DarkRecord publishes material that ranges from documented historical investigations to original fiction. Those forms can share atmosphere, first-person narration and disturbing subject matter, but they do not carry the same evidential weight. The Evidence & Experience Index explains the label applied to each story, what readers may reasonably infer from it and which editorial checks belong to that category.
Why classification comes before atmosphere
A frightening story can feel convincing because of precise details, a realistic voice or familiar locations. None of those qualities proves that an event occurred. The archive therefore separates narrative power from factual status. A classification appears with the article so readers do not have to guess whether they are reading public-record reporting, testimony, analysis or fiction.
The label is not a score for how believable a story feels. It describes the kind of evidence available and the editorial promise being made. The complete publication rules are set out in the Editorial Standards, while factual changes follow the Corrections Policy.
Documented case
A documented case concerns an identifiable event supported by public records, institutional archives, published research, established reporting or other sources readers can inspect. The article should distinguish established facts from later interpretations, folklore and speculation. Where reliable accounts conflict, the disagreement is stated rather than hidden.
Documented does not mean solved. It means the underlying event and the principal evidence can be traced. A historical murder may remain unresolved; a disappearance may still have no confirmed outcome. The label promises source transparency, not certainty. Browse the documented true-case archive for examples.
Personal account
A personal account is testimony attributed to an identifiable contributor or author who describes an experience they say happened to them. The archive may verify identity or correspondence privately without being able to prove the event itself. The article should preserve uncertainty and avoid turning memory, interpretation or belief into established fact.
Personal testimony can be valuable without functioning like a police report. It records what a person remembers, how the experience affected them and which explanations they considered. Editorial review may clarify chronology, remove identifying details and correct internal inconsistencies while leaving the contributor’s meaning intact.
Reader submission
A reader submission is supplied through the archive’s private story-submission process. The contributor may use a real name, an alias or anonymity. Unless the article says otherwise, publication confirms editorial review and permission—not independent verification of every event described.
The source note explains what was checked. A submission may be declined when it targets a private person, includes unsupported allegations, appears copied or cannot be published safely. Anonymous does not mean fabricated, but it limits what the archive and its readers can independently confirm.
Editorial analysis
Editorial analysis examines evidence, competing explanations, recurring themes or the cultural history surrounding a case. It may draw conclusions, but those conclusions must be connected to the cited material and clearly identified as analysis. The article should represent credible competing interpretations when the disagreement itself is important.
Analysis is not a licence to fill evidential gaps with certainty. Statements such as “the evidence suggests,” “the most plausible explanation is” and “the record does not establish” are used deliberately. Readers should be able to see where source material ends and editorial judgement begins.
Fiction
Fiction is original imaginative writing. It may use a documentary tone, an anonymous voice, realistic locations or the structure of a submitted account, but it is labelled openly. It must not be presented as a verified reader experience, historical event or police record. A source note may clarify that names, places and events are narrative inventions.
Clear fiction labels protect both readers and the credibility of the factual archive. They also give writers freedom to create unsettling first-person stories without misleading the audience. Fiction can be found throughout the main story archive alongside other clearly marked classifications.
Sources, links and visible uncertainty
Factual articles should link to the strongest practical sources available: official records, institutional archives, primary documents, peer-reviewed research or reputable reporting with direct knowledge of the subject. A long source list is not automatically better. Links should help readers verify a material claim or understand why an interpretation was chosen.
For general guidance, the Society of Professional Journalists’ Code of Ethics emphasizes accuracy, context, correction and clear distinctions between reporting and other forms of content. The Library of Congress guide to primary sources explains how original records can be evaluated in context. These resources inform the method; they do not imply endorsement or membership.
Corrections, reviews and changing classifications
A classification may change when new evidence appears. A submission can become a documented case if reliable public material later supports it. A supposed historical account may be relabelled as fiction when its origin cannot be substantiated. Significant changes should be explained rather than silently rewritten.
Readers can report an error, broken source or misleading label through the contact page. Privacy requests are handled under the Privacy Policy. To understand the purpose and people behind the project, visit About DarkRecord.