The following discussion is an archived debate of the proposed deletion of the article below. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made on the appropriate discussion page (such as the article's talk page or in a deletion review). No further edits should be made to this page.

The result was keep. Disclaimer: I learned of the existence of Adrianne Wadewitz from the post on wikimedia-l, and I believe we never crossed on Wikipedia, so that I consider myself completely uninvolved. If I count votes, it is 21 deletes against 68 keeps, with some abstaining and arguing both ways. As it is customary in such discussions, some voters do not bother to present any policy-based arguments, and after reading the discussion, I was about to close it as no consensus, despite a clear numerical consensus for keep. I think it is established that she fails WP:ACADEMIC. The discussion is whether she passes WP:GNG, and the main argument is that she got two obituaries in the high-profile newspapers, NYT and LAT, and she was mentioned in a number of publications, mostly about women's participation in Wikipedia (BBC, USA Today and others). Again, these publications without the obituaries are probably insufficient for WP:GNG, and the question, which is debated in detail below, is whether a NYT obituary is sufficient to confirm notability. From what I see, there is no consensus on this issue, and this is why a no consensus closure would be appropriate. However, given a clear numerical proportion for votes, I close the nomination as keep. If consensus has been estalished at some point that a NYT (or any other major national newspaper as LAT) obituary is by itself insufficient to confirm notability, the article can be renominated for deletion, despite my keep closure.--Ymblanter (talk) 08:30, 26 April 2014 (UTC)[reply]

Adrianne Wadewitz[edit]

Adrianne Wadewitz (edit | talk | history | protect | delete | links | watch | logs | views) – (View log · Stats)
(Find sources: Google (books · news · scholar · free images · WP refs· FENS · JSTOR · TWL)

Delete per WP:ONEEVENT. Beerest 2 Talk page 02:09, 19 April 2014 (UTC)[reply]

Note: This debate has been included in the list of Academics and educators-related deletion discussions. WWGB (talk) 02:43, 19 April 2014 (UTC)[reply]
Note: This debate has been included in the list of Internet-related deletion discussions. WWGB (talk) 02:43, 19 April 2014 (UTC)[reply]
Note: This debate has been included in the list of People-related deletion discussions. Taylor Trescott - my talk + my edits 13:50, 19 April 2014 (UTC)[reply]
Note: This debate has been included in the list of United States of America-related deletion discussions. Taylor Trescott - my talk + my edits 13:50, 19 April 2014 (UTC)[reply]
It can help add to notability, but I don't think that a NYT obit is an instant article-needing card. WP:ONEEVENT still applies. Taylor Trescott - my talk + my edits 14:40, 19 April 2014 (UTC)[reply]
It has always been practice to treat NYT obituaries as per se evidence of notability. --Lquilter (talk) 16:30, 20 April 2014 (UTC)[reply]
If there's one place that "Other stuff" should apply, it's Category:Wikipedia_people. Looking through just the male entries I notice Ting Chen, Martin Haase, Samuel Jacob Klein, Derek Ramsey (Wikipedian) all have less notability per references than Wadewitz. So why are we even having this conversation?? Carolmooredc (Talkie-Talkie) 18:48, 22 April 2014 (UTC)[reply]
One would hope that a professional journalist has met, or at the least spoken to, the person they write a news story cum obituary about. That in itself creates no COI. Do we apply that standard to journalists writing about, say, politicians? Of course not. Johnbod (talk) 15:49, 20 April 2014 (UTC)[reply]
The NYT piece was in the Media section, and clearly treated her as notable as a Wikipedian (and "activist" if we must) rather than an academic. Johnbod (talk) 19:07, 20 April 2014 (UTC)[reply]
  • Comment That's a ridiculous and disrespectful slur, which demeans the otherwise civil discussion that has been taking place on this page. I suggest you delete your comment and take your disagreements to the appropriate place. --jbmurray (talkcontribs) 18:08, 23 April 2014 (UTC)[reply]
  • Switch to Keep, now that there are two obituaries: NYT and LA Times. --jbmurray (talkcontribs) 14:28, 24 April 2014 (UTC)[reply]
BBC News Magazine: How can Wikipedia woo women editors?
