This help page is a
how-to guide. It details processes or procedures of some aspect(s) of Wikipedia's norms and practices. It is not one of
Wikipedia's policies or guidelines, and may reflect varying levels of
consensus and
vetting. |
Someone deleted a picture from the article I was working on... HELP
First, take a deep breath, and remain calm. There are people here who can help with your questions, and if possible, find a solution to your problem. There are basically two type of pictures (images, files, pics, etc.) that are used here on Wikipedia:
A free image is an image that can be freely used anywhere on Wikipedia. A free image may be either public domain, or released under a free license, such as CC-BY-SA. Free images can be used in any article where their presence would add value. As long as there is a consensus among the editors working on an article that the image is appropriate for the article, it's safe to say that it can remain in an article. Free images can even be modified and used elsewhere.
Non-free images, however, are subject to restrictions. Album covers and TV screenshots are two types of images that are typically non-free. They may belong to a person or organization who has not agreed to release them freely to the public, and there may be restrictions on how they are used. These are the types of files that this guide discusses. Because these non-free images involve real world legal issues, very often the wording of our guides is necessarily complex and difficult to understand. By calmly discussing the issues, policies, and guidelines everyone can gain a better understanding of what can be used, and how it can be used.
There are generally three sources of image removal: an editor looked at the image and decided that it was inappropriate as placed in the context of the article or that its use did not meet non-free content guidelines (see below); a bot (an automated script or tool) that surveys articles found that the image was missing necessary licensing information to allow the image to remain and automatically removed it; and on occasion, as the result of "blanking" vandalism.
No one is automatically allowed to use non-free images or content in an article or elsewhere on Wikipedia. To use non-free items, all 10 of the items below must be satisfied.
If all these rules are met, then it's possible that the image or file can be inserted into the article.
It is best to take the time to read and understand all 10 of the above criteria, but there are two in particular that are frequently not satisfied, causing the image to be removed:
To ensure that these criteria are met, the following questions should be answered:
The above questions help identify common problems satisfying the NFCC requirements. However, even if a rationale is present and properly formatted, there is no guarantee the image will meet all 10 of the criteria. There may be other problems with the image use; the next section will help put you in touch with an editor who can help identify them.
If you were able to determine from the trouble-shooting steps above why the image was removed, go ahead and correct the problem if you can. However, if it is still not clear why the image was removed, do not simply put the image back in. Instead:
Whatever you do, don't edit-war with the person or bot that removed the image; repeatedly restoring a removed image without first resolving the issues that caused its removal can lead to being blocked from editing. Instead, follow the steps above to resolve the issue the right way, through proper attention to our non-free use policies and consensus on the article's talk page as to which images to include in a particular article.
This help page is a
how-to guide. It details processes or procedures of some aspect(s) of Wikipedia's norms and practices. It is not one of
Wikipedia's policies or guidelines, and may reflect varying levels of
consensus and
vetting. |
Someone deleted a picture from the article I was working on... HELP
First, take a deep breath, and remain calm. There are people here who can help with your questions, and if possible, find a solution to your problem. There are basically two type of pictures (images, files, pics, etc.) that are used here on Wikipedia:
A free image is an image that can be freely used anywhere on Wikipedia. A free image may be either public domain, or released under a free license, such as CC-BY-SA. Free images can be used in any article where their presence would add value. As long as there is a consensus among the editors working on an article that the image is appropriate for the article, it's safe to say that it can remain in an article. Free images can even be modified and used elsewhere.
Non-free images, however, are subject to restrictions. Album covers and TV screenshots are two types of images that are typically non-free. They may belong to a person or organization who has not agreed to release them freely to the public, and there may be restrictions on how they are used. These are the types of files that this guide discusses. Because these non-free images involve real world legal issues, very often the wording of our guides is necessarily complex and difficult to understand. By calmly discussing the issues, policies, and guidelines everyone can gain a better understanding of what can be used, and how it can be used.
There are generally three sources of image removal: an editor looked at the image and decided that it was inappropriate as placed in the context of the article or that its use did not meet non-free content guidelines (see below); a bot (an automated script or tool) that surveys articles found that the image was missing necessary licensing information to allow the image to remain and automatically removed it; and on occasion, as the result of "blanking" vandalism.
No one is automatically allowed to use non-free images or content in an article or elsewhere on Wikipedia. To use non-free items, all 10 of the items below must be satisfied.
If all these rules are met, then it's possible that the image or file can be inserted into the article.
It is best to take the time to read and understand all 10 of the above criteria, but there are two in particular that are frequently not satisfied, causing the image to be removed:
To ensure that these criteria are met, the following questions should be answered:
The above questions help identify common problems satisfying the NFCC requirements. However, even if a rationale is present and properly formatted, there is no guarantee the image will meet all 10 of the criteria. There may be other problems with the image use; the next section will help put you in touch with an editor who can help identify them.
If you were able to determine from the trouble-shooting steps above why the image was removed, go ahead and correct the problem if you can. However, if it is still not clear why the image was removed, do not simply put the image back in. Instead:
Whatever you do, don't edit-war with the person or bot that removed the image; repeatedly restoring a removed image without first resolving the issues that caused its removal can lead to being blocked from editing. Instead, follow the steps above to resolve the issue the right way, through proper attention to our non-free use policies and consensus on the article's talk page as to which images to include in a particular article.