m Simple Latin: e.g.=for example; i.e.=that is to say |
reorder and expand some possibilies from FAs |
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References to the show should be in the present tense since shows no longer airing still exist. |
References to the show should be in the present tense since shows no longer airing still exist. |
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=== Production === |
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Any behind the scenes information is encouraged. Some possibilities are: |
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* Conception and development |
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* Format |
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* Writing |
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* Casting |
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* Filming |
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⚫ | |||
* Filming locations |
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* Opening sequence |
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* Music |
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=== Cast and characters === |
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Remember to follow the [[WP:FICT|notability guidelines]] when creating lists and articles of characters. Not every fictional character ever created deserves to be listed and even fewer will deserve an individual article. When appropriate, split up into a list of "Main characters", "Recurring characters" and "Special appearances". An example of a typical description section follows: |
Remember to follow the [[WP:FICT|notability guidelines]] when creating lists and articles of characters. Not every fictional character ever created deserves to be listed and even fewer will deserve an individual article. When appropriate, split up into a list of "Main characters", "Recurring characters" and "Special appearances". An example of a typical description section follows: |
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=== Plot === |
=== Plot === |
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⚫ | This section should be relatively brief, only discussing important plot elements that steered the course of characters lives, or the course of the show, or at least were popular with audiences (e.g. Seinfeld's [[Soup Nazi]]). Careful sentences structure can also suggest to users upcoming spoilers so try and keep bigger plot points towards the ends of paragraphs. |
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{{Further|[[WP:NOT#IINFO|What Wikipedia is NOT]]}} |
{{Further|[[WP:NOT#IINFO|What Wikipedia is NOT]]}} |
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⚫ | This section should be relatively brief, only discussing important plot elements that steered the course of characters lives, or the course of the show, or at least were popular with audiences (e.g. Seinfeld's [[Soup Nazi]]). Careful sentences structure can also suggest to users upcoming spoilers so try and keep bigger plot points towards the ends of paragraphs. Also possible are season synopses and story arc summaries. |
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⚫ | |||
=== Themes === |
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Most television programs have themes or a so-called mythology. The producers of some mystery programs have also discredited fan theories. Be careful to reference reliable sources for these themes and do not engage in [[WP:OR|original research]] yourself. |
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===Cancellation and future=== |
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Some television programs are no longer in production. The circumstances of a cancelation may sometimes have garnered much media interest. If a show ended in a [[cliffhanger]], the producers may have answered the characters' future. Some television programs live on in television films or other media. |
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===Media information=== |
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* Broadcast history |
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* Marketing and merchandise |
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* Feature film adaptation |
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* DVD release |
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* Online distribution |
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===Reception=== |
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* Ratings |
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⚫ | * Critical reviews: Preferably from major syndicates (Associated Press, REUTERS, Canadian Press) and major newspapers (''USA Today'', ''The Toronto Star'', ''The Times'' [London]) and major periodicals (''TV Guide'', ''TIME''), these quotes can either critique the show, or comment on its impact. They should not just be descriptions of the shows, and preferably should not exceed three or so sentences. |
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⚫ | * Impact of show on society: If the show created a craze, popularized a word (''Seinfeld'' with "yada, yada, yada", etc.), revolutionized the medium (''Sesame Street'' in children's television, or the mini-series ''Roots''), or something else (many stores and businesses closed early on Mondays for allowing employees to get home on time to watch ''I Love Lucy''). When this resulted in [[merchandise]], [[movie]]s, [[book]]s or [[computer game]]s be sure to name those. |
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* Awards and nominations |
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* Fandom and popular culture |
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* International reception and broadcasters |
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⚫ | |||
A good plot description covering major story arcs is much more important than a list of episodes. For most TV shows, creating separate articles for each and every episode is not desired (see the [[Wikipedia:Centralized discussion/Television episodes|previous discussion]] on this). Expansion of episodic information should be proportional to the series' noteworthiness, and progress as follows: |
