Misplaced Pages

This is an old revision of this page, as edited by Lawrencekhoo (talk | contribs) at 01:01, 30 April 2010 (Reverted to revision 357566038 by Kotniski; Sweepin rewrite happened on 20th May, reverting to earlier version. (TW)). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

This page documents an English Misplaced Pages policy.It describes a widely accepted standard that editors should normally follow, though exceptions may apply. Changes made to it should reflect consensus.

Shortcuts WP:NPOV WP:NPV WP:NEU

This page in a nutshell: Editors must write articles from a neutral point of view, representing all significant views fairly, proportionately, and without bias.

Neutral point of view (NPOV) is a fundamental Wikimedia principle and a cornerstone of Misplaced Pages. All Misplaced Pages articles must be written from a neutral point of view, representing fairly, proportionately, and as far as possible without bias, all significant views that have been published by reliable sources. This is non-negotiable and expected of all articles and all editors.

"Neutral point of view" is one of Misplaced Pages's three core content policies, along with "Verifiability" and "No original research." Jointly, these policies determine the type and quality of material that is acceptable in Misplaced Pages articles. They should not be interpreted in isolation from one another, and editors should therefore familiarize themselves with all three. The principles upon which these policies are based cannot be superseded by other policies or guidelines, or by editors' consensus.

Explanation of the neutral point of view

The neutral point of view is a means of dealing with conflicting perspectives on a topic as evidenced by reliable sources. It requires that all majority- and significant-minority views be presented fairly, in a disinterested tone, and in rough proportion to their prevalence within the source material. Therefore, material should not be removed solely on the grounds that it is "POV", although it may be shortened, moved to a new article, or even removed entirely on the grounds that it gives undue weight to a minor point of view, as explained below.

• WP:YESPOV

The neutral point of view neither sympathizes with nor disparages its subject, nor does it endorse or oppose specific viewpoints. It is not a lack of viewpoint, but is rather a specific, editorially neutral, point of view. An article should clearly describe, represent, and characterize all the disputes within a topic, but should not endorse any particular point of view. It should explain who believes what, and why, and which points of view are most common. It may contain critical evaluations of particular viewpoints based on reliable sources, but even text explaining sourced criticisms of a particular view must avoid taking sides.

Bias

Neutrality requires that views be represented without bias. All editors and reliable sources have biases (in other words, all editors and all sources have a point of view)—what matters is how we combine the views of the sources to create a neutral article. Unbiased writing is the disinterested description of all significant sides of a debate as published by those sources.

Facts and opinions

• WP:ASF

Assert facts, including facts about opinions—but do not assert the opinions themselves. By "fact" we mean "a piece of information about which there is no serious dispute." For example, that a survey produced a certain published result would be a fact. That there is a planet called Mars is a fact. That Plato was a philosopher is a fact. No one seriously disputes any of these things, so we assert as many of them as possible. A fact can be asserted without simon-says inline-text phrasing. An opinion can be attributed to so-and-so said.

By value or opinion, on the other hand, we mean "a matter which is subject to dispute." There are many propositions that very clearly express values or opinions. That stealing is wrong is a value or opinion. That The Beatles were the greatest band in history is an opinion. That the United States is the only country in the world that has used a nuclear weapon during wartime is a fact. That the United States was right or wrong to drop the atomic bomb over Hiroshima and Nagasaki is a value or opinion. However, there are bound to be borderline cases (see Undue weight) where it is not clear if a particular dispute should be taken seriously and included.

When we discuss an opinion, we attribute the opinion to someone and discuss the fact that they have this opinion. For instance, rather than asserting that "The Beatles were the greatest band ever", locate a source such as Rolling Stone magazine and say: "Rolling Stone said that the Beatles were the greatest band ever", and include a reference to the issue in which that statement was made. Likewise, the statement "Most people from Liverpool believe that the Beatles were the greatest band ever" can be made if it can be supported by references to a particular survey; a claim such as "The Beatles had many songs that made the UK Singles Chart" can also be made, because it is verifiable as fact. The first statement asserts a personal opinion; the second asserts the fact that an opinion exists and attributes it to reliable sources.

