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. King of ♥ ♦ ♣ ♠ 00:43, 12 August 2010 (UTC) reply

Basil Marceaux

Basil Marceaux (  | talk | history | protect | delete | links | watch | logs | views) – ( View log • AfD statistics)

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Being a Candidate for a Parties Primary Elections for a state office is Fails WP:POLITICIAN. article can be recreated at a later date. Serious WP:COATRACK issues exist as well. This guy is not the sharpest tool in the shed but we should not have and article that serves no purpose other than to mock the individuals idiocy. Weaponbb7 ( talk) 02:44, 5 August 2010 (UTC) reply

People who don't know how to punctuate "individuals" should not call other people idiots.

He isn't notable just for being a strange gubernatorial candidate, but rather for being somewhat of an internet phenomenon, with appearances on Jimmy Kimmel Live and the Colbert Report. 68.193.130.33 ( talk) 03:19, 5 August 2010 (UTC) reply

WP:COATRACK issues still apply Weaponbb7 ( talk) 03:45, 5 August 2010 (UTC) reply

Even so, a WP:COATRACK issue in this article does not mean it should be deleted if it is notable; rather, the correct remedy would be to edit it and delete the biased portions. As for WP:POLITICIAN, notability depends on whether the subject has received "significant press coverage." EdEColbert ^{Let me know} 05:57, 5 August 2010 (UTC) reply

Per WP:COATRACK, "What to do about coatracks," "An appropriate response to a coatrack article is to be bold and trim off excessive biased content while adding more balanced content cited from reliable sources." User:Milowent has pointed out that Marceaux' current notability is not temporary, but simply increased; the man has been running for years, even if he's only gained the current level of attention recently. Lawikitejana ( talk) 04:54, 7 August 2010 (UTC) reply

• Keep, sufficient media attention to indicate notability. Everyking ( talk) 06:13, 5 August 2010 (UTC) reply

• Keep or merge into the article on the election. Now significant coverage in independent sources. -- Duncan ( talk) 08:12, 5 August 2010 (UTC) reply
• Keep, Wikipedia is the first place I came to find out who this person was after seeing him mentioned everywhere. I think he's notable enough. Saudade7 08:23, 5 August 2010 (UTC) reply
• Keep, I came to Wikipedia to verify that his videos and website weren't a hoax. He has definitely become notable, and the article seems objective to me. Frimmin ( talk) 14:05, 5 August 2010 (UTC) reply
• Keep, My experience is similar to Frimmin's. I saw Marceaux videos embedded in mainstream political blogs and checked Wikipedia to learn if he was sincere or a spoof. HeyMikey —Preceding unsigned comment added by 65.15.84.52 ( talk) 15:11, 5 August 2010 (UTC) reply
• Keep, Falls under WP:N in Item #3 of WP:POLITICIAN. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 209.150.195.106 ( talk) 14:37, 5 August 2010 (UTC) reply
• Keep - Love it or hate it, it's a fact that Marceaux is a public figure now. Carrite ( talk) 15:21, 5 August 2010 (UTC) reply
• Strong keep - while more recently he's had major coverage, he's also been subject to coverage over the past ten years for his prior campaigns if you dig into it.-- Milowent • ^{talk blp-r} 15:28, 5 August 2010 (UTC) reply
• Note: This debate has been included in the list of Tennessee-related deletion discussions. -- • Gene93k ( talk) 16:59, 5 August 2010 (UTC) reply
• Note: This debate has been included in the list of Politicians-related deletion discussions. -- • Gene93k ( talk) 17:00, 5 August 2010 (UTC) reply
• Keep - Until reading this article, I had no idea that the Basil Marceaux who is running for Congress in my Congressional district is not the same one who is running for governor in my state. IMO, that bit of information value by itself would be enough to justify keeping the article (and it's not the only reason to keep). -- Orlady ( talk) 17:48, 5 August 2010 (UTC) Correction: That part of the article is wrong. It is the same guy, according to the cited source. (Goes to fix the article.) -- Orlady ( talk) 17:50, 5 August 2010 (UTC) reply

• Reread the article - "His son, Basil Marceaux, Jr., is a candidate for the US House in Tennessee's 3rd congressional district in 2010.[5]" —Preceding unsigned comment added by 128.147.28.2 ( talk) 17:55, 5 August 2010 (UTC) reply

• Yes, that is what the Wikipedia article said, but when I checked the source that the Wikipedia article cited, I found that the source indicated that the same Basil Marceaux is running for both positions. -- Orlady ( talk) 18:00, 5 August 2010 (UTC) reply

• Keep, notable public figure, he is running for both TN-3 and Governor. ^[1] rhyre ( talk) 22:04, 5 August 2010 (UTC) reply
• Keep: Notable as an expample of internet fame that has received widespread recognition outside of the web: he has been mentioned on The Soup and The Colbert Report among others, and he himself made an appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live. -- Deathawk ( talk) 23:55, 5 August 2010 (UTC) reply
• Keep: He is a pop-culture artifact and should be documented as such. Felicity4711 ( talk) 01:19, 6 August 2010 (UTC) reply

note: He is out of the running for Governor per todays elections Weaponbb7 ( talk) 01:08, 6 August 2010 (UTC) reply