USA Today: Universities 're-write' Wikipedia to fill holes, include women
Charlotte Sun Times: Remembering Adrianne Wadewitz, Beloved Wikipedia Wiz
Huffington Post: Women Relax, Men Mountaineer: What Backpacks Reveal About Gendered Marketing
Academia.edu: Adrianne Wadewitz
Famous People Obituaries: Adrianne Wadewitz, 37, Wikipedia Editor, Dies After Rock Climbing Fall
ProQuest Citation/Abstract: 'Spare the sympathy, spoil the child:' Sensibility, selfhood, and the maturing reader, 1775--1815
Google Scholar: Adrianne Wadewitz
Wikinews: Wikimedian activist Adrianne Wadewitz dies
Wikipedia Essay: Wiki-hacking: Opening up the academy with Wikipedia
Comment The above sources only further demonstrate that she and her work have received very significant coverage in mainstream media reliable sources. I was not at all familiar with her work prior to today, but this seems to be a very clear keep, based on the WP policies cited by many others in these comments. To be frank, I don't think there is even much ambiguity. There are guidelines for notability, and she satisfies them many times over. Our personal opinions about how she satisfies them are irrelevant in the face of such overwhelming evidence.
I agree, though, that the entry needs to be cleaned up a bit. Aroundthewayboy (talk) 17:05, 21 April 2014 (UTC)[reply]
"Wikimedia talks lots about a topic, a third-party source picks it up, and now it is all of a sudden notable? I don't agree." Yup—that's how it works. Whether you agree or not is moot—the third-party sources are all that matters. Daniel Case (talk) 18:30, 21 April 2014 (UTC)[reply]
Well, good or bad, AfD's can't be put on pause, so it's now or never. Supernerd11 :D Firemind ^_^ Pokedex 00:10, 21 April 2014 (UTC)[reply]
I have to agree with the fact that I cannot vote either under the idea of it's way too soon after death for the article to even exist. However, I also worked with Adrianne on several projects and cannot vote either because I would declare a COI on myself. I just feel like the article was created too soon.Mitch32(Any fool can make a rule, And any fool will mind it.) 03:58, 21 April 2014 (UTC)[reply]
You do realize that you're talking about the "Biographies of Living Persons" criteria, right? And the section about the presumption in favor of privacy? --Lquilter (talk) 02:46, 22 April 2014 (UTC)[reply]
If I can add something here, WP:Notability is not temporary. Even if it was her death which was most notable, that still works here. Even if it's short, someone who doesn't live in New York getting an obituary in the New York Times is a sign of notability. Supernerd11 :D Firemind ^_^ Pokedex 15:20, 21 April 2014 (UTC)[reply]
Regarding the notability inherent in a New York Times obituary, I'm quoting Bill McDonald, the obituaries editor for the paper: "When we look to see whether someone had made a newsworthy impact in some way — who "made a wrinkle in the social fabric," as Margo puts it — we don't equate significance with fame. In point of fact, 9 out of 10 people we write about are indeed not household names (the 10th is — a movie star, a secretary of state). But that doesn't negate their importance. Most made their marks in quiet ways, out of the public limelight, but they still made a mark, possibly on your life and mine." (Talk to the Newsroom: Obituaries Editor Bill McDonald on Measuring a Subject’s Importance). JSFarman (talk) 16:01, 21 April 2014 (UTC)[reply]


You've just argued that the article should be a WP:MEMORIAL. I suspect this emotion subconsciously underlies many of the comments here. Agricola44 (talk) 19:25, 21 April 2014 (UTC).[reply]
