Ron Ritzman wrote:
On 5/23/07, David Gerard dgerard@gmail.com wrote:
The point is that isn't particularly fame. The incident is famous, the person's pretty much only famous in association with the incident.
Could some argue that based on this [[Monica Lewinsky]] should be deleted?
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This is based on a real case (names changed to protect the innocent)
The point for me is that an article on [[Jane H. Smith]] should indicate a little about the life of John Smith. It's a biography. An article on Jane that only includes information about her being a baby that was switched at birth isn't a biography - it is a news report or an article on an incident - and no more.
Whilst the 'switched at birth' story may have reached the newspapers, it is unfair to have a biography on her. Newspapers are forgot 16 years later - only careful research with retrieve the story. On the other hand, a Wikipedia article will google and any potential employer, boyfriend, student in the school she is teaching at 24 years later - will have that information shoved in their face if they check her out.
The differences between Smith and Lewinsky are this. 1) Lewinsky has no privacy for us to protect - anyone checking her out can get all the details anywhere. 2) And this is important - although Smith and Lewinsky are only notable for one thing - the fact that Lewinsky's life has been so public means we can write a full balanced biography for her. He bio want say "she sucked Clinton's cock" it will say something about her background, career, life after the incident - in short we get the whole person. One incident yes - but that's given us enough sources to write the biography. We have no sources to write a biography on Smith (and if we find out any more it is likely to be OR) - only to record an incident. That's not a biography.
So, with Smith, if the incident is notable - then we write the incident up, (in this case I doubt it is in any sense notable) - but we don't have a biography, because WE CANNOT WRITE A BIOGRAPHY, and certainly not one compliant with our policies.
Doc