Wikipedia:The Five Pillars of Untruth

This is a humorous essay. It contains the advice or opinions of one or more Wikipedia contributors and is made to be humorous. This page is not one of Wikipedia's policies or guidelines, as it has not been thoroughly vetted by the community. Some essays represent widespread norms; others only represent minority viewpoints. This essay isn't meant to be taken seriously.

Shortcuts WP:5TRUE WP:5UNTRUE WP:5U WP:5POU

This page contains material that is kept because it is considered humorous. Such material is not meant to be taken seriously.

This page is intended as humor. It is not, has never been, nor will ever be, a Wikipedia policy or guideline. Rather, it illustrates standards or conduct that are generally not accepted by the Wikipedia community.

Wikipedia's bad side workings can easily be summarized in these five pillars.

Wikipedia is not an encyclopedia.

It is a soapbox, an advertising platform, a vanity press, an experiment in anarchy and democracy, an indiscriminate collection of raw data, a web directory, a dictionary, a newspaper, and a collection of source documents, all in one.

Wikipedia is not written from a neutral point of view.

We strive for articles that explain only one point of view in a partial tone. We like advocacy and debate issues. In articles with multiple points of view, we always choose one and present it as "the truth" or "the best view". Editors' personal experiences, interpretations, feelings and opinions belong here.

Wikipedia is not free content.

Each article is owned by an editor and contributions are not allowed to be redistributed.^{[citation needed]}

Editors should be disrespectful and uncivil to each other.

Disrespect your fellow Wikipedians, even when you agree. Make personal attacks. Never seek consensus, always make edit wars whenever you can, and disrupt Wikipedia to illustrate a point. After all, we have the right to free speech. Always assume bad faith on other's contributions. Always bite the newcomers. If a conflict arises, revert other's edits.

Wikipedia has firm rules.

It has policies and guidelines that are carved in stone. Their literal wording matters the most. Don't be bold in updating edits and agonize about making mistakes.

This and this are completely untrue. Always ignore them.