You may suspect that, and I may suspect other motivations -- but our speculations don't matter,* because ultimately we look at third party sources. I have really not seen anyone arguing successfully that someone who has a NYT obituary is not notable. * Actually, they do matter, because you are supposed to assume good faith. I for instance wouldn't argue for wikipedia articles for deceased editors, generally, but a Wikipedia article on a person who has been determined to be newsworthy by third-party sources is completely relevant. --Lquilter (talk) 22:46, 21 April 2014 (UTC)[reply]
  • I'd also add that the fact that someone comes to wikipedia, from a NYT obituary or other press ... exactly demonstrates why an encyclopedia article is appropriate. People who read third-party news sources or other resources may go to an encyclopedia for an overview and more information about the subject. That's why the encyclopedia exists -- to provide articles about notable topics. Which are defined by press/other third party coverage. --Lquilter (talk) 02:51, 22 April 2014 (UTC)[reply]
This wall of gushing testimonial is precisely what I was referring to above. Because Wadewitz was "one of us", there is a very real and difficult burden of objectivity to maintain. The tragedy of her death, especially the circumstances and her young age add even more burden. To read the Filll's post gives one the false impression that Wadewitz was a leading academic, whereas in reality, she was junior faculty with a record roughly on par with her title. I join those above who have expressed concern w.r.t. the way this article is being assessed and hope the closing admin will go through !votes carefully. We should not make this into an inappropriate memorial. Agricola44 (talk) 22:30, 21 April 2014 (UTC).[reply]
I have some knowledge of academia and research, well outside of this cloistered Wikipedia garden (being here anonymously, I will not fill this post with my credentials, but I have plenty of background that allows me to judge her contributions outside WP). There is little doubt in my mind that Dr. Wadewitz was already making substantial inroads in academic circles and was going to make far more. I do not "gush" over her just because I knew her or because she was a Wikipedian; in fact, I have almost completely stopped editing WP because I find the intellectual standards of most editors abysmal. Dr. Wadewitz was an exception to that observation. Not only did she have potential, but she was fulfilling that potential. Do we really need to interview those who awarded her her fellowships, and those who hired her? Having a WP article is not akin to winning the Nobel Prize for Literature, you know.--Filll (talk | wpc) 23:22, 21 April 2014 (UTC)[reply]
I also have a more than a passing familiarity with academia. Accomplishments are an open record and you can readily check hers at WorldCat, WoS, etc. What you will find is very average for a junior academic. Mind you, I have not said Wadewitz is not notable. As David said above, and NYT obit is hefty. My concern is rather that many comments here are overtly biased based on the fact that she was "one of us". For example, you've now added WP:CRYSTAL ("Not only did she have potential") to your wall of testimony. This is the sort of thing that makes WP look provincial to the outside world. Agricola44 (talk) 01:59, 22 April 2014 (UTC).[reply]
In 2013 some researchers came to the Wikipedia community and proposed to develop automated tools to start articles about women based on obituaries from the The New York Times. Their intent in doing this was to counter gender bias in Wikipedia. They had a very clever demo live on their site at that time but which now seems removed or back in closed access. When I talked with people about judging notability by having an obituary in The New York Times, some people told me that a system like this would be problematic as neither NYT obituaries nor any other single publication grant notability, and even multiple obituaries may not meet inclusion criteria.
