Wikipedia:Don't attack the nominator
 | This is an essay on the conduct policy. 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. |
| This is an essay on the deletion policy. 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. |
This essay is about the appropriate use of WP:BEFORE in WP:Articles for Deletion discussions based in relevant policies. The core synopsis of which can be summed up as "Don't attack the nominator".
How not to use WP:BEFORE
- 1. Don't use WP:BEFORE as an argument against the nominator. This is an ad hominem argument at AFD per WP:ATTP.
- 2. Don't use WP:BEFORE as a way to shame or humiliate the nominator. Core policies such as Wikipedia:No personal attacks, WP:CIVIL, and WP:BATTLEGROUND make this clear.
- 3. Don't use WP:BEFORE to shift the burden of evidence onto the nominator. The core policy of WP:BURDEN makes it clear that it is the responsibility of those adding content to also add supporting evidence, and not the responsibility of those challenging material to provide or find evidence. Articles lacking evidence are often brought to AFD, and justifiably so under the core policy of WP:Verifiability.
- 4. Don't use WP:BEFORE as a way to interrogate the nominator on their research or searching practices prior to making a nomination in the AFD discussion itself. Such discussions inevitably become ad hominem arguments at AFD per WP:ATTP, shame the nominator, become personal attacks, or shift the burden of evidence onto the challenger per above.
- 5. Don't use WP:BEFORE to demand more rigorous research than the process outlined at WP:BEFORE. Demanding more than the basic search required is shifting burden on to the challenger and a violation of policy at WP:BURDEN.
- 6. Don't use WP:BEFORE inside AFD discussions as it has no practical application in how articles nominated for deletion are evaluated. It doesn't impact the outcome of the nomination, and it doesn't change the way articles are evaluated in relation to wikipedia's policy pages relating to WP:Notability.
How to use WP:BEFORE
1. Follow it when making a nomination
2. When others may not follow it, have a civil conversation about that policy on that individual's talk page.