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Notability, while not an official policy on Wikipedia, is a term often employed when discussing the worth of an article in the course of an AfD debate. There are a number of reasons why notability is not considered a good standard for deleting an article; these are outlined in Wikipedia:Notability/Arguments#Arguments against deleting articles for non-notability.
Specifically, the distinct lack of objective criteria is most important, as it can lead to systemic bias in deletion debates based on the interests (and disinterests) of Wikipedia participants. As Wikipedia:Notability/Essay points out, most articles described as non-notable usually fall short of Wikipedia policy in another area: original research, vanity, or (most often) being unverified. The objection to 'non-notable' is therefore characterised as "arguing semantics", and 'non-notable' has become perhaps the most commonly cited reason for deletion in AfD debates.