Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Chris Lightfoot


 * 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). ItsZippy (talk • contributions) 20:24, 28 November 2011 (UTC)

Chris Lightfoot

 * – ( View AfD View log )

Low permanent notability, serious lack of resources Artsygeek (talk) 07:53, 20 November 2011 (UTC)
 * Keep - plenty of additional references available. The current article is based on 3, but I have found an additional 3 obits out there. He will certainly have notability as long as MySociety is alive. Fmph (talk) 09:06, 20 November 2011 (UTC)
 * Keep - Certainly notable in UK and Europe and becoming notable in US.  Motive for deletion doubtable.  Stephenbooth uk (talk) 16:06, 20 November 2011 (UTC)
 * Keep - Seems well sourced enough to establish notability. Rob Myers (talk) 11:57, 20 November 2011 (UTC)
 * Keep - could add a source to this in the Guardian (link), this in the Huffington Post and to a note by Tom Watson MP Crosseyedbear (talk) 13:05, 20 November 2011 (UTC) — Crosseyedbear (talk • contribs) has made few or no other edits outside this topic.
 * Keep. I am self-evidently biased (I'm a director of mySociety), but Chris was notable enough to have had a wordy obituary in The Times; I'd suggest that in itself makes him notable enough to have an article here. To quote WP:ANYBIO: "The person has made a widely recognized contribution that is part of the enduring historical record in his or her specific field." — OwenBlacker (Talk) 13:53, 20 November 2011 (UTC)
 * Keep - I agree with the previous comments. Reasons for deletion don't hold up. It is perhaps a small field, but Chris was certainly notable within it. Harry Metcalfe (talk) 15:09, 20 November 2011 (UTC)
 * Keep - Agreed with the comments --Mohamed Aden Ighe (talk) 15:24, 20 November 2011 (UTC)
 * Keep - Agree with preceding comments. Anyone notable enough to warrant a significant obituary in a major national newspaper meets the requirements of WP:ANYBIO. MarkSG (talk) 15:34, 20 November 2011 (UTC)
 * Keep - look at the list of achievements. "What did the Romans do for us? Well, apart from roads, what did the Romans do for us?" Also, civic hackers are two a penny these days, but when he and Tom Steinberg started MySociety it was a fundamentally new idea and the improvement things like TWFY, WriteToThem/FaxYourMP, FixMyStreet, WDTK represent over the official versions was all the more impressive compared to the web applications of 2004 than it is now. — 62.31.43.165 (talk • contribs) has made few or no other edits outside this topic.  16:43, 20 November 2011 (UTC)
 * Note: This debate has been included in the list of Internet-related deletion discussions.  • Gene93k (talk) 18:11, 20 November 2011 (UTC)
 * Note: This debate has been included in the list of Software-related deletion discussions.  • Gene93k (talk) 18:11, 20 November 2011 (UTC)
 * Note: This debate has been included in the list of People-related deletion discussions.  • Gene93k (talk) 18:11, 20 November 2011 (UTC)


 * Keep - Agreed with all the comments above  — 87.112.207.64 (talk • contribs) has made few or no other edits outside this topic.  18:22, 20 November 2011 (UTC)
 * Weak Delete - Despite the fact that there are several obituary-type articles written about the subject, some of which have been mentioned above (and some of which have not: ), there nonetheless appears to be no prior coverage of the individual. I'll grant that the obituaries contain some coverage and biographical information, but this is at odds with the fact that none of the individual's accomplishments were ever covered by independent sources beforehand.  It seems as though many of these current obits draw from a blog post by Tom Steinberg, a colleague of his.  I am also a little concerned about the number of single-purpose accounts contributing here, and want to address some of the arguments above:
 * He will certainly have notability as long as MySociety is alive.
 * This doesn't hold up when you consider that notability is not inherited.
 * Anyone notable enough to warrant a significant obituary in a major national newspaper meets the requirements of WP:ANYBIO.
 * I disagree with this premise. This page of recently deceased from BBC Radio 4 has many individuals who do not have Wikipedia pages.  You might argue that's because they have not been made yet, but another possibility is that they do not have enough coverage outside of obituary-type material to merit a page, much like the current subject.
 * Look at the list of achievements.
 * I did, and virtually none of them are sourced.
 * Agree with above
 * AfD is here to facilitate discussion, not votes. I, Jethrobot  drop me a line (note: not a bot!) 22:33, 20 November 2011 (UTC)


 * Keep - Clearly notable deletion is not clean-up. Andy Mabbett ( Pigsonthewing ); Talk to Andy; Andy's edits 22:42, 20 November 2011 (UTC)
 * Keep - I've an interest in UK eDemocracy topics and while I've never met him, I've been aware of Chris's contributions in this area. Added link to a BBC news article referencing his work Lordelph (talk) 22:13, 21 November 2011 (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.