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Wikipedia:Templates for discussion/Log/2012 December 13

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This is an old revision of this page, as edited by 64.40.54.118 (talk) at 07:50, 2 January 2013 (Tv.com templates: +cmt). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

December 13

Tv.com templates

Template:Tv.com show (talk · history · transclusions · logs · subpages)
Template:Tv.com anthology (talk · history · transclusions · logs · subpages)
Template:Tv.com episode (talk · history · transclusions · logs · subpages)
Template:Tv.com episodes (talk · history · transclusions · logs · subpages)

Following the recent deletion of the Tv.com template, I propose to delete these remaining templates. While owned by CBS Interactive, Tv.com is mostly user generated, failing WP:LINKSTOAVOID. Unlike IMDB where entertainment industry professionals are known to oversee content, Tv.com series/season/episode information more closely resembles a site like Wikipedia. Not a great resource overall and don't see these links as encyclopedic. -- Wikipedical (talk) 23:14, 13 December 2012 (UTC)[reply]

  • Delete as per non - WP:LINKSTOAVOID. That said as mentioned at the last "Templates for discussion" nomination of one of these a good point was made - that is should we not be going after the links themselves if consensus is the site its self is the problem (add to black list?).Moxy (talk) 00:36, 14 December 2012 (UTC)[reply]
Agree we should be taking about the site its self - From what I can see it would not be hard to eliminate the link - as if fails so many policies.Moxy (talk) 00:52, 14 December 2012 (UTC)[reply]
  • Speedy keep and discuss TV.com elsewhere - My read of the tv.com template deletion (I may be wrong) was that a new template for tv.com was being made to reflect that tv.com is using a new URL form that our current approach fails; ergo , all the above nominated templates were put into place to handle the new format. In any case, the former TFD was not about the appropriateness of tv.com links, but what to do with the template (which closed "delete the Tv.com template after replacement"). Checking WT:EL and WT:ELN I see no new discussion of the appropriateness of TV.com, and that should happen first, per the previous TFD, before these should be sent to TFD. --MASEM (t) 00:39, 14 December 2012 (UTC)[reply]
    I have posted pointers to this discussion in both places, so I see no reason why we can't have the discussion here. Frietjes (talk) 01:15, 14 December 2012 (UTC)[reply]
    Because the first step is to determine if tv.com is an approriate EL problem or not (which may or may not require admin action). Then we can talk about the templates. Doing that discussion here is going to waste admin time. --MASEM (t) 01:23, 14 December 2012 (UTC)[reply]
  • (edit conflict) Having it here again is going to taint the result. If TV.com is a bad source, then establish a consensus as such and the rest follows. Without that, then in any number of places the link will be turned from a template to a direct external link. If the idea is that TV.com is indeed bad, then both forms should be removed from Wikipedia. This won't accomplish that. BlueMoonset (talk) 01:40, 14 December 2012 (UTC)[reply]
  • Under your scenario, the discussion would take place twice anyway. First the WP:EL discussion might transpire and then based on that consensus, a TFD would have to be opened to delete these templates anyway. I do think it would be easier and logistically more productive to have the TFD discussion first to determine the consensus. -- Wikipedical (talk) 06:52, 14 December 2012 (UTC)[reply]
  • Comment: I was wondering whether Wikipedical could point to somewhere that indicates that IMDb does indeed have "entertainment industry professionals" who oversee content for its television series/season/episode/anthology information? If not, then the IMDb claim is irrelevant to this discussion, and should not be made. I've seen discussions on Wikipedia where it was said that there are some sections of IMDb that are user-supplied, without editorial supervision. BlueMoonset (talk) 01:40, 14 December 2012 (UTC)[reply]
    • I am admittedly not the expert on IMDB, but I will submit a quick source that addresses this question. From an interview with IMDB's founder: "The majority of content on IMDb is user-generated, but what has changed is who those users are... [I]n amongst those users who are supplying the data are a growing number of people in the entertainment industry, either updating their own information or agents updating their clients' information, publicists or production companies making sure we have every credit for their latest production listed. We are fortunate to get information sometimes far in advance. You get the feeling they hang up the phone with their agent, having agreed to do the film, and the second thing they do is update the credit with us." The same is not true of TV.com, and this is the main distinction. -- Wikipedical (talk) 06:52, 14 December 2012 (UTC)[reply]
  • delete the existence of these templates appear to give "officially sanctioned" status to a site that is user generated content, the type of content that we explicitly declare are not appropriate for external links WP:ELNO -- TRPoD aka The Red Pen of Doom 02:31, 14 December 2012 (UTC)[reply]
  • Delete . Nothing more than a Spam template for a link that fails WP:EL and which offers incentives for the creation of content which is; Self-published, Origional Research and Questionable. Website states;
TV.com links fail Wikipedias External Links policy, Verifiability Policy and Reliable Source guidelines. Equally, Wikipedia is not a repository for links--Hu12 (talk) 02:35, 14 December 2012 (UTC)[reply]
  • Keep and discuss whether tv.com is an appropriate external link at the appropriate venue. i.e. WP:ELN - This really is a ridiculous situation. Firstly, the nomination: {{Tv.com}} hasn't beeen deleted, this nomination has stopped that, as can be seen at the BRFA. The nomination here is based on the appropriateness of tv.com as an external link and some of the delete votes claim that tv.com violates WP:EL, but nobody has actually attempted to gain consensus that this is the case by by discussing the matter at WP:ELN, which is the appropriate venue for discussing the appropriateness of tv.com as an external link. Until that is done, there is little point in deleting the templates as it won't stop anyone adding tv.com urls to articles, it just means they'll have to do it manually. Deleting the templates now for any other reason is unjustifiable, and quite frankly, stupid. As of right now, tv.com related templates (those nominated here and {{tv.com}} itself) are transcluded 10,127 times. It makes perfect sense for so many uses to be done using templates instead of bare urls. The argument that "the existence of these templates appear to give 'officially sanctioned' status" to tv.com is specious at best. They do nothing of the sort They merely make it easy to link to the site. We have much looser requirements for external links than we do for citations; while they can't be used as references they can still exist and we allow templates unless a site is blacklisted. Although I have voted in the past to delete these templates,[1] I have to acknowledge that 10,127 transclusions demonstrates that the Wikipedia community accepts that tv.com is an appropriate external link, so deletion of these templates would be counter-productive at best. --AussieLegend () 06:56, 14 December 2012 (UTC)[reply]
  • Delete My thoughts echo TheRedPenOfDoom. These links fail WP:EL and embedding them in a template encourages bad linking practice. Over time the inappropriate links add up and create a cleanup headache. ThemFromSpace 07:07, 14 December 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Per comments made here, I have made a report about Tv.com at WP:EL. Instead of adding your thoughts here, please comment at the new discussion: Wikipedia:External links/Noticeboard#Tv.com. Until consensus is reached there, I withdraw this nomination. -- Wikipedical (talk) 07:11, 14 December 2012 (UTC) Wikipedical (talk) 07:11, 14 December 2012 (UTC)[reply]

