Commons:Deletion requests/File:Vanport flood.NWS.jpg
This photo was sourced from a gallery page previously published by the Portland office of the National Weather Service. The page contains a notice that states "these images are public domain".
However, given that:
- this image is highly uncharacteristic of the kinds taken by the US Weather Bureau (as it was then)
- NWS captions are known to be unreliable when handling third-party content
- a different page of this same gallery that carries the same "public domain" claim also contains an image with an embedded Associated Press watermark!
- this same page carries a third-party image with no attribution (but for which the copyright might have expired)
...I think that we cannot accept that claim on face value, so I set out to investigate.
- A professor of history of the Pacific North West and who has lectured on this specific flood for the Center for Columbia River History is not familiar with this image and does not know its origin (VRT ticket: ticket:2024101610012321)
- NWS Portland confirms that they first published this image in the 1990s but have no record of its origin. They thought it might have come from the Oregon Historical Society (VRT ticket: ticket:2024100510005216)
- The Oregon Historical Society has no record of this image, and suggested I try the Portland City Archives (VRT ticket: ticket:2024101610012091)
- The Portland City Archives also has no record of this image (VRT ticket: ticket:2024101610012107)
- I have also scoured contemporary newspaper stories about the flood but did not find it.
During the course of my investigations, I did uncover a very similar photo that looks as if it were made by the same photographer within moments of this image. That one is definitely free of copyright, so I uploaded it as File:1948 Vanport flood.jpg where it can be used in place of this one. (it's a much better-quality image anyway).
As far as I can tell, although taken in 1948, this photo remained unpublished until the late 1990s. Without any evidence of ineligibility for copyright, copyright having expired, or publication pre-1989 without observing the correct formalities, there is significant doubt around the NWS's claim of "public domain" for this third-party image, and so we must delete under COM:PRP.
 | Closing admins should familiarise themselves with the evidence and discussions at this RfC when closing this request. |
- Thank you for undertaking the investigation. In light of what you discovered, I agree that significant doubt exists about the "public domain" claim. I have no objection to replacing the suspect file with the similar one you note above. Finetooth (talk) 01:11, 17 October 2024 (UTC)
Delete per precautionary principle. Unclear copyright status, free alternative available. Ixfd64 (talk) 18:11, 17 October 2024 (UTC)
- Delete per above. Hurricane Clyde 🌀my talk page! 23:29, 18 October 2024 (UTC)
Deleted: per discussion and the linkd RfC. --Krd 15:14, 3 December 2024 (UTC)
