Batch 7 QA Notes — Sentinel Review

Date: 2026-03-24
Reviewer: Sentinel (QA Agent)
Status: NEEDS_FIXES

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Summary

4 of 5 posts pass all criteria cleanly. 1 post has a minor but actionable issue (missing legal disclaimer).

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Post-by-Post Results

✅ Post 1: batch-7-how-much-should-you-invest-each-month.md

• Factual accuracy: PASS. S&P 500 10%/7% return assumptions are standard. Compound interest tables are internally consistent with monthly compounding. The $100/month for 40 years at 10% figure (~$584K) is in the plausible range.
• No fake social proof: PASS. No testimonials or fabricated results.
• SEO frontmatter: PASS. All required fields present (title, slug, description, keywords, author, date).
• Tone: PASS. Conversational, encouraging without being salesy.
• No legal risk: PASS. No specific stock recommendations. Disclaimer present.
• Word count: PASS. 1,462 words.

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✅ Post 2: batch-7-beginners-guide-dividend-aristocrats.md

• Factual accuracy: PASS. Dividend streak figures for JNJ (60+), PG (65+), KO (60+), O (25+), TGT (50+) are accurate. J&J/Kenvue spin-off context is correctly noted. NOBL and SDY are real ETFs. Yield-on-cost math (3% yield, 6% growth: $300 → ~$401 → ~$537 → ~$963) checks out using standard future-value compounding (Year N = 300 × 1.06^N).
• No fake social proof: PASS. Examples are clearly framed as illustrative, not testimonials.
• SEO frontmatter: PASS. All required fields present.
• Tone: PASS. Clear, beginner-friendly, not pushy.
• No legal risk: PASS. Explicitly states examples are "not a buy recommendation." Disclaimer present.
• Word count: PASS. 1,634 words.

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✅ Post 3: batch-7-roth-ira-vs-401k-2026.md

• Factual accuracy: PASS. 2026 401(k) limit of $23,500 matches the IRS 2025 figure (unchanged from 2024→2025 bump) and is a reasonable assumption for 2026. Catch-up limit of $31,000 (50+) is accurate. Combined employer+employee limit of $70,000 is correct. Roth IRA limit of $7,000 and phase-out thresholds ($150K single / $236K MFJ) match 2025 IRS rules. RMD age of 73 and Roth 401(k) RMD elimination under SECURE 2.0 starting 2024 are both accurate.
• No fake social proof: PASS.
• SEO frontmatter: PASS. All required fields present.
• Tone: PASS. Plain-English, practical, zero fluff.
• No legal risk: PASS. Framed as educational throughout. Disclaimer present.
• Word count: PASS. 1,684 words.

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✅ Post 4: batch-7-stock-market-corrections-explained.md

• Factual accuracy: PASS. Key historical figures check out: Black Monday ~22% single-day drop ✓, dot-com peak-to-trough ~49% ✓, GFC ~57% peak-to-trough ✓, S&P all-time highs recovered by 2013 ✓, COVID crash ~34% in ~5 weeks with recovery by August 2020 ✓. Loss aversion behavioral economics reference is accurate.
• No fake social proof: PASS.
• SEO frontmatter: PASS. All required fields present.
• Tone: PASS. Calm, fact-grounded, does a good job de-escalating fear without minimizing real risk.
• No legal risk: PASS. No specific stock advice. Disclaimer present.
• Word count: PASS. 2,000 words.

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⚠️ Post 5: batch-7-3-fund-portfolio-beats-active-traders.md

ISSUE: Missing legal disclaimer

All other four posts in this batch end with a standard disclaimer block, e.g.:

Disclaimer: This article is for educational purposes only and does not constitute financial advice. Past market performance does not guarantee future results. Consult a financial advisor for personalized guidance.

Post 5 ends abruptly with a marketing CTA for the Graham Calculator and no disclaimer. Given that this post makes specific claims about outperformance statistics (80-95% of active funds underperform), recommends specific fund tickers (FZROX, FZILX, etc.), and advises readers on asset allocation by age group, the absence of the disclaimer is a legal risk gap.

Suggested fix: Add the following block at the very end of the file (after the final italicized Graham Calculator CTA):

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*Disclaimer: This article is for educational purposes only and does not constitute financial advice. Past market performance does not guarantee future results. Fund performance and expense ratios are subject to change. Consult a financial advisor for personalized investment guidance.*

All other criteria for Post 5:

• Factual accuracy: PASS. SPIVA 80-95% underperformance statistic is well-documented. US market ~60% of global cap is accurate. All fund tickers (FZROX, FZILX, FXNAX, VTI, VTSAX, VXUS, BND, etc.) are real and correctly described. FZROX/FZILX 0% expense ratio is accurate.
• No fake social proof: PASS.
• SEO frontmatter: PASS. Required fields (title, slug, description, keywords, author, date) all present. Note: category and readTime fields are absent (present in all other posts) — minor inconsistency but not a QA blocker.
• Tone: PASS. Punchy and direct. Slightly more opinionated than the other posts but stays on the right side of educational vs. salesy.
• No legal risk: FAIL (see above — missing disclaimer).
• Word count: PASS. 1,814 words.

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Action Required

1. Post 5 only: Add the standard disclaimer block to the end of batch-7-3-fund-portfolio-beats-active-traders.md.
2. Optional (consistency): Add category and readTime fields to Post 5's frontmatter to match the other four posts.

No other changes needed. All other posts are publication-ready.