• Keep as per above Rimush ( talk) 10:19, 6 August 2010 (UTC) reply
• Keep: As stated above, far more than enough press coverage to justify notability. ~ GMH talk to me 14:41, 6 August 2010 (UTC) reply
• Keep: Same reasoning - lots of press coverage, and it stands to reason that people would try to use this site to learn more about this man. -- JagSeal ( talk) 20:18, 6 August 2010 (UTC) reply
• Delete: Wikipedia is not Wikinews - the temporary notability guideline says that notability is not temporary. It does not take more than just a short burst of news reports about a single event. Articles should not be created based on interest that the subject may continue to meet the criteria in the future. No lasting notability. Marceaux was one of the trifling candidate who run for elections because this person wants to attract attention. If the topic truly blows up into a notable controversy later, he could be mentioned in the appropriate article, but who knows if that will really happen. -- Pefp ( talk) 01:17, 7 August 2010 (UTC) reply
• Keep: I came to Wikipedia to try and learn more about him precisely because his notoriety piqued my curiosity. This was the only source to actually tell me more about him without using the article as an excuse to poke fun at his campaign. Roulo42 ( talk) —Preceding undated comment added 01:58, 7 August 2010 (UTC). reply
• Strong Keep: Wikipedia has always been a place where the curious can find unbiased information, regardless of what society finds strange or unpopular. Basil Marceaux is a prime example of a small chapter in American politics that is rarely seen or talked about. Deleting Wikipedia's page on Basil Marceaux would erase this interesting chapter in America's political history. ~ footballchamp834 ( talk) 11:17, 6 August 2010 (UTC) —Preceding unsigned comment added by 24.0.82.223 ( talk) reply

  Please note that ' it's interesting' is not a valid reason for keeping an article. Robofish ( talk) 18:24, 7 August 2010 (UTC) reply

• Delete - WP:NOTNEWS and WP:BLP1E. This is a trivial story about someone who will be forgotten in a week's time. You don't become notable by making a single viral video. I would say 'merge' into Tennessee gubernatorial election, 2010, but there's really no content worth merging. Robofish ( talk) 18:22, 7 August 2010 (UTC) reply
• Keep Too awesome to be deleted. Just kidding! Speaking seriously, there are clearly enough reliable sources to meet WP:BIO. According to the press coverage, this guy is clearly notable beyond simply being a failed/current political candidate. Steven Walling 03:06, 8 August 2010 (UTC) reply
• Keep. Enough excited news coverage elsewhere, including direct reporting for Wonkette, which is unusual. Whether or not it's Marceaux/Palin 2012, people will want to turn to Wikipedia for the sober facts. (And when will June Griffin get an article?) -- Hoary ( talk) 22:11, 8 August 2010 (UTC) reply
• Delete. Article is just an excuse to show a Republican politician with a mustache. Oh wait, we're supposed to be unbiased here... Sourced. Public. Where's the beef? Keep. Dekkappai ( talk) 22:53, 8 August 2010 (UTC) reply

KEEP. HE IS A ROLE MODEL FOR ME. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 24.210.36.42 ( talk) 19:44, 11 August 2010 (UTC) reply

• Keep. This guy was in a YouTube video my cousin said he saw. That makes him more notable than articles on Ancient Greek philosophy, which should be deleting for being fake. Thanks for all the fish! -- 95.34.73.118 ( talk) 01:54, 9 August 2010 (UTC) reply
• Keep: say youtube clip and wanted to read information on this person. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 129.171.150.131 ( talk) 16:10, 9 August 2010 (UTC) reply
• Strong Delete Are you guys insane? Having a video go viral and being a day long joke on the internet does not establish notability if somebody wants to mention him in the campaign article be my guest. There are plenty of other "candidates" for governor who lack notability and do not deserve their own articles. Should we create articles for all 135 candidates who ran in the California gubernatorial recall election, 2003? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 70.134.73.17 ( talk) 05:34, 10 August 2010 (UTC) reply

• Agreed but likewise the fact that someone is the subject of a joke on the Internet or have a viral video does not exclude someone from being notable. This person has plenty of coverage by independent news sources which automatically meets notability guidelines for politicians. BTW several of the candidates for CA Governor in the recall election have pages, for example Diane Beall Templin who doesn't seem to be very different than Mr. Marceaux besides being less amusing. Raitchison ( talk) 22:41, 11 August 2010 (UTC) reply

• Keep. Thinking he doesn't deserve sufficient notoriety (or not wanting it to be so) is different from his having the notoriety. As a perennial candidate for multiple State and Federal offices in Tennessee whose views -- bizarre as they are -- gain him wide-spread attention -- he ought to be referenced in Wikipedia. Li3crmp ( talk) 11:30, 10 August 2010 (UTC) reply

• Strong Keep This is so noteworthy! Rick Norwood ( talk) 13:28, 10 August 2010 (UTC) reply

• Keep Plenty of media sources for notability, and like some have said we need an article just so people can believe he's not a fake! GullibleKit ( talk) 15:55, 10 August 2010 (UTC) reply
• keep obviously. Aisha9152 ( talk) 17:35, 10 August 2010 (UTC) reply
• SNOW Keep. Stonemason89 ( talk) 02:33, 11 August 2010 (UTC) reply
• Strong Keep This isn't just one viral video, he has ongoing coverage that has established Basil as noteworthy in his state. Kwajsnowman ( talk) 02:46, 11 August 2010 (UTC) reply
• Keep. Soppakanuuna ( talk) 10:01, 11 August 2010 (UTC) reply
• Keep. I've seen him on several TV programs in addition to viral videos I've received. Whoever nominated this for deletion is an... -- Leodmacleod ( talk) 14:37, 11 August 2010 (UTC) reply
• Weak Keep. There seems to be enough news coverage, but I wonder how notable he will remain after the race is over. -- vi5in ^[talk] 17:20, 11 August 2010 (UTC) reply
• Strong Keep More than enough media coverage to meet WP:N for politicians. Would not be AfD'd if he received less coverage than he has. Raitchison ( talk) 22:27, 11 August 2010 (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.