A good plot description covering major story arcs is much more important than a list of episodes. For most TV shows, creating separate articles for each and every episode is not desired (see the [[Wikipedia:Centralized discussion/Television episodes|previous discussion]] on this). Expansion of episodic information should be proportional to the series' noteworthiness, and progress as follows: |
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# The main episode list can be split further grouped by season ([[24 (season 3)]]) to allow room for longer episode summaries and production information. A summary of the season's main story points should be included as an introduction. |
# The main episode list can be split further grouped by season ([[24 (season 3)]]) to allow room for longer episode summaries and production information. A summary of the season's main story points should be included as an introduction. |
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# Individual episodes which are particularly noteworthy can be split from the season lists into their own pages. |
# Individual episodes which are particularly noteworthy can be split from the season lists into their own pages. |
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=== Impact of show on society === |
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⚫ | If the show created a craze, popularized a word (''Seinfeld'' with "yada, yada, yada", etc.), revolutionized the medium (''Sesame Street'' in children's television, or the mini-series ''Roots''), or something else (many stores and businesses closed early on Mondays for allowing employees to get home on time to watch ''I Love Lucy''). When this resulted in [[merchandise]], [[movie]]s, [[book]]s or [[computer game]]s be sure to name those. |
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=== Critical reviews === |
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⚫ | Preferably from major syndicates (Associated Press, REUTERS, Canadian Press) and major newspapers (''USA Today'', ''The Toronto Star'', ''The Times'' [London]) and major periodicals (''TV Guide'', ''TIME''), these quotes can either critique the show, or comment on its impact. They should not just be descriptions of the shows, and preferably should not exceed three or so sentences. |
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⚫ | |||
Any behind the scenes information is encouraged. This includes things like [[Running gag]]s and important [[Trivia]], but also [[Emmy Awards|Emmy]], [[Golden Globe Awards|Golden Globe]], and similar nominations and awards. Keep in mind though that [[WP:NOT#Wikipedia_is_not_an_indiscriminate_collection_of_information|Wikipedia is not an indiscriminate collection of information]] and that where possible you should use [[prose]] instead of creating long lists of [[WP:TRIVIA|trivia]]. |
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=== External links === |
=== External links === |
Revision as of 19:02, 5 March 2008
This is a WikiProject Television guide towards writing articles concerning television programs, series and shows. Remember that Wikipedia is foremost an encyclopedia and that articles therefore should try to be prosaïc instead of lists of arbitrary information that you can pull out of TV.com. Articles should be verifiable and notable. Please cite your sources wherever possible. Your articles should be written from an out-of-universe perspective.
Structure of a TV program article
Articlename
When creating a new article, bear in mind the Naming conventions concerning television articles.
Infobox
Manual of Style/Television | |
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File:DSC02502 modified.jpg | |
Genre | Comedy-drama |
Created by | Person |
Starring | John Doe Jane Doe Jim Doe Jill Doe |
Narrated by | Person |
Country of origin | United States |
No. of episodes | 1 (list of episodes) |
Production | |
Executive producer | Person |
Camera setup | Single-camera |
Running time | 60 minutes |
Original release | |
Network | TNT |
Release | July 2, 2000 – July 3, 2000 |
The standard infobox for television articles is the {{Infobox Television}} template. The box to the right is an example. We also have {{Infobox Television Film}}. Use this on films made for television.
Code
For convenience a copy, with some of the options that we advise to be used, is shown here; refer to {{Infobox Television}} for more optional fields and the latest version; its talk page has usage details, including information on the numerous optional fields. Note that entirely filling the Infobox with all its various optional fields is not a goal in itself. Many options are simply not relevant to many television shows. If the cast list gets to large you might consider linking to a section of the article instead.
{{Infobox Television | show_name = | image = | caption = | genre = | camera = | picture_format = | runtime = | creator = | developer = | executive_producer = | starring = | narrated = | country = | network = | first_aired = | last_aired = | num_episodes = | list_episodes = | website = | imdb_id = | tv_com_id = }}
Introduction
The first sentence should explain the premise, genre, setting and significance of the show. A good example of an introductory paragraph is seen in the M*A*S*H television series article.
"Inspired by the 1970 20th Century-Fox film of the same name, M*A*S*H (Mobile Army Surgical Hospital) is an American television series about a team of medical professionals and support staff stationed at the 4077th MASH in Korea during the Korean War."
It should be noted that the title of a television show is styled with italics (e.g. M*A*S*H) while the title of an episode is styled with quotation marks (e.g. "Pilot").
Depending on the length of the article and the complexity of the show, the introductory paragraph(s) can contain several more sentences which elaborate on the series. The following information can be included in the introduction:
- What made the show unique
- Years on the air
- Premiere date
- Channel of original airing/production
- Production companies
- Principal characters
- Influence
- Place in popular culture
- Major Awards
- Spin-offs
- Music or Theme
This section is usually reserved for "original-run" information, sometimes with additional US/UK information in case the series is not of US/UK origins. Lists with International broadcasting information, or syndication information is often not desired here.
References to the show should be in the present tense since shows no longer airing still exist.
