Editing Wikipedia (section)

== <span id="Rules_and_laws_governing_content">Policies and laws</span>{{anchor|Rules and laws governing content and editor behavior}} ==
{{anchor|Censorship}}
{{External media | width = 220px | float = right |headerimage = [[File:Jimbo at Fosdem cropped.jpg|210px]] | video1 =
[https://www.cbsnews.com/news/wikipedia-jimmy-wales-morley-safer-60-minutes/ Wikimania], ''[[60 Minutes]]'', [[CBS]], 20 minutes, April 5, 2015, co-founder Jimmy Wales at [[Fosdem]] | access-date = April 5, 2015}}

Content in Wikipedia is subject to the laws (in particular, [[copyright]] laws) of the United States and of the US state of [[Virginia]], where the majority of Wikipedia's servers are located. Beyond legal matters, the editorial principles of Wikipedia are embodied in the "five pillars" and in numerous policies and guidelines intended to appropriately shape content. Even these rules are stored in wiki form, and Wikipedia editors write and revise the website's policies and guidelines.<ref name="pcworld who's behind WP">{{cite web |url=https://www.pcworld.idg.com.au/index.php/id;1866322157;fp;2;fpid;2 |title = Who's behind Wikipedia? |website = PC World |date = February 6, 2008 |access-date = February 7, 2008 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080209110303/https://www.pcworld.idg.com.au/index.php/id%3B1866322157%3Bfp%3B2%3Bfpid%3B2 |archive-date = February 9, 2008}}</ref> Editors can {{srlink|Wikipedia:Enforcement|enforce these rules}} by [[Deletion of articles on Wikipedia|deleting]] or modifying non-compliant material. Originally, rules on the non-English editions of Wikipedia were based on a translation of the rules for the English Wikipedia. They have since diverged to some extent.<ref name="WP some sites stable versions 1" />

=== Content policies and guidelines{{anchor|Content policies}} ===
According to the rules on the English Wikipedia, each entry in Wikipedia must be about a topic that is [[wikt:encyclopedic|encyclopedic]] and is not a dictionary entry or dictionary-style.<ref name="WP content policy 1">{{srlink|Wikipedia:What Wikipedia is not|What Wikipedia is not}}. Retrieved April 1, 2010. "Wikipedia is not a dictionary, usage, or jargon guide."</ref> A topic should also meet [[notability in the English Wikipedia|Wikipedia's standards of "notability"]],<ref name="WP notability guide 1">{{srlink|Wikipedia:Notability|Notability}}. Retrieved February 13, 2008. "A topic is presumed to be notable if it has received significant coverage in reliable secondary sources that are independent of the subject."</ref> which generally means that the topic must have been covered in mainstream media or major academic journal sources that are independent of the article's subject. Further, Wikipedia intends to convey only knowledge that is already established and recognized.<ref name="NOR" /> It must not present original research. A claim that is likely to be challenged requires a reference to a reliable source. Among Wikipedia editors, this is often phrased as "verifiability, not truth" to express the idea that the readers, not the encyclopedia, are ultimately responsible for checking the truthfulness of the articles and making their own interpretations.<ref name="WP Verifiability policy 1">{{srlink|Wikipedia:Verifiability|Verifiability}}. February 13, 2008. "Material challenged or likely to be challenged, and all quotations must be attributed to a reliable, published source."</ref> This can at times lead to the removal of information that, though valid, is not properly sourced.<ref name="IHT WP valid info wrong removable 1">{{cite news |last = Cohen |first = Noam |author-link=Noam Cohen |title = For inclusive mission, Wikipedia is told that written word goes only so far |newspaper = [[International Herald Tribune]] |page = 18 |date = August 9, 2011}} {{subscription required}}</ref> Finally, Wikipedia must not take sides.<ref name="autogenerated2" />