On 18/10/2007, joshua.zelinsky@yale.edu joshua.zelinsky@yale.edu wrote:
Pet peeve: Avoiding self-reference is a style guide, not a content guide. That's why we can have articles like [[Jimbo Wales]] and [[Wikipedia]]. Heck, I think we're getting to the point where we could legitimately write a well-sourced article about Wikipedia Policy. And there'd be nothing wrong with that aside from the minor detail that there are more important articles to write first.
Indeed. "Avoid self reference" is simply saying "treat us, in the third person, as you would anyone else, and maintain proportion".
In the Good Old Days (TM), this meant "don't mention Wikipedia", because we were some fringe trivial organisation. Now, however, the relative significance has shifted somewhat... and mentioning Wikipedia in articles in an appropriate manner is okay.
(Admittedly, with many of our editors, it's easier to say "don't do it" than "do it well"...)