Wikipedia:Is wikidrama bad?

This is an essay.

It contains the advice or opinions of one or more Wikipedia contributors. This page is not an encyclopedia article, nor is it one of Wikipedia's policies or guidelines, as it has not been thoroughly vetted by the community. Some essays represent widespread norms; others only represent minority viewpoints.

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This page in a nutshell: Wikidrama often arises in bad situations, but the drama itself is not what makes them bad.

WordNet defines drama as "an episode that is turbulent or highly emotional". Those who have been editing for Wikipedia for very long are surely familiar with such episodes.

Drama on Wikipedia is often viewed as harmful for a variety of reasons. Heated arguments can go on for pages and consume many Wikipedian-hours. People may threaten to leave the project if they don't get their way. Testiness may border on or cross the line into incivility. If grudges are held, working relationships (e.g. within a WikiProject or article) may be damaged; and people may carry over resentment to other interactions with opposing editors. Once the wikidrama starts, the pace of the discussion tends to accelerate, and the situation may begin to seem out-of-control, leading to perceived urgency to do something about all the fuss.

Uncomfortable with such situations and/or concerned about their possible implications, onlookers may take measures to stop or prevent drama; in particular, closing debates or blocking contributors.

Before overreacting to a drama-filled situation, consider:

Process is important. Process is even more important when a contentious issue is involved. Many such debates will never end in near-unanimity, but they can end in a workable consensus when cloture is achieved, which can be seriously damaged if normal process is subverted.
Catharsis. In some situations, drama happens because a lot of people have strong feelings about a situation. It is important to allow them to express themselves: if they don't have an appropriate place to do it, it will come out in inappropriate places.
Contentious issues. For better or for worse there are some issues on which people are deeply divided: for instance, abortion, or on Wikipedia, some issues about non-free content or deletion. Don't confuse drama over a difficult issue with troublemaking: it is not making trouble to talk about a difficult issue. (Consider, we would never delete evolution even though the article is a constant source of Wikidrama.)
Allow dissent. Sometimes these situations arise because a single editor or small group may be disaffected with some aspect of Wikipedia and may be complaining about it loudly. Such situations are not a threat, even if they can be distracting. Ending such a situation too early can be seen as quashing or disallowing dissent, which may in fact perpetuate the drama rather than resolve it.

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