Comment by teorema

The problem is now the superstardom narrative has grown in importance in academics, regardless of validity. It's not just something we project into the past anymore, it's something that is needed to project into the future, to survive at the most basic levels. Everyone is the next W&C (ignoring the complexity of the truth around that narrative), until they have tenure or are pushed out altogether. In this way false narratives about the past become impossible goals for the future, which leads to false claims in the present.