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If Misplaced Pages is, as defined by the three key content policies, an encyclopaedia which '''summarises''' viewpoints rather than a repository '''for''' viewpoints, to achieve this goal, articles must demonstrate that the topic they are covering has been mentioned in reliable sources independent of the topic itself. These sources should be independent of both the topic and of Misplaced Pages, and should be of the standard described in ]. Articles should not be built using only the subject itself as '''sole''' source. This requirement for independent sources is so as to determine that the topic can be written about without ]; otherwise the article is likely to fall foul of our ] guidelines. | If Misplaced Pages is, as defined by the three key content policies, an encyclopaedia which '''summarises''' viewpoints rather than a repository '''for''' viewpoints, to achieve this goal, articles must demonstrate that the topic they are covering has been mentioned in reliable sources independent of the topic itself. These sources should be independent of both the topic and of Misplaced Pages, and should be of the standard described in ]. Articles should not be built using only the subject itself as '''sole''' source. This requirement for independent sources is so as to determine that the topic can be written about without ]; otherwise the article is likely to fall foul of our ] guidelines. | ||
==Examples== | |||
{| class="wikitable" | |||
|- | |||
! Topic | |||
! Independent | |||
! Non-independent | |||
|- | |||
| Business | |||
| Newspaper, magazine, government agency | |||
| Owner, employees, corporate website, sales brochure, competitor | |||
|- | |||
| Person | |||
| Newspaper, magazine, scholarly book | |||
| Person, family members, friends, employer, employees | |||
|- | |||
| City | |||
| National magazine, scholarly book | |||
| Local newspaper, mayor, local booster clubs | |||
|} | |||
These simple examples need to be interpreted with all the facts and circumstances in mind. For example, a newspaper that depends on advertising dollars might not be truly independent in their coverage of the local businesses that advertise in the paper. | |||
== See also == | == See also == |
Revision as of 02:30, 1 January 2011
Essay on editing Misplaced PagesThis is an essay. It contains the advice or opinions of one or more Misplaced Pages contributors. This page is not an encyclopedia article, nor is it one of Misplaced Pages's policies or guidelines, as it has not been thoroughly vetted by the community. Some essays represent widespread norms; others only represent minority viewpoints. | Shortcuts |
- WP:IS redirects here. For what Misplaced Pages is, use WP:WIS
Independent sourcing is an expansion of points in Misplaced Pages:Verifiability and gives the opinion of some editors on why independent sourcing is required on Misplaced Pages. Its aim is to note that:
Any article on a topic is required to cite a reliable source independent of the topic itself, to warrant that an article on the topic can be written from a neutral point of view and not contain original research.
Summary
An independent source is a source that has no significant connection to the subject and therefore describes it from a disinterested perspective. Independent sources have editorial independence (advertisers do not dictate content) and no conflicts of interest (no potential for personal, financial, or political gain from the publication).
For example, in the case of a website, an independent source would be newspaper coverage of the site rather than the site itself; for a recording artist, an independent source would be a professional review of the artist rather than album sleeve notes or a press release.
Material available from sources that are self-published, or primary sources, or biased because of a conflict of interest can play a role in writing an article, but it must be possible to source the majority of information to independent, third-party sources. Reliance on independent sources ensures that an article can be written from a balanced, disinterested viewpoint rather than from the subject's own viewpoint. It also ensures articles can catalogue a topic's worth, its role and achievements within society, rather than offering a directory listing or the contents of a sales brochure.
Articles that don't reference outside sources should be tagged with {{third-party}} and if there ultimately prove to be no independent sources, the article should be listed for deletion.
Explanation
Misplaced Pages strives to be of the highest standard possible, and to avoid writing on topics from a biased viewpoint. Misplaced Pages:Verifiability was created as an expansion of the neutral point of view policy, to allow information to be checked for any form of bias. It has been noticed, however, that some articles are sourcing their content solely from the topic itself, which creates a level of bias within an article. Where this primary source is the only source available on the topic, this bias is impossible to correct. Such articles tend to be vanity, although it is becoming increasingly hard to differentiate this within certain topic areas.
If Misplaced Pages is, as defined by the three key content policies, an encyclopaedia which summarises viewpoints rather than a repository for viewpoints, to achieve this goal, articles must demonstrate that the topic they are covering has been mentioned in reliable sources independent of the topic itself. These sources should be independent of both the topic and of Misplaced Pages, and should be of the standard described in Misplaced Pages:Reliable sources. Articles should not be built using only the subject itself as sole source. This requirement for independent sources is so as to determine that the topic can be written about without bias; otherwise the article is likely to fall foul of our vanity guidelines.
Examples
Topic | Independent | Non-independent |
---|---|---|
Business | Newspaper, magazine, government agency | Owner, employees, corporate website, sales brochure, competitor |
Person | Newspaper, magazine, scholarly book | Person, family members, friends, employer, employees |
City | National magazine, scholarly book | Local newspaper, mayor, local booster clubs |
These simple examples need to be interpreted with all the facts and circumstances in mind. For example, a newspaper that depends on advertising dollars might not be truly independent in their coverage of the local businesses that advertise in the paper.
See also
- Editorial independence: The ability of a journalist to accurately report news regardless of commercial considerations like pleasing advertisers
- Misplaced Pages:Third-party sources: A similar essay
- Misplaced Pages:Party and person: "Third party" does not mean "secondary source".
- Misplaced Pages:Articles with a single source: Multiple sources are always better than {{onesource}}.
- Misplaced Pages:Misplaced Pages clones: Websites that copy Misplaced Pages don't count towards notability.
- Misplaced Pages:Cite sources: How to list sources in an article
- Misplaced Pages:Identifying reliable sources: A non-independent source is sometimes still reliable.
- User:Uncle G/On notability
- {{Third-party-inline}}, to mark sentences needing an independent or third-party source
- {{Third-party}}, to indicate that none of the sources on the page are independent