    • Keep this is not the place or the manner to delete all tv.com references at once. An RfC is a more appropriate step. Jclemens (talk) 07:13, 14 December 2012 (UTC)[reply]
    • Keep and comment I am getting pretty disgusted by the constant attacks on IMDB.com as a valid source for media historical content. TV.com, at least in the realm of television is the best suitable fallback. Personally, I find IMDB and TV.com both to be as accurate as wikipedia itself, which I actually think is pretty good. What we have effectively done is eliminate the best, certainly the most complete sources of our media history. And logically, without sources, there is a faction of wikipedia (expletive deleted)s who then use the absence of an acceptable source to campaign to delete the articles. It has happened repeatedly, I fought that war during the BLP mass deletions. It made me feel like I was building sandcastles against a strong tide. Sure they can't attack the top echelon of TV, film or music stars with a wide variety of sources, but the historical articles about bit players even in major productions frequently rely on an IMDB or TV.com sources to document their credits. Before you blank out these sources, provide an acceptable alternative, lest we have a lot of perfectly valid content on wikipedia washed away. We have slippery slopes around here. Eliminating the template is just a step before the source is eliminated, followed by the articles reliant on the source. Watch out. Trackinfo (talk) 07:20, 14 December 2012 (UTC)[reply]
The above proposal to eliminate TV.com as a valid source proves my point. Why wast time just eliminating the template when we can eliminate the source? Ultimately, this is an attack on wikipedia content. A lot of articles will then be in Jeopardy!. Can I have missing wikipedia articles for $1,000 Alex? Trackinfo (talk) 07:49, 14 December 2012 (UTC)[reply]
the above rants have little to do with the appropriateness of at template linking to user generated content. and the demands that "if this 'source' that doesnt meet the standard of reliable sources is not given special permission to be used despite it not meeting the general requirements then you must provide an alternative" is complete crap. if there are not reliable sources that cover a subject, there a not reliable sources that cover the subject. period. -- TRPoD aka The Red Pen of Doom 16:56, 14 December 2012 (UTC)[reply]
Red: What we have here is a set of policies designed to create a specific outcome. Some people want to delete a huge swath of historical actor bios (along with the a lot of other wikipedia content). By eliminating IMDB and TV.com as viable sources, they leave many articles unsourced . . . even though they are accurate information. Under BLP, many of these could be deleted speedily. IMDB and TV.com have done a good job of cataloging that information, so good, there are few other competitors, certainly none as comprehensive. And this gap in information is only going to widen. History had three major networks and a handful of major studios producing the majority of content; now we have hundreds of networks and digital film anarchy on a global basis. It is probably beyond the scope of any commercial entity to keep the database alive. In such a public field (you know, the point of putting out entertainment is for a lot of people to watch) it makes sense for users to keep the details. And because this content is so public, a lot of other people have seen it too, thus having a multitude of sources to correct incorrect information and keep the catalog accurate. This is completely different from a WP:OR being the lone source to hear some quote and to present it here as fact--what these policies are trying to protect against. So what I am saying is, before you see the words "user generated" so you can close your eyes and ears and start humming, look at what these databases actually are; how the content comes to exist. And certainly until that has been done by some policy setters who have the ability to think, don't eliminate the template to the source. Trackinfo (talk) 22:00, 15 December 2012 (UTC)[reply]
1) again, your position has zero relevance as to whether the template is an appropriate official link to the site and 2) your position that because there are not other reliable third party sources that are not subject to random user generated input we need to allow these sources is FLATLY contradictory to our very basic and widely held determination that user generated content cannot be used to establish notability or for content related the living persons. -- TRPoD aka The Red Pen of Doom 23:38, 15 December 2012 (UTC)[reply]
