Wikipedia:Template Messages/Cleanup - Improve It

Template messages may be added to articles needing a cleanup. Their purposes are to foster improvement of the encyclopedia by alerting editors to changes that need to be made. Cleanup tags are meant to be temporary notices that lead to an effort to fix the problem, not a permanent badge of shame to show that you disagree with the article or a method of warning the readers against the article.

Unless otherwise noted, the cleanup messages, or tags, should be placed at the topâ€"before other templates, images, or infoboxes, but after hatnotes (see Wikipedia:Hatnote § Placement). Certain tags can be placed at the top of an individual section, and others can be placed within the text itself (inline).

Avoid tagging articles if you can easily and confidently fix the problem.

The goal is an improved article, not a tagged article.

Avoid "drive-by" tagging

Tags should be accompanied by a comment on the article's talk page explaining the problem and beginning a discussion on how to fix it, or, for simpler problems, a remark using the reason parameter as shown below; tagging editors must be willing to follow-through with substantive discussion

Don’t insert tags that are similar or redundant.

For example, most articles that read like essays have an inappropriate tone, and in fact they end up being automatically grouped in the same category, so it is unnecessary to tag with both {{tone}} and {{essay-like}}.

If an article has many problems, tag only the highest priority issues.

A lengthy list is often less helpful than a shorter one. (See also: tag bombing and over-tagging)

Don't add tags for trivial or minor problems, especially if an article needs a lot of work.

For example, there is little point in polishing the grammar of a section that needs to be dramatically re-written to comply with content policies. Focus on the biggest one, two, or three problems.

A date parameter is added by a bot, or you can add it yourself with |date=January 2017.

Does the article meet inclusion requirements?

Before placing templates on a page it is worthwhile to cast a critical eye over the page to determine whether it should, in fact, be included in Wikipedia. Some articles can be tagged for speedy deletion or nominated for a deletion discussion at article for deletion.

Best practices in obscure or unpopular articles

On pages that have received little attention from editors or readers, cleanup templates can be used as a way to call attention to problems that need to be addressed by editors. Editors who want to help address these problems should look through the various cleanup categories such as maintenance and articles with content issues and try to address the problems so that the templates can be removed. Editors who do a lot of tagging of articles should also address the backlogs.

Best practices in heavily monitored articles

On pages that are being edited by a number of users, cleanup templates are used to inform readers and editors of ongoing discussions and attempts to fix the problems on the page. Such templates can be used to attract uninvolved users to discussions and cleanup efforts, and they can also serve as a warning to casual readers that the article may have problems and be subject to dramatic changes. In general, an editor who places a template message to indicate a problem like this should explain their rationale fully on the talkpage of the article. If the consensus of the other editors is that there is a problem or an editorial dispute that deserves such a clean-up template, then the editors should work to fix the problem as quickly and cleanly as possible so the template message can be removed. If the consensus is that there is no problem, then the message can be removed immediately. For heavily monitored articles, please do not add or remove template messages of this sort without usin g the talk page.

Use in sections

Many of these cleanup tags require you to place |article as the first parameter when you use the tag at the top of an article. When you want the template to refer to just one section, however, you replace |article with |section (where the | is a pipe key found on most keyboards as a shift-backslash (\). See the specific template below to determine if such "section use" is supported and appropriate.

Tag consolidation

If too many tags are put at the top of an article, the article can become eclipsed by the tags, especially with short or stub articles. Consider consolidating the tags into the {{multiple issues}} template.

Cleanup

Overarching copyright issues

Combined message boxes

Do not use this as the only message box on the article or section; it should be used with at least two other message boxes sandwiched inside it.

General cleanup

Use one of these general tags when none of the more specific tags fits.

Copy editing

Some articles just need someone with a good grasp of editing technique to give them a once-over.

Cleanup of specific subjects

These templates are all "general cleanup" templates, but tie into a specific subject matter or WikiProjects.

Fiction

Inline with article text

Style of writing

Structure, formatting and sections

Introduction

Potentially unwanted content

Message boxes

Inline with article text

Context and detail

Off-topic

Articles occasionally contain content which is otherwise valid, but appears unrelated to the nominal topic of the article.

Expand and add

Expert needed

Time-sensitive

Inline with article text

Contradiction and confusion

Note: Articles that are confusing or hard to understand due specifically to translation issues can be found at Wikipedia:Template messages/Translation.

Inline with article text

Content forks

Importance and notability

Neutrality and factual accuracy

Message boxes

Inline with article text

Verifiability and sources

Message boxes

• For quotations used out of context, references to unrelated material, and other misuse of citations.
• Message boxes may be used at the top of an article, or in a specific section of an article.
• Individual message boxes may be combined.

Individual message boxes: Biographies of living persons

Individual message boxes: Issues with sufficiency of cites

Individual message boxes: Issues with style or format

Inline with article text

Links for search

Categories

Images and other media

For tips on requesting images see: WP:Requested pictures.

• For template messages related to the clean up of images, see: WP:Template messages/File namespace#Format and quality.

Lists

Wiki tech

Most of these issues are covered in the main Manual of Style.

Infobox needed

Infobox cleanup needed

Other article tags

There are also tags available for:

• merging articles;
• moving articles;
• splitting articles; and
• translation of articles.

Open tasks