WRS is a search engine that only returns results from websites that some Wikipedia editors have identified as generally "reliable". Examples include nytimes.com or ieee.org for example. As with any search engine, editors must still exercise their own judgment to ensure any specific reference meets the reliability requirements for the intended use. So next time you want to work on an article, you can easily study reliable sources and possibly identify ways to improve the article text based on your research!
WRS can make a reference search very efficient, but it is not a substitute for critical analysis. We are working hard to make sure WRS shows only reliable pages, but search results always contain some irrelevant or unreliable pages. Please identify within the results which page is the best reference for your fact. Always ask yourself whether the web page you found is indeed a valid reference before inserting it into Wikipedia.
It is impossible to write the list of all reliable websites, but a hundred of reliable websites would be enough for general topics. The list of reliable websites can be refined by Wikipedians over time. A difficult task is to distinguish between various sections of a website (for instance between news and forum).
Websites considered "reliable"
Here is the list: https://github.com/nicolas-raoul/Wikipedia-Reliable-Sources/blob/master/annotations.tsv
The last few rows are labeled as "_cse_exclude", they are the URL patterns that get excluded from the search.
To add/remove/modify entries, read the instructions at https://github.com/nicolas-raoul/Wikipedia-Reliable-Sources
Notes for the maintainer
To edit the list, go to https://cse.google.com
To import the list, click on "Advanced" > "CSE Annotations" > "Add".
Suggested additions
If you want another website to be added, append it here. Don't hesitate to add many websites, it's cheap!
Hi. Can you please add: formula1.com, autosport.com, itv-f1.com? More will come from WP:F1. Thanks Cdhaptomos talk–contribs 15:52, 17 February 2009 (UTC)
Done Nicolas1981 (talk) 07:55, 18 February 2009 (UTC)
Also: grandprix.com, fia.com. Thanks Cdhaptomos talk–contribs 21:23, 17 February 2009 (UTC)
Done Nicolas1981 (talk) 07:59, 18 February 2009 (UTC)
Also: wwe.com, tnawrestling.com, slam.canoe.ca, f4wonline.com, wrestleview.com. D.M.N. (talk) 21:39, 17 February 2009 (UTC)
Done Nicolas1981 (talk) 07:59, 18 February 2009 (UTC)
Also www.consumerreports.org Smallman12q (talk) 21:45, 17 February 2009 (UTC)
- X -- Consumer Reports has a known bias within its reporting regarding American versus foreign vehicles (read up on it), and did not even test Toyota-made vehicles it recommended. I cite the following Nicolas1981 (talk) 23:38, 15 March 2009 (UTC)Google result, which includes a link to CR's 2007 statement: CR used to automatically wave through Toyota vehicles as recommended without testing. -- Guroadrunner (talk) 07:22, 18 February 2009 (UTC)
Done Included as an experiment, I let both of you discuss the topic and reach a consensus (I am neutral) Nicolas1981 (talk) 07:59, 18 February 2009 (UTC)
- Guroadrunner: I read CR's statement as something quite different: not that they didn't *test* Toyota vehicles, but rather that, because Toyota vehicles have historically been so reliable, they were assuming that new and redesigned vehicles would also be. When that turned out (after consumers had owned and driven the new models for some time, then CR changed their approach. (Also, when you're trying to prove a point, citing the best two or three sources is much, much better than providing a google search.) And if our criterion for sources is *perfection*, then I don't know of any source that qualifies. -- John Broughton (♫♫) 15:27, 19 February 2009 (UTC)
I suggest the following. -- John Broughton (♫♫) 00:20, 18 February 2009 (UTC)
- philly.com (Philadelphia Inquirer)
- sfgate.com (San Francisco Chronicle)
- oregonlive.com (Portland Oregonian newspaper)
- cleveland.com (Cleveland Plain Dealer)
- wsj.com (Wall Street Journal). Most content is available only to subscribers, but they do have some free content
Done Nicolas1981 (talk) 08:07, 18 February 2009 (UTC)