I support the creation of Wikipedia articles according to community thought and precedent and guidelines. Without the NYT obituary I feel that this article definitely does not meet Wikipedia inclusion criteria and think others would agree. With the NYT obituary I feel that some people are persuaded, but based on other conversations and thought that I have put into this I feel that the NYT article does constitute the coverage requirements to WP:GNG. I do not like the idea of clearly defining a line in which Wikipedia policy is changed to say that people with NYT obituaries are notable, because so far as I know, this argument has not been used in the past. I definitely do not want people in the future claiming notability for everyone in the NYT unless the Wikipedia community thoughtfully says this should be so. If this article is kept I wish that it could be done so based on precedent and not because of any new rules, and I do not feel the precedent has been met here at this time. Blue Rasberry (talk) 02:16, 22 April 2014 (UTC)[reply]
(1) Who are these "some people" who told you that NYT obituaries don't signify notability? I wish I'd known about this experiment, because I would have had a lot to say about it. (2) Just as a matter of being precise, I wouldn't say that NYT obituaries -- nor any other source -- "grant notability". Rather, they demonstrate notability, which is gained by the subject. (3) I'm sort of annoyed by all of this second-guessing of third party sources, which strikes me as WP:OR and subject to bias. How, exactly, are we supposed to determine notability, if not by using reliable source indicators, of which NYT obituaries have been a keystone? Are we now supposed to apply our own personal, subjective opinions? Isn't that the very definition of original research and non-neutral point of view? Seriously. If this person were a contributor to Encyclopedia Britannica or any other work of scholarship, and for whatever reason, had become a known commentator on some issue in that work of scholarship, then we wouldn't really have a question. Excluding the subject based on the reference being Wikipedia is also a type of bias. (4) Folks who don't personally think that Wadewitz' work was notable, you are heard and recognized. Please find some objective criteria by which to distinguish the "non-notable people who receive NYT obituaries" from all the rest of them, who have always had NYT obituaries as a recognition of their status. Otherwise I'm going to have to believe that it's an unfortunate example of gender bias because Wadewitz's contributions don't seem important to you. Those of us who do work in feminist scholarship are not perhaps as skeptical, and you may wish to reconsider your own sources of knowledge and opinions, since you are deeming the most mainstream of news sources as somehow not objective or reliable. In this one instance. So I'd really like to see the criteria by which that determination is being made. --Lquilter (talk) 02:41, 22 April 2014 (UTC)[reply]
Lquilter Thanks for your comments. You seem upset. Thank you for making space for me to speak. The project to promote NYT obituaries as a standard for establishing notability is still active. If you would like to join me in contacting the project coordinators and would help them apply for a grant at meta:Grants:IdeaLab, then I would support your efforts in doing so as they have wanted help in the past. Wikipedia is not a reasonable channel for expressing emotion so I cannot properly reply to anything else you have said, but if you would like to talk by video or phone then email me. If you would like to make a proposal at WP:GNG that a NYT obituary is objective criteria indicating notability then do so and I will write a favorable argument supporting your proposal. If NYT obituaries have historically been an indicator of meeting GNG or some other inclusion criteria then of course I would immediately support keeping this article and apologize for spreading misinformation. Blue Rasberry (talk) 11:07, 22 April 2014 (UTC)[reply]
Thanks for the link, Bluerasberry. I will follow up. As to the comments on my emotional state, I think they're not appropriate, but I'll state for the record that I'm often pretty annoyed at double standards and assertions made on *FD discussions that rely on subjective assessments of lack of notability. The only objective assessments we have are media coverage; we have media coverage. For those who argue we should abandon the objective standard of media coverage for subjective views of "notability", I'd really like to know what the new standard will be. For those who argue that NYT obituary is not per se notable, I'd like to see an instance of an AfD where that was held to be true. --Lquilter (talk) 13:12, 22 April 2014 (UTC)[reply]
I am sorry for commenting on your emotional state. I felt backed into a corner when you criticized me by saying that my actions were an "unfortunate example of gender bias because Wadewitz's contributions don't seem important to you." I felt hurt that my efforts to promote women's outreach on Wikipedia were dismissed, I felt as if I were being pushed away from commenting in women's space, I felt pressured that I was being restricted from expressing myself, and because I associate Adrianne's work with my friendship with her I felt bad when you said that my actions indicate that her work was not important to me. I should not have said you were upset. I was upset. I apologize for making a statement about you because it was wrong of me to do so.
