{{guideline|WP:AUTO
WP:AB}} {{TOCleft}} {{Redirect|WP:AUTO|information about autoblocks|Wikipedia:Autoblock}} {{Guideline_list}} You should wait for others to write an article about subjects in which you are personally involved. This applies to articles about you, your achievements, your business, your publications, your website, your relatives, and any other possible conflict of interest. Wikipedia has gone through many prolonged disputes about the significance, factual accuracy, and neutrality of such articles, including one about Jimmy Wales himself http://www.cadenhead.org/workbench/news/2828. Refraining from such editing is therefore important in maintaining Wikipedia's neutral stance and in avoiding the appearance of POV-pushing. If you have published elsewhere on a subject, we welcome you to contribute to articles on the subject for Wikipedia. However, every Wikipedia article is expected to cover its subject in a neutral, fair, and comprehensive way in order to advance knowledge of the subject as a whole. Articles that exist primarily to advance the contributor will likely be deleted. == The problem with autobiographies == {{quotation|It is said that Zaphod_Beeblebrox's birth was marked by earthquakes, tidal waves, tornadoes, firestorms, the explosion of three neighbouring stars, and, shortly afterwards, by the issuing of over six and three quarter million writs for damages from all of the major landowners in his Galactic sector. However, the only person by whom this is said is Beeblebrox himself, and there are several possible theories to explain this.|''The_Hitchhiker's_Guide_to_the_Galaxy'', Fit the Ninth}} Although humorous, the above illustrates the several fundamental problems with autobiographies: *They are often biased, usually positively (see Puffery). People have a tendency towards self-aggrandizement when talking about themselves, and for presenting opinions as facts. Wikipedia does not present opinions as facts. Muhammad_Ali writing "I am the greatest" in a Wikipedia article about himself is not acceptable, for example. Wikipedia articles must be written from a neutral point of view (which does ''not'' mean simply writing in the third person). *They can be unverifiable. If the only source for a particular fact about you is ''you yourself'', then readers cannot verify it. (One common area where this is the case is with hopes, dreams, thoughts, and aspirations. There is no way for readers to verify what you think.) However true something may be, if readers cannot verify it, it does not belong here. Everything in Wikipedia articles must be verifiable. *They can contain original research. People often include in autobiographies information that has never been published before, or which is the result of firsthand knowledge. This type of information would require readers to perform primary research in order to verify it. (For example: Unless your shoe size is, for some extraordinary reason, already a matter of widespread public knowledge, including your shoe size in an article about yourself is original research, since verifying it would require readers to come to you and measure your feet for themselves.) Wikipedia is not a publisher of first instance, and as such, original research is not permitted in Wikipedia. == If Wikipedia already has an article about you == It is difficult to write neutrally about yourself. Therefore, it is considered proper on Wikipedia to let others do the writing. Instead, contribute material or make suggestions on the article's talk page and let independent editors write it into the article itself. However, in clear-cut cases, it is permissible to edit pages connected to yourself. So, you can revert vandalism; but of course it has to be ''simple'', obvious vandalism, and not just a content dispute. Similarly, you should feel free to correct mistaken or out-of-date facts about yourself, such as marital status, current employer, place of birth, and so on. However, be prepared that if the fact has different interpretations, others will edit it. Since Wikipedia is an encyclopedia, it should be a secondary or Tertiary_source. This means that Wikipedia should not contain any "new" information or theories (see Wikipedia:No_original_research) and all information should have checkable third-party references. Facts, retellings of events, and clarifications which you may wish to have added to an article about yourself must be verifiable. Wikipedia does not wish to have an inaccurate article about you. Our Neutral point of view policy means that we aim to have a balanced and fair article. Our goal is not to offer opinions of our own, but only to accurately reproduce those of others, which should be sourced and cited. You can help by pointing us to sources which can enable a more balanced view to be presented. If you don't like the photo, you can help Wikipedia by contributing a good photo under a suitable Free_content license. It would probably be a good idea to identify yourself