depends on these three key points: what the rules say about what you want to say, if you have sources to establish the facts as you see them, and whether there is consensus among Wikipedia editors that your desired change improves the encyclopedia. </p>    </div><noscript><img src="https://login.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:CentralAutoLogin/start?type=1x1" alt="" width="1" height="1" style="border: none; position: absolute;"></noscript> <div class="printfooter" data-nosnippet="">Retrieved from "<a dir="ltr" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Wikipedia:Understanding_Wikipedia%27s_content_standards&oldid=928791177">https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Wikipedia:Understanding_Wikipedia%27s_content_standards&oldid=928791177</a>"</div></div> <div id="catlinks" class="catlinks" data-mw="interface"><div id="mw-normal-catlinks" class="mw-normal-catlinks"><a href="/wiki/Help:Category" title="Help:Category">Categories</a>: <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Category:Wikipedia_essays" title="Category:Wikipedia essays">Wikipedia essays</a></li><li><a href="/wiki/Category:Wikipedia_sources" title="Category:Wikipedia sources">Wikipedia sources</a></li><li><a href="/wiki/Category:Wikipedia_consensus" title="Category:Wikipedia consensus">Wikipedia consensus</a></li><li><a href="/wiki/Category:Wikipedia_essays_explaining_processes" title="Category:Wikipedia essays explaining processes">Wikipedia essays explaining processes</a></li></ul></div></div> </div> </main> </div> <div class="mw-footer-container"> <footer id="footer" class="mw-footer" > <ul id="footer-info"> <li id="footer-info-lastmod"> This page was last edited on 1 December 2019, at 17:50<span class="anonymous-show"> (UTC)</span>.</li> <li id="footer-info-copyright">Text is available under the <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Text_of_the_Creative_Commons_Attribution-ShareAlike_4.0_International_License" title="Wikipedia:Text of the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License">Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License</a>; additional terms may apply. By using this site, you agree to the <a href="https://foundation.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:MyLanguage/Policy:Terms_of_Use" class="extiw" title="foundation:Special:MyLanguage/Policy:Terms of Use">Terms of Use</a> and <a href="https://foundation.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:MyLanguage/Policy:Privacy_policy" class="extiw" title="foundation:Special:MyLanguage/Policy:Privacy policy">Privacy Policy</a>. Wikipedia® is a registered trademark of the <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://wikimediafoundation.org/">Wikimedia Foundation, Inc.</a>, a non-profit organization.</li> </ul> <ul id="footer-places"> <li id="footer-places-privacy"><a href="https://foundation.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:MyLanguage/Policy:Privacy_policy">Privacy policy</a></li> <li id="footer-places-about"><a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:About">About Wikipedia</a></li> <li id="footer-places-disclaimers"><a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:General_disclaimer">Disclaimers</a></li> <li id="footer-places-contact"><a href="//en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Contact_us">Contact Wikipedia</a></li> <li id="footer-places-wm-codeofconduct"><a href="https://foundation.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:MyLanguage/Policy:Universal_Code_of_Conduct">Code of Conduct</a></li> <li id="footer-places-developers"><a href="https://developer.wikimedia.org">Developers</a></li> <li id="footer-places-statslink"><a href="https://stats.wikimedia.org/#/en.wikipedia.org">Statistics</a></li> <li id="footer-places-cookiestatement"><a href="https://foundation.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:MyLanguage/Policy:Cookie_statement">Cookie statement</a></li> <li id="footer-places-mobileview"><a href="//en.m.