Keith Burgess-Jackson, J.D., Ph.D.

As many of you know from reading this blog, Keith's Law asserts that authoritativeness is inversely proportional to partisanship. Ceteris paribus, the more partisan you are, the less authoritative you are. Ceteris paribus, the less partisan you are, the more authoritative you are. Consumer Reports has had a reputation for authoritativeness, but only because it was (viewed as) nonpartisan. That has changed. See here. I expect people to stop viewing Consumer Reports as authoritative, even on things like washing machines, diapers, and microwave ovens.