In attributing competing views, it is necessary to ensure that the attribution adequately reflects the relative levels of support for those views, and that it does not give a false impression of parity. For example, to state that "according to Simon Wiesenthal, the Holocaust was a program of extermination of the Jewish people in Germany, but David Irving disputes this analysis" would be to give apparent parity between the supermajority view and a tiny minority view by assigning each to a single activist in the field.

It is not sufficient to discuss an opinion as fact merely by stating "some people believe...", a practice referred to as "mass attribution". A reliable source supporting a statement that a group holds an opinion must accurately describe how large this group is. Moreover, there are usually disagreements about how opinions should be properly stated. To fairly represent all the leading views in a dispute it is sometimes necessary to qualify the description of an opinion, or to present several formulations of this opinion and attribute them to specific groups.

A careful selection of reliable sources is also critical for producing articles with a neutral point of view. When discussing the facts on which a point of view is based, it is important to also include the facts on which competing opinions are based since this helps a reader evaluate the credibility of the competing viewpoints. This should be done without implying that any one of the opinions is correct. It is also important to make it clear who holds these opinions. It is often best to cite a prominent representative of the view.

Achieving neutrality

See Misplaced Pages:NPOV tutorial and Misplaced Pages:Neutral point of view/Examples

Article titles

Main policy page: Misplaced Pages:Article titles

A Misplaced Pages article must have one definitive title. The general restriction against POV forks applies to article titles as well. If a genuine titling controversy exists, and is relevant to the subject matter of the article, the controversy should be covered in the article text and substantiated with reliable sources. Otherwise, alternative article titles should not be used as means of settling POV disputes among Misplaced Pages contributors. Also disfavored are double or "segmented" article titles, in the form of: Flat Earth/Round Earth; or Flat Earth (Round Earth). Even if a synthesis is made, like Shape of the Earth, or Earth (debated shapes), it may not be appropriate, especially if it is a novel usage coined specifically to resolve a POV fork.

Sometimes the article title itself may be a source of contention and polarization. This is especially true for descriptive titles that suggest a viewpoint either "for" or "against" any given issue. A neutral article title is very important because it ensures that the article topic is placed in the proper context. Therefore, encyclopedic article titles are expected to exhibit the highest degree of neutrality. The article might cover the same material but with less emotive words, or might cover broader material which helps ensure a neutral view (for example, renaming "Criticisms of drugs" to "Societal views on drugs"). Neutral titles encourage multiple viewpoints and responsible article writing.

Where proper nouns such as names are concerned, disputes may arise over whether a particular name should be used as (or in) an article title. Misplaced Pages takes a descriptive rather than prescriptive approach in such cases, by using the common English language name as found in verifiable reliable sources; proper names for people or events which incorporate non-neutral terms – such as Boston massacre, Tea Pot Dome scandal, Edward the Confessor, Jack the Ripper – are legitimate article titles when they are used by a consensus of the sources.

Article structure

• WP:STRUCTURE

See the guideline Misplaced Pages:Manual of Style for clarification on the issues raised in this section.

Sometimes the internal structure of an article may require additional attention, to protect neutrality, and to avoid problems like POV forking and undue weight. Although specific article structures are not, as a rule, prohibited, in some cases the article structure may need attention. Care must be taken to ensure that the overall presentation is broadly neutral.

Segregation of text or other content into different regions or subsections, based solely on the apparent POV of the content itself, may result in an unencyclopedic structure, such as a back-and-forth dialogue between proponents and opponents. It may also create an apparent hierarchy of fact: details in the main passage appear "true" and "undisputed", whereas other, segregated material is deemed "controversial", and therefore more likely to be false — an implication that may not be appropriate. A more neutral approach can result from folding debates into the narrative, rather than distilling them into separate sections that ignore each other.

Be alert for arrangements of formatting, headers, footnotes, or other elements that may unduly favor one particular point of view, and for structural or stylistic aspects that make it difficult for a neutral reader to fairly and equally assess the credibility of all relevant and related viewpoints.

Undue weight

• WP:DUE
• WP:UNDUE
• WP:Undue weight
• WP:WEIGHT
• WP:UNDUEWEIGHT
• WP:PROMINENCE

An article should not give undue weight to any aspects of the subject but should strive to treat each aspect with a weight appropriate to its significance to the subject. How much weight is appropriate should reflect the weight that is given in current reliable sources. An article's coverage of individual events or opinions involving its subject may be verifiable and impartial, but still disproportionate to their overall significance to the topic. This is an important consideration when reporting on recent events that may be in the news. Note that undue weight can be given in several ways, including, but not limited to, depth of detail, quantity of text, prominence of placement, and juxtaposition of statements.

