Template:Image reference needed
 | This template should never be substituted – use {{Image reference needed}}. |
{{Image reference needed}} is a template used to identify user-made images such as graphs, charts, drawings, and maps in articles, particularly if questionable, that need a citation to a reliable source, either after the image's caption or on the image description page. This template produces the superscripted message [image reference needed] and is installed with no spaces directly after the image's caption.
Use
[edit]Enter this tag in the thumbnail caption of an image as a request for other editors to find citations for that image.
Input:
{{Image reference needed|date=August 2026}}
Result:
Hovering over the link reveals the date that the tag was added.
This template is a self-reference and so is part of the Wikipedia project rather than the encyclopedic content.
This template automatically adds articles to Category:Articles with unsourced statements.
{{Image reference needed|date=Month and year}}
When not to use
[edit]The {{Image reference needed}} template is intended for use when there is a general question of the verifiability of an image, or when an editor believes that a reference verifying the image should be provided. Other templates are available for other or more specific issues:
- For concerns about copyright status: see Wikipedia:Guide to image deletion instead.
- To challenge the contents of the caption: use {{Citation needed}} for captions, or fix it yourself.
- For issues of image placement, formatting, or size: see Wikipedia:Manual of Style/Images instead.
- Do not use this template because you disagree with the viewpoint or facts represented on an image. For example, images that you think are incorrect should be tagged with {{Dubious}}, and those which represent a non-neutral view should be tagged with {{POV statement}}. Being specific about the nature of the problem will help other editors correct it.
An image representing data or information (e.g., a graph) is usually considered verifiable if:
- the image repeats information cited elsewhere in the article (e.g., the article says that 30% of cancer deaths could be prevented by banning all tobacco and alcoholic beverages, and the image shows a graph of 30%),
- the image is similar to one published by any reliable source,
- the file page contains references to the data represented in the image.
Parameters
[edit]{{{date}}}: The date the tag was added.
TemplateData
[edit]TemplateData for Image reference needed
Use this inline template in an image's caption to identify the image as needing citations. Do not use it for disputing the image's copyright status.
| Parameter | Description | Type | Status | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month and year | date | Month and year of tagging; e.g., 'January 2013', but not 'jan13'
| String | suggested |
See also
[edit]- {{Citation needed}}, for facts in articles
- {{Clarify}}, requesting clarification of a hard-to-understand phrase.
- {{Cite quote}}, tagging a request for citation, used for quotations that needs citations to make it complete, but not for seemingly doubtful or false texts.
- {{Request quotation}}, tagging a request for quoting inaccessible source, used for requesting a direct quote from the cited source for verification.
- {{Verify source}}, tagging a request for source verification, used for information that is doubtful or appears false.
- {{Unreliable source?}}, tagging a request for source verification, used for information that is doubtful or appears false.
- {{Cite check}}, popping up a box saying an article or section may have inappropriate or misinterpreted citations.
- {{Unreferenced}} and {{Unreferenced section}}, popping up a box saying an article or section has no citation or reference for its information.
- {{Original research inline}}, to label a passage of text that may be based upon original research.
- {{POV statement}}, to label a passage of text whose neutrality is disputed.
- {{Page needed}}, to request a missing page number to an existing reference.
- {{Dubious}}
