User:Turtlens
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I'm a Canadian with a penchant for politics. I live in Nova Scotia, where I have been involved in election campaigns for my local MP Peter Stoffer and MLA Kevin Deveaux, both members of the NDP. Most of my contributions to Wikipedia have been on mathematical subjects, probably the most notable of which is a biographical entry about Emma Lehmer.
I recently posted a short article on Marcy Wheeler, a well known blogger who has covered the Valerie Plame case, and related issues, such as the Bush government's case for the existence of WMD's in Iraq.
The original article was quickly whittled down to a speedy delete. I asked for clarification on why the article was deleted so quickly, and was advised that Wheeler lacked notability. I was dumbfounded. She's a luminary in her neighbourhood. I beefed up the article and resubmitted. It was speed deleted a second time, and I complained. I rewrote the article and resubmitted again, and its current incarnation is under discussion for deletion. I appreciate the opportunity to argue in support of the article as being about a notable person.
The question was raised of self-promotion. Marcy Wheeler has had no involvement in the writing of this entry, neither prompting, nor feeding of facts or sources. The idea for the article was mine. I did write to one contributor at FireDoglake, after the first speed deletion, asking if they thought Wheeler worthy of a Wikipedia entry, and the answer was yes, with moral support, but nothing more so far. I also emailed someone who had posted a photo of Wheeler, and asked if they would consider adding it to my article. The article sources were all derived from either my memory of articles on the web, or from web searches for information to flesh out the article.
I have occasionally commented on posts by emptywheel, but, to the best of my knowledge, I have never met her or anyone else at FDL, The Next Hurrah, Daily Kos, or The Huffington Post. I admire Wheeler's ability to analyze information, and to then explain what she's gleaned. Knowing of her blog contributions, and her live blogging at Libby's trial, I thought her worthy of a Wikipedia entry, which I attempted.
Concerning notability. Her analysis of Plamegate and related issues seemed to me extraordinarily perceptive. That she was asked by Jane Hamsher to write a book on the subject is remarkable. That she was able to pull it off in time to be available during the Libby trial is quite remarkable. That her live blogging at the Libby trial provided a narrative and commentary for the courtroom action is even more remarkable. The main stream media acknowledged the value of her blogging - see the NY Times reference, and the Washington Post reference. Plame's husband Joseph Wilson calls her book definitive, admittedly in a book blurb, but still, he should know.
Her book did attract a number of reviews, although I found none in the MSM (main stream media).
The debate on whether the Marcy Wheeler entry should be deleted is an eye-opener for me. People with admittedly no knowledge of the principal are essentially arguing - I don't know her, she must be a nonentity. My article on Emma Lehmer was written to mark her hundredth birthday. How many of you would suggest that Lehmer lacks notability? How many of you have a clue who Emma Lehmer is? And I forgot to sign that article as well.
If I were writing the article without being concerned about the notability argument, I would have left out the paragraph where I mention the several occasions that she is interviewed. But again, that she was selected for these various interviews suggests that people knowledgeable on the subject think she is notable.
For your edification, I recommend to you Marcy Wheeler's "prologue to Anatomy of Deceit", where she describes the evolution of her involvement in the Plame affair.
--Turtlens 02:46, 6 April 2007 (UTC)
