Misplaced Pages

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The Article Rescue Squad is always in need of additional help; all are welcome to try their hand at saving articles tagged for rescue!

Shortcuts WP:RESCUE WP:ARS

Please join us! All too often, an article about a notable topic lies wounded, badly written, unsourced – but should its life be taken at Articles for Deletion? No! Only articles about non-encyclopedic topics should be deleted, not articles that need improvement.

The poor current state of an article is not a sufficient reason for deletion. Some writer worked hard on that article. Some reader can use that article. Those writers and readers, if reached out to, can help us preserve this worthwhile content.

Why is it important to read Misplaced Pages:Articles for Deletion?

Every time an article is deleted, the contributions that were made to it are lost. Misplaced Pages administrators can access the information in deleted articles, but they are not necessarily experts on the article's topic. Once an article is deleted, its content, value, and appropriateness can no longer be evaluated by the general public.

In addition, the contributor who writes a poor article on a notable topic is likely to be inexperienced. If their first efforts are deleted, they may be discouraged and refrain from creating further articles, or even editing. Everyone starts somewhere, and we should encourage better writing and better articles. Good faith efforts to contribute should be met with encouragement to improve.

This makes Articles for Deletion (AfD) a very important place; one that deserves everyone's attention.

A common axiom is that "AFD is not cleanup". Consider that Misplaced Pages is a work in progress, and articles should not be deleted because no one has felt like cleaning them up yet. Remember, Misplaced Pages has no deadline. If there's good, sourceable content in the article, it should be developed and improved, not deleted. The Misplaced Pages policy of trying to correct problems in articles through editing improvements, expansion and adding reliable sources, which is addressed in detail at WP:FIXTHEPROBLEM, is often more appropriate than a complete deletion of articles.

The question on whether a poor but improvable article ought to be deleted is a major point of contention, and has given rise to the wiki-philosophies immediatism and eventualism. The Article Rescue Squadron was highlighted in a July 2007 Misplaced Pages Signpost, and has grown with many processes to tag, track, and list tagged articles.

What can one person do?

The Article Rescue Squadron is not about arguing on talk pages but instead about editing articles. If everyone who cares about preserving important topics and removing unsuitable content reads one deletion discussion per day (or even one per week), the impact will benefit all our readers. Moreover, reading through an article nominated for deletion and adding sources and rewriting the text to remove or reword unsuitable content will help other editors decide if the article should be kept or deleted.

So ARS wants to keep everything?

No. The Article Rescue Squadron (ARS) is not about casting keep votes or making policy simply to ensure that nothing is deleted. The ARS ensures that articles that can be written to follow Misplaced Pages policies do not get deleted when they can be rescued through normal editing, which per WP:AFD means that it was not a good candidate for deletion. The {{So fix it}} and {{Solookitup}} templates are sometimes all that's required for a rescue.

Instructions

What the Rescue template is for:

Our main focus is on articles on notable topics going through Articles for deletion (AfD) that:

• Need references
• Are written poorly
• Lack information readily available
• Need cleaning up.

We also help rescue content in main namespace (refer to Misplaced Pages: Namespace for more information) and other Daily deletion debates (XfD) processes, such as Miscellany for deletion (MfD) and Templates for discussion (TfD).

ARS members may also be interested in rescuing articles listed at Misplaced Pages: Listing of possible copyright problems. These articles often cover notable topics. Evaluating the extent of such problems can be difficult, but thoroughly rewriting articles with problems identified as foundational has the additional benefit of helping Misplaced Pages:WikiProject Copyright Cleanup.

Usage:

If an article has been tagged for deletion (Afd), and you feel it meets the above guidelines, then you can flag an article for rescuing by:

1. clicking edit; and
2. adding the following line of text at the top of the page as shown in the example below:

{{Rescue}}

• The article's name can also be added to the template to direct users to the proper AfD discussion within the rescue banner: {{Rescue|page= }}— by adding the article's name after the equals sign,

If you are the main editor of the article tagged for deletion, or are unsure if an article is a good candidate for the Article Rescue Squadron, then please post a message including the article's title on the Article Rescue Squadron talk page.

As part of this tag's use, please comment at the deletion discussion on why this item should be rescued and how that could happen. Your input should constructively lead the way for other editors to understand how this item can be improved to meet Misplaced Pages's policies and likely benefits our readers.