I do not want to continue this conversation here because I am not enjoying it at all. Anyone who wants to talk to me can email me and talk by phone or video. I do not wish to find an instance of AfD in which someone had a NYT obituary and was deemed to be non-notable because I am less concerned with that happening in some odd case and more concerned that inclusion based on obituary for a Wikipedia public figure will set a precedent if one does not already exist. I posted a draft of this rule at WP:BIO because I wish to answer you and divest myself of further conversation in this space. I am not happy thinking about any of this anymore. Lquilter, as I have told you before, I like what you do and I am sincerely sorry that I am unable to act in a way that avoids harming people as I harmed you. I wish to be a better person. If I had to do this over again I would never want to have a conversation like this on Wikipedia and only do things like this in person, by video, or by phone. Feel free to call me anytime to collaborate on anything - we have a lot of common interests. Blue Rasberry (talk) 13:52, 22 April 2014 (UTC)[reply]
Comment. As someone who knew Adrianne, I feel rather uncomfortable participating in this discussion. A sticking point seems to be whether or not an NYT obituary indicates sufficient notability. I rather agree with User:Bluerasberry about this. If the precedent exists, then I'm happy to follow it. If it doesn't exist, I'm not happy setting it here and in this manner. This has nothing to do with my opinion of Adrianne or of the value of her work, either on Wikipedia or elsewhere. --jbmurray (talkcontribs) 03:04, 22 April 2014 (UTC)[reply]
Ask if people will be likely to be interested in this article in ten years time. Xxanthippe (talk) 02:47, 22 April 2014 (UTC).[reply]
Actually, the nomination is mentioning WP:ONEEVENT. Taylor Trescott - my talk + my edits 10:49, 22 April 2014 (UTC)[reply]

DELETE For the following reasons (Caveat: I knew Awadewit very well):

(1) That GNG slights many who work on underrepresented issues is undeniable. However, that's a problem with GNG. GNG specifies mainstream sources. Which we have here. (2) Your sense that many of us are motivated by grief is apparently the sense of quite a few editors. It's not relevant and, in fact, not necessarily accurate. Citing to policy, practice, and precedent are relevant. Your proposal to memorialize Adrianne Wadewitz through other measures are great; but they shouldn't affect this discussion -- on whether or not AW passes GNG. (3) You are correctly noting that Wikipedia mainspace articles are not the place for memorials. Nor are they a place to delete articles on notable subjects -- as defined by GNG -- because of the feelings of editors who think the subjects wouldn't be well-represented. It's our job as editors to create and maintain well-crafted articles on notable subjects. Notability is defined by mainstream media, not us. --Lquilter (talk) 14:18, 22 April 2014 (UTC)[reply]
It will never cease to amaze and depress me how I can make more sense than anyone else in a discussion, to have someone I never met (to my knowledge) come behind and inform me which of my points are valid and which aren't. As if the people reading are too stupid or ADD to tell the difference. Maybe they are, which is why I no longer participate. Who's next? I know you guys can be persistent and condescending, if not completely accurate or intelligent. Or you can just let my lengthy points stand without response. If you dare. I don't think you do. --Moni3 (talk) 14:31, 22 April 2014 (UTC)[reply]
I think it's safe to say that we disagree, and we can leave it at that. --Lquilter (talk) 14:51, 22 April 2014 (UTC)[reply]
A wise response. I suppose Wikipedia may still have a few surprises in store. --Moni3 (talk) 14:55, 22 April 2014 (UTC)[reply]
Of course the NYT does not create notability ; it recognizes it. That's the whole point of the GNG. I have never liked our practice of using the GNG in all cases, but it is a useful backup, helpful in resolving disputes like the present one. DGG ( talk ) 01:01, 24 April 2014 (UTC)[reply]
"being a Wikipedia editor...is not notable"