Neutrality requires that the article should fairly represent all significant viewpoints that have been published by reliable sources, and should do so in proportion to the prominence of each. Now an important qualification: In general, articles should not give minority views as much or as detailed a description as more widely held views, and the views of tiny minorities should not be included at all. For example, the article on the Earth should not mention modern support for the Flat Earth concept, the view of a distinct minority.

In articles specifically about a minority viewpoint, it is appropriate to give the viewpoint more attention and space. However, such pages should make appropriate reference to the majority viewpoint wherever relevant, and must not reflect an attempt to rewrite content strictly from the perspective of the minority view. Specifically, it should always be clear which parts of the text describe the minority view, and that it is in fact a minority view. The majority view should be explained in sufficient detail that the reader may understand how the minority view differs from it, and controversies regarding parts of the minority view should be clearly identified and explained. How much detail is required depends on the subject: For instance, articles on historical views such as flat earth, with few or no modern proponents, may be able to briefly state the modern position, and then go on to discuss the history of the idea in great detail, neutrally presenting the history of a now-discredited belief. Other minority views may require much more extensive description of the majority view in order to avoid misleading the reader. Misplaced Pages:Fringe theories and the NPOV F.A.Q. provide additional advice on these points.

Misplaced Pages should not present a dispute as if a view held by a small minority deserved as much attention overall as the majority view. Views that are held by a tiny minority should not be represented except in articles devoted to those views. To give undue weight to the view of a significant minority, or to include that of a tiny minority, might be misleading as to the shape of the dispute. Misplaced Pages aims to present competing views in proportion to their representation in reliable sources on the subject. This applies not only to article text, but to images, wikilinks, external links, categories, and all other material as well.

Keep in mind that, in determining proper weight, we consider a viewpoint's prevalence in reliable sources, not its prevalence among Misplaced Pages editors or the general public.

If you are able to prove something that few or none currently believe, Misplaced Pages is not the place to premiere such a proof. Once a proof has been reliably published elsewhere, however, it may be referenced. See: Misplaced Pages:No original research and Misplaced Pages:Verifiability.

Giving "equal validity"

• WP:GEVAL
• WP:VALID

The neutrality policy does not state or imply that we must give equal validity to minority views. Doing so would legitimize and even promote such claims. Policy states that we must not take a stand on these issues as encyclopedia writers, but that does not stop us from describing the majority views as such or from fairly explaining the minority views, when they are noteworthy.

A vital component: good research

Good and unbiased research, based upon the best and most reputable authoritative sources available, helps prevent NPOV disagreements. Try the library for reputable books and journal articles, and look for the most reliable online resources.

Balance

Neutrality weights viewpoints in proportion to their prominence. However, when reputable sources contradict one another and are relatively equal in prominence, describe both approaches and work for balance. This involves describing the opposing views clearly, drawing on secondary or tertiary sources that describe the disagreement from a disinterested viewpoint.

Impartial tone

Misplaced Pages describes disputes. Misplaced Pages does not engage in disputes. A neutral characterization of disputes requires presenting viewpoints with a consistently impartial tone, otherwise articles end up as partisan commentaries even while presenting all relevant points of view. Even where a topic is presented in terms of facts rather than opinions, inappropriate tone can be introduced through the way in which facts are selected, presented, or organized. Neutral articles are written with a tone that provides an unbiased, accurate, and proportionate representation of all positions included in the article.

The tone of Misplaced Pages articles should be impartial, neither endorsing nor rejecting a particular point of view. Try not to quote directly from participants engaged in a heated dispute; instead, summarize and present the arguments in an impartial tone.

