Use an Evidence Matrix for Name Verification

01 / State the claim

Verify one proposed connection at a time

Write the narrow question being tested without assuming its answer. A useful question names the two records and asks whether their own sources establish a connection.

Do not begin with a biography assembled from search results. That structure quietly treats the merger as complete before any evidence has been examined.

02 / Build four columns

Separate support, contradiction, provenance, and unknowns

For each source, record what directly supports the claim, what conflicts with it, where the information originated, and what the page does not establish. Keeping these columns separate prevents repetition from being mistaken for corroboration.

Use neutral descriptions instead of copying personal details. The matrix should preserve the logic of the check without becoming a new identity record.

1. Direct support
2. Contradictory context
3. Source provenance
4. Material unknowns

03 / Weight the source

Authority and independence matter together

A primary page responsible for a record can carry more weight than an index that summarizes it. Several copied pages do not become independent simply because they have different logos.

Record whether each source is responsible, derivative, or unclear. Confidence should rise only when independent, relevant sources directly support the same specific connection.

04 / End with limits

A conclusion should preserve what remains unknown

Summarize the strongest support, the strongest contradiction, and the missing evidence. Then choose supported, unsupported, or unresolved without forcing every check into a positive identification.

An unresolved result is useful when it prevents an unsupported merger. The matrix succeeds by making the evidentiary boundary visible to the next reader.