"being a Wikipedia editor...is not notable" comes from the very first comment above, and I hear it echoed over and over in this discussion. I think this reflects a deep value among many Wikipedia editors, one that in 2012 I compared in a scholarly article to the analysis that historian Frederick Jackson Turner used to explain the hyper individualistic democratic psyche of the American frontiersmen in the 1800s: What they objected to was arbitrary obstacles, artificial limitations upon the freedom of each member of this frontier folk to work out his own career without fear or favor. What they instinctively opposed was the crystallization of differences, the monopolization of opportunity and the fixing of that monopoly by government or by social customs. The road must be open. The game must be played according to the rules. There must be no artificial stifling of equality of opportunity, no closed doors to the able, no stopping the free game before it was played to the end. More than that, there was an unformulated, perhaps, but very real feeling, that mere success in the game, by which the abler men were able to achieve preëminence gave to the successful ones no right to look down upon their neighbors, no vested title to assert superiority as a matter of pride and to the diminution of the equal right and dignity of the less successful. Rjensen (talk) 05:26, 23 April 2014 (UTC)[reply]

I personally think that participating in a gameshow does not make people notable. But when applying WP:GNG they become "notable" in the wikisense. Equally we can't allow what we personally think makes someone important to overrule WP:GNG to establish notability. Agathoclea (talk) 09:50, 23 April 2014 (UTC)[reply]
Exactly. Editing WP does not count toward notability, nor does participating in some game show. But if reputable media note these activities, that is when somebody becomes noteable. BTW, I object to the use of the word "deserve" or "merit" that many people above use. A bio on WP has nothing to do with deserving or meriting, but only with notability (for better or for worse). --Randykitty (talk) 09:58, 23 April 2014 (UTC)[reply]
Those are valid issues for CLEANUP, not DELETION. AFD is not for cleanup... --Randykitty (talk) 14:31, 23 April 2014 (UTC)[reply]
Uh, sorry, but WP:GNG is all about significant coverage in reliable sources independent of the subject. If the assertions in the article aren't supported by reliable sources, then they can be removed. And if they're removed, is there enough remaining for notability? 70.134.226.155 (talk) 14:41, 23 April 2014 (UTC)[reply]
Notability is independent of content. Content should reflect that notability, but poor writing cannot take away existing notability, especially if we know GNG complient sources exist. Agathoclea (talk) 14:55, 23 April 2014 (UTC)[reply]
Yes. While, WP:Notability is needed for an article to be kept, the content of the article may correctly use all kinds of sources not used for wp:notability (see eg. WP:SELFPUB). -- Alanscottwalker (talk) 15:52, 23 April 2014 (UTC)[reply]
Off-topic discussion
You claim above not to be a sockpuppet. It is not believable that you just wandered by and were instantly capable in placing obscure tags on an article. Edison (talk) 15:25, 23 April 2014 (UTC)[reply]
Note: This debate has been included in the list of Indiana-related deletion discussions. — Cirt (talk) 19:20, 23 April 2014 (UTC)[reply]
Note: This debate has been included in the list of California-related deletion discussions. — Cirt (talk) 19:20, 23 April 2014 (UTC)[reply]
Note: This debate has been included in the list of New York-related deletion discussions. — Cirt (talk) 19:20, 23 April 2014 (UTC)[reply]
Note: This debate has been included in the list of Nebraska-related deletion discussions. — Cirt (talk) 19:20, 23 April 2014 (UTC)[reply]
Note: This debate has been included in the list of Literature-related deletion discussions. — Cirt (talk) 19:20, 23 April 2014 (UTC)[reply]
Note: This debate has been included in the list of Education-related deletion discussions. — Cirt (talk) 19:20, 23 April 2014 (UTC)[reply]
Note: This debate has been included in the list of Sexuality and gender-related deletion discussions. — Cirt (talk) 19:20, 23 April 2014 (UTC)[reply]
Note: This debate has been included in the list of Social science-related deletion discussions. — Cirt (talk) 19:20, 23 April 2014 (UTC)[reply]
Note: This debate has been included in the list of Computing-related deletion discussions. — Cirt (talk) 19:20, 23 April 2014 (UTC)[reply]
Note: This debate has been included in the list of Websites-related deletion discussions. — Cirt (talk) 19:20, 23 April 2014 (UTC)[reply]
  • I respectfully disagree. Those Google links, while numerous, don't amount to "considerable previous coverage" of the subject herself. Townlake (talk) 19:24, 24 April 2014 (UTC)[reply]
Keep Quite simply, I can't see how we're meant to believe that multiple, major newspapers producing lengthy obituaries of her does not, in and of itself, pass the General Notability Guideline. They are substantial, lengthy pieces. I cannot see how this isn't enough to pass it, and consider the delete votes to have not checked the sources actually available. Non-notable people do not get lengthy New York Times obituaries, nor one from the other coast, in the Los Angeles Times. Part of her notability comes from her work with Wikipedia; however, we have plenty of sources, independent of both her and Wikipedia, to demonstrate that that's genuinely notable. Adam Cuerden (talk) 22:58, 24 April 2014 (UTC)[reply]

