This is an old revision of this page, as edited by Johnuniq (talk | contribs) at 23:21, 18 April 2011 (rv to version at 03:17, 18 April 2011: consensus on talk is that DNFTT is exactly what this page needs to promote, see WP:BRD). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.
Revision as of 23:21, 18 April 2011 by Johnuniq (talk | contribs) (rv to version at 03:17, 18 April 2011: consensus on talk is that DNFTT is exactly what this page needs to promote, see WP:BRD)(diff) ← Previous revision | Latest revision (diff) | Newer revision → (diff) 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 |
Motivations for vandalism (as distinguished from abuse like harassment and edit warring) range from a desire for recognition and infamy, to an aspiration to frustrate the Misplaced Pages project and community. Vandalism is encouraged by offering such users exceptional notice. This is particularly true for prolific vandals, who were (prior to this essay) immortalised by Misplaced Pages pages, meticulously catalogued by category pages, dedicated specific templates, and who thereby become a notable part of wiki culture.
Encouragement
This glorification of vandalism through infamy encourages Internet memes through reinforcement, where users imitate notorious or unique vandalism methods for amusement, to share in the infamy, or for the thrill of defying authority and/or the perception of destroying other users' work. Denying recognition and infamy removes the primary motivations for vandalism and disruption.
Media exposure of vandalism on Misplaced Pages seems to invite increased vandalism. When a person writes in a newspaper, or says on television, that it is easy to insert nonsense in Misplaced Pages, invariably a number of imitators want to see it for themselves and believe they are "hackers". Making a big thing out of this issue just reinforces this behavior (see positive feedback).
Continuing to deal with vandalism
Some material is still going to be valuable in dealing with vandalism, so this is not about pretending vandalism does not exist. Information on vandalism should be critically appraised for its genuine value, and if that value outweighs any detriment from the publicity of that vandal/vandalism. Stating that a certain individual is involved in very obvious vandalism probably does not enable any better recognition or response to that vandalism, it merely adds to the legend of a specific vandal. On the other hand, documenting a new form of vandalism in a neutral manner like Misplaced Pages:Vandalism#Types of vandalism ensures a suitable awareness of that vandalism's existence.
How to mitigate vandalism
If you see information pages about vandals or vandalism that you think have no practical purpose, list them for deletion (if you see a whole group of similar pages, make a group nomination). User pages for indefinitely blocked users (except sockpuppets and banned users) that have no practical purpose can be put on WP:MfD after a short while. Remember that this is not a criterion for speedy deletion, though.
For the same reasons, most indefinite block templates placed user pages in Category:Temporary_Wikipedian_userpages from September 2006 until July 2010, whence they were routinely deleted after at least a month along with associated user pages. (This category was eventually deleted because of the effort needed to maintain it.)
See also
Similar pages:
- m:What is a troll?
- Misplaced Pages:Do not insult the vandals
- Misplaced Pages:Don't stuff beans up your nose
- Misplaced Pages:Revert, block, ignore
- Misplaced Pages:The Motivation of a Vandal
- Misplaced Pages:Griefing
- User:The Cunctator/HomePage Vandalism
- DissuadeReputation
- Wikiversity:No shrines for vandals
Contrasting pages:
References
- As an example of desire for recognition and infamy as a motivation for vandalism, see "Pelican shit" on Misplaced Pages talk:Long term abuse.
- request for own long term abuse page user had previously taken screenshots of their own sockpuppets vandalism and added them to other long term abuse pages
- IP addresses stored for registered users are only kept in the system for so long; categorising a user after this period of time serves no useful purpose.