Wikipedia:Deletion policy
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
 |
This page documents an official policy on the English Wikipedia. It has wide acceptance among editors and is considered a standard that all users should follow. When editing this page, please ensure that your revision reflects consensus. When in doubt, discuss first on the talk page. |
 |
This page in a nutshell:
|
| Deletion Debates |
|---|
| Articles (by category) |
| policy - log - tools |
The Wikipedia deletion policy describes how material which does not meet the relevant content criteria is identified and removed from Wikipedia.
Reasons for deletion include but are not limited to violation of copyright, content that does not belong in an encyclopedia, and content not attributable to a reliable source, especially if the content is negative in tone. In the normal operations of Wikipedia, approximately five thousand pages are deleted each day, through the processes outlined below.
Deletion of a Wikipedia article removes the current version and all previous versions from view. Unlike page blanking, which can be performed (or reverted) by any user, deletion can be performed only by administrators. Administrators can also view deleted pages and reverse ("undelete") any deletion. All such actions are logged.
Contents |
Alternatives to deletion
Editing
If the page can be improved, this should be solved through regular editing, rather than deletion. A variety of tags can be added to articles to note the problem. These are listed here. Some of the more common ones include
- {{cleanup}} for poor writing
- {{expert}} for pages needing expert attention
- {{notenglish}} for articles written in a foreign language
- {{npov}} for bias
- {{stub}} for a short article
- {{verify}} for lack of attribution
Pages with an incorrect name can simply be renamed. Disputes over the name are discussed on the talk page, or listed at requested moves.
Vandalism to a page's content can be reverted by any user.
Merging
Articles that are short and unlikely to be expanded can often be merged into a larger article or list. For example, information about family members of a celebrity who are not otherwise notable is generally included in, or merged into, the article on that celebrity. Stub pages about minor characters in works of fiction are generally merged into a list article.
If two pages are duplicates or otherwise redundant, one should be merged and redirected to the other, using the most common, or more general page name. This does not require process or formal debate beforehand.
Discussion
Disputes over page content are not dealt with by deleting the page. Likewise, disagreement over a policy or guideline is not dealt with by deleting it. The issue should be discussed at the relevant talk page or be listed on Wikipedia:Requests for comments for further input. Similarly, issues with an inappropriate user page can often be resolved through discussion with the user.
Other projects
Articles that can never be other than a dictionary article ("dicdef") can be merged as above, or moved to Wiktionary. See Wikipedia:Things to be moved to Wiktionary for instructions. Likewise, articles that are source text (other than copyright violations) should be moved to Wikisource.
Archiving
Deletion should not be used for archiving a page. The developers have indicated that the deleted pages can be cleared or removed from the database at any time.
Reasons for deletion
- See also: Wikipedia:Criteria for speedy deletion
Reasons for deletion include, but are not limited to, the following:
- Advertising or other spam without relevant content (but not an article about an advertising related subject)
- Content not suitable for an encyclopedia
- Copyright infringement
- Hoax articles (but not articles describing a notable hoax)
- Images that are unused, obsolete, violate fair-use policy, or are unencyclopedic
- Inappropriate user pages
- Inflammatory redirects
- Article information cannot possibly be attributed to reliable sources
- All attempts to find reliable sources to which article information can be attributed have failed
- Newly-coined neologisms
- Overcategorization
- Patent nonsense or gibberish
- Redundant templates
- Subject fails to meet the relevant notability guideline (WP:BIO, WP:MUSIC, WP:CORP and so forth)
- Vandalism that is not correctible
Processes
There are four basic processes for deletion and one to review and overturn the outcome of these processes.
Speedy deletion
Pages can be deleted without any discussion if they meet one of the criteria for speedy deletion. Pages on proposed deletion or deletion discussion (see below) are still subject to speedy deletion, which overrides the other process.
- Where to find them: A list of all pages flagged for speedy deletion can be found in Category:Candidates for speedy deletion.
- How to do this: Administrators can delete such pages on sight, even if contested as below. Other editors can request speedy deletion by editing the relevant page to add a speedy deletion template to the top of the page.
- If you disagree: Anyone except a page's creator may contest the speedy deletion of a page by removing the deletion notice from the page. If a page you created is tagged for speedy deletion, you may add the {{hangon}} tag, and either improve the page or explain your reasoning on the relevant talk page. The tag exists to give you some extra time; the page may still be deleted if it meets the speedy deletion criteria.
- Renominations: Either a page fits the speedy deletion criteria or it does not. If there is a dispute over whether a page meets the criteria, the issue is typically taken to deletion discussions, mentioned below.
Copyright violations
For legal reasons, Wikipedia cannot host content that is in violation of copyright.
- Where to find them: Wikipedia:Copyright problems
- How to do this: For images, add the description page and add {{imagevio}} to the top. For other pages, edit the page to replace its entire content with {{copyvio|url=address of copied material}}. For blatant, whole-page copyright violation, you can simply tag it for speedy deletion with {{db-copyvio|url=...}} after checking that there are no non-copyvio versions in the page history.
- If you disagree: Try to contact the author of the text or image and see if they are willing to release their work (1) under the GFDL, or (2) into the public domain. Permission to use a work "on Wikipedia only" or "for non-commercial use only" isn't enough, as it is incompatible with our license.