25 April[edit]

  • That it' s a tragedy on Wikipedia doesn't make it notable; that this tragedy was covered with lengthy obituaries in the Los Angeles Times and New York Times do. Just because someone worked on Wikipedia, and gets some notability through that doesn't make them unnotable. C.f. Jimbo Wales, Essjay, Wikipedia. Wikipedia is one of the biggest websites in the world; this will occasionally produce notability. Adam Cuerden (talk) 04:17, 25 April 2014 (UTC)[reply]
  • The answer to your question -- "Are we going to make an article about Cynthia Ashley-Nelson" -- is the answer to the question about Adrianne Wadewitz. No, because Cindamuse is not "notable" in the Wikipedia sense. Having articles in major newspapers identifies notability. That's the difference between the two. For our own memorials, in wikispace, we should honor both these individuals. For encyclopedia space, we write articles about notable people. BECAUSE once people read or hear about Wadewitz in some other forum, they are going to come to Wikipedia to read more about her. The article about Adrianne Wadewitz is not for her or her family, or our community -- it's for the readers. And for those of you who say "non-notable", I would love to know what you do with the evidence of users who attest on this page that they came to Wikipedia, from the NYT article, expecting an article about Wadewitz. --Lquilter (talk) 12:04, 25 April 2014 (UTC)[reply]
  • Reply to both: Is the obituary the only NYT and LAT article about her? We can write a long, long list of the things she published online and accomplished in life, but until other reliable sources are provided for what she did when she was alive, it's still WP:MEMORIAL/OBITUARY. Suggest a rewrite at the very least, if not deletion. I know that the wounds from her death are still raw to the community, and I apologize, but several reliable sources about her life are also needed in addition to the ones about her death (the latter of which happens very often and isn't notable in itself). Otherwise, this is just a plain old obituary. Epicgenius (talk) 13:42, 25 April 2014 (UTC)[reply]
  • We could of course argue that a wikipedia editor is inherently un-notable, therefore any sources suggesting otherwise are clearly mistaken and must be discounted. Then there are no sources left and the subject is un-notable q.e.d. Who is going to AFD Jimbo then? Agathoclea (talk) 12:30, 25 April 2014 (UTC)[reply]
my suggestion was also made out of respect for friends and colleagues of Wadewitz who find themselves having to vote on notability of their colleague and weigh the issues at a time of grief. I don't care if it stays in article space I'm just suggesting we don't need to solve this right now, and a month or two of waiting might give a different perspective. What is different is that we've lost one of our own, hence my invocation of IAR.--Obi-Wan Kenobi (talk) 02:15, 26 April 2014 (UTC)[reply]
What IAR? Your proposal is a no consensus keep -- and then someone can renominate it. Which is within rules, except one supposes that you are proposing forcing a no consensus keep? That seems unnecessary dragging out to me, who never knew her, except for what I have read in the many RS about her. Alanscottwalker (talk) 02:27, 26 April 2014 (UTC)[reply]
no, this is absolutely not a proposal to close as no-consensus. I am proposing to put this whole nomination on hold, while making no judgement whatsoever as to the state of consensus - and then re-opening with all of the extant !votes intact and open for new ones in a months time, and then have an admin actually close and assess the full consensus. I'm invoking IAR because this discussion may be creating divisions and controversy amongst us during a time when many are still in mourning.--Obi-Wan Kenobi (talk) 02:50, 26 April 2014 (UTC)[reply]
Then oppose IAR as uneeded. The article exists in a kept state on the Pedia. Apparently that will not change under IAR or usual procedure - unless the consensus is to delete but that seems most unlikely, given the sourcing. As for whether there are some who are too close to the subject, they should generally refrain from involvement, regardless. Alanscottwalker (talk) 03:06, 26 April 2014 (UTC)[reply]
The above discussion is preserved as an archive of the debate. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made on the appropriate discussion page (such as the article's talk page or in a deletion review). No further edits should be made to this page.