Is a claim published on the letters page of a newspaper notable?

Question

I recently asked about a claim that I saw on the letters page of a national newspaper. There was a comment that this wasn't a notable claim. I've asked questions on previous occasions about claims I've seen on newspaper letters pages (here, here and here). There was also a comment on that last one questioning whether it was a notable claim.

Are claims published on the letters page of a newspaper notable?

Does it depend on the newspaper - tabloid / broadsheet, or national / local?

Does it depend on who wrote the letter - expert / celebrity / random member of the public?

Answer 1

Not necessarily. Our standard of notability is "a lot of people must be believing the claim". When in doubt, remember that if the only mention you can find of a claim is a single reference, the claim is probably not notable.

If a claim was made on a column, and it was followed by many replies agreeing with it, on the other hand, probably the claim is indeed notable.

If a claim is notable it should be very easy to find people believing it and repeating it - so assuming that a single source can automatically prove notability is not the right way to look at the problem.

Answer 2

Things published in a newspaper are notable provided the newspaper is notable, national newspapers would count as notable. I don't really consider tabloids or other "Gossip" publications found in the checkout aisle at the grocery store as newspaper (and most their claims aren't really things that are allowed on this site anyway).