VassarWiki:Policies: Difference between revisions

Revision as of 01:59, 29 March 2026

Policies are the foundational principles of the site. Policies should not be confused with guidelines, which are formed by community consensus.

Be bold!

Contributions do not require prior approval, so be bold! If someone finds an issue with your edit, it can be reverted and discussed on a chat page. Though not required, it's encouraged that you understand VassarWiki policy and any relevant guidelines before editing.

Source your edits

All content on encyclopedia pages must be sourced. By sourcing your edits, you help the project be tethered to reality, as well as help readers find resources. Sources fall into three categories, listed in decreasing authority:

Reliable publications like external newspapers/journals, The Miscellany News, and official Vassar websites
Public statements by VSA-recognized student organizations
Current or past Vassar individuals (including you!)

Don't steal

All content on VassarWiki must be original or in the public domain. If you want to include a resource that is copyrighted, please link to it in an "External links" section. All contributions made on VassarWiki is released under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License.

Don't censor information you don't like

VassarWiki is not censored.

As a result of this principle, negativity towards any subject is allowed. On encyclopedia pages, negative information must be from a neutral point of view, verified by sources of types 1 or 2.

Content concerning living people is held to a higher standard than content about other subjects.

Don't be a jerk

Please be respectful and civil. Harassment, defamation, and privacy violations are not tolerated. Nonconstructive edits will be removed, and responsible editors may be permanently or temporarily suspended from editing VassarWiki.

Resolve disputes through building consensus

Disputes over content should be discussed on the respective talk page and resolved through consensus. While voting can be utilized, it should not act as a replacement for discussion.

Where there is a dispute and a consensus hasn't yet formed or cannot form, the page should remain at the status quo ante bellum. If this is for some reason especially untenable, please report the page and it will be dealt with by an administrator. Edit warring (reverting back and forth) is not tolerated (even if you're right).

If a dispute doesn't go your way, respect the decision. VassarWiki relies on consensus.

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
-== List of policies ==
+'''Policies''' are the foundational principles of the site. Policies should not be confused with [[VassarWiki:Guidelines|guidelines]], which are formed by community consensus.
-=== Be bold! ===
-Contributions do not require prior approval. So be bold! If someone finds an issue with your edit, it may be reverted and discussed on a talk page. Though not required, it's encouraged that you understand VassarWiki policy and any relevant guidelines before editing.
-=== Sourcing ===
+== Be bold! ==
-All content on encyclopedia pages must be sourced. Sources fall into three categories, listed in decreasing order of authority:
+Contributions do not require prior approval, so be bold! If someone finds an issue with your edit, it can be reverted and discussed on a chat page. Though not required, it's encouraged that you understand VassarWiki policy and any relevant guidelines before editing.
+== Source your edits ==
+All content on encyclopedia pages must be sourced. By sourcing your edits, you help the project be tethered to reality, as well as help readers find resources. Sources fall into three categories, listed in decreasing authority:
 # Reliable publications like external newspapers/journals, The Miscellany News, and official Vassar websites
@@ Line 11: / Line 14: @@
 === Don't steal ===
-All content on VassarWiki must be original or in the public domain. If you want to include a resource that is copyrighted, please include it in an "External links" section. All contributions made on VassarWiki are under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License.
-=== VassarWiki is not censored ===
+All content on VassarWiki must be original or in the public domain. If you want to include a resource that is copyrighted, please link to it in an "External links" section. All contributions made on VassarWiki is released under the [https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/ Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License].
-Content should generally not be removed but revised. VassarWiki is ''not censored''. Negative information about any subject is allowed, though it must be accompanied by sources of types 1 or 2. Content concerning living Vassar people are held to a higher standard than content about other subjects.
+=== Don't censor information you don't like ===
+VassarWiki is not censored.
+As a result of this principle, negativity towards any subject is allowed. On encyclopedia pages, negative information must be from a neutral point of view, verified by sources of types 1 or 2.
+Content concerning living people is held to a higher standard than content about other subjects.
+=== Don't be a jerk ===
+Please be respectful and civil. Harassment, defamation, and privacy violations are not tolerated. Nonconstructive edits will be removed, and responsible editors may be permanently or temporarily suspended from editing VassarWiki.
+=== Resolve disputes through building consensus ===
-=== Disputes and behavior ===
 Disputes over content should be discussed on the respective talk page and ''resolved through consensus''. While voting can be utilized, it should not act as a replacement for discussion.
 Where there is a dispute and a consensus hasn't yet formed or cannot form, the page should remain at the ''status quo ante bellum''. If this is for some reason especially untenable, please report the page and it will be dealt with by an administrator. Edit warring (reverting back and forth) is not tolerated (even if you're right).
-Please be respectful and civil. Harassment, defamation, and violations of privacy are not tolerated and will be promptly removed. Unconstructive edits will be reverted, and responsible editors may be permanently or temporarily suspended from editing.
+If a dispute doesn't go your way, respect the decision. VassarWiki relies on consensus.