Production
Any behind the scenes information is encouraged. Some possibilities are:
- Conception and development
- Format
- Writing
- Casting
- Filming
- Production design
- Filming locations
- Opening sequence
- Music
Cast and characters
Remember to follow the notability guidelines when creating lists and articles of characters. Not every fictional character ever created deserves to be listed and even fewer will deserve an individual article. When appropriate, split up into a list of "Main characters", "Recurring characters" and "Special appearances". An example of a typical description section follows:
- Character, general description, usually contains profession, habits, psychological; character may be explained more indepth later. Played by First Name Last Name
- Captain Jean-Luc Picard, one of Starfleet's most trusted captains; he has a keen sense of what to do, and thus has been known to ignore the Prime Directive. Played by Patrick Stewart.
- Big Bird is an eight-foot-tall yellow canary with a long neck, and a large curiosity for the world around him. Puppeted by Caroll Spinney.
Plot
This section should be relatively brief, only discussing important plot elements that steered the course of characters lives, or the course of the show, or at least were popular with audiences (e.g. Seinfeld's Soup Nazi). Careful sentences structure can also suggest to users upcoming spoilers so try and keep bigger plot points towards the ends of paragraphs. Also possible are season synopses and story arc summaries.
Themes
Most television programs have themes or a so-called mythology. The producers of some mystery programs have also discredited fan theories. Be careful to reference reliable sources for these themes and do not engage in original research yourself.
Cancellation and future
Some television programs are no longer in production. The circumstances of a cancelation may sometimes have garnered much media interest. If a show ended in a cliffhanger, the producers may have answered the characters' future. Some television programs live on in television films or other media.
Media information
- Broadcast history
- Marketing and merchandise
- Feature film adaptation
- DVD release
- Online distribution
Reception
- Ratings
- Critical reviews: Preferably from major syndicates (Associated Press, REUTERS, Canadian Press) and major newspapers (USA Today, The Toronto Star, The Times [London]) and major periodicals (TV Guide, TIME), these quotes can either critique the show, or comment on its impact. They should not just be descriptions of the shows, and preferably should not exceed three or so sentences.
- Impact of show on society: If the show created a craze, popularized a word (Seinfeld with "yada, yada, yada", etc.), revolutionized the medium (Sesame Street in children's television, or the mini-series Roots), or something else (many stores and businesses closed early on Mondays for allowing employees to get home on time to watch I Love Lucy). When this resulted in merchandise, movies, books or computer games be sure to name those.
- Awards and nominations
- Fandom and popular culture
- International reception and broadcasters
Episode listing
A good plot description covering major story arcs is much more important than a list of episodes. For most TV shows, creating separate articles for each and every episode is not desired (see the previous discussion on this). Expansion of episodic information should be proportional to the series' noteworthiness, and progress as follows:
- A short list of episodes is sometimes appropriate in the main article. The list should be a table with the episode title, airdate, and a one- or two-sentence summary.
- The list of episodes can be moved to a separate page when it grows too large for the main article. Please follow the conventions of our Lists of episodes TaskForce. A good example of an episode list is List of Firefly episodes.
- The main episode list can be split further grouped by season (24 (season 3)) to allow room for longer episode summaries and production information. A summary of the season's main story points should be included as an introduction.
- Individual episodes which are particularly noteworthy can be split from the season lists into their own pages.
External links
Links to the Official Website and TV.com or IMDb profile pages, should go in the infobox and should NOT be repeated in the External links. Linking to one or two (at the most) major fansites may be appropriate, but keep it limited to those that really do matter. Things like forums or blogs should not be linked to.
The standard navbox for television articles is the {{Navbox}} template. See the template's article for instructions on creating a navbox.
Categories
Please categorize your TV articles appropriately. Try looking at similar shows as an example and use Category:Television programs as your starting point for finding the right categories.
TV series should avoid network categories when they were not originally produced for that network. Exceptions to this include co-productions (such as The 4400), or when a show changes networks during its original run.
Categories for a network that doesn't actually air original programming shouldn't be made.
Templates
- {{Infobox Television}} - The infobox to use on these kinds of pages.
- {{Infobox Television Film}} - The infobox to use on films made for TV.
- {{Navbox}} - The navigational box to use on these kinds of pages.
- {{TelevisionWikiProject}} - Our WikiProject banner. Add this to the articles talkpage.
- {{Future television}} - Add this banner to the article when it is not yet airing.
- List of Television related stubs - add one of these to articles that are just stubs.
Featured articles
This is a list of articles on television shows that have reached featured article status. You can use it as a reference to get an idea of what a well written article should look like.
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See also
- List of TV shows an editable list of TV shows currently missing articles, ensuring coverage of all TV shows.