Appeal to Trust Fallacy: When (Un)trustworthiness Isn’t Enough [#FallacyFridays]
Welcome to #FallacyFridays, your opportunity to improve your critical thinking skills. Every Friday, I post a logical fallacy, or flaw in reasoning, that we should avoid making. Today’s logical fallacy is the appeal to trust fallacy. Make sure to read all the way to the end so you can take the quiz to test your understanding of the fallacy. 🤓
But before we get into it, I want you to know about a tool that may help you understand this and other fallacies. I know that some people learn better by writing or typing. If that is you, download this FREE digital copy of “#FallacyFridays: The Workbook.” It was designed to follow alongside #FallacyFridays lessons in order for you to better understand logical fallacies.
What is the Appeal to Trust Fallacy?
The appeal to trust fallacy is a very common fallacy that arises often from our observed patterns of reliability and our own biases.
The appeal to trust fallacy occurs when we say that all things that come from something or someone are reliable/unreliable based on the trustworthiness/untrustworthiness of the source.
This fallacy is a subset of the genetic fallacy, the fallacy that occurs when you use the source of something to judge if it is true, false, good, bad, etc.
The appeal to trust fallacy is a flawed way of reasoning because trustworthiness and untrustworthiness are not always constant. Also, it is entirely possible for trustworthy sources to give inaccurate or unreliable information for reasons other than being dishonest (ex. typos, not being thorough, etc.). It is also possible for untrustworthy sources to mention true things.
Something is true primarily because of the accuracy of its content, not because of the trustworthiness of its source. Something is untrue primarily because of the inaccuracy of its content, not because of untrustworthiness of its… Click To TweetExamples of the Appeal to Trust Fallacy
CNN is not a trusted news source. It is filled with liberal propaganda. Nothing truthful can come out of it.
Gina is an honest fitness trainer. I’m confident all of her clients got the results she advertised.
Cara’s Bridal Boutique has a trustworthy reputation and says that all of their customers are satisfied with their purchase. Given their reputation, I know all of their customers were satisfied with their purchase.
It's one thing to notice a pattern of (un)reliability & say something is (un)likely true. It's another to assume that all information from a source is (un)true based on the source's (un)trustworthiness. The latter is a fallacy. Click To TweetQuiz Time!
Now that you’ve learned about the appeal to trust fallacy, here’s a quiz to test your understanding. Which one of the following answer choices contains the appeal to trust fallacy?
A. I know this news article is true because it was thoroughly fact-checked. You can trust it.
B. Every testimonial on her site is legit. I know this because she’s not a liar.
C. Farrah is one of the most honest people I know.
D. I wouldn’t join that campus club if I were you. They have a reputation of ripping off members in the past and there’s a chance they might do the same to you.
Enter your answer choice below! 👇🏾
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