This is an essay.
It contains the advice or opinions of one or more Wikipedia contributors. This page is not an encyclopedia article, nor is it one of Wikipedia's policies or guidelines, as it has not been thoroughly vetted by the community. Some essays represent widespread norms; others only represent minority viewpoints. |
This page in a nutshell: Santa Claus is not real, and it is not Wikipedia's job to censor this fact from children. |
In 2007, David Shankbone expanded the Santa Claus article with a well-sourced, international criticism section. He was one of the main editors who argued for telling the truth about Santa's mythical nature, and per the lead guideline, he also outlined the major controversies. These actions made him unpopular with a few editors. But it is important to Wikipedia to not support people who want to hide Santa’s mythical nature, or try to make it appear he is real (originally editors were proposing a Santa Claus page for kids saying he is real).
In the spring of 2019, an RfC regarding the lead section of the Santa Claus article was held on whether the lead section should be "agnostic" about the existence of Santa Claus. The end result was that editors agreed that the lead section of the article should make it clear that Santa Claus does not exist, in line with policies such as WP:NOTCENSORED and WP:NPOV. The consensus formed by the editors further reinforces that Wikipedia is not a website where stories universally accepted as imaginary are to be given a chance to come true.
Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!