Characterizing opinions of people's work

A special case is the expression of aesthetic opinions. Some Misplaced Pages articles about art, artists, and other creative topics (e.g. musicians, actors, books, etc.) have tended toward the effusive. This is out of place in an encyclopedia; we might not be able to agree that so-and-so is the greatest guitar player in history. But it is important indeed to note how some artist or some work has been received by the general public or by prominent experts. Providing an overview of the common interpretations of a creative work, preferably with citations or references to note worthy individuals holding that interpretation, is appropriate. For instance, that Shakespeare is widely considered one of the greatest authors of the English language is a bit of knowledge that one should learn from an encyclopedia. Public and scholarly critique of an artist or work, when well-researched and verifiable, helps to put the work into context and enhances the credibility of the article; idiosyncratic opinions of individual Misplaced Pages contributors, however, do not.

Words to avoid

Some words carry non-neutral implications. For example, the word claim can imply that a statement is incorrect, such as John claimed he had not eaten the pie. Using loaded words such as these may make an article appear to favor one position over another. Try to state the facts more simply without using these words: for example John said, "I did not eat the pie".

Neutrality disputes and handling

Attributing and specifying biased statements

• WP:SUBSTANTIATE
• WP:ATTRIBUTEPOV

A biased statement violates this policy when it is presented as a fact or the truth. It does not violate this policy when it is presented as an identifiable point of view. It is therefore important to verify it and make every effort possible to add an appropriate citation.

For instance, "John Doe is the best baseball player" expresses an opinion; it cannot be included in Misplaced Pages as if it were a fact. One way to make it suitable for Misplaced Pages is to change it into a statement about the fact that someone holds an opinion, e.g.: "John Doe's baseball skills have been praised by baseball insiders such as Al Kaline and Joe Torre," as long as those statements are correct and can be verified. The goal here is to attribute the opinion to some recognized subject-matter expert, rather than to merely state it as true.

A different approach is to specify the statement, by giving underlying details that are undisputed. For example: "John Doe had the highest batting average in the major leagues from 2003 through 2006." People may still argue over whether he was the best baseball player. But they will not argue over this.

There is a temptation to rephrase biased or opinion statements with weasel words: "Many people think John Doe is the best baseball player." But statements of this form are subject to obvious attacks: "Yes, many people think so, but only ignorant people"; and "Just how many is 'many'? I think it's only 'a few' who think that!" By attributing the claim to a known authority, or substantiating the facts behind it, you can avoid these problems.

Point of view (POV) and content forks

See the guideline Misplaced Pages:Content forking for clarification on the issues raised in this section.

A content fork is a usually unintentional creation of multiple articles all treating the same subject. A point of view fork is a deliberate attempt to evade the neutrality policy by creating a new article about a subject that is already being treated, often to avoid or highlight negative or positive viewpoints or facts. Both are considered unacceptable. The generally accepted policy is that all facts and major points of view on the same subject are treated in one article.

It is vital to note that this does not rule out separate articles on related but distinct subjects if there is enough information about each subject to justify a separate article. For example, Evolution, Evolution as theory and fact, Creationism, and Creationism-evolution controversy are all separate. This is fine because these articles deal with merely related but not identical subjects, each of which has been determined to be independently notable. Spin-offs are another case of related but distinct articles: they are not only justified but are a central part of Misplaced Pages's structure. Whether distinctions between topics are sufficiently large and each topic notable enough to justify separate articles must be decided on a case by case basis.

Making necessary assumptions

• WP:MNA

When writing any of a long series of articles on some general subject, there can be cases where we must make some potentially controversial assumptions. For example, in writing about evolution, it's not helpful to hash out the evolution-vs.-creationism debate on every page. There are virtually no topics that could proceed without making some assumptions that someone would find controversial. This is true not only in evolutionary biology, but also in philosophy, history, physics, etc.

It is difficult to draw up general principles on which to rule in specific cases, but the following might help: there is probably not a good reason to discuss some assumption on a given page, if an assumption is best discussed in depth on some other page. Some brief, unobtrusive pointer might be appropriate, however.

Fringe theories

Notable fringe views may be discussed in articles devoted to them. In some cases, they may also be briefly discussed in related articles (per WP:UNDUE). When discussing fringe views, any mention of them should be proportionate, making clear which is the dominant majority view among reliable sources, and which are minority views.

Common objections and clarifications

See Misplaced Pages:Neutral point of view/FAQ for answers and clarifications on the issues raised in this section.

Common objections or concerns raised to Misplaced Pages's Neutral point of view policy include the following.

