You mean it’s not … fun… any more?
It’s not notable because there’s nothing special about the use of the concept in that episode. It was special in the Muppet episode because it was a pun and a character. As far as earliest usage is concerned, “wikipedia is not original research” so editors shouldn’t be guessing about earliest usage - they should only mention it if it has been determined by an outside source; also, “wikipedia is a not a dictionary” - the article should really be about the concept and history of gofers as a thing, and not the history of the word itself, except as it would contribute to the understanding of the thing itself.
That said I sympathize; there have been times where I’d prefer certain trivia or pop culture references were left in. Certainly the former - the latter obviously has the potential to get out of control and become irrelevant.
As far as “wikipedia is edited by everyone - shouldn’t my desire to have the information there count?” Yes of course, but for wikipedia to have some sense of consistency, certain global policies have been developed. I don’t agree with all of them either, but the proper way to confront that is not to ignore the policy, but to discuss changes to the policy on the policy page.
As far as original research and pop culture references and word origins, wiki’s sister projects have places for all of these (wikia and wiktionary for example).
Well, thanks! I think that pretty much covers it.
You can also go to the history tab and find out who made the change… if you ask politely on their talk page for a more thorough explanation of their edit, and if they aren’t simply a deletion nazi, they will often help you out.
jackdavinci
Yes that was my alleged “argument” in a previous posting.
Now, I can see how things could get out of hand with people citing any kind of popular culture reference such as the World Wrestling Federation, Monster Truck Rallies, Arena Football, porn movies, etc.
It is a judgment call, and a tough one at that. For example, in an article about William Shakespeare, people would probably consider a reference to Richard Burton being more relevant and acceptable as opposed to citing Carrot Top.
Still, those references can make the article interesting. Again, with Shakespeare, it might be interesting to note that the Beatles song “I Am The Walrus” has quotes from King Lear in its conclusion.