Need advice for testing of hypotheses related to the self-citation method

[ReneZ]

To apply Bayes one does not need a prior probability at all. Indeed, discriminating between prior and evidence is ihmo unnecessary and misleading. Start from a condition of absolutely zero knowledge, that is to say P(H) = 0.5 and P(notH) = 0.5 This is the only 'prior' one needs, and it's trivial.

But that is not "no prior", it is "prior prob of hoax = 0.5".

I agree with Stolfi here. The a priori 'information' used in Bayesian analysis may not be meaningful or 'good'.

As mentioned in another post, it has the capability of setting one off in the wrong direction. 
That last point is of course not always the case.