I also don't understand why you don't just include the entire .gov domain, rather than listing a bunch of separate parts of it. Is hhs.gov less reliable than ftc.gov, for example? Or a state government website less reliable than a federal one? Similarly, I don't understand why you have chosen to list some universities (USC, U. of Virginia, Tufts, etc.) and not others (JHU, UCB, UCSF, etc.) - why not just list the entire .edu domain? Universities often host student pages - see, for example, http://www-scf.usc.edu/ , so obviously editors need to make some distinctions among the pages of the .edu sites you already list - the same distinction that could be made for all edu pages. -- John Broughton (♫♫) 00:20, 18 February 2009 (UTC)
Done I added *.edu and *.gov to the list. but it does not seem to work... maybe it needs websites names and not just a TLD. The initial list comes from statistics on which websites are most linked from Wikipedia. Nicolas1981 (talk) 08:07, 18 February 2009 (UTC)
I would like 3 checkboxes to blanket-add anything returned by Google Scholar, Google Books, and Google News. Likewise, if there are other broad categories that are easy to implement and turn on/off with a check-box, do so. Broad categories should be used if by far the majority of sites/books/whatever in the category are reliable, with a user warning that not all results are in fact reliable. davidwr/(talk)/(contribs)/(e-mail) 01:51, 18 February 2009 (UTC)
- X -- I disagree with Google News as a reliable starting point for sourcing, and I can speak from personal experience: I work in the media and for my local area Google News includes results from a non-reliable blog as a news source, possibly more. I also understand Google News lists material from Associated Content, which is a user-created regurgitation of news with little to no firsthand reporting. Recommend not going with this advice on Google News. -- Guroadrunner (talk) 07:22, 18 February 2009 (UTC)
Done Added Scholar Books News as an experiment, I let both of you discuss the topic and reach a consensus (I am neutral). Nicolas1981 (talk) 08:13, 18 February 2009 (UTC)
- I also agree that Google News is overbroad; I've definitely seen blogs in the results that are in no way acceptable as a reliable source. -- John Broughton (♫♫) 15:27, 19 February 2009 (UTC)
- Davidwr, "broad categories" are a good idea, and technically feasible. Can you handle the hard work of forming those categories? Thank you! Nicolas1981 (talk) 08:13, 18 February 2009 (UTC)
- The "broad categories" should be made at the request of the community. As each is its own checkbox, and users are free to check them or not, this can be open-ended. In the long run, if user-logins are ever enabled, user-definable categories and "preset checkbox settings" could be added as well. I may want Google Scholar and News plus my 50 favorite web sites, another user may want his favorite 25 web sites but nothing else beyond the canned list of reliable sources that everyone gets. davidwr/(talk)/(contribs)/(e-mail) 16:07, 18 February 2009 (UTC)
could you add 8w.forix.com (forix motorsport site)? Thanks. D.M.N. (talk) 15:45, 28 February 2009 (UTC)
Done Nicolas1981 (talk) 16:09, 3 March 2009 (UTC)
motorsport.com, f1-live.com, mclaren.com, planet-f1.com, f1technical.net, gpupdate.net, brawngp.com, crash.net too please. Cdhaptomos talk–contribs 16:29, 6 March 2009 (UTC)
- Apart from mclaren.com and brawngp.com, none of the others as of yet satisfy WP:RS. D.M.N. (talk) 18:56, 6 March 2009 (UTC)
- Why are we using them as sources inarticles then? Cdhaptomos talk–contribs 19:42, 7 March 2009 (UTC)
Done Added all of these websites as an experiment, I let both of you discuss the topic and reach a consensus (I am neutral). Nicolas1981 (talk) 23:38, 15 March 2009 (UTC)
- I don't know really, but IMO it doesn't pass RS. D.M.N. (talk) 08:22, 16 March 2009 (UTC)
- Why are we using them as sources inarticles then? Cdhaptomos talk–contribs 19:42, 7 March 2009 (UTC)
http://mentalfloss.com/ is also a print magazine with articles on a wide variety of topics. Supernerd11 Firemind ^_^ Pokedex 17:22, 10 February 2015 (UTC)
- It would be great if two other editors could confirm whether mentalfloss is indeed considered a good reference website. Thanks! :-) Syced (talk) 13:18, 31 March 2019 (UTC)
I suggest http://archives.chicagotribune.com. Eddie Blick (talk) 01:38, 26 April 2017 (UTC)