Deletion Policies
editWhile Wikipedia does strive to include as much information as possible, there is a practical limit as to what we're going to include as an article. Just because you think your pet cat is the cutest thing on the planet, that does not mean you should create an article about it. There's a whole list of things that Wikipedia is not. Some relate simply to style or formatting, such as Wikipedia is not a paper encyclopedia or Wikipedia is not censored. Most, however, relate to the content of the encyclopedia, and what is considered encyclopedic and what isn't. WP:NOT is an official policy, which means that all articles must adhere to it. If they don't, they're at risk of deletion.
Wikipedia has three methods to delete pages. The first, and by far fastest, is the Criteria for Speedy Deletion. These criteria depict what content absolutely cannot be kept on Wikipedia for whatever reason and must be removed immediately. The most commonly used ones are as follows:
- General criteria 1 (G1) or G2 - Patent Nonsense and/or Test pages. Commonly created by new accounts, these have no meaningful purpose at all. Mark these pages with the templates {{db-nonsense}} or {{db-test}}.
- G3 - Vandalism. Obvious junk that you can understand (and so isn't nonsense) but obviously isn't intended to be the least bit helpful. This includes redirects that get made as a result of someone moving pages around disruptively. Mark these with {{db-vandalism}}
- G10 - Attacks. If a page is created with the apparently singular purpose of attacking someone, it's a candidate for deletion. Mark these with {{db-attack}}.
- G11 - Advertising. If a page is so blatantly advertising (for anything, even a person) that it really doesn't serve any other purpose at all, it can be deleted. {{db-spam}}
- G12 - Copyright violations, or "copyvio". If a page meets ALL of these criteria, it should be deleted immediately for GFDL compliance. Tag these with {{db-g12}}
- Direct copy of a non-GFDL-compatible website
- No non-copyrighted content in history
- All copyvio content added at once by one user
- No assertion of permission or fair use, or that content is public domain or freely available.
- Article criteria 1 or 3 (A1 or A3) - Little to no context OR no content. For articles that provide no useful information about the subject, are completely empty, or consist only of links elsewhere. Note that an article can be as short as a single sentence but still qualify as a stub. Mark with {{db-empty}}. Do not tag the page until at least 10 minutes have passed since the most recent edit.
- A7 - Insiginificant subject. An article about a person, group, band, company, or website that does not establish why it is significant or important. If this is somewhat controversial, consider another deletion method (such as PROD or XfD). Mark with {{db-bio}}, {{db-corp}}, {{db-band}}, or {{db-web}}. If the article is about a product outside those specified here (software and books for example), A7 does not apply.
- A9 - An article about a musical recording that does not indicate why its subject is important or significant and where the artist's article has never existed or has been deleted.
Whenever you mark a page for speedy deletion, it's usually nice to notify the author. Each of the speedy deletion tags shows the proper warning to use - just copy that code and paste it on their user talk page. You are not required to do this, but it usually helps alleviate some confusion on the part of the author.
| Deletion discussions |
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| Articles |
| Templates and modules |
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| Miscellany |
| Speedy deletion |
| Proposed deletion |
If the page doesn't fall under a CSD, but you're pretty certain it can be deleted without too much discussion on the issue, you can PROD it. PROD stands for PROposed Deletion. To PROD an article, add the template {{subst:prod|reason}} to the top of the article. YOU MUST include the "subst:" code at the beginning of the template. This adds a little blue box at the top of the page to indicate that the page is being considered for deletion.
If the box remains in place for five days, the article will be deleted. However, anyone can contest the deletion by removing the template. If you still believe the article should be deleted after this happens, you should open a debate at WP:AFD.
BLP PRODs are PRODs that are "sticky" - that is, they cannot be removed until the requirement is met. A BLP PROD can be used on any biographies of living people that have zero references. To BLPPROD an article, add the template {{subst:prod blp}} to the top of the article. Like with regular PRODs, "subst:" is necessary. The article will be deleted if there are no references within 10 days time. If references are added, the template can be removed. Unlike normal PRODs, if the template is removed before references are added, it can be readded without restarting the clock (making them "sticky").
Finally, the XfD processes (XfD stands for "X" for Deletion) allow users to debate on the merits (or lack thereof) a particular article and decide by consensus what is to become of it. These are not votes - sheer numbers have no effect on the outcome of these debates.
Only reasoned comments are considered towards the result of the debate. The template at right shows all the different types of deletion debates. The most frequently used is AfD, Articles for Deletion. Each XfD page outlines the process for each, which often is somewhat complicated.
Before anything is deleted, though, one should always check to see if there is any alternative.
It's also possible there is usable content in the article that can be merged elsewhere, or it's just under the wrong title and needs to be moved. Wikipedia's purpose is to include as much information as possible, so deletion should always be a last resort.
The assignment
editWhether you wish to use Twinkle to tag pages for deletion or tag them by hand using the templates provided on this page, you will be required to tag at least 20 articles for speedy deletion correctly and initiate 5 XfD deletion discussions where the consensus is to delete. If you ever have a question whether a article meets criteria for speedy deletion, do not tag it, instead, PROD it or leave a message with me.
For a list of articles that are recently created and may meet criteria for speedy deletion see Special:NewPages. Once you have successfully tagged 20 pages or more for speedy deletion, leave me a message and I will review your contributions. I'd also like to see you comment on a few articles at articles for deletion. Five should do, please also provide the links to the discussion on my talk page.