Wikipedia:Avoid branding
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 | This page in a nutshell: Avoid using brand marks (e.g. logos) where including them might make it seem like the entity has endorsed the page. |
Avoid the branding of articles, the practice of placing official logos or other brand marks on a Wikipedia article page in a manner resembling official endorsement of a webpage. Wikipedia articles should avoid placing brand marks in an official manner, such as in corners of a page, as might be done by an organization which endorses or hosts a webpage.
Examples:
- The U.S. National Park Service (NPS) often brands each webpage on its websites with the NPS-arrow logo in a top corner. Wikipedia articles should avoid placing the NPS logos in such areas of a page. Sometimes people think that each page related to a particular subject could be marked, graphically, by placing a logo (or other branding mark) in a similar location on each page. Such placement must consider whether readers of the page might typically conclude the information was being "officially stamped" by inclusion of that logo. In general, avoid placing other logos in the corners of pages.
- Articles about the office of President of the United States should avoid marking each page, in a margin or corner, with the logo of the U.S. President, to avoid the appearance that information on the page has been officially sanctioned by the U.S. administration.
In general, avoid marking a page with official logos, official seals, or other branding marks, which might give the appearance that the information on a page is endorsed, or officially maintained, by the branding organization.
Placement of a relatively small logo, as an identifying mark, could be used when the placement of the symbol does not give the appearance of being an official branding of the page.
Logos or brand marks belonging to the Wikimedia Foundation are not a problem. The concern is about official brand marks of other organizations.