You can also add the template {{subst:Afdrescue}} to the deletion discussion, to let other editors know that this item was tagged for rescue. This produces output similar to the following:

• Note: This article has been nominated for rescue. YourUserName (talk) 12:51, 17 June 2009 (UTC)

Example:

You can flag an article for Rescue by editing it to add the bolded text under the AfD tag, but within the two sets of <!-- --> tags, as in the below example using a Robin Sage AfD:

<!-- Please do not remove or change this AfD message until the issue is settled -->

{{AfDM|page=Robin Sage|date=2007 September 11|substed=yes}}

{{Rescue}}

<!-- End of AfD message, feel free to edit beyond this point -->

The article will then appear in Category: Articles tagged for deletion and rescue, along with all the others flagged for rescue. Adding it within the two sets of <!-- --> tags will also allow the closing admin to automatically remove the tag when closing the AfD.

What the Rescue template is not for:

• Articles that are not in the AfD process, including articles that have been deleted, even if you have archived the content. You might post {{findsourcesnotice}} to the article's talk page as a way to suggest where editors may find sourced material for the article.
• Articles that, no matter what improvements were made, would be considered inappropriate per WP:What Misplaced Pages is not. Use common sense, and feel free to ask what other editors think on the project talk page.
• Articles that, after reasonable attempts, still cannot be reliably sourced.
• Userpages.

Removing a rescue tag:

It is unhelpful, and possibly disruptive, to remove the rescue tag before the deletion discussion is complete. The XfD process usually takes a week, and the tag is in place for less than that. Let the XfD closer remove it when the XfD tag is removed or the item is deleted. In all cases remain civil, and assume good faith that other editors are working to improve Misplaced Pages.

Tips to help rescue articles

• Browse Misplaced Pages:Articles for Deletion periodically, and consider tagging articles that you feel meet notability guidelines.
• Help improve articles flagged for rescue, by adding sources and otherwise cleaning them up.
• In general, discuss issues concerning an individual article on that article's talk page, not on this project's talk page.
• Check Misplaced Pages:Guide to deletion for tips.

Source searches

• Google News
• Google Book Search
• Google Scholar
• NewsLibrary.com
• FindArticles.com
• World Cat
• Misplaced Pages Reference Search by the WRS project
• Political Graveyard

Article Rescue checklist

Here's a quick checklist of 10 steps anyone can take for an article that needs rescue (in no particular order of priority):

1. Add WikiProjects – Look at the article's talk page to see if anyone has added appropriate WikiProject banners to the article. WikiProject banners help draw attention to articles from editors who are interested in the subject. You don't need anyone's permission to add a relevant WikiProject banner to an article talk page.
2. Solicit WikiProject support – Many articles needing rescue merely need attention from an expert on the subject. A short note on a WikiProject talk page seeking expert attention can bring remarkable results fast.
3. Take the time to Strengthen the Lead – The Lead sets the tone for the rest of the article. Take the time to rewrite the lead so that the article title and the contents of the article are in sync. Nothing detracts from an otherwise notable subject, than a lead that doesn't do a good job conveying what the article is about.
4. Find and add sources – It is most important that sources demonstrating the notability of a subject are added when they are found. Do it properly, using the correct citation templates.
5. Wikify the article – If an otherwise notable subject is just a bunch of unorganized content on the page, it is our job to clean it up when we find it and bring into line with our MOS. Turn poorly formatted references into proper citation templates. Add relevant sections.
6. Positively engage the new editor – When you find that the article has been created by a new editor (maybe their first one) or by inexperienced editors, engage them in a positive, mentoring way. Help them learn how to create and contribute better content. Engage them on their talk pages, encourage and challenge them, and most importantly make them feel welcome. If there are policy or guideline issues on the table, don't just refer them to a policy link, engage them in a discussion to ensure they understand what they need to understand. Even if the article is ultimately lost, this positive engagement will help us all turn new contributors into productive editors.
7. Add Infoboxes and Nav Templates – If appropriate and they are not there, add and complete as much as possible the appropriate infobox. Add relevant navigation templates.
8. Eliminate orphaned articles – Link and cross-reference the article with other articles, lists and categories. Make sure the article appears in the appropriate See also sections of related stuff. Look for sources and content in related articles that might enhance the orphaned article.
9. Eliminate the junk – If there is unsourced or irrelevant content, copyvios, OR or other "junk" in the article, eliminate it ruthlessly. If there is a question about the validity of content, start a discussion on the talk page and tag questionable content as necessary. Don't just ignore the "junk" if its there. Conversely, be sure to preserve appropriate content— as long as any of the facts or ideas added to the article would belong in a "finished" article. For more information, please refer to WP:FIXTHEPROBLEM.
10. Treat the article as if it was your best achievement – Make changes to the article that will turn it into an article that you would be proud of personally. We know how to do it, we just need to do it.

