Appeal to Authority
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Contents
Description
Where an assertion is deemed true or False because of the position or authority of the person asserting it, Insisting that a claim is true simply because a valid authority or expert on the issue said it was true, without any other supporting evidence offered.
Also see the Appeal to False Authority .
Names
known as: Appeal to authority, Argumentum ad verecundiam and Ipse dixit
Types
Irrelevant Argument, Informal Fallacy
logical Form
According to person 1, who is an expert on the issue of Y, Y is true.
Therefore, Y is true.
Examples
Discord examples
- 1
According to my school teacher who is an expert on the globe, the globe is true.
the teacher has neither confirmed or denied that claim, they are only teaching you what they learned, what would prove it true is evidence.
- 2
my mothers uncle best friends boyfriend is an astronaut, he is an expert on outer space so outer space is true.
he might be an expert, he might also be a liar, what would prove it true however is evidence
- 3
neal disgrace tyson is a world famous astrophysicist and therefor an expert science communicator therefor anything he says about science must be true.
neal might have heard about science, that does not mean anything he says must be true
- 4
bill nye told me the earth globe is a closed system, he is an expert on the globe speaking on tv, so the globe must be true and a closed system.
bill did say earth is a closed system and speak about it on tv but that does not make him an expert or automatically true
- 5
"I saw on television that the entertainer Bill Nye says that the Earth is a globe because ships disappear over the horizon."
ships do disapear bottom up sometimes due to know optical effects, in order to disregard those and assume it is due to earth curve, just because bill nye said it, is foolish since that claim is lacking in evidence.
Other Examples
- 1
Richard Dawkins, an evolutionary biologist and perhaps the foremost expert in the field, says that evolution is true. Therefore, it's true.
Richard Dawkins certainly knows about evolution, and he can confidently tell you what he believes to be true, but that doesn't make it true. What would make it true is Evidence.
- 2
How do I know the adult film industry is the third largest industry in the United States? Derek Shlongmiester, the adult film star of over 50 years, said it was. That's how I know.
Shlongmiester may be an industry expert, as well as have a huge talent, but a claim such as the one made would require supporting evidence. For the record, the adult film industry may be large, but on a scale from 0 to 12 inches, it's only about a fraction of an inch.
Weakness
Dealt with by considering whether the person supposed to have authority had a sound reason for making the assertion which is attributed to him.
Extra information
the Exception:
Be very careful not to confuse "deferring to an authority on the issue" with the appeal to authority fallacy. Remember, a fallacy is an error in reasoning. Dismissing the council of legitimate experts and authorities turns good skepticism into denialism.
The appeal to authority is a fallacy in argumentation, but deferring to an authority is a reliable heuristic that we all use virtually every day on issues of relatively little importance.
There is always a chance that any authority can be wrong, that’s why the critical thinker accepts facts provisionally. It is not at all unreasonable (or an error in reasoning) to accept information as provisionally true by credible authorities.
Of course, the reasonableness is moderated by the claim being made (i.e., how extraordinary, how important) and the authority (how credible, how relevant to the claim).
The appeal to authority is more about claims that require evidence than about facts. For example, if your tour guide told you that Vatican City was founded February 11, 1929, and you accept that information as true, you are not committing a fallacy (because it is not in the context of argumentation) nor are you being unreasonable.
Question authority -- or become the authority that people look to for answers.
Ref Rulings
for quick and easy fallacy moderation
Objection Stands
Objection Stands, That is an appeal to Authority fallacy
an assertion was deemed true or False because of the position or authority of the person asserting it, without any other supporting evidence offered.
please reformulate the argument without this fallacy or concede and move on. failure to do either and you'll forfeit the debate. Please continue.
Objection Removed
Objection Removed, That is not an appeal to authority.
an appeal to authority means an assertion is deemed true or False because of the position or authority of the person asserting it, without any other supporting evidence offered.
please reformulate the counter argument without the fallacy fallacy variation or concede and move on. failure to do either and you'll forfeit the debate. Please continue.
