Wikipedia:Proposed deletion

Automatic list of articles up for proposed deletion

Prod is dead in the water now that the toolserver feed is gone. Do not use prod. --Cyde Weys 21:00, 12 April 2006 (UTC)

This process is intended to take some of the load away from Articles for deletion by providing a more direct deletion procedure for articles whose deletion is not controversial, yet don't meet the criteria for speedy deletion.

Logs: What's been proposed for deletion

Two lists of all articles which are currently proposed, or were previously proposed, for deletion are maintained on the Wikimedia toolserver.

• Current nominations

This is an automatically generated list of articles nominated for proposed deletion, that is articles which currently have a PROD tag.

• Previous nominations

This is an automatically generated list of articles which were nominated for proposed deletion, but no longer are, either because a user has contested the deletion (by removing the PROD tag), or because the article has already been deleted.

Note: This list is presently not being updated due to a bug.

In addition to the above lists, there is an On-wiki archive, of the "Current nominations" list, which is updated hourly, as well as a proposed deletion category which also lists articles which contain the PROD tag. Recent changes to that category can be viewed at Special:Recentchangeslinked/Category:Proposed_deletion. These on-Wiki resources are intended for backup purposes only; the toolserver lists should be used as the primary resource.

Details of the process

This process is a part of Wikipedia policy, but it is not mandatory. It is up to you whether to use PROD or AFD for a deletion.

• If you find articles that you feel don't meet Wikipedia's standards for inclusion, you can tag them with {{prod|Reason for deletion}} .
• If you want to improve a {{prod}}ded article, please do so (as the template says).
• It is recommended to put controversial issues on WP:AFD, and put simple issues on PROD.
• If you're unsure whether an article would qualify for uncontroversial deletion, you can refer to Wikipedia:Deletion policy.

How to propose deletion of an article

1. First of all, do your due diligence. Check what links to the article, using Special:Whatlinkshere/ArticleName. All links to the article will be broken when the article is deleted. If you're uncertain what the article is about, take a moment to try to learn more, possibly using Google or other online information sources. Don't assume that someone else will do this for you after you tag the article for deletion.
2. Edit the article and add the Template:Prod at the top, providing your reasoning. Don't sign or subst it. For instance,

   {{prod|has no sources, likely a hoax}}

3. Please note the proposed deletion, and preferably the reasoning, in your edit summary.
4. A log of all articles proposed for deletion is automatically generated; see the top of this page for links to various logs.
5. You may want to put the article on your watchlist to see what happens to it.
6. Consider notifying the creator of the article, who may be able to address your concerns. You might use Template:PRODWarning for convenience.

How to prevent an article from being deleted

1. Edit the article to remove the {{Prod}}. Please note this in your edit summary.
2. (optional) While you're editing the article anyway, please consider improving the article to address the concerns raised earlier. For instance, in the above example, add a source if you know one.
3. (optional) Alternatively, if you think it will help, you are encouraged to rename or merge the article, proofread it, or add editorial templates such as {{cleanup}} or {{npov}}.
4. If you wish broader discussion on the matter of an article's deletion, either use the article's talk page, or list it on WP:AFD.

What the template looks like

The template also puts all tagged articles in Category:Proposed deletion.

What this process is NOT for

• This process is not for contested deletion, and edit warring with it is not allowed. If anyone removes Template:Prod from an article for any reason, don't place it back. If the template was removed and replaced, the article will not be deleted. If you still believe the article needs to be deleted, list it on AfD.
  • Do not discount the opinion of the creator of the article. If the creator removes the tag, the deletion is controversial and should go to AfD.
  • Do not assume that because an editor did not state a reason for keeping the article that he/she does not have one. If the tag is removed without an edit summary, the deletion is controversial and should go to AfD.
• If an article was deleted via this process and undeleted or recreated, then obviously someone objects to the deletion, so if you still believe the article needs to be deleted, list it on AfD.
• Similarly, if an article has already been through AfD and the consensus was to keep (or there was no consensus), then objections to its deletion have already been raised; you may of course run it through AfD again.
• Pages not in the main article namespace (e.g. templates, categories, user pages, Wikipedia: namespace pages, etc) should use the processes already available for that. Especially do not use this for images, as image deletion is irreversible. Also never use it on templates. When you propose a template for deletion all articles using it are shown as containing {{prod}} tag.
• Redirects should also use their existing deletion process.
• It has been noted that a single user can simply "veto" all proposed deletions without giving a reason or improving anything. Of course, that would be disruption to make a point. If this proves to be a problem, we will likely create some rule to prevent it.

Relation to other processes

• A page flagged for both Proposed Deletion and WP:AFD should be dealt with in the latter process (the {{prod}} template should be removed).
• If a page is a copyright violation or obvious candidate for speedy deletion, it may be deleted for that reason regardless of {{prod}} tags. It is preferrable to use {{copyvio}} or {{db}} tags to {{prod}} tags if they are appropriate. (If you wish to mark an article for speedy deletion when it is already marked for prod, add the speedy tag, but leave the prod tag intact: that way, if the speedy nomination is rejected, the prod process is still in place.)
• In other cases, if an article is put on Proposed Deletion and is also flagged for some other process, editors should use their discretion and common sense to work it out. For instance, if a page is proposed for deletion and on requested moves, an editor could move the page and decide that it should not be deleted, or not move the page because the editor thinks deletion would be appropriate.
• This process is "in between" WP:AFD and WP:SD in that: 1) AFD is at least 5 days and involves much discussion; 2) SD is a few seconds to a few hours and involves little discussion; 3) PROD is at least 5 days and involves little discussion.
• Any contributor bringing an article which has been deleted via this process to deletion review is implicitly contesting the deletion, and the article may therefore be immediately undeleted by any admin without discussion.

Closing guideline for administrators

1. Any article proposed for deletion unopposed for at least five days may be deleted without further argument.
2. Before deleting the article, the admin should check if {{Prod}} is still there; if not, don't delete it.
3. Also, if the template is present, the admin should check the page history to verify it wasn't removed and put back.
4. The closing admin is not obliged to delete the article; if in disagreement with the proposal to delete the article, the admin may simply remove the template, and optionally improve the article.
5. To ensure an extra pair of eyes, an article should not be deleted by the same person who placed the Template:Prod on it.
6. Since this process is about uncontested deletions, any page deleted here can be undeleted without further argument. As above, the admin who undeletes it is encouraged to improve, source or copyedit the article, or flag it with editorial templates. It is also good form to contact the original nominator and the deleting admin.
7. If and when deleting add "prod" or "proposed deletion" to the deletion summary, along with brief reasoning for the deletion.
8. The toolserver log allows the closing admin (and everyone else) to see how many people have clicked through to examine the article. The closing admin may wish to exercise slightly more care when deleting articles with no, or very few, clickthroughs, as these articles may not have been scrutinized for their suitability for uncontroversial deletion.