Wikipedia:Don't include every update
This is an essay. It contains the advice or opinions of one or more Wikipedia contributors. This page is not an encyclopedia article, nor is it 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 page in a nutshell: Newly released information is good, but can end up as clutter if everything goes into an article. |
Naturally, the overall goal of Wikipedia in its most general sense is to present accurate information for those who wish to read it. To fulfill that purpose, it is important to keep articles up to date, especially for
Monthly, weekly, and daily updates
Many articles have subjects that undergo regular updates.
Take, for instance,
Remember:
What can possibly go wrong?
Eventually, the deletions of both Plot of Naruto and Plot of Naruto: Shippūden came about for a variety of reasons; among those reasons was article size.
Band and singer articles
Some editors are fans of a certain band or pop singer. This itself is not a problem. However, some fans want to add every new club date a band or singer plays, even small venues that are part of a tour. There is no need to record every single time your favourite artist takes the stage. Just give the reader the big picture: "Singer XYZ did a two month North American tour at the end of 2015, playing mid-sized venues in 20 U.S. cities and six Canadian towns." The reader doesn't need to know the names of all the stages and music halls.
So... we shouldn't update articles?
Quite the contrary! Refusing to update articles can cause instances of fatal inaccuracy, which are more conterproductive to Wikipedia's goal than oversized articles or cruft.
News is good. In fact, it’s the best thing for an on-duty Wikipedian to pay attention to. What is important is to use good judgment when deciding which bits of information are encyclopedic and which are not.