Ontology:P202

1. [P] (pronounced [P]) Historical accuracy test [rating]

[P] (pronounced [P]) Scientific consensus test [rating]

field value

test passed

"Historical" [pass]

test failed

"Historical" [fail]

Characteristics in draft

Properties

item type

P

label (en)

[P] (pronounced [P]) Historical accuracy test [rating]

alias (en)

Is this description or argument historically accurate?

"Historical accuracy test" (communication question 02)

QID references

[P] (pronounced [P]) rating [rating]

color swatch references

historical record

Property data type

item

instance of

communication rating level

Usage notes

• A work generally passes this test if it successfully presents the overall set of worldwide events that have happened as far as anyone can tell instead of presenting another unverifiable set of events.
• This test can be difficult to evaluate correctly because if it is being applied to events that span more than one country, the historical narrative is required not to distort events for the benefit of one of the countries in particular, as it exists in the role of a sovereign population.
  • The proletariat is not a country, but "China" for instance is a country, and if historical events mainly occurring inside the United States were to be mis-reported for the benefit of persuading people that everything is fine in China and nothing that happens in the United States could affect China, the narrative would fail this test.
• This test does not apply if the work does not present or discuss a historical narrative of what world events have happened.
• This test may or may not apply if the work presents a historical timeline of events curated around a highly-specific "non-controversial" subject — penguins, tennis, etc. In some cases, it may be difficult to evaluate whether such a miscellaneous list of facts is an "accurate" account of history even if they are all true.
• Trotskyist sources are notorious for failing this test, after the larger category of center-Liberal or Existentialist sources with a blatant anticommunist bias.
  • Based on informal observations, RD reports approximately a 1 in 3 chance of a blatant historical error. This measurement may be replaced with a more current and precise one after more individual works are rated in the new ratings hub.
• Remember: communication rating levels do not give a definitive account of whether a piece of information is true, only whether it is worth listening to for ordinary people.

World history examples

The following types of statements or implications may be considered historical misinformation and used to fail a work:

• "The Soviet Union was founded by Lenin" (It was founded by tightly-organized sections of factory workers, and peasants that were tired of feudalism.)
• "Stalin's followers conspired to take over the Soviet Union" (They were some of the most skilled theorists and had widespread popular support.)
• "The Soviet Union allied with Nazi Germany" (The Soviet Union hesitated to risk losses through attacking Nazi Germany.)
• "Trotsky believed in Liberalism" (He was nearly the only member of the Trotskyite conspiracy that clearly didn't.)
• "Herbert Marcuse invented identity politics" (He made some kind of assertion that Marxism was equivalent to a bunch of university students spontaneously deciding to not believe in capitalism, but he didn't do that.)
• "Menshevism was invented by gangs" (No.)
• "George Washington didn't believe in liberalism" (Did he believe in monarchy? Republicanism is almost always a loose synonym for Liberalism, unless a republic is several different factions fighting over early Afghanistan without really creating much of a stable republic. Or unless the people of Afghanistan create a workers' republic.)
• (etc.)

This is not an exhaustive list.