Template:Cite bathroom graffiti

Wales, Jimbo. Graffiti (Scratches) (in vernacular English). Wikimedia Foundation headquarters, 47th floor, unisex bathroom, left stall. The Wikimedia Free Press. Illegal. Accessed 04:07, 7 April 2024 (UTC). Described as "gorgeous."

Template documentation

Usage

This is a citation template for use specifically when citing graffiti found in a bathroom. For graffiti found elsewhere, use the more generalized {{Cite graffiti}}. For graffiti in so-called "washrooms", please remove the wall upon which it is located, bring it to a bathroom in a country that speaks proper English, and then use this template.

Blank syntax

{{cite bathroom graffiti | artist= | medium= | language= | general_location= | specific_location= | gender= | stall= | publisher= | legality = | access-date= | quality= }}

Reliability

Not all bathroom graffiti is reliable! Like all other sources, it needs to be evaluated on its individual merits, taking into account the expertise of its creator, the level of editorial control involved in its creation, and other factors.

The first step in this process is normally confirming the identity of the creator. For establishing this, a signed affidavit is normally sufficient. If the creator is unknown, you can ask to review security footage. If the creator is a known scoundrel, the graffiti is likely unreliable, whereas if they are an upstanding citizen, it is likely reliable. If they were an upstanding citizen but are no longer so after being arrested following your investigation, there is no consensus; evaluate the situation ad hoc and discuss on the Graffiti Sources Noticeboard if dispute arises.

After this, you must understand the circumstances behind the creation of the graffiti to assess its editorial process. If a publisher was involved, research their reputation: academic publishers are typically the best, and publishers that only produce graffiti are typically the worst. If no publisher was involved, the graffiti was self-published and is likely unreliable. However, if you conduct an oral history interview with the creator and end up really liking them and befriending them, this makes the graffiti reliable. However, at that point you have a conflict of interest, so you must ask another editor to add the citation.

To be verifiable, per the result of a 2025 RfC, you must be able to produce digital photographic proof of the graffiti upon request. Your image must be at least 600 × 800 pixels in resolution, with adequate lighting sufficient to identify the portions of the graffiti containing the information which you are citing.

TemplateData

A template for creating citations to bathroom graffiti

Template parameters[Edit template data]

Parameter		Description	Type	Status
artist	artist	Creator of the bathroom graffiti (use last-first format) Example Me	User	required
publisher	publisher	Publishing company that approved the graffiti and provided editorial oversight during its creation Example [[Oxford University Press]]	Line	required
General location	general_location building structure park lot area	Building or general location of the bathroom containing the graffiti Example [[Versailles]]	Line	required
Specific location	specific_location floor	Location of the bathroom containing the graffiti within the structure or general area Example 2nd floor, west wing	Line	required
gender	gender	Gender designation of the bathroom containing the graffiti Suggested values female male unisex	Unknown	required
stall	stall	Stall in which the graffiti is located Example Third stall from the left	Line	required
legality	legality	Whether or not the graffiti was created in accordance with the strictures of the law Suggested values Illegal Legal Possibly legal	Unknown	required
medium	medium	Materials used to create the graffiti Suggested values Oil Acrylic Watercolor Scratches Pencil Ink Spray paint Feces Ceramic glaze Mischtechnik Gold leaf	Unknown	required
quality	quality	Subjective assessment of the artistic quality of the graffiti Example trash	Line	required
language	language	Language in which the graffiti is written, if intelligible Example Klingon	Unknown	required
Access date	access-date	The specific day and time (to the minute, if possible) when you viewed the graffiti Example April 7, 1887 at 4:07 UTC	Date	required

Editors can experiment in this template's sandbox (create | mirror) and testcases (create) pages.
Subpages of this template.