 | This page is currently inactive and is retained for historical reference. Either the page is no longer relevant or consensus on its purpose has become unclear. To revive discussion, seek broader input via a forum such as the village pump. It was last substantively updated 14 April 2009. |
 | Use of placeholders in a nutshell: Image placeholders were formerly used on Wikipedia for biographies of living persons but have since been deprecated. As of 2020 all placeholder images have been removed from the main namespace. |
An image placeholder is a dummy image designed to draw attention to the need for an actual image. Wikipedia image placeholders were meant to be used on articles, especially those of living people, for the purpose of trying to obtain a freely-licensed image for them. In a Wikipedia Centralized Discussion this idea was found to be controversial. Changes to the software since then have also made the system less effective, and for both of these reasons it is not currently maintained. This page is preserved as an explanation of them.