Appeal to authority

Appeal to authority is when you say something is true because a famous or important person said it—instead of giving a proper reason. That person might not be an expert on this topic, or experts might disagree, or they might be wrong. Authority can be relevant when the person is actually an expert and we have good reason to defer, but "a famous person said so" isn't enough. The same idea appears as the cognitive bias of authority bias: we tend to over-weight an authority's opinion. Related: Authority bias.

Examples

• A famous footballer says this cereal is the best, so it must be.

• A celebrity endorsed this diet, so it works.

• The professor said it, so it's true.

• The government says it's safe, so it is.