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Until late 2007, spoiler warnings, also known as spoiler disclaimers, were a frequent occurrence in
Knowledge articles about works of fiction. However, by 2007, some editors were also including spoiler warnings in articles about myths, folklore, fairy tales, and even biblical stories. After such a
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Supporters of spoiler warnings pointed out that it had become common practice on the
Internet to give a warning about potential spoilers any time plot details were discussed—especially details about how a work of fiction ends—and that readers had come to expect such warnings as a form of courtesy
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This guidance also applies to other relevant information beyond simple plot elements, such as "surprise" casting information for a publicly released film. Other aspects beyond prose, such as infobox materials and categories, are also considered to be within this guidance; it is not acceptable to
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Labeling a plot detail as a spoiler would require editors to use their own subjective opinions to interpret the significance of a plot detail and its likelihood of altering the enjoyment of the work of fiction. This would be a violation of
Knowledge's core policies of
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Sections that frequently contain spoiler warnings—such as plot summaries, episode lists, character descriptions, etc.—were already clearly named to indicate that they contain plot details. Therefore, further disclaimers would be redundant and
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No other academic, scholarly, or other professional publications that describe or analyze works of fiction, such as other encyclopedias, include disclaimers about spoilers when discussing said works.
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The same reasoning for including spoilers when appropriate in articles on works of fiction applies to other types of "spoilers" as well; for example, the optimal strategy for games such as
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and no spoiler warnings. A spoiler is a piece of information about a narrative work (such as a book, film, television series, or a video game) that reveals
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remove a category that is otherwise well-defining for the work's plot that otherwise could be considered to spoil the plot.
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even when most readers will ignore the disclaimers. Because of this, they argued that
Knowledge's policies and guidelines
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Spoilers are no different from any other content and should not be deleted solely because they are spoilers.
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it within) an article because you think it spoils the plot. Such concerns must not interfere with
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and section headings (such as "Plot" or "Ending"), which imply the presence of spoilers. The "
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Knowledge:Requests for comment/Wikipedia policies and guidelines/Wikipedia:Spoiler warning
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is being served. Articles on a work of fiction should primarily describe it from a
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There was no strong basis to exclude disclaimers for potential spoilers from the "
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Knowledge:Templates for deletion/Log/2007 November 8 § Template:Spoiler
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Knowledge is not a textbook, instruction manual, or video game guide
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to add "spoiler warning" notices or to delete information from (or
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Knowledge:What
Knowledge is not § Knowledge is not censored
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may apply. Substantive edits to this page should reflect
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