  • Delete so that links to a poor quality and inappropriate site are not encouraged/proliferated. --Biker Biker (talk) 08:32, 14 December 2012 (UTC)[reply]
  • delete the templates. having a template for this EL sends the message that it should be added wherever possible, which is the wrong message to send. it really provides very low value information, compared to other sources, and the way the content is generated and maintained is troublesome. I have no problem with linking to this site on a very limited basis, but we should not send the message that it is one of the standard things to stick in the EL section of very article about a tv show, tv episode, etc. Frietjes (talk) 01:05, 15 December 2012 (UTC)[reply]
  • Weak delete It seems like the links are of low quality, which is the only thing that really matters, user-generated or not. A broader discussion of whether or not TV.com is an appropriate external link is a good one to have at WT:EL and WT:TV. —Justin (koavf)TCM 18:49, 16 December 2012 (UTC)[reply]
  • Comment - Just noting that the WP:ELN discussion has been in progress for over a week now and while there is some support for discouraging links to tv.com, there's no real support, and therefore no consensus, for banning them outright. Given this, there is still nothing to be gained from deleting the templates, since it still won't stop links. --AussieLegend () 15:17, 22 December 2012 (UTC)[reply]
  • Comment I don't see any good reason for deleting potentially useful links to IMDB and tv.com. They don't intentionally give out wrong information. But I have a Big question! Since this template nomination was withdrawn by user Wikipedical, why is this discussion still going on? Shouldn't this discussion be closed and archived now. --Leoboudv (talk) 08:42, 24 December 2012 (UTC)[reply]
  • Delete per nom and TRPoD. (Yes, I know it was "aithdrawn", but that doesn't mean they still shouldn't go.)Niteshift36 (talk) 14:12, 31 December 2012 (UTC)[reply]
Your vote is a little confusing since the nominator has withdrawn the nomination and directed people to the ELN discussion. Is that your position also? --AussieLegend () 14:26, 31 December 2012 (UTC)[reply]
  • Calls to close this discussion, which has now been dragging on for 18 days, started 2 weeks ago. Since tThere is no consensus at ELN to declare tv.com an unacceptable external link, the only real so an outcome here, based on the votes above, is to delete the templates. R would mean that removing the templates from the article should be by converting the templated links to bare links, not removing them outright, because of the lack of consensus mentioned. Those voting to the delete the templates appear to think this will stop tv.com being used as an external link, when it won't. It will simply make linking to tv.com less convenient and less consistent. One of the reasons for using templates is to maintain consistency across the project, so deleting the templates is counter-productive at best. Regardless, given that the nomination was withdrawn two weeks ago, it's high time somebody stepped in and closed the discussion. --AussieLegend () 14:51, 31 December 2012 (UTC)[reply]
  • Note to closing admin It seems a number of !voters here were under the mistaken belief that deleting a template was the proper way to remove a specific external link from Wikipedia. A number of knowledgeable users have pointed out that the proper venue is WP:ELN, and indeed the issue of TV.com, as an external link, was brought up at Wikipedia:External links/Noticeboard#Tv.com. There is also some confusion between WP:EL and WP:RS. EL is to provide users with helpful information that can't otherwise be included in the encyclopedia, whereas RS is to validate that our information is correct. Neither of these have anything to do with TfD. This discussion is essentially a confused mishmash of not understanding our policies, as WP:TfD is for discussing templates and not for discussing external links. I would recommend educating the !voters that seem to be misunderstanding our policies so they know the difference between broken or unused templates and the questioning of external links and also the difference between external links and reliable sources. I will also note that the outcomes at TfD are based on our WP:CONSENSUS policy, which is determining the result of arguments based on the proper application of policy. Outcomes are not based on raw vote count, which is why we use "!vote" instead of "vote". Thank you in advance. 64.40.54.118 (talk) 07:50, 2 January 2013 (UTC)[reply]