Research methodology · Primary sources · Corrections
Redacted Forge treats American history like an investigation. A compelling story is not enough: material conclusions should be traceable to identifiable records, source context, corroboration, counterevidence, and a clear statement of what the surviving evidence does—and does not—support.
Truth boundary: this page declares methodology and disclosure rules. It does not prove that any specific File has passed factual, identity, rights, owner-review, upload, scheduling, or public-release gates.
Search results, videos, transcripts, comments, rumors, podcasts, social posts, and repeated internet claims can point toward a question. They do not become evidence merely because they are popular or repeated.
For material claims, Redacted Forge looks for primary records, official records, archives, scholarly work, reputable reporting, datasets, archaeology, oral histories, and affected-community sources appropriate to the question.
The narration is not allowed to be more certain than the record. Strong criticism requires stronger evidence; incomplete evidence stays incomplete rather than being upgraded for drama.
A Redacted File should identify the strongest good-faith alternative explanation, relevant contradictory evidence, source limitations, and uncertainty. Power or notoriety increases scrutiny; it does not create a presumption of guilt.
A document in an archive proves that the document exists in that collection; it does not automatically prove every statement inside it. A proposal is not the same as an executed operation. An allegation is not a conviction. Custody is not endorsement.
Animated or reconstructed scenes, generated visuals, inference, hypothetical staging, and editorial illustration must not be presented as authentic archival evidence. Animation can make history easier to understand, but original records remain visibly distinct from reconstruction.
Named historical people should not receive invented private dialogue, private thoughts, motives, or emotional certainty presented as fact.
When better evidence changes a conclusion, the correction should be visible. Material changes preserve version history, explain what changed, and reopen a finding when the new record requires it.
Advertising, sponsorship, affiliate eligibility, or another commercial relationship does not raise historical confidence. Paid relationships are disclosed when applicable and do not get to strengthen weak evidence.
Classroom resources can be built from the same verified research, but Redacted Forge does not claim accreditation, institutional endorsement, expert review, standards approval, or certification unless that specific status is real and documented.
For a published investigation, the useful chain is: claim → source → locator → corroboration → counterevidence → what the source proves → what it does not prove → evidence-calibrated finding → unresolved question → what would change the answer → correction history.
