Wikipedia:Fair use exemptions
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Fair use exemptions
From the Fair use criteria Policy, Fair use images may be used only in the article namespace. Used outside article space, they are not covered under the fair use doctrine. They should never be used on templates (including stub templates and navigation boxes) or on user pages. They should be linked, not inlined, from talk pages when they are the topic of discussion. This is because it is the policy of the Wikimedia Foundation to allow an unfree image only if no free alternative exists and only if it significantly improves the article it is included on. All other uses, even if legal under the fair use clauses of copyright law, should be avoided to keep the use of unfree images to a minimum. Exceptions can be made on a case-by-case basis if there is a broad consensus that doing so is necessary to the goal of creating a free encyclopedia (like the templates used as part of the Main Page)
The MediaWiki software allow for the hiding of images in category galleries by the use of the __NOGALLERY__ code. When ever possible, use of this tag should be encouraged so as to comply with copyright.
To that end, some administrative pages / categories that include or transclude fair-use images exist as a necessity to creating or managing the encyclopedia, and are currently listed as exemptions to the fair use policy.
Exemption candidates are currently being discussed on the talk page.
Pages exempted from the fair use policy should be categorized within Category:Wikipedia fair use exemptions.
