Talk:List of The Harvard Lampoon members

People to add

I'm new to Wikipedia, forgive me. So new, in fact, that I think I had better just suggest these two changes, rather than try to make 'em myself. I recommend that the following two people be added to the list of Harvard Lampoon alumni. Both of these articles mention that the subjects wrote for the Lampoon, but they are not currently mentioned on the alumni list. I think it would be good for them to be added: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steve_Young_(writer) and https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edward_L._Widmer Thanks for considering this request. Gelled Thoughts (talk) 02:24, 30 January 2023 (UTC)

Merge or delete?

Hey all, there's already a category for "Harvard Lampoon Alumni" which seems more updated than this list. Should this list be deleted since the category is already serving the same function? I haven't encountered an issue like this before, so forgive me if I'm missing something. Thanks! Crunchydillpickle (talk) 04:09, 5 February 2023 (UTC)

Categories and lists aren't considered to be inherently duplicative of each other, because they can present the information in different ways. For example, a list can cite references to justify inclusion in the list, while a category cannot — and a list can provide supplementary information, such as the fact that each name in this list is followed by a short statement of the person's occupation, while a category cannot.

A matching category and a list don't always need to exist in tandem in every situation across the board, which is why this might have seemed novel to you — because the rules for when a list is appropriate and the rules for when a category is appropriate are not identical, there can be cases where they overlap and both are justified, cases where a list is appropriate but a category is not, and cases where a category is appropriate but a list isn't. So if you feel strongly that the list should be deleted, you can always try your luck at AFD — but the fact that there's also a category is not going to be sufficient rationale all by itself, because there are reasons why lists and categories are sometimes allowed to coexist for the same topic. Bearcat (talk) 12:50, 7 February 2023 (UTC)