Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Anna Peterson


 * 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. (non-admin closure) DavidLeighEllis (talk) 01:29, 22 October 2015 (UTC)

Anna Peterson

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A mayor in a town in Oregon, individual appears to be non-notable per Wikipedia standards. Very little online that would prove notability. Other than being a mayor, no mentions whatsoever. Article is filled with her resume, references are few and largely primary. If not deleted, suggest merge with Salem, Oregon. -- WV ● ✉ ✓ 03:59, 8 October 2015 (UTC)


 * Comment I'm not sure merging with Salem is appropriate if she's not notable. Since notability is not temporary, putting her info in the Salem article would be unencyclopedic. Possibly merge some info to her husband's article if appropriate, if it's not already in there. Valfontis (talk) 15:01, 8 October 2015 (UTC)


 * Keep She is not the mayor of a small town in Oregon, she is the mayor of the capital city and second largest city of the state. Other current and former mayors of Oregon have their own articles, namely Kitty Piercy, Jim Torrey, Shane Bemis, all of which are or were mayors of cities the same size or smaller than Salem. Even Portland city commissioners like Steve Novick and Dan Saltzman have their own articles. I understand your deletion request for Lou Ogden, as he is the mayor of a city with less than 30,000 people, however Peterson, as mayor of a city with over 160,000, and as wife of a notable member of the Oregon Supreme Court, should stay, and according to POLOUTCOMES mayors of cities at at least a regional level (Oregon being the region here) are usually notable enough to warrant their own article. Mr.Bob.298 (talk) 23:29, 8 October 2015 (UTC)
 * Just remember that notability is not inherited. Valfontis (talk) 00:00, 9 October 2015 (UTC)
 * Note: This debate has been included in the list of Oregon-related deletion discussions. • Gene93k (talk) 12:37, 11 October 2015 (UTC)
 * Note: This debate has been included in the list of Politicians-related deletion discussions. • Gene93k (talk) 12:37, 11 October 2015 (UTC)
 * Being mayor of any size town or city does not ensure, nor create, notability per Wikipedia guidlelines and policies. Just because there are other mayor articles in Wikipedia, that doesn't make this article acceptable.  Please see WP:OTHERSTUFF.  Further, being the wife of a state Supreme Court justice means nothing, as notability is WP:NOTINHERITED.  -- WV ● ✉ ✓  14:58, 11 October 2015 (UTC)
 * I understand that. Peterson has received much local media coverage as well as out-of-state coverage as far away as Michigan. Mr.Bob.298 (talk) 20:41, 11 October 2015 (UTC)

 Relisted to generate a more thorough discussion and clearer consensus.
 * Keep. Mayor of a city of over 150,000 people and also the state capital. I think that meets the notability standards. Setting dogma aside (because dogma is invariably a terrible thing to base a decision on), in practice we do take note of the size and status of the city when we determine the notability of mayors. -- Necrothesp (talk) 13:41, 12 October 2015 (UTC)

Please add new comments below this notice. Thanks, -- Sam Sailor Talk! 12:59, 15 October 2015 (UTC)


 * Weak Keep based on my need to research and add more sources, I will change to "Keep" with more references. I think this barely passes WP:POLITICIAN, criterion 2: "Major local political figures who have received significant press coverage." It's true that despite its size, Salem seems like a small town, and the mayor isn't particularly powerful in Salem, but that doesn't cancel out the fact that she passes our standards for notability. When talking about the "significant press coverage" it is necessary to then provide proof that there is such coverage here in the AfD, since it is lacking in the article. This is a bit difficult as Peterson has a rather common name, and because most online sources talk about her in her role as mayor, and not about her specifically, but not impossible. It may be helpful to search for her as "Anna M. Peterson" and also try to find sources for her activities previous to her stint as mayor. I've been able to add some info to her article with a little digging. It should be noted that per WP:POLOUTCOMES (which, of course, is not an official guideline) "Municipal politicians are not inherently notable just for being in politics, but neither are they inherently non-notable just because they are in local politics. Each case is evaluated on its own individual merits. Mayors of cities of at least regional prominence have usually survived AFD, although the article should say more than just 'Jane Doe is the mayor of Cityville'. Mayors of smaller towns, however, are generally deemed not notable just for being mayors, although they may be notable for other reasons in addition to their mayoralty (e.g. having previously held a more notable office)." Salem should be considered as having regional prominence, despite its rather provincial feel, due to its being the capital and having the 2nd (or 3rd) largest population in the state. I'm going to continue to research and improve the article. Valfontis (talk) 21:23, 15 October 2015 (UTC)


 * 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.