on the article's talk page with the {{tl|Notable Wikipedian}} notice. == Creating an article about yourself == Creating an article about yourself is ''strongly'' discouraged. If you create such an article, it might be listed on articles for deletion. Deletion is not certain, but many feel strongly that you should not ''start'' articles about yourself. This is because independent creation encourages independent validation of both significance and verifiability. All edits to articles must conform to Wikipedia:No_original_research, Wikipedia:Neutral_point_of_view, and Wikipedia:Verifiability. If your achievements, etc., are verifiable and genuinely notable, and thus suitable for inclusion in Wikipedia, someone else will probably create an article about you sooner or later. (See Wikipedia:Wikipedians_with_articles.) Note that anything you submit can be edited by others. Several autobiographical articles have been a source of dismay to their original authors after a period of editing by the community, and in at least four instances have been listed for deletion by their original authors. In some cases the article is kept even if the original author requests otherwise. People are generally unable to determine whether they are themselves encyclopedic. One thing which you can do to assist other Wikipedia editors is, if you already maintain a personal website, please ensure that any information that you want in your Wikipedia article is already on your own website. As long as it's not involving grandiose claims like, "I was the first to create this widget," or "My book was the biggest seller that year," a personal website ''can'' be used as a reference for general biographical information. As the Wikipedia Verifiability policy states: ''Self-published sources and other published sources of dubious reliability may be used as sources in articles about themselves . . . so long as the information is notable, not unduly self-aggrandizing, and not contradicted by other published sources.'' ==See also== *Wikipedia:Biographies_of_living_persons *Wikipedia:Deletion_of_vanity_articles *Wikipedia:Conflict_of_interest *Wikipedia:Notability_(people) Autobiography Ar:ويكيبيديا:سيرة_ذاتية Da:Wikipedia:Selvbiografier De:Wikipedia:Selbstdarsteller Es:Wikipedia:Autobiografía He:ויקיפדיה:אוטוביוגרפיה Ja:Wikipedia:自分自身の記事をつくらない No:Wikipedia:Selvbiografi Pl:Wikipedia:Tworzenie_artyku%C5%82%C3%B3w_o_w%C5%82asnej_osobie Th:วิกิพีเดีย:ชีวประวัติตนเอง Tr:Vikipedi:Otobiyografi Zh:Wikipedia:不要介绍自我
WP:AB}} {{TOCleft}} {{Redirect|WP:AUTO|information about autoblocks|Wikipedia:Autoblock}} {{Guideline_list}} You should wait for others to write an article about subjects in which you are personally involved. This applies to articles about you, your achievements, your business, your publications, your website, your relatives, and any other possible conflict of interest. Wikipedia has gone through many prolonged disputes about the significance, factual accuracy, and neutrality of such articles, including one about Jimmy Wales himself http://www.cadenhead.org/workbench/news/2828. Refraining from such editing is therefore important in maintaining Wikipedia's neutral stance and in avoiding the appearance of POV-pushing. If you have published elsewhere on a subject, we welcome you to contribute to articles on the subject for Wikipedia. However, every Wikipedia article is expected to cover its subject in a neutral, fair, and comprehensive way in order to advance knowledge of the subject as a whole. Articles that exist primarily to advance the contributor will likely be deleted. == The problem with autobiographies == {{quotation|It is said that Zaphod_Beeblebrox's birth was marked by earthquakes, tidal waves, tornadoes, firestorms, the explosion of three neighbouring stars, and, shortly afterwards, by the issuing of over six and three quarter million writs for damages from all of the major landowners in his Galactic sector. However, the only person by whom this is said is Beeblebrox himself, and there are several possible theories to explain this.|''The_Hitchhiker's_Guide_to_the_Galaxy'', Fit the Ninth}} Although humorous, the above illustrates the several fundamental problems with autobiographies: *They are often biased, usually positively (see Puffery). People have a tendency towards self-aggrandizement when talking about themselves, and for presenting opinions as facts. Wikipedia does not present opinions as facts. Muhammad_Ali writing "I am the greatest" in a Wikipedia article about himself is not acceptable, for example. Wikipedia articles must be written from a neutral point of view (which does ''not'' mean simply writing in the third person). *They can be unverifiable. If the only source for a particular fact about you is ''you yourself'', then readers cannot verify it. (One common area where this is the case is with hopes, dreams, thoughts, and aspirations. There is no way for readers to verify what you think.) However true something may be, if