Editing Template:By whom/doc

{{Documentation subpage}}
{{High-use}}
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== Usage ==
You may append a date to the template in the following format:
* {{tlc|By whom|date{{=}}{{CURRENTMONTHNAME}} {{CURRENTYEAR}}}}

An optional link to a discussion about the concern may be added using:
* {{tlc|By whom|section{{=}}Discussion about whom|date{{=}}{{CURRENTMONTHNAME}} {{CURRENTYEAR}}}}
: The section argument will be appended to a link to the associated talk page, and displayed as <sup class="noprint Inline-Template" style="white-space: nowrap;"><nowiki>[</nowiki>''[[Wikipedia:Manual of Style/Words to watch#Unsupported attributions|<span title="The material near this tag may use weasel words or too-vague attribution. ({{CURRENTMONTHNAME}} {{CURRENTYEAR}})">by whom?</span>]] – [[Template talk:By whom#Discussion about whom|Discuss]]''<nowiki>]</nowiki></sup>
: For ease of use, the optional parameter can also be {{para|talk}} or {{para|discuss}}

== When to use ==
This tag is for placement after mention of a vague, third-party claim that is '''not [[WP:CITE|sourced]]''', such as "considered", "noted as", "nicknamed", "lauded as the world's ..." (best / largest / finest / etc.), "labeled", and the like. 

Use this tag when no specific examples of identifiable individuals or groups are named who could be used to verify the statements or beliefs that appear in the tagged passage of the article.  

'''Do not use this tag for material that is already supported by an inline citation. If you want to know who holds that view, all you have to do is look at the source named at the end of the sentence or paragraph. It is not necessary to inquire "By whom?" in that circumstance.'''

=== Alternatives ===
* Sometimes, the offending statement should be made more specific by using [[WP:INTEXT|in-text attribution]] to identify particular individuals who hold this position, and then either supplied with an [[Wikipedia:Inline citation|inline citation]] showing that this person or group holds this position, or tagged as needing citation. 
* Do not use this tag if naming the individuals who hold a position would be silly because of the number. [[WP:ASF|Facts that are widely held should be asserted as simple facts.]]  Do not use in-text attribution to imply that a widely held view is a minority position. Thus, we write simply that "the Earth is round", not "scientists like Suren Ayvazyan, Teki Biçoku, Donald Canfield, Ricardo Cirera, Hartley T. Ferrar, Nicolae Frolov, Khandaker Mosharraf Hossain, Manuel Santillán (and about a million others) say that the Earth is round".
* Extremely vague statements ("Alice Expert enjoys broad support") should normally be removed.
* Unsourced statements that say or imply something controversial [[WP:BLP|about a living person]] should be '''removed immediately'''.

This tag will categorize tagged articles into [[:Category:Articles with specifically marked weasel-worded phrases]].

==TemplateData==
{{TemplateData header}}
<templatedata>
{
	"params": {
		"section": {
			"aliases": [
				"talk",
				"discuss"
			]
		},
		"date": {
			"type": "date",
			"autovalue": "{{subst:CURRENTMONTHNAME}} {{subst:CURRENTYEAR}}",
			"suggested": true
		}
	},
	"description": "Use this tag when no specific examples of identifiable individuals or groups are named who could be used to verify the statements or beliefs that appear in the tagged passage of the article. See [[WP:WEASEL]].",
	"paramOrder": [
		"date",
		"section"
	],
	"format": "inline"
}
</templatedata>

== See also ==
* {{Tl|Peacock}} – message-box noting that an article or section promotes the subject in a subjective manner
* {{Tl|Weasel}} – message-box noting that an article or section contains vague phrasing
* [[Wikipedia:Avoid weasel words]]
* [[Wikipedia:Template messages/Cleanup#Neutrality and factual accuracy]], including boxes flagging weasel words, as well as inline templates such as {{tl|When}}

==Maintenance categories==
*{{clc|Pages using by whom template with unknown parameters}}

{{Inline tags}}

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