- Renominations: Recreations of copyrighted content are speedily deleted, as above. It is disruptive to persist in recreating such content.
Proposed deletion
An editor who believes a page obviously and uncontroversially doesn't belong in an encyclopedia can propose its deletion. These pages can be deleted by any adminstrator if, after five days, nobody objects to the proposed deletion. Once there is an objection or a deletion discussion, a page may not be proposed for deletion again. This process only applies to pages in the Article, User, and User Talk namespaces.
- Where to find them: A list of all pages flagged for proposed deletion can be found in Category:Proposed deletion, as well as in an automatically generated summary table.
- How to do this: Edit the page to add the following text to the top: {{subst:prod|reason}}, writing your reasoning in the "reason" field.
- If you disagree: Any editor who disagrees with a proposed deletion can simply remove the tag. Even after the page is deleted, any editor can have the page restored by any administrator simply by asking. In both cases the editor is encouraged to fix the perceived problem with the page.
- Renominations: Once the proposed deletion of a page has been objected to by anyone, it may not be proposed for deletion again. If an editor still feels the page ought to be deleted, a deletion discussion should be used, as indicated below.
Deletion discussion
Pages that do not fall in the above three categories may be deleted after community discussion. This includes contested speedy or proposed deletions. Here, editors who wish to participate can give their opinion on what should be done with the page.
These processes are not decided through a head count, so people are encouraged to explain their opinion and refer to policy. The discussion lasts at least five days; afterwards, pages are deleted if there is consensus to do so. If there is no consensus, the page is kept and is again subject to normal editing, merging or redirecting as appropriate.
Because the article deletion process sees a lot of traffic, a nomination that gets little response after five days can be relisted. This does not apply to the other processes.
It is considered inappropriate to ask people outside of Wikipedia to come to the debate in order to sway its outcome. Such comments may be ignored. They are not removed, but may be tagged with {{spa}}, noting that a user "has made few or no other edits". In extreme cases, a deletion debate can be semi-protected.
It is also inappropriate to request deletion because of an editorial dispute. Such disputes are not resolved by deleting the whole page; instead, use dispute resolution.
- Where to find them: There are separate processes for articles, categories, images and media, redirects, templates, stub templates, user categories, and everything else.
- How to do this: Follow the instructions at the top of the relevant process page.
- If you disagree: Go to the relevant process page and explain why you disagree. Do not remove the tag from the page. For more information on this process, read the Wikipedia:Guide to deletion.
- Renominations: After a deletion debate concludes and the page is kept, users should allow a reasonable amount of time to pass before nominating the same page for deletion again, to give editors the time to improve the page. Renominations shortly after the earlier debate are generally closed quickly. It can be disruptive to repeatedly nominate a page in the hopes of getting a different outcome.
Deletion review
If you believe a page was wrongly deleted, or should have been deleted but wasn't, or a deletion discussion improperly closed, you should discuss this with the person who performed the deletion, or closed the debate, on their talk page. If this fails to resolve the issue, you can request review of the closure at Wikipedia:Deletion review.
If a page was obviously deleted "out of process" (per this policy), then an admin may choose to undelete it immediately. In such a case, the admin who deleted the page should be informed. If there is disagreement, or it is unclear whether it was out of process, it should be taken to deletion review.
If an article was deleted for lacking content or for having inappropriate content (this applies to most speedy deletions) and you wish to create a better article about the same subject, you can simply go ahead and do so, with no need for review.
This process is not solely decided by head count. The review normally lasts for five days, sometimes extended for up to ten if the outcome is unclear, after which the earlier process is overturned if a majority of qualified votes so indicate. Most overturned deletions will go to a deletion discussion.
- Where to find them: Wikipedia:Deletion review
- How to do this: Follow the instructions at the top of the page.
- If you disagree: Go to the review page and explain why you disagree.
- Renominations: As with deletion discussions, a certain amount of time should pass between repeated requests for deletion review, and these requests should be carefully considered in light of policy. Renominations that lack new arguments or new evidence are likely to be closed quickly.
Process interaction
- Issues that are on the wrong process (e.g. templates on the article-deletion page) are simply moved to the proper one.
- A page on deletion review should not be listed on a deletion discussion page until the review closes.
- Deletion discussion trumps proposed deletion, so for a page listed on both, the former takes precedence.
- Pages that meet the criteria for speedy deletion can be deleted regardless of other circumstances. If a page on a deletion debate is speedied, the debate is closed.
- If it is doubtful whether a page is or is not speedily deletable, a deletion discussion takes precedence. In practice this means that a page that had a deletion discussion resulting in 'keep' or 'no consensus' should not be speedily deleted.
- Pages that violate copyright can be deleted regardless of circumstances or earlier discussion.
Courtesy blanking
Very rarely, a discussion over deletion will become so heated that it may potentially cause harm to the subject (typically a person or organization). This harm can range from violation of privacy to potential libel based on statements made in the discussion, or other issues that should not be indexed in search engines. In such cases, the debate will be blanked out of courtesy, typically at the request of the person or organization in question. The entire debate is replaced with the afd-privacy template; the actual content remains accessible via the edit history. In extreme cases of libel or privacy violation, the entire history of the page may be deleted. Courtesy blanking is extremely rare, and should not be performed lightly.
How to do this: Remove all text from the subpage and then add {{subst:afd-privacy|article|result}} with the correct parameters.