readers cannot verify it, it does not belong here. Everything in Wikipedia articles must be verifiable. *They can contain original research. People often include in autobiographies information that has never been published before, or which is the result of firsthand knowledge. This type of information would require readers to perform primary research in order to verify it. (For example: Unless your shoe size is, for some extraordinary reason, already a matter of widespread public knowledge, including your shoe size in an article about yourself is original research, since verifying it would require readers to come to you and measure your feet for themselves.) Wikipedia is not a publisher of first instance, and as such, original research is not permitted in Wikipedia. == If Wikipedia already has an article about you == It is difficult to write neutrally about yourself. Therefore, it is considered proper on Wikipedia to let others do the writing. Instead, contribute material or make suggestions on the article's talk page and let independent editors write it into the article itself. However, in clear-cut cases, it is permissible to edit pages connected to yourself. So, you can revert vandalism; but of course it has to be ''simple'', obvious vandalism, and not just a content dispute. Similarly, you should feel free to correct mistaken or out-of-date facts about yourself, such as marital status, current employer, place of birth, and so on. However, be prepared that if the fact has different interpretations, others will edit it. Since Wikipedia is an encyclopedia, it should be a secondary or Tertiary_source. This means that Wikipedia should not contain any "new" information or theories (see Wikipedia:No_original_research) and all information should have checkable third-party references. Facts, retellings of events, and clarifications which you may wish to have added to an article about yourself must be verifiable. Wikipedia does not wish to have an inaccurate article about you. Our Neutral point of view policy means that we aim to have a balanced and fair article. Our goal is not to offer opinions of our own, but only to accurately reproduce those of others, which should be sourced and cited. You can help by pointing us to sources which can enable a more balanced view to be presented. If you don't like the photo, you can help Wikipedia by contributing a good photo under a suitable Free_content license. It would probably be a good idea to identify yourself on the article's talk page with the {{tl|Notable Wikipedian}} notice. == Creating an article about yourself == Creating an article about yourself is ''strongly'' discouraged. If you create such an article, it might be listed on articles for deletion. Deletion is not certain, but many feel strongly that you should not ''start'' articles about yourself. This is because independent creation encourages independent validation of both significance and verifiability. All edits to articles must conform to Wikipedia:No_original_research, Wikipedia:Neutral_point_of_view, and Wikipedia:Verifiability. If your achievements, etc., are verifiable and genuinely notable, and thus suitable for inclusion in Wikipedia, someone else will probably create an article about you sooner or later. (See Wikipedia:Wikipedians_with_articles.) Note that anything you submit can be edited by others. Several autobiographical articles have been a source of dismay to their original authors after a period of editing by the community, and in at least four instances have been listed for deletion by their original authors. In some cases the article is kept even if the original author requests otherwise. People are generally unable to determine whether they are themselves encyclopedic. One thing which you can do to assist other Wikipedia editors is, if you already maintain a personal website, please ensure that any information that you want in your Wikipedia article is already on your own website. As long as it's not involving grandiose claims like, "I was the first to create this widget," or "My book was the biggest seller that year," a personal website ''can'' be used as a reference for general biographical information. As the Wikipedia Verifiability policy states: ''Self-published sources and other published sources of dubious reliability may be used as sources in articles about themselves . . . so long as the information is notable, not unduly self-aggrandizing, and not contradicted by other published sources.'' ==See also== *Wikipedia:Biographies_of_living_persons *Wikipedia:Deletion_of_vanity_articles *Wikipedia:Conflict_of_interest *Wikipedia:Notability_(people) Autobiography Ar:ويكيبيديا:سيرة_ذاتية Da:Wikipedia:Selvbiografier De:Wikipedia:Selbstdarsteller Es:Wikipedia:Autobiografía He:ויקיפדיה:אוטוביוגרפיה Ja:Wikipedia:自分自身の記事をつくらない No:Wikipedia:Selvbiografi Pl:Wikipedia:Tworzenie_artyku%C5%82%C3%B3w_o_w%C5%82asnej_osobie Th:วิกิพีเดีย:ชีวประวัติตนเอง Tr:Vikipedi:Otobiyografi Zh:Wikipedia:不要介绍自我