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Wikipedia:Understanding_Wikipedia%27s_content_standards&mobileaction=toggle_view_mobile" class="noprint stopMobileRedirectToggle">Mobile view</a></li> </ul> <ul id="footer-icons" class="noprint"> <li id="footer-copyrightico"><a href="https://wikimediafoundation.org/" class="cdx-button cdx-button--fake-button cdx-button--size-large cdx-button--fake-button--enabled"><img src="/static/images/footer/wikimedia-button.svg" width="84" height="29" alt="Wikimedia Foundation" loading="lazy"></a></li> <li id="footer-poweredbyico"><a href="https://www.mediawiki.org/" class="cdx-button cdx-button--fake-button cdx-button--size-large cdx-button--fake-button--enabled"><img src="/w/resources/assets/poweredby_mediawiki.svg" alt="Powered by MediaWiki" width="88" height="31" loading="lazy"></a></li> </ul> </footer> </div> </div> </div> <div class="vector-settings" id="p-dock-bottom"> <ul></ul> </div><script>(RLQ=window.RLQ||[]).push(function(){mw.config.set({"wgHostname":"mw-web.codfw.main-f69cdc8f6-w24zn","wgBackendResponseTime":125,"wgDiscussionToolsPageThreads":[{"headingLevel":2,"name":"h-","type":"heading","level":0,"id":"h-What_the_rules_advise","replies":[{"headingLevel":3,"name":"h-","type":"heading","level":0,"id":"h-Underlying_concepts-What_the_rules_advise","replies":[]},{"headingLevel":3,"name":"h-","type":"heading","level":0,"id":"h-New_articles-What_the_rules_advise","replies":[]},{"headingLevel":3,"name":"h-","type":"heading","level":0,"id":"h-Content_within_articles-What_the_rules_advise","replies":[]},{"headingLevel":3,"name":"h-","type":"heading","level":0,"id":"h-Content_style-What_the_rules_advise","replies":[]}]},{"headingLevel":2,"name":"h-","type":"heading","level":0,"id":"h-What_the_sources_confirm","replies":[{"headingLevel":3,"name":"h-","type":"heading","level":0,"id":"h-Acceptable_sources-What_the_sources_confirm","replies":[]},{"headingLevel":3,"name":"h-","type":"heading","level":0,"id":"h-Writing_from_sources-What_the_sources_confirm","replies":[]},{"headingLevel":3,"name":"h-","type":"heading","level":0,"id":"h-Inaccurate_sources-What_the_sources_confirm","replies":[]}]},{"headingLevel":2,"name":"h-","type":"heading","level":0,"id":"h-How_editors_will_respond","replies":[{"headingLevel":3,"name":"h-","type":"heading","level":0,"id":"h-Conflict_of_interest-How_editors_will_respond","replies":[]},{"headingLevel":3,"name":"h-","type":"heading","level":0,"id":"h-Level_of_activity-How_editors_will_respond","replies":[]},{"headingLevel":3,"name":"h-","type":"heading","level":0,"id":"h-Differing_perspectives-How_editors_will_respond","replies":[]},{"headingLevel":3,"name":"h-","type":"heading","level":0,"id":"h-Finding_consensus-How_editors_will_respond","replies":[]}]},{"headingLevel":2,"name":"h-","type":"heading","level":0,"id":"h-Conclusion","replies":[]}],"wgPageParseReport":{"discussiontools":{"limitreport-timeusage":"0.009"},"limitreport":{"cputime":"0.105","walltime":"0.153","ppvisitednodes":{"value":409,"limit":1000000},"postexpandincludesize":{"value":13847,"limit":2097152},"templateargumentsize":{"value":1281,"limit":2097152},"expansiondepth":{"value":14,"limit":100},"expensivefunctioncount":{"value":2,"limit":500},"unstrip-depth":{"value":0,"limit":20},"unstrip-size":{"value":4423,"limit":5000000},"entityaccesscount":{"value":0,"limit":400},"timingprofile":["100.00% 116.556 1 -total"," 96.03% 111.928 1 Template:Essay"," 47.54% 55.406 1 Template:Ombox"," 33.25% 38.751 1 Template:Project_other"," 30.79% 35.884 1 Template:Short_description"," 28.38% 33.078 1 Template:Ombox/shortcut"," 18.29% 21.323 1 Template:Pagetype"," 4.00% 4.660 3 Template:Main_other"," 3.90% 4.542 1 Template:Nutshell"," 2.14% 2.496 1 Template:Short_description/lowercasecheck"]},"scribunto":{"limitreport-timeusage":{"value":"0.048","limit":"10.000"},"limitreport-memusage":{"value":1608526,"limit":52428800}},"cachereport":{"origin":"mw-web.eqiad.main-75f86cb67d-7lrn8","timestamp":"20241118162722","ttl":2592000,"transientcontent":false}}});});</script> </body> </html>