Note: Many entries on these lists will be things that should not normally in found in a |journal= parameter. They are included for two main reasons:

1. poor template usage – for example, if a website/publisher is put in a journal parameter by mistake (|journal=UnreliableWebsite.com) these will be picked up
2. redirect detection – oftentimes Wikipedia will not have an article about a specific journal, but it will have a redirect to its publisher (Unreliable Journal → Foo Society of Nonsense) or some other relevant article (Unreliable Journal → Founding editor)

The format is

{{JCW-selected|<TARGET1>|<TARGET2>|...|doi=<DOIPREFIX>|source=<SOURCE>|note=<NOTE>}}

where <DOIPREFIX> is the doi prefix (the 10.xxxx part of 10.xxxx/....) associated with a publisher, <SOURCE> is any of the codes above, or a plain URL in brackets ([https://www.example.com]). Multiple codes should be separated with a comma BLJ, DOAJ, [1]. <NOTE> should be a short explanation if there is something special about that entry, like a legitimate journal sharing a name with a problematic one.

See {{JCW-selected}} for more information and tips on how to add entries to the CiteWatch.

The CiteWatch is based on a variety of sources:

• Bohannon – John Bohannon's 2015 list of hijacked journals
• BLJ/BLJU – Beall's List of predatory journals (BLJ = Original list, BLJU = Updated list)
• BLP/BLPU – Beall's List of predatory publishers (BLP = Original list, BLPU = Updated list)
• BLH/BLHU – Beall's List of hijacked journals (BLH = Original list, BLHU = Updated list)
• BLV – Beall's list of vanity presses. Not by Beall, but by the person that maintains the new list.
• CIRC – Circular references to Wikipedia, including mirrors and forks
• DEPS – Sources deprecated by Wikipedia
• DOAJ – Journals lying about being included in the DOAJ
• RSPGU – Sources rated as "generally unreliable" on Wikipedia:Reliable sources/Perennial sources
• QW – Quackwatch's list of non-recommended periodicals
• SELF – Self-published sources and vanity publications
• SPJJ – Stop Predatory Journals's list of predatory journals (is a mirror of Beall's original list, only differences are mentionned)
• SPJP – Stop Predatory Journals's list of predatory publishers (is a mirror of Beall's original list, only differences are mentionned)
• SPJH – Stop Predatory Journals's list of hijacked journals (is a mirror of Beall's original list, only differences are mentionned)
• UCG – Removed from UGC's list of approved journals
• URF – Sources from notoriously unreliable fields
• As well as a variety of expert testimonials detailing the poor standards of certain publications.

Many things listed won't be journals (e.g. magazines, websites, books), but it helps to list them in case they get cited as a journal by mistake. If someone has access to Cabell's blacklist, the journals listed there could be added as well.