Questions about how this works

A person must be living, be a recognizable public figure in an eligible category (actor, athlete, or astronaut), have at least one meaningful and independently documented example of positive ethical conduct, satisfy our published standards for personal and professional integrity, have no substantiated disqualifying misconduct, and pass a documented editorial review with a recorded decision. Achievement, fame, and the absence of scandal do not qualify anyone. The full standard is published on Our Standards.

Yes. Self-nominations are welcome and are evaluated to exactly the same standard as any other nomination. Tell us about documented conduct and point us to sources; a nomination is a lead for research, not a vote.

No. Most eligible people have simply not been reviewed, and many people of fine character have no public record of the kind our standard requires. We never publish who has been nominated, declined, or placed outside our scope, and nothing on this site should be read as a statement about anyone who does not appear on it.

Yes. Profiles are reviewed periodically and whenever credible new information reaches us. Recognition can be reaffirmed, suspended while a reassessment takes place, or withdrawn with a written rationale recorded internally. We notify the subject where we can and give them an opportunity to respond. Suspended and withdrawn profiles are removed from public view, and we do not publish the reasons.

Relationship integrity is one of our five dimensions, because honesty and fidelity to commitments are part of character. We consider only what is publicly documented: for example, a person who publicly acknowledged and took responsibility for breaking a commitment. We do not speculate about anyone's private life, infer infidelity from friendships, or treat unverified allegations as fact. Relationship structures differ, and consensual nonmonogamy is not inherently unethical; the standard is honesty, informed consent, and adherence to agreed commitments. For most people this dimension is simply recorded as not independently assessed.

Every example on a profile is supported by at least one source that a researcher retrieved and read, recorded with its publisher, dates, excerpt, and evidence type, and then approved by a reviewer. We prefer primary sources, contemporaneous documentation, credible independent reporting, and verifiable public records, and we rate the strength of the evidence on each example. We never fabricate citations, imply private knowledge, or treat anonymous accusations as established facts.

Yes. Anyone can request a factual correction, submit additional evidence, or report a material inaccuracy through the corrections and appeals form. A recognized person, or their representative, can respond to anything on their profile through the same form, and we record and consider every response. Requests are tracked with a reference number.

No. Reviewers record a qualitative assessment against a published rubric (evidence strength, significance, consistency, accountability, and impact) and write a rationale. We deliberately do not compute a character score, and the directory is not a ranking.

A named person makes every decision and is recorded in our audit trail. Software, including AI tools, may help identify candidates, organize evidence, summarize sources, and flag conflicting information, but it never determines anyone's ethical character and never publishes a recognition. Publication is blocked by the system unless a decision, rationale, living-status verification, and reviewer-approved evidence are all in place.

These three groups regularly occupy positions of public influence, and their behavior shapes social expectations and cultural norms. They are also fields where conduct is often well documented. We may add categories over time, applying the same standard.

Yes. We accept no payment or consideration for nomination, review, recognition, placement, or removal of information, sell no advertising, and take no sponsorship from subjects or their representatives. Team members recuse themselves from reviewing anyone they have a personal or financial relationship with.

We use only appropriately licensed portraits, with the credit and license displayed on the profile. Where no licensed portrait is available, a monogram placeholder is shown instead.