Being neutral

• There's no such thing as objectivity
  Everybody with any philosophical sophistication knows that. So how can we take the "neutrality" policy seriously?

• Lack of neutrality as an excuse to delete
  The neutrality policy is used sometimes as an excuse to delete texts that are perceived as biased. Isn't this a problem?

Balancing different views

• Writing for the "opponent"
  I'm not convinced by what you say about "writing for the opponent." I don't want to write for the opponent. My opponents rely on stating as fact many things which I believe are demonstrably false. Are you saying that, to be neutral in writing an article, I must lie, in order to represent the view I disagree with?

• Morally offensive views
  What about views that are morally offensive to most Westerners, such as racism, sexism, and Holocaust denial, that some people actually hold? Surely we are not to be neutral about them?

Editorship disputes

• Dealing with biased contributors
  I agree with the non-bias policy but there are some here who seem completely, irremediably biased. I have to go around and clean up after them. What do I do?

• Avoiding constant disputes
  How can we avoid constant and endless warfare over neutrality issues?

Other

• Anglo-American focus
  Misplaced Pages seems to have an Anglo-American focus. Is this contrary to the neutral point of view?

• Other objections
  I have some other objection—where should I complain?

Since the neutral-point-of-view policy is often unfamiliar to newcomers—and is so central to Misplaced Pages's approach—many issues surrounding the neutrality policy have been covered before very extensively. If you have some new contribution to make to the debate, you could try Talk:Neutral point of view, or bring it up on the Misplaced Pages-l mailing list. Before asking it, please review the links below.

See also

Policies and essays

• NPOV tutorial
• NPOV FAQ
• NPOV Examples
• NPOV Examples debate
• NPOV Disputes

• Understand Bias - (meta, historical)
• Positive tone - (meta, historical)

• Objectivity (journalism)
• Consensus reality
• One-sided argument
• Subject-object problem

• Misplaced Pages:Article size
• Misplaced Pages:Avoid peacock terms
• Misplaced Pages:Avoid weasel words
• Misplaced Pages:Coatrack
• Misplaced Pages:Conflict of interest
• Misplaced Pages:Controversial articles
• Misplaced Pages:Describing points of view
• Misplaced Pages:Fringe theories
• Misplaced Pages:Let the reader decide
• Misplaced Pages:List of controversial issues
• Misplaced Pages:Scientific consensus
• Misplaced Pages:Systemic bias
• Misplaced Pages:WikiProject Neutrality
• Misplaced Pages:Words to avoid

Templates

• General NPOV templates:
  • {{POV}} or {{Bias}}—message used to warn of problems
  • {{POV-check}}—message used to request that an article be checked for neutrality
  • {{POV-section}}—tags only a single section as disputed
  • {{POV-lead}}—when the article's introduction is questionable
  • {{POV-title}}—when the article's title is questionable
  • {{POV-statement}}—when only one sentence is questionable
  • {{NPOV language}}—message used when the neutrality of the style of writing is questioned
• Undue weight templates:
  • {{undue}}—message used to warn that a part of an article lends undue weight to certain ideas relative to the article as a whole
  • {{undue-inline}}—same as above but to tag a sentence or paragraph only

Notes

1. Opinions involve both matters of fact and value; see fact-value distinction
2. ^ See also: Misplaced Pages:Avoid weasel words, Misplaced Pages:Avoid peacock terms.
3. Note, however, that redirects may be used to address this technical limitation in situations where non-controversial synonyms and variations in word morphology exist.
4. See also: Choosing geographic names, Misplaced Pages:Article titles.
5. Article sections devoted solely to criticism, and "pro and con" sections within articles, are two commonly cited examples. There are varying views on whether and to what extent such structures are appropriate; see Misplaced Pages:Avoid thread mode, Misplaced Pages:Criticism, Misplaced Pages:Pro and con lists, and Template:Criticism-section.
6. Commonly cited examples include articles that read too much like a "debate", and content structured like a "resume". See also: Misplaced Pages:Guide to layout, Formatting criticism, Misplaced Pages:Edit war, WP cleanup templates, and Template:Lopsided.

External links

1. Part 1

• NeutralPointOfView on MeatballWiki

Related information

• Misplaced Pages policies
• Misplaced Pages neutral point of view
• Misplaced Pages policy
• Misplaced Pages content policy