What counts as a reliable source.

The three qualities Wikipedia looks for

Reliable

A reliable source has a reputation for editorial oversight, accuracy and fact-checking: established newspapers and magazines, books from reputable publishers, academic and peer-reviewed work. Reliability is about the source's process, not whether you agree with it.

Independent

The source must have no connection to the subject. Anything produced by you, your company, your representatives or your advertisers is not independent - and does not count towards notability, however reputable the outlet that carried it.

Secondary

A secondary source analyses, interprets or reports on a subject at one remove - the kind of coverage that demonstrates others found the subject worth writing about. Primary sources (such as official documents or interviews) have limited use and rarely establish notability on their own.

Sources that do not count

• Press releases and anything republished from them.
• Your own website, blog or marketing materials.
• Social media and self-published content.
• Paid placements, advertorials and sponsored content.
• Directory listings and routine announcements.
• Interviews, to the extent they are simply the subject speaking about themselves.

Why this is the crux of most rejections

When a page is declined "for lack of notability", the real issue is almost always sourcing: the draft leaned on material that does not count. Strong, independent, secondary coverage is what makes an article possible - and identifying it is the first practical step in our creation work. If it does not exist yet, that is the honest answer, explained in our notability guide.