Articles currently tagged for rescue

Main page: Category: Articles tagged for deletion and rescue

Articles currently tagged for deletion

Main page: Category: Articles for deletion

Articles currently proposed for deletion

Main page: Category: Proposed deletion and Category: All articles proposed for deletion

Article alerts

Main page: Misplaced Pages: Article alerts

Selected previous rescues

• See a selected list of previous rescues at Misplaced Pages: Article Rescue Squadron/Hall of Fame

Restoration of articles

Access to deleted articles

Article restoration

• WP:SJR

A number of articles have recently been deleted as Biographies that had been flagged for years as unsourced. The admins who deleted them have said they are happy for them to be restored providing any restored articles are then properly sourced and made fully compliant with WP:BLP (Biographies of living persons). These articles that are properly sourced will simply be restored. NB To restoring admins, remove any negative material (it's in the history so it can be readded when sourced) and watchlist the article. If it isn't sourced within 48 hours, please redelete it. Suggest maximum 4 articles per restoration session, please check they were deleted for being unsourced BLPs and don't forget to restore the talkpages as well.

To volunteer to reference one or more of the articles that have recently been deleted as unreferenced BLPs, see ARS BLP volunteers..

How to become a member of Article Rescue Squadron

To join, simply add your name to our membership list; feel free to add your ideas to the project discussion page as well.
Afterward, place this tag on your user page:

• {{User Article Rescue Squadron}}

This user rescues articles for the Article Rescue Squadron.

 - There's an automatically-generated list of members using this banner here.

Once you've rescued an article or two, show your Rescue Squadron pride with

• {{User:Jclemens/Rescues|n}}

(where n is the number of articles you've helped rescue)

This user has rescued n articles by improving them in the face of pending deletion.

 - There's an automatically-generated list list of members using this banner here.

To invite someone:

To invite someone to join the Article Rescue Squadron, you can use our handy invite by pasting {{Article Rescue Squadron invite}} to their userpage.

Barnstars

There are four specific Rescue Barnstars for anyone who has made significant contributions to rescuing articles; it is up to those awarding them to choose which one to use:

Barnstars

Image What to type Description {{subst:The Rescue Barnstar|message ~~~~}} The Rescue Barnstar - to be awarded to people who rescue articles from deletion or assist in identifying and rescuing articles. This can be independent of or in cooperation with the Article Rescue Squadron. Recommended for someone who has been involved in multiple rescues. {{subst:The Rescue Barnstar 2|message ~~~~}} The Rescue Barnstar 2 - to be awarded to people who rescue articles from deletion or assist in identifying and rescuing articles. This can be independent of or in cooperation with the Article Rescue Squadron. Recommended for someone who has found articles to be saved or otherwise assisted in saving an article from AfD (deletion). {{subst:The Rescue Barnstar 3|message ~~~~}} The Rescue Barnstar 3 - to be awarded to people who rescue articles from deletion or assist in identifying and rescuing articles. This can be independent of or in cooperation with the Article Rescue Squadron. Recommended for someone who has saved an article from AfD (deletion). {{subst:The Barnstar of Recovery|message ~~~~}} The Barnstar of Recovery The Barnstar of Recovery is awarded to editors who make BOLD contributions to articles during their deletion reviews, thus saving the article from deletion. It has the international sign for "first aid" as its background. Designed and introduced by Ryan4314 on January 7, 2008.

Hall of fame:

• Misplaced Pages:Article Rescue Squadron/Hall of Fame#Award

Reasons to avoid article deletion

• It can be discouraging for an editor to have their article deleted, especially for new and first-time contributors.
• Instead of deleting articles altogether, they can be merged with other articles (see Mergism).
• It can be frustrating for a reader to come to Misplaced Pages for information and inside find that the relevant article existed at one point but has been deleted. This discourages both Misplaced Pages readership and authorship.
• Deleting a well-written, well-sourced article on the basis of what Misplaced Pages is not can reduce the total information of Misplaced Pages.

See also

Related projects

Essays, etc.

External links

• The Charms of Misplaced Pages in NY Review of Books on article rescue by Article Rescue Squadron veteran Nicholson Baker
• Andrew Lih: Unwanted: New articles in Misplaced Pages
• Deletionpedia
• wmcharts - Deletions and restorations
• The hidden Misplaced Pages: how to find deleted material about Nutritional Medicine: Orthomolecular Medicine News Service. - Free Online Library
• Kategorie:WikiPedia Deleted – Enzyklopädie PlusPedia (in German)

• Misplaced Pages WikiProjects
• Wikipedians in the Article Rescue Squadron